Video Game Review - Sokobos

Rob reviews Sokobos on PC...

The puzzle genre and I have a bit of a checkered past. While I can appreciate what the genre brings to people who enjoy wracking their brains on solving the impossible. For me I often find the gameplay lacking - and a little frustrating. Titles such as 'Portal' and 'The Turing Test' often add in an overarching narrative that aims to keep the player focused on the task - and to break up the constant monotony of brainteasers.

When it comes to Sokobos by Daisy Games, there's no real narrative to speak of. Instead, we get a minimalistic version of Sokoban that's centred around ancient Greece. 

Like other Sokoban titles, Sokobos tasks you with moving an object from one point of the level to a specific location to then complete the level. To add difficulty and variety to its puzzles, Sokobos then adds plenty of obstacles in your way whether it is other movable blocks or utilising certain colour combinations.

The mechanic that makes Sokobos different is that it only relies on you pushing the intended target. This is also what makes the game very frustrating. Quite often I found myself getting stuck in corners with no way of getting the object out other than undoing my steps or on a few occasions - starting the puzzle again. Including a pull mechanic could have certainly made the game less of a challenge but in reality, Sokobos isn't meant to be an "easy" game. 

Sokobos has quite a minimalist presentation. There are no fancy background images, scenery, or anything else other than the current puzzle space and swaths of pitch black. However, the puzzle spaces themselves are fairly polished and come in various shapes and sizes with plenty of different objects. The soundtrack also fits into this minimalistic style by only featuring two basic tracks - one of which is the main menu music. It's nothing to particularly write home about, and although the soundtrack is serviceable to listen to, it's the perfect excuse to stick on a podcast to listen to while you play. 

All in all, Sokobos is a hard game to judge. It's certainly not a game I enjoy playing, however, I can certainly see what Daisy Games have achieved. While it doesn't do anything for me, it's a steep learning curve and minimalistic design will appeal to plenty of puzzle veterans. If you're one of these people then Sokobos is a great chill-out and relaxed game that you'll easily lose a few hours to.

Rating: 6.5/10 

A code was kindly provided for this review. 

Sokobos is available now and can be purchased via Steam by clicking here.

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