Piffle review - "A different sort of mobile experience"
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iOS
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It certainly appears that the ball-bouncing genre is having something of a renaissance in recent years. From hyper-casual games to the likes of holedown, there's a ball-bouncing game for everyone.

Piffle, published by Crossy Road developer Hipster Whale, takes the basic template of the genre and then layers on about a pound and a half of cuteness. It's not over exaggerating to say that everything about the game is adorable.

And, perhaps most importantly, it offers up plenty of simple fun as well. It's not as heavy as holedown, nor as light as the puff-piece block breakers we've seen from developers like Voodoo. It's somewhere in between, which suits it just fine.

A bounce of courage

After a brief bit of preamble involving some light kidnapping, you're introduced to the stars of the show. These are the titular piffles, which are super-chibi little fuzzy balls that you're going to throw at things.

Every level starts with you with a small number of piffles, but there are more scattered amongst the blocks you're attempting to destroy. Hit one and they'll join your squad, giving you more ammo for your next shot.

The levels are all about clearing a set number of blocks. You can see how many you're trying to trash at the top of the screen, as well as being able to keep track of your score. The more points you get, the better your reward.

Piffle iOS review screenshot - A level filling up

There are different kinds of blocks as well. Some of them explode, some of them move around the screen, and some of them are cut off at different angles to try and throw your carefully aimed shots off.

You'll get your own power-ups to play with though, from sunglasses that let you see where your shot is going to end up, to powerful piffles that do more damage. You can bounce through glowing lights to charge your strikes, and there are bombs to use too.

Piffle just about manages to keep things fresh, but if you've ever played a ball-breaker before, you're going to know exactly what to expect, even when a new idea is tossed into the mix.

Load of piffle

This isn't the most original game in the world then, but that doesn't have to be a bad thing. Familiarity is just as capable of creating fun as a new challenge is, and there's so much charm here it's difficult to get angry about anything it does.

It might not have the staying power of Crossy Road, but this is a different sort of mobile experience. You jump in, progress a little, and then jump out. And for those play-sessions that demand briefness, it's going to be perfect.

Piffle review - "A different sort of mobile experience"

A perfectly designed little mobile game that's you're going to play with a big smile on your face
Score
Harry Slater
Harry Slater
Harry used to be really good at Snake on the Nokia 5110. Apparently though, digital snake wrangling isn't a proper job, so now he writes words about games instead.