Toy Blast

Toy Blast is one of the most popular puzzles games of today. Just how popular is Toy Blast? Well according to the developer there are currently (well as I write this) a few hundred million players of this game all around the world! There is no shortage of tapping and matching style puzzle games for Android devices, but not many are as easy to get into and addictive as the one we are taking a closer look at today.

What Is The Point?

Ok, so as you have probably expected, Toy Blast is not exactly rich with story. Puzzle games like this do not always have or even need a strong narrative to hook you. Still, with that being said I do think that the overall premise of what they give you is enough to move things forward. There is a little girl called Amy and she has lost her toys and she needs your help in getting them back. That is all there really is to it, but it has enough charm that it does not matter. Plus, the gameplay is really addictive and that is what drives you more than the story of the game.

Easy On The Eyes

I think that Toy Blast is a decent enough game when it comes to its presentation. Do not get me wrong, it is not going to be winning any best-looking Android games of the year or anything like that. However, as this is a game about a child trying to get their toys back. I think the way the developers have used nice and bright colors not only fits the theme of the game pretty well. It also makes it very easy on the eyes when you are playing.

While it is true there is not exactly a ton of “detail” in the game. I think that as you need to keep your eye on the prize, not having super distracting backgrounds is actually something that works to the advantage of the game overall. I do feel that just a tad more “flare” on the level screen though could have been a good idea.

Two Blocks Go Boom Boom!

Ok so let’s get to what has made hundreds of millions of people fall in love with Toy Blast and that is the gameplay. This is one of the most addictive puzzle games I have played in quite some time. I know this is said about many Android games, but the fact is, you have a game here where you will always want to have just one more go to try and beat that level which has been driving you nuts.

Each level starts off the same way. You have a lot of different colored blocks and then in the top left side of the screen you have how many blocks (or toys if you prefer) that you need to get in order to beat the level. If there are two blocks of the same color next to each other, you tap one and they blow up and the whole “level” will then change accordingly. While you only need two to be touching, that is just the minimum requirements! You can have as many of the same colored blocks touching as possible and they will all blow up!

This is really where the strategy comes into play. You see, you really need to look around the level before you start tapping. This is because you can kind of dictate the way the blocks will fall so you need to try and think a few moves ahead if you can. Just tapping the most obvious blocks may get you through the first 100 level or so, but this game has thousands of levels and there is no way you are beating the harder levels like this.

More Strategy Than You May Think

As I just said, Toy Blast is a game that is best when you think a few moves ahead. One way that this can go out of the window is with the Toy Blast powerups! The game does throw a few different power-ups your way. Most notably is this car (or it could be a rocket actually) that when you tap, depending on the way the car is facing. It will take out a whole row of blocks. There is also this cool Rubik Cube type powerup that will take out every block of a certain color no matter if they are touching or not.

Things like this do add quite a bit of strategy to the levels and can more often than not on the higher levels be the difference of beating a level or not. Another part of the game’s strategy comes in the form of being limited to how many taps you can make. The game only gives you so many taps before you have to retry the level or wait to play the game later… which brings me to my next point.

Is It Truly Free To Play?

Toy Blast is a freemium style game and I have spent a ton of time playing the game without spending a penny. However, the game is very in your face with ways to extend your playtime, beat a level you are struggling with and always trying to make you do something with social media. It is at the point where stuff like this is to be expected in a free to play Android game these days. So, I cannot be too mad at the game for this.

There are some levels though that I feel unless you can save up a ton of the coins you earn through gameplay. You simply must have to spend a couple of bucks to get through them. Of course, this could be just because I suck, but there have been times where I feel a level is near impossible to beat without some kind of help.

As far as great puzzle games for Android go, Toy Blast is a ton of fun. While it does have some of the same “freemium” aspects that other similar games have. I cannot be too harsh as the game gives you tons and I mean tons of hours of enjoyment before you even have to consider spending a penny.

8.5/10

Pros:

• I love the style of the game
• It is very easy to figure out the basics
• The different power-ups are a lot of fun
• It has thousands of levels!
• It is far more of a strategic game than you may think

Cons:

• Some levels feel impossible later on
• It is a freemium style game and has what goes with that!