Game Reviews

Symmetrain

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iOS
| Symmetrain
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Symmetrain
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iOS
| Symmetrain

One of the best things about travelling by train is the scenery. Taking in the trees, towns, and wildlife of a country can make even the longest journey fly by.

Of course, there's usually a 'best side' of the train to sit on for the choicest sights, and finding yourself on the opposite side can be a frustrating experience.

Symmetrain grants you the unique power of being able to correct this lop-sidedness and provide an equal viewing experience for all passengers.

One track mind

In this weirdly particular universe, the scenery rolls past either side of your train in a largely symmetrical fashion.

Of course, there are differences here and there - a small tree on the left side that's not mirrored on the right, or a ramshackle house on the right that doesn't find an expected twin on the left.

By tapping these lone objects, the missing detail will be miraculously conjured into existence, and full symmetry will be restored.

That is the entirety of of Symmetrain's gameplay. It's essentially a constantly rolling 'spot the difference' puzzle, but with a quirky Victorian art style and an infectious ditty playing in the background.

Train in vain

There's a basic lives system - making a mistake loses them, making it to the next station without error awards them - and a power brake that can be pulled during particularly tricky sections, but that's it.

The only variation here is in the various trains themselves, which embark through slightly different scenery. It's more than a little irritating that you have to grind to unlock them after the first two, given the game's inherent repetitiveness.

Put simply, the game just isn't quite compelling or varied enough to warrant such graft. As an idle time-waster with a whole host of trains available to you from the outset, it might have demanded a little more of your time.

Like a daily train commute, Symmetrain trundles along the same route again and again, and you quickly grow accustomed to its scenery. Pretty soon your thoughts will drift to some other task - in this case probably one of the better casual puzzlers on the App Store.

Symmetrain

Symmetrain is an efficient and novel casual puzzler, but the going is a little slow and the scenery is a little repetitive
Score
Jon Mundy
Jon Mundy
Jon is a consummate expert in adventure, action, and sports games. Which is just as well, as in real life he's timid, lazy, and unfit. It's amazing how these things even themselves out.