Lost Yeti Review

While pixel art games have many geneses, it's difficult not to trace the inspiration for many of them back to Nintendo. But really the inspiration is just stylistic, or metamorphosed into something else entirely, having only hints of the original inspirations. But for Lost Yeti it is clear: this is perhaps the most Nintendo game that has been made on iOS.

It starts with the feel of the main character: the eponymous yeti is cute and charming in such a way that it makes players care about seeing it succeed. Success is defined as getting it to the goal without getting spiked, with ice cream bars that can be collected as well. Now, there's no direct control of the yeti as it moves on its own if it has room to. Players can shift the position of blocks in certain rows and columns designated with arrows to allow the yeti to move, who will turn clockwise when a wall or block is hit.

Thus, the game becomes about manipulating the blocks in order to let the yeti get to the goal. Multiple tactics are used, and manipulating the empty spaces quickly while the yeti is not in the line is used regularly. Blocks that get up and move while ice is adjacent to them play a role - and they, like the yeti, can prevent a line from being manipulated while they're in it. Enemies like hogs get involved, and spike pits, oh no!

For a game regulated by simple rules, there's a good variety of puzzles here. The challenge to complete levels in as few steps as possible serves primarily as the way to compete on Game Center leaderboards, but players who don't want to worry about that don't have to.

But even though the game itself is entertaining enough, the real draw is the style. Seriously, Neutronized went all out to make a game that feels like a Nintendo game - at least in terms of its charm and personality. The pixels are thick and chunky. The animation has a 'choppy' feel to it that would be perfectly at home on the Super NES. It's easy to call a pixel art game 'retro' but Lost Yeti actually is retro.

Seriously, I'm not being dismissive when I say that the best part of Lost Yeti is the style. It's well worth checking out just to see firsthand the care that went into making an actual retro-styled game.