Pocketball

If Pocketball proves anything, it's that I'm pretty rubbish when it comes to physics. Had I been the apple that fell on Newton's head, I'd have more than likely missed him completely and kept civilization back by centuries.

Pocketball is all about putting such physics to the test by having you predict just how a collection of falling balls will react when they come into contact with a variety of objects mid-journey, the aim of the game being to guide said balls into colour-coded pockets.

Yes, Pocketball has one of those refreshingly literal names. Moving from one puzzle to the next, the aim is escort coloured balls falling from the top into the matching pockets situated on the screen. You accomplish this by drawing lines, or ropes between dots strategically placed around each level in order to bounce each ball into its respective target.

You have as long as you want and as many tries as you need, experimentation being the key to success in minefield-like levels - literally, some levels are a minefield.

That's because your ropes aren't the only force to consider. There are pulsing arrows that blow your balls in a particular direction, often bouncing them into their path the easiest way of getting them to their goal. Nukes, on the other hand, have to be avoided at all costs.

Not that you won't try, just to see what happens, at least once. While some of the puzzles are ridiculously difficult (the possible number of combinations of ropes on some levels seemingly running into the hundreds), the fun comes from finding your way.

Pocketball is all about experimenting with solutions, switching from drawing mode to eraser mode to easily scrub unwanted lines, then tapping the Circle button in the top-right to test your latest scheme.

If that success is hard to come by, then Pocketball is equally relaxed in terms of punishment, letting you skip hard encounters for the sake of moving on to other, friendlier stages.

It's a refreshing approach. Rival titles all too often put walls in front of walls in an attempt to up the challenge. Instead of any artificial hurdles, the difficulty is derived from its level design, the hoops you're expected to jump through coming with no hints. Success is much sweeter as a result.

The game does suffer, ever so slightly, because of that very calm and collected style. It relies almost entirely on you gelling with it from the off, with no sweets or carrots on sticks thrust in your face to keep you playing.

It's a fact that makes reviewing Pocketball a touch redundant: you'll know within seconds whether its puzzles are enough for you or not, and if the answer is 'yes' you'll find it hard not to keep coming back to it for burst after burst. Conversely, if it leaves you cold, then you're unlikely to warm to it half an hour down the line.

Either way, Pocketball deserves much respect, living or dying by the simplicity of its style and the complexity of its challenges rather than any kind of gimmick or merchandise tie-ins. Certainly not for everyone, but for those who become hooked this isn't far off being a hole-in-one.