Obulis

Get the colored balls into matching pots across 150 levels, each with a different setup and unique solution. That is the premise behind Meridian 4's latest puzzle game, Obulis. The concept is simple enough but there is a twist: physics. Players have to deal with effects such as gravity, momentum, impacts and recoil. And just for good measure add things such as cannons, catapults, moving wheels and more. This isn't your mothers puzzle game.

Obulis is made up of three chapters, each containing a map with squares representing levels. As you solve each level you unlock the ones beyond it. The maps have forks in them allowing you to play levels partially in a non-linear order. Clicking on an unlocked square starts the corresponding level. At the start of each level you are presented with a pre-defined layout of colored balls and matching pots. Your objective is to get all the balls into their corresponding pots. If any ball enters a pot of a different color, the level fails and restarts. Some of the balls are black and have no matching pot. These cannot enter any pot without failing the level and serve to facilitate the solution to the level.

Some of the balls are sitting on objects while others are hanging on chains. You begin to solve the map by cutting a chain. This causes the ball to fall or if the ball has two chains, causes it to swing requiring you to cut the other chain. As the ball falls and hits something it will either bounce off of it and fly off in a realistic trajectory or if it hits something that is mobile will also make it begin moving. To solve each level you need to figure out in what order balls need to begin moving and how they are supposed to interact with each other. Figuring out the order is not all that difficult as there are usually no more than several balls to worry about. However figuring out how balls are supposed to interact with each other is much more difficult.

Many levels have designs that borderline on brilliance and you will laugh and cheer when you realize the solution and then execute it properly. Others feel like they have been pulled from the depths of hell and will either take dozens if not hundreds of tries or you will be ridiculously lucky and get it on your second attempt. Yes I'm talking about you level Pond 3. The significant challenge comes from realizing and then attaining proper timing. Often as balls are swinging the chain has to be cut at a specific moment to make the ball careen into a precise spot. This requires very precise timing and attention as a split second too early or too late will cause the ball to impact an object from the wrong side or angle creating undesirable results. Combined with areas where balls need to collide mid air and you need to prepare yourself for a lot of attempts to get things just right.

Just as you begin to get comfortable with the style of play the game introduces trajectory altering objects such as moving platforms and cannons. These are used to redirect balls into areas of the level where they would otherwise not end up. And then there are the big balls. These oversized balls don't fit in the same places as the regular balls do and serve to further complicate the levels solution. With all these different colored and sized balls, moving objects, shooting objects and swinging chains it is no surprise that there is plenty of challenge and variation. Eventually players will hit a wall, a seemingly insurmountable level whose solution will evade you. While the game does offer you a Show Solution option, it is not always available, and on more than one occasion we were forced to look for help and solutions outside of the game.

The games graphics won't compete with the likes of Crysis but for a puzzle based game they are well above par. Maps are typically clumped into groups with each group having its own visual style corresponding to its placement on the map such as a waterfall or dungeon. There is also a nice musical score thrown into the mix to further improve the games presentation and feel. Obulis is one puzzle game that will not put you to sleep and is guaranteed to challenge your brain cells and timing, just be prepared for some serious trial and error with the harder levels.

GameSNAFU Rating: 4 out of 5

Sylvester "Annex" Rozylo
Executive Editor