It's been a while since I've written one of these things.
I have had many, many, many years of experience with puzzles, both solving them and writing them. With this has come the ability to form opinions on puzzles and hopefully explain them with well thought-out prose to help other people form their own opinions; this is why there are 12 previous volumes of Grant's Review Corner. However, they are also very sparsely written: the last installment was over a year ago, and the one before that was 16 months prior! The primary reason is that I don't want to be inundated with requests to review things. However, formulating an opinion, dissecting it, and working out how to express it is a good exercise, so when I recently got a request to review an iOS app, I decided to do it.
Disclaimer: I was given a review copy of this app, normally $1.99, for free. While getting review copies of things is par for the course in the world of reviewing, this is a first for Grant's Review Corner.
Showing posts with label Grant's Review Corner. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Grant's Review Corner. Show all posts
Grant's Review Corner: Volume 12
In this episode of Grant's Review Corner, I review the entire freemium model of gaming. Okay, so this is more of a rant than a review, but my feelings have been fermenting in my mind for quite a while, and in the wake of Nintendo offering not one, but two freemium Pokémon games (a move which is making a boycott seem severely tempting right about now), I feel the need to pitch in my two cents on this genre (as opposed to my 99 cents).
The freemium business model sounds good on the surface: you get to play a game for free, and only pay money if you want to. It's akin to the shareware model in that way, where you play a demo of a game, and then you can pay for the full game. Everett Kaser Software has run on the shareware model since the 1990's, and as I've let on before, I derive enjoyment from his games, somehow. What's good in theory, though, isn't always good in practice, and the freemium model is no exception. I hold the freemium business model in about as much esteem as Richard Dawkins holds religion, or David Morgan-Mar holds Monopoly.
The freemium business model sounds good on the surface: you get to play a game for free, and only pay money if you want to. It's akin to the shareware model in that way, where you play a demo of a game, and then you can pay for the full game. Everett Kaser Software has run on the shareware model since the 1990's, and as I've let on before, I derive enjoyment from his games, somehow. What's good in theory, though, isn't always good in practice, and the freemium model is no exception. I hold the freemium business model in about as much esteem as Richard Dawkins holds religion, or David Morgan-Mar holds Monopoly.
Grant's Review Corner: Volume 11
From the same guy who brought you Dinner With Moriarty, the murder mystery where the murderer kills himself approximately 17.7% of the time, we get this computer game from 2011. Is the author of this game any better at writing stories since 1997? Juubi and I will find out together!
The incredible thing is that this guy's company Everett Kaser Software sells a CD with 32 games on it! At least he has the sense to sell it for a mere $99.95, as opposed to Action 52's price tag of $199. If the other 30 games are the same quality as these two games, then. . . well, you can immediately surmise whether to buy it or not.
ERRATUM: Dansk is actually Danish, not Dutch. I got the first letter right, at least.
The incredible thing is that this guy's company Everett Kaser Software sells a CD with 32 games on it! At least he has the sense to sell it for a mere $99.95, as opposed to Action 52's price tag of $199. If the other 30 games are the same quality as these two games, then. . . well, you can immediately surmise whether to buy it or not.
ERRATUM: Dansk is actually Danish, not Dutch. I got the first letter right, at least.
Grant's Review Corner: Volume 10
For the tenth edition of Grant's Review Corner, this one's a video instead of a bunch of text! This review tackles a game that's haunted me since the early 2000's; I've felt it necessary to finally get my opinions on this game out of the way for all to see.
Perhaps I'll review more of this company's games in the future, but for now, I think my opinion on this one summarizes my opinion on virtually all of the games.
Perhaps I'll review more of this company's games in the future, but for now, I think my opinion on this one summarizes my opinion on virtually all of the games.
Grant's Review Corner: Volume 9
First, an update on the previous edition of Grant's Review Corner: the puzzles I was paid to write for Kakuro Conquest have not appeared yet in almost two years. However, I have signs of life from the other end, and have decided not to post the puzzles here, and instead to wait for them to appear on Kakuro Conquest for my readers to enjoy there. (Maybe I'll post them on here if said readers want to print them out.)
My mother, a breast cancer survivor, has experienced a phenomenon called "chemo brain" where one suddenly loses a great portion of one's mental faculties after chemotherapy. While she has been intending to get her brain active again using books like this one, it seems that her hectic schedule makes this impossible without my active involvement in encouraging her and finding puzzles she can actually do. I can't really gripe about finding this excuse to spend quality time with her; I enjoy watching light bulbs go off in people's heads from time to time, and some of the simpler puzzle types in this book have provided such experiences. Maybe I'll get a finger on how to write puzzles that she can enjoy and other people can enjoy, too (which will become easier if somehow I can train her to solve harder puzzles, such as easy Sudoku puzzles). However, my mother recently got herself a different book which, after working one puzzle together, I've felt the need to vent about. Hey, blog content!
My mother, a breast cancer survivor, has experienced a phenomenon called "chemo brain" where one suddenly loses a great portion of one's mental faculties after chemotherapy. While she has been intending to get her brain active again using books like this one, it seems that her hectic schedule makes this impossible without my active involvement in encouraging her and finding puzzles she can actually do. I can't really gripe about finding this excuse to spend quality time with her; I enjoy watching light bulbs go off in people's heads from time to time, and some of the simpler puzzle types in this book have provided such experiences. Maybe I'll get a finger on how to write puzzles that she can enjoy and other people can enjoy, too (which will become easier if somehow I can train her to solve harder puzzles, such as easy Sudoku puzzles). However, my mother recently got herself a different book which, after working one puzzle together, I've felt the need to vent about. Hey, blog content!
Grant's Review Corner: Volume 8
First, an update on the previous edition of Grant's Review Corner: the puzzles I was paid to write for Kakuro Conquest have not appeared yet in almost two years. If I don't get any signs of life from the site's operators soon, expect these puzzles to be released slowly on this blog. Some of these puzzles I've written are, in my not-so-humble opinion, very good illustrations of what an artisan can do with handmade Kakuro puzzles, and absolutely need to be seen.
As longtime fans already know, updates on this blog have been more sparse due to the fact that I'd rather focus my efforts on writing puzzles for Grandmaster Puzzles and getting paid for it. However, I got an e-mail recently from someone who wants me to review their upcoming smartphone app in exchange for promoting my blog. I have to admit that this is sorely tempting, given that not only have I broadened the focus of this blog's posts to allow for said blog not to be completely dead, but if I rearrange the sidebar, I could promote Grandmaster Puzzles very heavily and direct incoming traffic there (or better yet, make arrangements with the app's publisher to promote Grandmaster Puzzles directly). Ultimately, I feel that I must entertain these kinds of offers very sparingly, as I do not want to become a forum for people to bribe me into publicizing them (they can do that on JayIsGames or something), but somehow, I don't feel like I can dismiss this one right off the bat.
As longtime fans already know, updates on this blog have been more sparse due to the fact that I'd rather focus my efforts on writing puzzles for Grandmaster Puzzles and getting paid for it. However, I got an e-mail recently from someone who wants me to review their upcoming smartphone app in exchange for promoting my blog. I have to admit that this is sorely tempting, given that not only have I broadened the focus of this blog's posts to allow for said blog not to be completely dead, but if I rearrange the sidebar, I could promote Grandmaster Puzzles very heavily and direct incoming traffic there (or better yet, make arrangements with the app's publisher to promote Grandmaster Puzzles directly). Ultimately, I feel that I must entertain these kinds of offers very sparingly, as I do not want to become a forum for people to bribe me into publicizing them (they can do that on JayIsGames or something), but somehow, I don't feel like I can dismiss this one right off the bat.
Grant's Review Corner: Volume 7
Today's volume of Grant's Review Corner is brought to you by Kakuro Conquest.
Wait a minute. . . "brought to you by"? What kind of BS is this? In past editions of Grant's Review Corner, the author (who would be me) has made a big stink about refusing to sell advertising space on his blog (which would be this one), and now all of a sudden we're in for some kind of advertorial? Well. . . yes and no. Let me explain what is happening here.
Wait a minute. . . "brought to you by"? What kind of BS is this? In past editions of Grant's Review Corner, the author (who would be me) has made a big stink about refusing to sell advertising space on his blog (which would be this one), and now all of a sudden we're in for some kind of advertorial? Well. . . yes and no. Let me explain what is happening here.
Grant's Review Corner: Volume 6
At approximately 3:00 AM local time on May 2, 2011, I received this e-mail:
Hi,
[Our company] has just launched [another crappy app] - which is an unique Sudoku app for the iPhone. The way it differentiates from all other Sudoku games is the fact that it is three dimensional and brings in an unique combination of fun of spinning dials and sliding pieces with number puzzle.
We noticed that you have been writing about other Sudoku puzzles and thought this app would be of interest to you. We would request you to write a review for this app for your readers. You can download the app for Free at [link to the "Pro" version of the app that costs money, as opposed to the free demo version].
For your convenience we have also attached with this email the official press release and the screen shots of the app along with this email.
In case you need any other information to publish a review for [another crappy app], we will be glad to help you with the same.
I may need to rename "Grant's Review Corner" "Grant's Annoyed Rant Corner".
Hi,
[Our company] has just launched [another crappy app] - which is an unique Sudoku app for the iPhone. The way it differentiates from all other Sudoku games is the fact that it is three dimensional and brings in an unique combination of fun of spinning dials and sliding pieces with number puzzle.
We noticed that you have been writing about other Sudoku puzzles and thought this app would be of interest to you. We would request you to write a review for this app for your readers. You can download the app for Free at [link to the "Pro" version of the app that costs money, as opposed to the free demo version].
For your convenience we have also attached with this email the official press release and the screen shots of the app along with this email.
In case you need any other information to publish a review for [another crappy app], we will be glad to help you with the same.
I may need to rename "Grant's Review Corner" "Grant's Annoyed Rant Corner".
Grant's Review Corner: Volume 5
I would like to open this review by confessing a horrible secret. This secret is so horrible that I suspect most of my readers, and an even greater percentage of my real-life friends, will desert me upon learning it. Nonetheless, at the risk of alienation, I believe it is necessary to get this out of the way.
I genuinely like Justin Bieber's song "Baby".
I dislike it when people solicit me to review their things, particularly things which I believe to be crap. Who am I to judge what is crap, after all, when I enjoy listening to the song that, prior to the release of "Friday" by Rebecca Black, had the highest number of "thumbs down" votes of any YouTube video? If there's anything to be gathered from the prevalence of computer-generated Sudoku puzzles, which I believe to be artless crap, in the highest-selling publications, it's that my opinion even on those things which I am most passionate about don't always align with the vox populi. Don't get me wrong; I believe that computer-generated logic puzzles are capable of being legitimately entertaining, which is why I have been on occasion obsessed with getting high scores in Everett Kaser's Sherlock, and why I am a fan of Link-a-Pix by Conceptis, the company with perhaps the most consistently high-quality pictures in their picture-forming logic puzzles. I do, however, find that handmade puzzles are generally more capable of being masterpieces as opposed to entertainment. Additionally, there are times when I think that something is crap (or occasionally the opposite), but am unable to articulate why in any way that resembles a proper critical review.
Thus, I wasn't eager to get e-mail last month:
I genuinely like Justin Bieber's song "Baby".
I dislike it when people solicit me to review their things, particularly things which I believe to be crap. Who am I to judge what is crap, after all, when I enjoy listening to the song that, prior to the release of "Friday" by Rebecca Black, had the highest number of "thumbs down" votes of any YouTube video? If there's anything to be gathered from the prevalence of computer-generated Sudoku puzzles, which I believe to be artless crap, in the highest-selling publications, it's that my opinion even on those things which I am most passionate about don't always align with the vox populi. Don't get me wrong; I believe that computer-generated logic puzzles are capable of being legitimately entertaining, which is why I have been on occasion obsessed with getting high scores in Everett Kaser's Sherlock, and why I am a fan of Link-a-Pix by Conceptis, the company with perhaps the most consistently high-quality pictures in their picture-forming logic puzzles. I do, however, find that handmade puzzles are generally more capable of being masterpieces as opposed to entertainment. Additionally, there are times when I think that something is crap (or occasionally the opposite), but am unable to articulate why in any way that resembles a proper critical review.
Thus, I wasn't eager to get e-mail last month:
Grant's Review Corner: Volume 4
While my TI-80 Alan has died, thankfully my iPhone is still alive, so I shall be reviewing an iPhone app today! I'll be reviewing the logic puzzle app "Bananagrams".
So I start up a game, and I'm given this:
A bunch of letters? I don't get it. What are the rules of this logic puzzle? Am I supposed to rearrange them? Alphabetically seems to be the most logical arrangement for letters, so I do so:
Unfortunately, the game does not seem to like this arrangement:
What the hell is this about a word list? What the hell are the rules? This logic puzzle app does a poor job of explaining the rules. Avoid Bananagrams like the plague.
Sorry that the review was so short, but seriously. . . .
So I start up a game, and I'm given this:
A bunch of letters? I don't get it. What are the rules of this logic puzzle? Am I supposed to rearrange them? Alphabetically seems to be the most logical arrangement for letters, so I do so:
Unfortunately, the game does not seem to like this arrangement:
What the hell is this about a word list? What the hell are the rules? This logic puzzle app does a poor job of explaining the rules. Avoid Bananagrams like the plague.
Sorry that the review was so short, but seriously. . . .
Grant's Review Corner: Volume 3
In this edition of Grant's Review Corner, I have chosen not to review a puzzle in a commercial magazine or a commercial iPhone app, but a puzzle that was sent to me in an electronic mail with the subject line "Nice Blog". Judging by the From: field, the sender is from the United Kingdom, and is either a boy or has the surname Boy (and a forename that doesn't look at all like a forename, and is in fact the name of a village in England). Henceforth, the sender will be known as Mah Boy, because he probably just wonders what Ganon's up to. (The puzzle below is © 2011 "Mah Boy"; this review is fair use.)
Hi
This is a fantastic set of puzzles I will be having a lot of fun solving these, though I would drop you a little email with a copy of a Sudoku puzzle that I drempt up (don't think there is one like this) and see what you think?
The same rules apply as normal sudoko but for this use the sums within this puzzle to help you solve it.
I believe that the following review will prove to be of use to all aspiring puzzlesmiths. In other words, it's an absolute must-read.
Hi
This is a fantastic set of puzzles I will be having a lot of fun solving these, though I would drop you a little email with a copy of a Sudoku puzzle that I drempt up (don't think there is one like this) and see what you think?
The same rules apply as normal sudoko but for this use the sums within this puzzle to help you solve it.
| + | = | 4 | ||||||||
| + | - | - | ||||||||
| + | - | - | = | |||||||
| = | / | + | - | = | ||||||
| x | - | = | ||||||||
| + | = | = | = | + | ||||||
| + | - | = | ||||||||
| = | + | - | ||||||||
| 3 | + | + | / | = | ||||||
| = | = | |||||||||
| + | - | = |
I believe that the following review will prove to be of use to all aspiring puzzlesmiths. In other words, it's an absolute must-read.
Grant's Review Corner: Volume 2
I'm sorry to post this on a Monday and risk taking attention away from today's Monday Mutant, but I felt it was necessary.
Not too long ago, I got the following e-mail:
Hi,
I’m an incurable puzzler but found that Sudoku was getting too easy. So I wrote a new puzzle app for iPhone, [name redacted], which is available in the iPhone store for the first time today. ([link redacted])
The easiest level is kid friendly. The hardest level (with almost 4 quadrillion, quadrillion, quadrillion possible answers) is “Insane”. The game is called [name redacted] and, like Sudoku, it challenges us to place a set of numbers in the correct positions on a square grid. In this case, “correct” means that once placed, the numbers add up to the sums shown for each row, column and diagonal.
A 3 x 3 grid isn’t much of a challenge. A 6 x 6 grid is incredibly challenging. (Yes, hints are available)
I would love it if you would review the puzzle in your blog. I would be happy to send you a promo code to download and test it.
I've never considered myself an expert at constructive criticism, but I think I'll make an exception for this app and try my hand at reviewing it. In fact, looking at the iTunes store, I see that you have since released a second puzzle game app, and I will throw in a review of that one as a free bonus! Unfortunately, Mr. Incurable Puzzler, as you might have already surmised from that fact that I have redacted your name and your apps' names, it's not going to be a positive one.
Not too long ago, I got the following e-mail:
Hi,
I’m an incurable puzzler but found that Sudoku was getting too easy. So I wrote a new puzzle app for iPhone, [name redacted], which is available in the iPhone store for the first time today. ([link redacted])
The easiest level is kid friendly. The hardest level (with almost 4 quadrillion, quadrillion, quadrillion possible answers) is “Insane”. The game is called [name redacted] and, like Sudoku, it challenges us to place a set of numbers in the correct positions on a square grid. In this case, “correct” means that once placed, the numbers add up to the sums shown for each row, column and diagonal.
A 3 x 3 grid isn’t much of a challenge. A 6 x 6 grid is incredibly challenging. (Yes, hints are available)
I would love it if you would review the puzzle in your blog. I would be happy to send you a promo code to download and test it.
I've never considered myself an expert at constructive criticism, but I think I'll make an exception for this app and try my hand at reviewing it. In fact, looking at the iTunes store, I see that you have since released a second puzzle game app, and I will throw in a review of that one as a free bonus! Unfortunately, Mr. Incurable Puzzler, as you might have already surmised from that fact that I have redacted your name and your apps' names, it's not going to be a positive one.
Grant's Review Corner: Volume 1
A certain Rex Parker has a blog devoted entirely to his experiences related to solving the New York Times crossword puzzle; Thomas Snyder parodied this in a post about KenKen. (He then went on from doing the NYT KenKen to outdoing it, because he's a grandmaster like that.) I don't know how often I'll be doing posts like this, especially given the fickle nature of "fair use", but I thought I'd try anyway.
Recently, the Acquisitions Editor of Brain Games, a publication in which I've been attempting to get published ever since the previous Acquisitions Editor contacted me a year ago, offered to send some free issues of Brain Games to help me get an idea of what kind of puzzles are offered. I graciously accepted the offer, and the issues arrived two days ago. The following are two puzzles called Digital Sudoku which appeared in issue 29. The instructions, as explained in Brain Games, are as follows: "Fill in the grid such that each row, each column, and each 2 by 3 box contains the numbers 1 through 6 exactly once. Numbers are in digital form. Some segments have been filled in." (These puzzles are © 2009 Publications International, Ltd.; I believe the use of just two puzzles from a past issue for review purposes qualifies as fair use, but will remove this post gladly otherwise.)
WHAT FOLLOWS ARE SOLUTIONS AND SPOILERS. YOU MAY WISH TO SOLVE THE PUZZLES YOURSELF BEFORE YOU CONTINUE READING.
Recently, the Acquisitions Editor of Brain Games, a publication in which I've been attempting to get published ever since the previous Acquisitions Editor contacted me a year ago, offered to send some free issues of Brain Games to help me get an idea of what kind of puzzles are offered. I graciously accepted the offer, and the issues arrived two days ago. The following are two puzzles called Digital Sudoku which appeared in issue 29. The instructions, as explained in Brain Games, are as follows: "Fill in the grid such that each row, each column, and each 2 by 3 box contains the numbers 1 through 6 exactly once. Numbers are in digital form. Some segments have been filled in." (These puzzles are © 2009 Publications International, Ltd.; I believe the use of just two puzzles from a past issue for review purposes qualifies as fair use, but will remove this post gladly otherwise.)
WHAT FOLLOWS ARE SOLUTIONS AND SPOILERS. YOU MAY WISH TO SOLVE THE PUZZLES YOURSELF BEFORE YOU CONTINUE READING.
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