Tilestorm HD

Tilestorm HD got off to a bad start with me - it made me feel very stupid, very early on.

To someone who prides himself on being pretty good at these sliding-tile puzzles, this was an early shock to the system.

It soon dawned on me that the game was more clever than the initial setup had sounded, leaving me to feel conversely more stupid with each passing level.

The aim of Tilestorm HD is to get the adorable little android from A to B by laying out the tiles into a path he can follow.

Although there's a timer at the top of the screen, this robot is quite a patient soul, and so the clock only serves to remind you of how embarrassingly long you've been manipulating virtual road around the screen.

You do this entirely via the touchscreen. Touch a block, drag it into position, and release: this is a control scheme that's been tried and tested across the smartphone market, and it works as well here as can be expected, never slowing you down when you're on a logical roll.

Once you've completed the puzzle, the robot will roll his way around the newly created maze to the exit, which after 20 minutes of careful fiddling and fruitless head-scratching can be one of the most satisfying sights in the world.

There are exactly 100 puzzles in Tilestorm HD, divided equally into Industrial, Medieval, Jungle, and Egyptian sections (possibly a slightly confused Crystal Maze tribute), which keeps things fresh by mixing up the mechanics along the way.

Some levels require simple tile sliding, while others call upon the manipulation of the X and Y axes, too - think Rubik's Cube and you'll be along the right lines.

Most stages contain immovable blocks that you have to work around, and others will require you to reuse tiles later on. The game certainly doesn't allow you to stay in a single mindset for long.

It does have a peculiar learning curve, however, with some early levels proving tougher than the end-of-section puzzles. But given the game allows you to play any level in the unlocked section, this isn't a big deal, just a strange design decision.

It's odd considering everything else here is so polished. The graphics are crisp and clear, and the music manages to avoid being disruptive (although in all likelihood, you'll end up putting your phone on silent soon enough).

All of this combines to make a mobile title that's entirely suited to the medium. It's great in short doses, with plenty of content to keep you coming back.

It's not going to win any awards for originality, but it should keep a few brains teased, and that's ultimately the most important thing a puzzle game can offer.