Zen Bound - Sudden Enlightenment.

As you know by now I LOVE puzzle games! Although I felt bad bashing TouchMaster last week, it needed to be done. There was nothing that made you want to come back and play, there was no innovation. Well, for only $1 more, I think I have found what could easily be in contention for iPhone game of the year.

[Video Review by Mr. Pence]

I first heard of Zen Bound when a buddy told me about it over drinks. He said it was the ultimate puzzle game and left it at that. No description of the game whatsoever. Ok, I've been reviewing apps for quite a while now and thought that was a pretty bold statement. I mean the ultimate? Come on. I've already tried the best apps out there. How many has he tried, right?

Rope around wood? Game of the year? Really?

I reluctantly decided to review Zen Bound, I'm glad I did. This is probably the most simple, innovative and addictive game out there. Simply put, Zen Bound is a calm and meditative game of wrapping rope around wooden sculptures. While this sounds easy, the more levels that you complete, the more complex the sculptures become.

Your sculpture starts off with a piece of hanging rope tied to a nail. The object is to wrap as much rope around your sculpture as you can. Be careful however, you only have so much rope.

The puzzles get increasingly difficult.

Once you have over 70% of the sculpture covered in rope, the second nail will highlight and you touch it with the remaining rope. It's that simple. This game is designed to challenge you at a slower pace, there's no clock counting down or scores to beat. Completion is the key.

Everything about this game is fine tuned, Chillingo and Secret Exit have done a great job with a simple premise. The graphics and shadows are awesome and the controls are easy and quick to learn. The music and sound effects by Ghost Monkey are top notch and fit the mood of this game. I personally find this game a great way to wind down after a long day at work.

Is this game worth $4.99? Absolutely. The innovative gameplay with great graphics and sound make this a must have. Don't miss this one, you'll regret it.

You can buy Zen Bound HERE.

Comments

[Ted]

This app is the most incredible experience to hit the iphone. It's high concept that also is a great experience. I had to consciously make myself not be rushed, to actually enjoy the 3D experience. There is no timer, but you can try to best your own scores, the best (shortest) lengths are saved in the tree menu. Compared to the high concept Ancient Frog that is selling well, this one blows it away. Ancient Frog is seemingly beautiful, but its boring and tedious. There's no doubt the 3D manipulations of Zen Bound use a different part of the brain than most games.

[squarerhino]

One of my favorites for sure. Mixes a lot of different elements for a unique experience on the phone. Headphones make it even better.

[squarerhino]

very nice update for this today

Tree of Nostalgia added - 25 additional levels!