Minimalist pachinko-inspired iPad action game double drop is even more fun to play than it looks

It's easy to believe double drop dev Gerard Rallo's claims that his new game is inspired by spending many a late night playing pachinko in Tokyo.

Like in those incredibly popular Japanese arcade games, you drop a ball through a space full of pins in double drop. The only difference is that the pins are replaced here with circles, black holes, and triangles.

The idea is to tap the bottom of the screen to send a ball falling upwards. Your mission is to use the ball to collect the different coloured triangles floating around. For you to score, the triangle has to reach the other side.

Working against you is an enemy, either controlled by the AI or another player (if you're both playing on a single tablet). Your foe can send balls to collide with yours, stealing the triangle you've collected in the process.

You also run the risk of running out of balls if you don't pick up the special circles that grant you more.

That's all double drop is, in truth. Then again, the fact that another player is directly involved makes it a more complex experience than pachinko. And, well, that's been popular for nearly a century.

With its clean and colourful aesthetic, double drop looks as good as it is fun to play. It's hard to stop when you're playing it just by yourself. So, I imagine that having a human opponent to play against could result in a fair few 'lost' hours.

You can purchase double drop for your iPad for £1.49 / $1.99 right this second.