Tricky Towers | Xbox One | Review

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As you can probably tell just by looking at it, Tricky Towers takes a hefty chunk of inspiration from a certain classic title; anyone who’s ever played Tetris will be immediately familiar with the challenge of rotating, moving and stacking different shaped block pieces together as they drop from the top of the screen.

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​by Liam
​Andrews

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​@pass_controller

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Developer: WeirdBeard Games
Publisher: WeirdBeard Games
Platforms: Xbox One, PS4, Steam
Players: 1-4

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Unlike Tetris however, where the goal is to avoid hitting the upper reaches of screen real-estate, Tricky Towers’ standout game mode, Race, tasks players with getting there as quickly as possible by constructing giant, haphazard towers in a dash to the top.
 
The two main obstacles blocking your path to glory in Tricky Towers are other players (more on those later) and your own hubris. Pieces won’t stay fixed to each other once they’ve been placed, and the physics-based nature of the game means errant tower designs will quickly come tumbling down if you ignore the basic rules of architecture.
 
While we’re regardless partial to a “to the top and physics be damned” approach, that isn’t the only way to play the game, as we discovered when a multiplayer opponent took a much more careful path, steadily placing pieces in solid, locked designs that were far more structurally sound.
 
Though this safer, more aesthetically pleasing route is commendable, it’s worth noting that we were victorious in the majority of matches played, often in dramatic fashion, as you only need to keep the top of your tower (which is usually already falling by this point) within the limits of the finish line for three seconds, which lead to some memorable victories as the haire triumphed over the tortoise.

If you can gather enough people in the same room, then we can see Tricky Towers being an excellent party game.

WeirdBeard have made sure to cater to those who do prefer a more methodical approach however, by way of the game’s Survival and Puzzle modes. Survival takes away one of three lives whenever you drop a block, and Puzzle mode tasks players with using clever designs in order to keep their tower under a certain height limit. Needless to say, we didn’t fare quite so well in these modes.

When battling it out with other players, you’ll occasionally be awarded spells that can be used to aid your own progress or impede your rival’s. Helpful spells include locking in a block to make your tower more stable, or zapping away one that’s badly placed, while the harmful ones can be used to attach balloons to other player’s blocks or enlarge them, making them harder to handle. On occasion spells don’t have the desired effect - like when we dropped a piano on an opponent’s tower and it only served to make it more structurally sound, rather than toppling it over, as was our intention - so you’ll need to use them wisely.

Despite the prevalence of underhand tactics, this is most definitely a game that’s best enjoyed with others, especially in couch co-op. Tricky Towers does feature online multiplayer, but the servers seemed to be permanently deserted (at least whenever we tried to find a match), really leaving local as the only viable option.
 
There’s also a single player element involving the game’s three main modes, plus a surprising number of trial-type challenges, but, unless you’re really into climbing leaderboards, they’re no substitute for multiplayer.
 
If you can gather enough people in the same room, then we can see Tricky Towers being an excellent party game thanks to its colourful, cheery visuals, catchy soundtrack and simple, yet challenging gameplay. It would have been nice to see more cosmetic options (you only get four character skins and three block colours in the base game), but if you’re just looking for something fun to pick up and play with a good group of friends, then Tricky Towers fits the bill.
 
Pros

• Tactical, physics-based gameplay
• Fun with friends
• Simple, cheery presentation

 
Cons

• Playing solo isn’t great
• Online community isn’t very active
• Limited cosmetic options

 
7/10