Mighty Switch Force! Hose it Down! Review

"Y-AY!" Mighty Switch Force‘s Patricia Wagon is back on mobile with Mighty Switch Force! Hose it Down!. However, the diligent peace-keeper isn’t here to round up rowdies. Instead, she’s now a member of Planet Land’s Fire Brigade, and she’s reporting for fire-fighter duty in Tangent City.

Not a surprise, really. Tangent City seems to have a massive problem with out-of-control blazes. Even the infamous Hooligan Sisters aren’t up to any mischief; they’re too busy trying to keep from getting cooked. But nobody gets left behind when Firefighter Wagon is behind the hose.

Hose it Down! is a variation on the classic Pipe Mania formula. You need to shift pipe pieces around so that they connect and allow for a continuous flow of water between Miss Wagon and whatever she’s spraying at (typically fire - imagine that).

A stage is successfully finished when all its fires are completely put out, though sometimes there are other tasks to complete. For instance, one or more of the aforementioned Hooligan Sisters might be trapped behind mud and sliding blocks, and Wagon must clear the way for her to run outside safely.

There are myriad challenges and obstacles that keep pipe-fitting from being an easy affair. Some pipes are immobile cross-sections. Others spin when you tap them. Some pipes are even cloaked, preventing you from seeing which way they point until you move them.

Despite these instances of trickery, Hose it Down! is on the shorter side. The initial 25 levels shouldn’t keep you tangled up for more than a couple of hours (though I did waste a sinful amount of time on one level because I kept missing a puzzle solution that stared directly at me). For an additional dollar, you can buy 25 more levels.

Is the extra dosh worth it? Well, you could certainly think of worse things to spend a buck on. Hose it Down! is on the simpler side of the puzzle genre, but it’s still satisfying to click pipe pieces together and then send torrents of water rushing through them. It’s also nice to spend a little time with Officer Wagon again, even if her new job has changed up Mighty Switch Force!‘s traditional mechanics.