Don't Pull

With a title like Don't Pull, it's not immediately obvious what you're going to get with this game. We were half convinced it was going to include some sort of advice on how to get a date. Fortunately it didn't – although we can't pretend we wouldn't be grateful for any help we can get. Instead, the words 'don't pull' simply relate to blocks that can be pushed about to kill enemies (but not pulled, as is made crystal clear).

Don't Pull will feel instantly familiar to anyone who's played an arcade puzzler before. So that's everyone. Each of its maze-like levels, which are built from blocks, are quite reminiscent of Pac-Man.

As in the arcade classic, you control a character who's darting about getting stuff – in this case a rabbit after blocks instead of a yellow blob after pellets – and you need to avoid running into any of the randomly patrolling enemies on the screen. If you do end up having a collision, the level resets and you need to start all over again.

Unlike in a Pac-Man game, though, you can easily kill these enemies for good. All you need to do is find a block you can get behind, wait for them to stand in front of it, then push it to squash them. Which is obviously handy, but it's also not something you want to do without a little forethought and consideration, since every block you push changes the dynamic of the maze you're in. Enemies that couldn't previously reach you might suddenly be able to, and more of the manhole type things enemies pop out of could be uncovered, meaning you end up with even more on the screen with you.

Stacking the odds a little more in your favour, though, is the fact that Don't Pull offers you two different ways to complete a level. You can either destroy all of the blocks on the screen, or kill all the enemies. If one way's proving a bit tricky, you essentially have a back-up plan.

All of that sums Don't Pull up. It's a simple but deviously difficult game; a game that looks far easier on the surface than it actually is. With different types of enemies – some of which even breathe fire across several squares to reach you from a distance – and power-ups that freeze enemies or blow up multiple ones, plenty of strategy is called for.

Regardless of how tough the individual enemies are, you're always outnumbered by them. Keeping an eye on new ones springing out of manholes while trying to take down existing ones is a fiddly balancing act.

Toughness aside, Don't Pull is undeniably fun to play if you have the perseverance to keep going. Our only gripe is with the seemingly random way enemies sometimes plough through blocks and the hard-done-by feeling we got when a dragon breathed fire through them to kill us. Perhaps we're missing something and the ones hopping through blocks were under the effect of some temporary power-up, but it didn't seem very clear when they were. Call us old-fashioned, but when there's a block between you and an enemy they shouldn't be able to jump through it and kill you.

Accept this bit of unfair play that ramps up the difficulty level and you'll have a perfectly good time with this game. It's simple, cute and moreish. In fact, it even made us forget for a few hours that we weren't able to pull – which means it must be good.