P, by Oz Creations $12.95
Reviewed May 2002

Oz Creations created P based on the classic Sokoban game concept. Instead of pushing boxes, Mr. P (Agent 00P) is a penguin who needs to collect gems. But in order for him to collect the required number of gems, he must overcome obstacles: use ice to freeze rivers, open doors with keys, blow up bricks with TNT, etc.

The story: Dr. Evil is planning to destroy Iceworld by stealing gems from the rejuvenator because the gems are what are keep the ecological balance of the land. Mr. P must find these gems scattered throughout Iceworld, Snowland, Sandland, Waterland and Fireland.

The puzzle: First of all, there is a navigation screen that lists all the levels. A World is a group of ten levels. Once you complete a World, you can move on to any one of the 10 levels in the next World. I wish all Sokoban type of games had something like this. There is nothing more frustrating than being stuck on a level that prevents you enjoying the entire game.

The design of the puzzles is elegant with lots of surprises combine with beautiful graphics. The difficulty levels progress nicely with some easy levels in the beginning and some grueling levels later in the game. Even though it's an improvisation of Sokoban, P has its own unique game play. Players not only have to figure out the paths but also how to use different things to clear the path. For example, you must use two ice blocks to clear a river path or fire path; TNT only blows up the brick walls, brick walls can break ice blocks that trap gems. The combination of these two elements makes the game play fun.

The graphics are beautiful and pleasant to look at. There are some animated effects like TNT blowing up and bubbles bursting, but they are not a lot of them, which fits the gameplay very well. The background music is both cheery and relaxing, perfect to listen to while you are staring at the puzzle. The sound effects are very cute. The sound Mr. P turned a lot of heads when I was playing.

The installation is a bit tedious because you have to install a 321k runtime PocketC before you install the game. But Oz Creations bundles PocketC in their download folder, which makes it less painful. There are other programs out there that use PocketC, so it doesn't hurt to have it installed anyhow. Oz Creations has also released a level editor that will help to create even more levels for the hardcore.

Playing Hints and Tips:

Look for the complete hints for all the difficult levels in P, go here. (Major spoiler)

When you need to push items, make sure you tap on the item, not tap over it. You must have 1 empty square between two things in order for them to work. For example, there must be a space between a key and a locked door in order to open the door with the key.