Slyder
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| Slyder

There are many fiendish inventions in the world: Rubiks cubes, chopsticks, and onions, to name but three. But they must all now step aside for a far more deadly, mightier, trickier concoction. No man, woman, boy, girl or undecided should dare brave it unless willing to put their minds through immeasurable torment and suffering. For this dear reader, is Slyder, and if you buy it you'll never, ever be the same again.

Slyder could have been another average puzzler, with its sights set on the kind of mass-market appeal boasted by countless other match-the-colours/shapes games. Instead, it goes right back to the drawing board. Are graphics important? No, not really, so they're thrown out at the first stage. Is music the key? No, not particularly, so the sound is pared back to the bare bones. What's left? Well, it may be clichéd, but it's the gameplay, and it shines forth at the heart of what is an incredibly uninteresting looking game. If it wasn't so playable, involving, and downright addictive, Slyder would be doomed.

Your job is to guide the character, Slyder, around the various mazes to get to the end of the level. But it's not that simple. You see, Slyder slides. Push him in a direction and he'll skid along until he hits a wall, enemy, spring, or hazard. Walls are fine as he'll come to a stop with nothing worse than a headache, but pits, gaps in the wall (leading to a dreadful plummet) and monsters are all a no-no. It's up to you to work out a way through the maze to the exit, and in the later levels you'll need to do this without exceeding a maximum number of moves.

The game has seemingly endless levels of ever-increasing difficulty, but thankfully there is a gentle learning curve; just as well given that, after the first few levels, the brain-bending, mind-melting, drool-dripping harder ones kick in. This is not an easy game by any stretch of the imagination. Figuring out the moves you'll need to make in order to get to the end proves to be very, very tough, and you should only brave this game if you've got near-unlimited quantities of patience.

While you might see this as a worthwhile challenge, it's also a potential problem, as you will inevitably hit a level that stumps you. Either through luck or intelligence you may crack it, but if after quite a few goes you don't, the hold up might well become the end of the game in terms of you ever wanting to play it. The levels become so utterly fiendish that you'll be full of admiration for the dastardly way in which they've been put together, but just as likely is the realisation that, as you come to a screeching halt, you never wish to set eyes on Slyder again.

Of course, you could pass it around your friends and share the burden, bribing them with jelly tots and promising jammy dodgers if they manage to do succeed where you've failed. But whatever happens, there will be as many special, magical moments with Slyder as infuriating ones, raising the bar for excrutiatingly enjoyable pocket gaming.

Slyder

More addictive than chocolate-coated candy, and just as hardcore
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