GAME: A Froggo Story by Town’s End Studios

GENRE: Puzzle, arcade

PLATFORMS: Android, iOS

In the last two years, the mobile game market has been overloaded with cute games about cats, dogs and rabbits. All these animals are endearing, but have you ever imagined an endearing frog? I hadn’t, but now I can’t get over how adorable Froggo is.

A Froggo Story is a relaxing 2D puzzle game. You control Froggo as he hops around on rocks and lily pads in a pond collecting lilies. Each level is a set of tiles, and Froggo has to hop along the right path to reach the end of the level. The challenge lies in figuring out the correct path while collecting all the lilies, as different tiles behave differently. For instance, the lily pad sinks after jumping on it once as does the mushroom that launches you a tile ahead after jumping on it. The puzzles get more and more interesting as you progress through the levels and unlock a larger variety of tiles.

Collecting the lilies earns ambers, which are then used to buy furniture and other items for decorating Froggo’s home. These too are pretty — such as a frogshaped wall clock, a bathtub for Froggo’s friend Gosh and a fish that acts as your guide in the game, and looks hilariously annoying.

At some level, you encounter an adorable but angry duckling called Momo, who’s mad at Froggo for messing with the aesthetics of the pond. When interacting with Momo, a Pokemon-style encounter occurs, where you have to choose one of several avail able options in response to Momo’s statement, with Froggo at the bottom of the screen facing Momo at the top. If you choose the right answers, Froggo will eventually befriend Momo, who then comes and hangs out at Froggo’s home.

Although the gameplay is not ground-breakingly new, A Froggo Story stands out because of its adorable artwork, which is full of pastel colours and lovely character designs. The background music is calming and zen-like, and I can imagine people playing this to relax and unwind after a long day. There are no ads or inapp purchases, and you can play it in one hand in portrait mode with your thumb. My only problem with the game was that there are just 80 levels that I could finish relatively quickly, but the developers say that they plan to keep adding more levels. This means that there will likely be more characters like Momo to interact with and befriend.

VERDICT: Overall, A Froggo Story is a charming and enjoyable puzzle game that is perfect for players looking for a laid-back experience. The puzzles are neither too easy nor too difficult, making them great for players of all skill levels. The adorable art style and calming music only add to the relaxing atmosphere, and the humorous character interactions and customising elements add extra depth to the gameplay. If you’re a fan of puzzle games and cute characters, A Froggo Story is definitely worth checking out. I would rate it nine out of 10.