Moonlights

There are few things more annoying than scores of moths fluttering around the lights on an autumn eve. It may seem odd for a creature who only comes out at night to head so tenaciously for sources of light, but apparently it has something to do with the moon. Personally, I'd put it down to plain stupidity.

While you may continue to exhibit due caution with regard to blazing light, you'll have some insight into the moth experience after playing Moonlights. The game tasks you with reaching that fabled orb by building a very tall edifice.

Thankfully, you needn't invest in a JCB to take part in this chorus of construction. Instead, a touch of your finger to place nodes that build up the simple, bamboo-like structure is all that's required. In play it's remarkably similar to RealArcade's excellent Tiki Towers, with every node you place linking up to with those nearby to form triangles.

These structures are susceptible to physics, and the trick is to balance out any progress on both sides so that your skyscraper in the making doesn't collapse in on itself. At least, that's your initial aim.

All of the levels on offer charge you with getting one of your nodes to touch the moon for three seconds, though the manner in which you do so changes from map to map.

The opening levels usually focus on height. After these, however, matters grow complicated, with a score of interactive elements that either help or hinder your cause adding depth to what began as a picnic of a puzzle. From the number of moons you have to touch stacking up to their positions shifting, the stages become progressively more challenging.

Just when you think Moonlights is becoming a breeze, it throws in a new spanner or two to keep you on your toes. Luckily, each shift - radical or not - comes with a handy demo video that shows the principle of clearing new hurdles and reaching your goal. You're never left scratching your head for too long.

Indeed, much like Tiki Towers and, in a manner, Ragdoll Blaster, it's often instantly apparent just how you can complete the level - but using the physics to your advantage is another matter entirely.

Such dilemmas are brilliantly highlighted by the ability to delete some of your nodes, holding down your finger on the screen and dragging a red box across those to be wiped. Doing so is a good way of freeing up a node or two, allowing them to float up like a balloon to reach previously unattainable areas.

However, managing to tease them into the right spot once they're up, tilting the iPhone gently to coax it one way or another before it floats off screen, is no easy task.

That's the balance Moonlights acheives brilliantly: simple controls are matched with a straightforward goal, set in an ever-changing world designed to take you a step further with each level that passes. It doesn't quite have the charm of Tiki Tower's bounding monkeys, though its clean, crisp and cool soundtrack does come quite close.

Nevertheless, for physics aficionados out there Moonlights complements rather than competes with its rivals, proving that heading for the light doesn't always leave you burned out.