14 DAY TRIAL // Hexxagon Labs, the latest logic game unveiled by the Russian-based HeroCraft, is a pretty unusual game for its genre. Its main idea is the one found in the popular Othello / Reversi strategy board games, hence players must try to occupy as much as possible from the opponent's "space". Sure, there's nothing unusual in that, but the game's novelty must not to be looked for here.
Generally speaking, logic and puzzle games give players two kinds of feelings: a satisfactory one, when they manage to solve the puzzle and/or win the logical battle with their opponent(s), and a frustrating one, when they realize they don't have what it takes to advance in the game. Well, Hexxagon Labs comes with a third one, the feeling of being a bit smarter after you read the science-related facts (both funny and interesting) included in the game. This unusual feature obviously makes the game more attractive, especially since the mentioned facts are unveiled after every level is completed, so they can be considered rewards for your wins.
Playing in the Lab
Hexxagon Labs comes with three playing modes: "Progress game", "Arcade game" and "Hot seat". In all three of them, you control several green molecules that you have to multiply and/or move across a "field of cells" until the red or blue molecules controlled by the opponent(s) are all contaminated with your color.
The Progress mode asks you to complete each of its 17 levels at a time. The first levels are the easiest ones, first of all because there are more free cells that you can occupy and second of all because the opponent / opponents are not that smart. Or at least they don't show it. As you advance and finish more levels, you'll discover less playing space as well as an evolved AI (artificial intelligence) that will seriously test your logic and your ability to strategically plan all the moves. And planning is a wise thing to do, because if you're not careful, it's very easy to lose what you have captured: one moment you have, let's say, 20 molecules of your color, and the next moment you can have only half of that number, or even less.
While playing, you can't save the game, but you don't have to anyway. After completing a level in Progress mode, the respective level becomes unlocked, therefore accessible from all the three game modes mentioned above. Moreover, there's an auto-save feature, and whenever you restart and re-enter the Progress mode, you'll be prompted with a question asking you if you want to continue your last game or start another one.
The Arcade mode lets you play any unlocked level against an artificial opponent, while the Hot Seat mode brings more interactivity, allowing up to three human players to battle in the "molecule war", from only one mobile device.
The science-related facts that I was talking about only appear in the Progress game mode. While it's possible for gamers to already know some of the info unveiled during the game, they will surely find new info that they had no idea about. One of the most interesting facts that I've come across is that "Intelligent people have more zinc and copper in their hair". It might sound odd, but apparently this is true. Anyway, Hexxagon Labs is packed with many other good-to-know scientific details - all you have to do is play and find them out for yourselves.
The sound and look of the molecules
Graphics-wise, the game is nicely done, offering a good set of colors and cool animations, so there's really nothing to dislike from this point of view.
The audio side of Hexxagon Labs has both a good part and a not-that-good one. The latter is represented by the game's music, which can become a bit annoying after a while. In return, the in-game sounds are more than nice and they suit perfectly the actions they're related to (copying and moving the molecules, plus taking over the opponent's molecules). Of course, users have the freedom to set the music off and only keep the in-game sounds, or set all the audios off, in case they don't like them (or in case they're playing in a place where quietness is needed).
Minuses?
A minus of Hexxagon Labs would be the fact that there's not more "scientific info" to find out, as it's always good to discover new and interesting things. Also, during the game, sometimes I wished to "skip turn" and not move / copy any of my molecules, but unfortunately the game doesn't offer this option, hence you always have to move or copy something (when it's your turn, obviously, and until there are no unoccupied places to go to).
Conclusion
Hexxagon Labs is probably best played on a Pocket PC / touchscreen handset, since you can easily move the molecules with a stylus or even with your finger(s). I've reviewed the game on a Pocket PC and the whole experience was quite nice.
All in all, we have a nice little game that will bring you, as I said at the beginning (besides what most games of this kind can bring), new "facts" to think about and also to make you smile.
Availability
The 1.0 version of Hexxagon Labs will be released tomorrow, the 8th of May. Shortly after (meaning in a few weeks), the 1.1 version will be available, bringing new levels and support for more languages.
