Our Verdict
Loren Brichter create Tweetie , the incredible iPhone app that finally became the official Twitter app . He contrive pull - to - refresh . And if you had require me what form of app he might release as his long - wait follow - up to Tweetie , boy , I never would have reckon . Now I fuck the response , and I ’m as pleased with the result as I am surprised by it : It ’s Letterpress , a word game with a healthy serving of scheme to go along with it . It works on the iPhone and the iPad , and it ’s awing .
As you ’d look from a Brichter - build up app , Letterpress is attractively designed , with a sparse , minimalist appearance . It ’s a two - player biz ; you could produce plot with random opponents , or trifle against your Game Center friends .
Because the game ’s approach is unique — form of a canny mashup ofBoggleandStrategery — it takes some time to explain ( and passe-partout ) the rules . Once you get them down , though , Letterpress is alarmingly habit-forming .
At the jump of a game , you ’re presented with a five - by - five grid of assorted letter . On your turn , you’re able to use any of the letter to progress a news . The letter tiles need n’t be adjacent ; you may tap from anywhere . After you render your word , the tiles you used turn dismal . Then it ’s your opposer ’s turn to make a Holy Writ . The tiles he or she uses to spell out a Christian Bible turn pink .
You ca n’t reuse Word of God that have already been act . If you diddle “ escapes , ” your opposite ca n’t wager “ escape , ” either ; words that exist as prefix of antecedently play Word are rejected .
When it ’s your turn to build up a countersign again , you’re able to employ tiles you ’ve already turn gamey , use unclaimed lily-white tiles , or use the pink - colourize tile that your opponent played . As you flirt , then , some tile will go from blue to pink to blue again , if you and your opposition keep spelling give-and-take with the same letters .
But there ’s one crucial exclusion : If you box in a blue tile with other blue tiles — that is , if you completely surround a blue roofing tile with other sorry tiles — it turns a darker tad of blue . Even if your opponent spells a parole using such a roofing tile , its color wo n’t flip to pink . A key strategical element in Letterpress is thus seek to package in your own tiles to lock in their color , and simultaneously scheming to unblock your opponent ’s tile .
Once all the tile have been used ( or after both players skip a turn ) , the secret plan ends . Whichever player turned more tiles to his or her colour issue the superior .
I prove the biz for several weeks , and I frequently had legion plot going . Letterpress is fun and compelling enough that I postulate to remind myself to put my iPhone down and , say , eat up .
prissy touches abound : the cute sounds that accompany each gameplay move , the bubble that designate what word your opponent just bring , and — my personal pet — the brilliant thumbnails that companion each game in your game leaning : Each is a bare - down white , pinkish , and blue second power that indicates the current state of the card for that game .
There ’s room for improvement . I ’d get it on the alternative to visit with my opponent ; shunting shabu - public lecture to a Messages back canal seems like an unnecessary extra footstep . And — though I discern space becomes a serious restraint here — I’d dear for Letterpress to render some indication that I ’m seek to spring an already - play word ; in game that stretch along on for several days , it ’s easy to forget you ’re building a word that ’s already been played , and vexing to tap to the sieve that lists all those preceding crook .
really , you may only see that screen of past words at all if you pony up $ 1 . relief printing itself is free ; a $ 1 in - app purchase unlocks that pick , along with other people of color themes and the power to act more than two game at once . You ’ll require to spend that spare dollar bill .
My few quibbles are minor . The truth is , none of my trace would impact how sport Letterpress is , which is to say : very . Fans of news games wo n’t be let down . If you ’re starting to tire ofWords With Friends , or just want additional word - focus fun , Letterpress deserves your aid .
