PathPix Pro, Kris Pixton’s follow-up to the terrific puzzle game PathPix, is now available in the app store. This sequel brings nearly double the number of games from the original, with several unique categories that should provide a great challenge and keep us busy for a while.
PathPix Pro falls squarely in the “simple to learn, difficult to master” realm. As we described in our previous review of PathPix, the game blends drawing, connect the dots, and find the hidden picture. Large grids full of multi-colored dots are the basis for each puzzle. Each dot contains a number and serves as the end point for a line. The number at each end indicates the length of the line measured in grid squares. Simply drag your finger from one dot along the path to its corresponding end point. Erasing mistakes is as easy as drawing backwards or double-tapping to clear the whole line. There are buttons for zooming in and out, and you can pan around the grid by touching any white space and dragging your finger. Each puzzle’s solution is unique. The intertwining lines, when filled in, will create an image. Upon solving the puzzle, the image becomes clear and is accompanied by a quote.
PathPix Pro looks and feels exactly like the original, except that the difficulty has been cranked up significantly. In addition to the 200 standard puzzles, there are an additional 100 puzzles spread across 5 categories (20 puzzles in each). Shapes Plus contains puzzles of geometric shapes, Short Paths is made up of mostly short lines, Two Colors creates a two-tone puzzle, White Space is designed to actually include some squares that do not contain segments of colored lines, and Long Paths contains mostly long lines. These puzzles are practically guaranteed to frustrate, so players who are new to this game might be better served by starting with PathPix and working their way up to the Pro version. It should also be noted that all puzzles are unlocked, so getting stuck on any puzzle will not prevent you from enjoying the rest of the game.
The graphics suit the game well, utilizing bold colors that create simplistic-looking images when finished. There is no soundtrack. The control scheme works wonderfully and the zoomed-in grid is plenty big enough that you should not have any issues with drawing lines in the appropriate squares. Progress in any and all games is auto-saved, so you could have dozens of games in various stages of completion. Replay value is great, as the 300 puzzles are enough to keep even seasoned puzzlers occupied for weeks or even months. Even if you’ve completed the puzzles, arriving at the solutions was so challenging the first time around that you’ll likely struggle on repeated attempts, as well. For a dollar more than its predecessor, PathPix Pro is a steal at $2.99, given its polished gameplay and the sheer number of puzzles. PathPix Pro leaps over the bar set by PathPix for another 5-Dimple score.
PathPix Pro gets our AppSmile 5-Dimple rating:
