Briquid Mini Review

If you enjoyed Briquid‘s brand of liquid-shifting physics puzzles, "Where's My Water? for adults," as much as we did then you're in luck. Briquid Mini is less a full sequel and more a remixed version of last year's game, now compatible for iPhones in addition to iPads. So while that means its bubbly brain-teasers aren't quite as original this time around, they're still plenty refreshing.

Like in Briquid, Briquid Mini‘s puzzles revolve around collecting pools of water in specific locations on a grid. Players have a few tools at their disposal and most solutions require proper use of all of them. Players can remove bricks from the grid, allowing trapped water to flow freely. They can add bricks to the grid, directing water toward certain spots and keeping it there. And they can change gravity to manipulate the water's movement even more.

However, most puzzles have hard move limits to keep players smart with their planning instead of overwhelmed by their options. Also, only one previous move can be undone, so turn off motion gravity control to prevent wasted changes. But occasionally levels will just hand players upwards of 60 moves and task them with solving a large, complex puzzle. Players might have to build intricate staircases or devise a system of alternating brick cages and gravity shifts to micromanage pools. These levels, while more head-scratching, are ultimately more satisfying. And since the game's progression system is cumulative – unlocking new levels based on total amount of water saved instead of full completions of individual levels – players won't get too frustrated if they only earn a score of 99.98%.

But like its predecessor, Briquid Mini is kind of a plain looking game, its modest art style reassuring grown-ups it's okay to play this new mobile version in public. Since little of the core gameplay has changed it would have been nice to at least see a more substantial visual revamp. Still, if you liked the first Briquid, Briquid Mini offers more of the same. And if you are a newcomer, there's no better place to dive in.