Puddle THD

While TegraZone has hardly been awash with spectacular releases since the Tegra 3 chip's launch, we'd have expected a title like Puddle THD to make a bit more of a splash.

It's a conversion of an award-winning XBLA title with a moody atmosphere, the kind of realistic physics-based puzzling gameplay that the indie crowd loves so much, and an abundance of content.

But at the time of writing it's had fewer than 1,000 downloads on Google Play. While some of the blame can be levelled at the minimal number of Tegra 3-powered devices out there, the overly harsh difficulty and wayward camera can't be helping to boost sales.

Neko Entertainment's title might have the look of a slightly more grounded World of Goo, yet the gameplay owes more to PSP cult favourite LocoRoco.

Each of the 40-plus levels challenges you to guide a small Puddle of liquid across maze-like environments, avoiding hazards and trying to make it to the exit with enough precious fluid remaining.

If it sounds like a casual slice of skill-based puzzling, be prepared for a shock: after some brief introductory stages, the difficulty soon ramps up to brutal levels.

Unless you switch to the more reliable touchscreen controls, moving your puddle with the accelerometer is also frustratingly unreliable.

This wouldn't be an issue if the game was a gentle, forgiving experience, but with almost every surface coated with a deadly hazard - from water-draining plants to evaporating flames - the slightest misstep often ends in failure.

The trick is to take it slow. Annoyingly, however, the camera didn't seem to get the memo, as it tends to race ahead and follow a few drips, leaving the main pool languishing out of sight and reach.

To help you avoid getting too stumped, the game gives you a limited number of Whines that enable you to skip stages. If you burn through these too quickly, though, you'll soon find your progress blocked by the ultra tricky final levels.

It's a shame, as when Puddle THD flows properly it's an entrancing experience.

Splashing through an X-rayed human body, being chased by angry antacids, and teasing highly explosive nitroglycerin through a gas burner-strewn lab are as sharp-looking as they are engaging thanks to the Tegra-smoothed visuals.

It's just a shame that the experience is too difficult to be fully enjoyable.