iPhone App Reviews

Nintaii – Updated with more promo codes!

T.J. Brumfield | Jul 16, 2009 Games, Uncategorized

User rating: (3 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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Edit: This app is on sale, 50% off until July 26th. That explains the lower price than what I’ve seen previously.

This may be my new favorite game on the iPhone, edging out Stoneloops! of Jurassica (which Swain also loved). Time will tell how well it holds up. Simply put, Concrete Software’s Nintaii is brilliant in its simplicity. So many games I play are rehashes of gameplay I’ve seen somewhere else. I’m shocked that I’ve never played a puzzle game exactly like this before.

The Japanese term ‘nintai’ means patience, perseverance, or endurance. Reading other’s peoples reviews and comments, I half expected the game to frustrate me with its difficulty. In reality, the calm colors and music seem to sooth me even as I attempt to unravel difficult puzzles. Gameplay consists solely of flipping a block around a level to its destination. The block itself is two squares long, or tall depending how it is flipped.

You can turn both music and sound effects off and on independently of each other, but again I rather enjoyed the music. You can also switch between three different graphical themes. I enjoy the classic look.

You flip the block with swipes, or optionally you can turn on tilt controls and tilt your iPhone/iPod. I found both work well. I never had problems with accidentally tilting in a direction I didn’t want. This isn’t a game of exact reflexes or dexterity. Rather, almost like tending to zen garden, I felt like I was simply placing things in order.

There are obstacles along your way, such as arrows which force you in a certain direction, switches which raise/lower barricades, and permanent barricades. Logistically you simply have to examine your environment, figure out how to reach the switches, and figure out how to twist your block to navigate each section. The first few levels were simply trial and error. I flipped the block each way I could until I got it to go the way I wanted. However, the more I played, the more it suddenly just made sense to me. I simply saw what I needed to do.

Each level has a Japanese name, with the accompanying English translation. Level 31 for instance is Ai, or Love. Perhaps these titles are meant to represent the theme of each particular level’s challenge. If that is the case, it hasn’t been readily apparent to me. Either way, it is a nice touch.

Some suggest spending time each day performing simple logic exercises actually improves you IQ. It may simply be that it focuses your attention better. Whatever the case, I do really enjoy logic puzzles like these.

My only concern/fear is that I’ll solve the included 100 puzzles too soon and then won’t be able to enjoy the game anymore. This is apparently a game that has been around for a while. It has been called the Game of the Year on the Blackberry by some. It has been sold at times for as much as $9.99. Many felt it was well worth the price. For a title ported to another platform, the iPhone controls feel very natural, and the reduction in price is certainly welcome. I just wish they had spent the extra time developing new levels, or even better yet, opening up a simple level format so the community could submit level packs online. I know that if the game offered expanded gameplay through downloadable level packs, I would pay even more for this game.

Even with the limit of 100 levels, I still highly recommend this title. I would write more, but I want to actually get back to playing the game. In fact, I almost wrote a hurried review with minutes of first playing it. I wanted to express how much I enjoyed the game and recommend it immediately. But writing would entail prying myself away from the game.

Concrete Software was kindly enough to provide three promo codes! You know the drill. Please leave a comment letting everyone know which one you took.

Tags: $1.99, Games, logic, puzzle, T. J. Brumfield