Huebris

Touching colours is easy in Huebris, but figuring out where they go is as tough as grasping a rainbow. A multitude of shades act like chromatic chess pieces in this easily handled strategic puzzler.

Huebris presents a jumble of squares to be arranged by colour. The shades of each square must match the background on which it rests. Simply put, a red block has to lie on red backing, green squares on a verdant backdrop, and so on. Completing a puzzle is a matter of setting every coloured square atop its matching background.

The twist comes in how the squares are moved on the screen. Squares can't be moved around at will - instead, each colour behaves in a unique fashion. Yellow squares can be repositioned two spaces to the left, right, up, or down. Green pieces can only be moved directly onto parts of the screen that are shaded in green.

Like in a game of chess, solving a level comes down to manipulating the pieces on the screen in such a way that each ends up in the right spot. Strategy plays a role, forcing you to think ahead and abandon seemingly straightforward solutions that result in dead ends in favour of more convoluted tactics that get the job done. It's brilliant, even if the game's trappings deserve more polish then they have been given.

Sound effects are lacking, as is any music. You're welcome to play your own tunes, though some default music would be a good option. Poor menu design forces you to head to the options in order to select a mode of play, whereas it should be available from the main menu.

Fortunately, the included modes instill Huebris with value. Puzzle mode challenges you to finish a series of increasingly difficult levels, whereas the Puzzle Generator randomly creates a one-off level for you to tackle.

Most intriguing of the trio is Top mode, where coloured backdrops fall from the top of the screen and matching those with like-coloured squares clears lines for points. It's an inventive mechanic and one that sets Huebris as unique.

Along with changes to the aforementioned unpolished parts, the game would benefit from online leaderboards to encourage competitive scoring. Not that we want to rain on Huebris's parade. After all, rainbows always follow a downpour.