Fuzzies

Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear,

Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair,

Fuzzy Wuzzy wasn't fuzzy, was he?

and, given this game, apparently Fuzzy was a monkey. Polarbit's 'Fuzzies' is a straight up Lemmings clone with monkeys. I reviewed the similar Bunny Mania back in May.

For those not familiar with Lemmings, the concept of game play is that of an action, puzzle game. Your critters are dropped onto a landscape and have to find their way to the exit with your help. Fortunately, you can equip them with tools like shovels for digging, bombs for blowing stuff up, and parachutes to assist with a long drop. If you can assist a predefined number of these critters in making their way to the exit then you beat the level and can advance.

Fuzzies brings this formula to Android and offers 28 levels of play with the first 3 or 4 being more 'learn to play' levels. You've got sideways diggers, bottom diggers, parachutes, ceiling climbers, ...etc. The graphics are nice and sharp and the audio is pleasing. Controls rely entirely on the touch screen as you touch buttons to select actions and then touch monkeys to assign said actions. Unlike Lemmings, there are multiple exit points each designated by a red flag so you may have to get half of your monkeys over here and the other half over there. As they arrive, a rope drops out of the sky and carries the monkey to safety just like in real life.

How does this stack up to Bunny Mania? Both have 28 levels, but Bunny Mania allows you to create your own levels and share them on the Internet. This has been a raging success and there are now 6 additional levels available. I poke fun, not at Bunny Mania for being considerate enough to offer this option, but at how many more people like to think about level design versus actually doing it. Heck, I still have plans to design a module for Neverwinter Nights (the original... not the sequel). On the graphics front, Fuzzies is superior. The graphics look sharper as they are a bit bigger. The buttons are crisper and easier to touch, once again due to the increased size. My only issue with Fuzzies (and it applied to Bunny Mania, too) is the lack of levels. 28 just doesn't seem like enough. Although, for a $2.99 game a dime a level isn't unfair. 4.5/5 stars for a game that could be great with more levels and a, dare I say it, level editor.

Fuzzy Wuzzy was a monkey,

Fuzzy Wuzzy had a 'chute,

Fuzzy Wuzzy would soon be free,

Can you guide him, he's so cute!

(or "he's such a brute!" for the more manly version)