Cardboard Castle – Review – iOS

The iOS seems to be getting a lot of attention recently with games that closely match AAA games on the consoles. Games like Dead Space 2, Rage, and Infinity Blade all look stunning and provide a glimpse into the future of mobile gaming, but what about the other mobile games? Games that are intended to be played in quick short bursts while on the go? Cardboard Castle from BulkyPix proves that these games have not been forgotten.

Story: Cardboard Castle features a fearless, bored knight on a quest to save the kingdom. With three mini campaigns, the knight must free the land of a paper eating monster, rescue the princess from a werewolf, and save the king.

Gameplay: Cardboard Castle is played in still frames – as if the environment was laid out on the floor with cardboard cut-outs. Each level requires certain tasks to be completed in order for the knight to continue. Using touch controls, players can interact with items and move some items around to complete small tasks. For instance, you may come across a small gap. Scroll around the level and you might see a tree. Find an axe or a pair of scissors, cut the tree down and use the plank from the tree as a bridge. The levels becoming increasingly difficult as you progress in that you may need to kill a soldier before you can steal his axe or change the scene from day to night so that the soldier falls asleep. Cutting down trees and creating bridges isn’t the only thing you’ll be doing. Water can be used to make paper mache out of trees; soldiers, cows and birds want apples in order to drop key and other small tasks. Being a puzzle game of sorts, these are all things that you, the player, complete.  The knight just waits and moves along when it’s safe to do so.

I found that the length of the game is not measured by the story or amount of levels but by the challenges involved with each level. Once you figure out what to do, the levels can be completed in a matter of seconds or a couple of minutes. With three campaigns and five levels in each, the overall completion time seems really short. However, the time it could take to look at the level and decide how to complete it could take 10-15+ minutes depending on how long it takes for you to figure out what is involved for each task in the level. I found that they required a lot of trial and error and restarts. If some tasks are too difficult to figure out on your own, you are able to reveal 2 clues per level using sovereign that you find and collect throughout each level.

Graphics/Audio: Something you don’t see too often, or if you do it’s not done as well, is the use of cardboard cut-outs. With the still frame touch and puzzle mechanics of the game, cut-outs were the perfect choice for Cardboard Castle. Characters and environments are drawn and cut-out to create a simulated 3D world with 2D side-scrolling gameplay. Soft charming music is played in the background that sets a happy and relaxing mood while trying to figure out the challenging levels.

Overall: Cardboard Castle is a charming little game that is easy to understand but a challenge to complete. With three mini campaigns, the game seems short but the challenging levels require many minutes to be poured into the game before you realize an hour has gone by or your battery is almost dead. With almost every level having only one way to complete it, there is little replay value aside from the time attack mode – a mode that tests your reaction and wits in small tasks to gain time and see how long you can progress in what seems to be an endless trail. I find myself playing during breaks at work or when I want a quick gaming fix. I recommend Cardboard Castle to anyone who may have enjoyed Scribblenauts on the DS and anyone who enjoys a good charming puzzle game.

Pros:
-Creative and charming cardboard cut-out art style
-Soft, happy fantasy music
-Addictive puzzle gameplay extended by time attack mode
-Great price at $0.99

Cons:
-Occasional freezing issues
-Relatively short and lacking re-playability

Overall score: 9/10

An iPhone code for this game was provided from the publisher for reviewing purposes.

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