What is your relationship to addictive mobile games? If you were to ask me, I’d say it’s a love-hate relationship. I love being drawn into the fun but hate then not being able to put them down. I love being challenged, but hate that it keeps me on my phone. Love-hate. Love-hate. Love-hate.
I’ve previously written about a number of addictive game apps, including NYT Games and SimCity BuildIt, but nothing has got its hook stuck into me quite like Geometry Dash Lite. I even called it “the most addictive app I’ve ever used”.
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This is part of a regular series of articles exploring the apps that we couldn’t live without. Read them all here.
I’m sorry to say but only three months after writing those slightly flippant, hyperbolic words, I’ve discovered an app that has toppled the rhythm platformer game from the top spot. It’s called Two Dots and it’s all about making connections. By connecting colorful dots and searching for hidden treasures, gamers proceed through the game.
Getting started with the game
After downloading and installing the game, you’ll find that you can play without creating an account. I appreciate this doesn’t build much loyalty, but I do love being able to enjoy an app without feeling like my personal data might be being shared with people I don’t know. I’m not saying this is a problem for Two Dots, but I was glad all the same.
You can sign in with your Apple account if you’d like or even restore a game that you started on a different device. I bypassed all of this and jumped straight into the very first level. I was presented with a simple four-by-four grid made up of four red dots, six blue dots, and six yellow dots. All I had to do was swipe across connected dots and get a total of 15 dots of each color. There was just one catch: I had to do it within 20 moves. As you can imagine, it was an absolute breeze, and I had completed it in a matter of seconds.
Onto level two I jumped. This was just as straightforward but with a slightly larger grid and an additional color. This time, I had a generous 30 moves to crack the code. Again, it couldn’t have been easier. As level after level passed, I felt I was being lulled into a false sense of security. Would this ever get more difficult, or was I miles ahead of the competition? I seriously doubted the latter.
More challenging than I first thought
It was only once I had moved beyond level 13 that the levels became noticeably challenging. The game introduced some new rules, and suddenly sequences of dots were harder to come by. It was forcing me to think a few moves ahead, and I found myself becoming hooked. “I’m not going to be beaten by this simple app” kept going through my head. I powered on through, and at the time of writing, I’m now at level 20.
Simple dot connection is only the beginning of this excellent game, though. You can discover worlds within worlds through the Scavenger Hunt game mode. Rare rewards can be collected by conquering each tier. There are also five main game modes alongside limited-time events that keep you wanting to move through the levels.
Two Dots is free but don’t get caught out
Two Dots is one of those games that will sting you if you’re not careful. There aren’t a huge number of limitations to playing the game for free, although the further through the game you get, the harder it becomes to play for as long as you’d like. That’s because you’ll be losing lives quicker than you can gain them.
That’s where in-app purchases enter the fray. If you need more lives, then you can buy five extra lives for nine coins or have unlimited lives for six hours for 89 coins. They’ve really thought about how they’re going to get you coming back time and again. Coins can be purchased for actual money, and along with lives, you can buy boosters that will help you conquer more difficult levels.
Despite not being a fan of having to part with my money, I am a big fan of the Two Dots app. It’s a seriously enjoyable game that I look forward to playing. I’d say I’m happily addicted, and I hope it stays that way.
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paulo.n.hatton@gmail.com (Paul Hatton)
