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iOS puzzle games are so plentiful that new innovative ideas are often…how shall I say it…not happening. We’ve played who knows how many Cut the Rope clones (or inspired by) and even more connect-x amount games. Then lo and behold… Illusion Labs took us by (a very pleasant) surprise with one of the most original iOS puzzlers, Blast-A-Way–oh, how it’s been a long time.

Blast-A-Way features a world that’s inhabited by little Boxie creatures who by accident knock over their sticky bomb monument and blow up their world resulting in a disorganized mess. Now their world is destroyed and you must take control of the  Boxie(s) and rescue 3 of the smaller Boxies that’s spread out in each level.

In order to save the smaller Boxies you’ll navigate around a 3D world and throw explosive devices to blow up obstacles. However, you’ll soon realize that it gets much more complicated than just blowing sh*t up (yeah I need to censor myself at times) and this is where the handful of gizmos come in. Example: you’ll need to throw a teleporting ball in order to move to new locations or, at times, throw objects through colored gates so that your object can properly interact with the world. These are just a smattering of examples. After playing it from beginning to end from complexity to complexity, level to level world to…well, you get the gist…I can’t pontificate enough on wonderful Blast-A-Ways’ funness!  Funness is a real word…isn’t it?

Although Blast-A-Way created a terrific experience I need to talk about the elephant in the room–the sub-par controls. Navigating the camera should be easy and in ‘theory’ works rather well. However, the further you progress the more complex each stage gets which actually makes it harder to position the camera where you want it. Instead I’m selecting an object and watch in horror as my Boxie blows up where I touched instead of rotating the camera. Then sometimes it’s not as clear as can be where you’re tossing…why did my Boxie throw it there while I’m obviously trying to throw it here (at least I thought it was clear)! With that said, the controls are not terrible and very doable…they’re just mediocre at best.

The visual cues in Blast-A-Way are inspired from from everyday tactile surfaces from children wooden building blocks, fabric worlds that look like couch pillows… even marble. With such a cute design, Blast-A-Way has a unique refreshing appeal that really can’t be compared to anything else out there in the iOS gaming realm.

The Bottom Line: 9.5/10 (Super!)

Blast-A-Way brings one of the most innovative iOS puzzlers that we’ve seen in years.