Game Review: Timberdoku

By Al

Players: 1
Platforms: Nintendo Switch

Fans of puzzle games have a lot to enjoy already on the Nintendo Switch, but there's a new game in town that just might grab their attention for a while. Coming to us by way of Leoful Entertainment, Timberdoku is a line-clearing puzzle game that has several mechanics that seek to make it stand out in an already crowded genre. We're going to be taking a look at the game today, and seeing as we have a lot to go over, let's get right into it!

Describing puzzle games that involve the placing of shapes to clear lines often boils down to comparing it to Tetris and something else. Even though it may be somewhat boring to go that route, I'm going to do my best to give Timberdoku one of those comparisons. Simply put, Timberdoku is what you'd get if you mixed Tetris with Sudoku, and threw in a bit of Columns for good measure too. There, that's the review. No, but seriously, while there's a lot going on here that has to be explained, that one sentence does an okay job in describing the game. We'll cover the jewel mechanic that brought me to mention Columns later in the review, but most of Timberdoku falls into the "Tetris meets Sudoku" label. You are given three blocks at a time, and they can pretty much be in any configuration. You then take the blocks and place them in 9x9 grid that is divided into 9 smaller 3x3 grids. Lines are cleared if you fill in a line completely from left-to-right or top-to-bottom, or if you manage to fill up an entire 3x3 grid. Either way, this means filling in some solid shape of 9 blocks. You're then given a score that's dependent on how many lines/grids you've cleared, and if you're able to get a clear chain going. You must place all three of your blocks before you're given more, and the game ends when you have a piece that you no longer have space for on the board. That sounds simple enough, but let's go over some of the intricacies that make Timberdoku unique.

The most interesting aspect of Timberdoku, and the thing that makes it challenging, has to be how the game handles block pieces. While many of the shapes the blocks take will be familiar to players of Tetris, there are some that are just strange. Throughout Timberdoku you'll be given U-shaped pieces, long L-shaped ones, lines from 2-5 blocks in length, single blocks, and even diagonal lines. I'm not sure how many block variants are in the game, but the sheer variety never ceased to amaze me in the Endless Mode. Placing these requires a lot of thought too, as their odd shape can leave gaps that can be near impossible to fill once created. These gaps will either need smaller pieces to fill them in, or you'll have to clear several surrounding lines in order to get to them. The other odd thing about placing shapes is that you can't actually rotate them. This will probably throw most players for a loop, as that mechanic feels key to any shape-based, line-clearing puzzle game. This makes a lot more sense within the context of the game, but it can be a harsh thing for newcomers to learn. I still try in vain to rotate pieces from time to time. Also, since you're given three pieces at once, you often have to plan how and where you're going to place each one. You may notice early on that one of them won't fit onto the board as it currently stands, so your job will be to clear a space for it with the other two. It all works surprisingly well, even if the mechanics do take a bit of getting used to.

While what I just described works for all of Timberdoku, I mainly had the Endless Mode in mind. Endless Mode is your standard non-stop puzzle game mode where score is all that matters. It's fun for a while, but the Adventure Mode is probably a better place to hone one's skills. This mode offers 80 challenges that either involve hitting a certain score threshold, or clearing a certain number of gems. The first goal is rather self-explanatory, but the gems mechanic require more explanation. In Adventure Mode, gems take the place of some block pieces, both on the board and attached to shapes that spawn in, and you need to clear a certain amount of each color to progress. This is easier than it sounds though, as it just means that a gem has to either be in a line, or in a 3x3 grid, when it's cleared in order for it to count. If you're not given enough gems on the board when a stage starts, you have to wait for them to spawn in along with your playing pieces. That's one challenging aspect of these stages, but the other has to be the fact that all Adventure Mode stages already have pre-placed blocks in them. These can be rather troublesome, as you'll often spend the first few turns trying to clear the mess that's in the stage when you first enter it. While I don't think any of the Adventure Mode stages are particularly difficult, they can be rather challenging if the game's RNG gives you pieces that simply don't work with the blocks already placed. It makes for some game overs that feel a bit unfair, but it's a great mode nonetheless. Oh, and before anyone says anything, I know that what I just described has very little to do with Columns. I just figured I'd mention it earlier since bother have jewel/gem-related mechanics.

There isn't a lot presentation-wise worth mentioning about Timberdoku. Everything about it is rather simple, but I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing. There's not a lot of color, there's not much in the way of music, and even the title screen is rather bare bones. I'm not even sure what the visual theme is supposed to represent, as I think it revolves around wood and a farm, but I can't be sure. It does have touch controls if you're playing in Handheld Mode, but that actually made me wonder if this were all some sort of mobile port. It's probably not the best puzzle game out there, but fans of the genre are sure to sink several hours into this one, and I have to admit that the gameplay concept of mixing Tetris and Sudoku is rather unique. It's big saving grace has to be its price, as it currently sits at a very affordable $4.99. That makes picking it up a rather simple choice, even if it's not the most robust puzzle game out there.

While I personally don't think there's a lot about Timberdoku that makes it stand out among the puzzle genre greats, I have to admit that I had a lot of fun during my time with it, and I appreciated the way that it changed up the standard line-clearing format. It's not a must-buy title by any means, but puzzle game fans might want to take a look at it if they're feeling adventurous. It's a nice distraction, and it comes in at a very reasonable price. Just keep an eye out for those big pieces, those are sure to ruin anyone's day!

Check Out Timberdoku on Nintendo Switch:
https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/timberdoku-switch/

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Story: N/A
Gameplay: B
Graphics: B
Music/Sound: C
Value: A

Overall: B

Pros:
+ A great puzzle game that mixes Tetris-style line-clearing within a Sudoku-like playing field.
+ The sheer variety of pieces the game throws at you is sure to keep you on your toes in a way Tetris rarely does.
+ While the Endless Mode is entertaining, the Adventure Mode is sure to keep players invested for several hours.
+ At just $4.99 at the time of this writing, picking it up isn't a big investment money-wise.
+ Clearing blocks is just fun.

Cons:
- Not being able to rotate pieces can take a long time to wrap one's head around.
- Some Adventure Mode stages feel unfair due to the RNG of the pieces given in regards to the blocks already placed in the puzzle.
- Just isn't quite as addicting as other similar puzzle games.

A copy of this game was provided to us free-of-charge by the publisher for the purpose of this review. This did not affect our review in any way.

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