The App Army Assemble: A Short Tale - Size isn't everything
But this comes up a little short

We regularly ask members of our App Army for their impressions of the latest releases on mobile.
In this feature, we're looking at A Short Tale - the latest puzzler from Glitch Games - which is now available on iOS devices.
Chase - I’ve only put a little bit of time into A Short Tale, but it is noticeable that it's very raw. It's easy, but time-consuming and not much fun. Kainen - Have to agree and say this is a bit boring. Matt - It's one of a long line of escape the room games. The graphics are fine and there are plenty of puzzles to tackle at any one time.I really like the camera idea as it's always a pain to have to scribble codes for later. You can photograph anything and refer back to it without losing your place.
Kainen - Agreed on the camera idea. That's quite neat. GGod Hand - Yeah, the most useful feature in the game is the camera. Anything that seems important can be photographed and accessed at any time.You can even put them in the middle of a puzzle. It's really convenient.

Sometimes it's obvious, but most of the time you'll hold onto far too many items at once, wondering where they belong. Hands-down, the worst thing about the game.
Kainen - This is so hard to play. In a puzzle game, that's normally a good thing, but in this case it's because the game is designed quite badly. I'm struggling to muster any excitement here. Quincy - This is one of those rare occasions where I have to agree with Kainen, there's just no magic here. I'm really disappointed as I expect more from Glitch Games.
Hopefully things will become clearer as we get to the end. The desire to solve the mystery itself is a real driving force, but I can see why a lack of story may turn some people away.
Olivier - Well, I don't agree on most points. I like the fact that you have to look for clues everywhere and have to use the elements to try and understand the puzzles.The game is rather difficult at first, but I enjoy the challenge. I do agree that the graphics and navigation are a bit simple, but they remind me of the Forever Lost series, which I love. So it doesn't really bother me at all.
GGod Hand - The navigation is a bit confusing at first, but once you understand how it all handles it works really well. A tutorial on how to solve the first puzzle would help this game a lot.
The player would become better acquainted with all the control mechanics and perhaps make more of an effort with the game.
Right now, the game makes no effort to familiarise the player with the controls or story. Which is quite off-putting.
GGod Hand - Yeah, have to say I don't agree with most of you either. Personally, I'm liking the game overall.
I think a lot of people have been turned off by the difficulty of the puzzles, but that's the reason I'm actually liking it. I love the fact that the game doesn't hold your hand and just throws you into the world, leaving you to figure everything out on your own.
It's the very fact that you're small which forces you to think outside the box. Also, the game expects you to solve one puzzle at a time. Once you solve a puzzle, it gives you a clue or item that will enable you to go solve another.
Quincy - My biggest issue is that it feels like they just took some of their old puzzles from previous games and tossed them together.I don't mind when a game doesn't hold your hand and guide you everywhere, but these puzzles are quite bland and the story leaves me empty. I don't really care what happens next.
GGod Hand - Who got hit with a bit of nostalgia when seeing this?

I completely understand why many of you didn't click with it. And there doesn’t appear to be an ending either. I was under the impression the toys would help me open the door so I could leave the room.
They said they'd support me if I met their requests, which I did. But they haven't kept their word.
I mean, look at this useless heap of metal. He says he's going to help me, but he's just standing there doing absolutely nothing

And you, I found all your children. Now it's your turn. Even your children are mocking me with their fake smiles. I thought we had an agreement. Screw you and the spaceship you rode in on!

I fixed your train track, bro. What was the deal about helping me out? You're a liar, sir. A liar!

As for you, Mr Bear, I gave you your sight back. What did you give me? Nothing! You'll be hearing from my lawyers, buddy!

This guy just goes brain-dead when you organise his DVDs

Oh, and how could I forget about this jerk. I gave him a purpose as a vacuum, but now he's just getting drunk on his USB cord. You had one job!

I've played this through twice to make sure I wasn't missing something, but I honestly think the game might be broken.
Quincy - I just downloaded Forever Lost 2 again and after playing through the first few puzzles, it still stands up better than A Short Tale.I agree that the camera has always been a welcome addition to these games, but I'm really not feeling it. Sadly, there's no sense of joy that comes from solving these puzzles.
The App Army have spoken! If you'd like to sign up, please have a gander at our App Army application article. Have you played A Short Tale? What did you think? Talk to us in the comments.