Droplitz is a puzzle game developed by Blitz Arcade and published by Atlus for Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network in June of 2009, with PC and iPhone versions planned for later in the year.

Droplitz is a deceptively simple game that consists of a simple board of hexagonal titles, each of which has a section of pipe on it. Some go straight across, some make L-turns, and others resemble junctions. Each of these tiles can be rotated to connect with surrounding tiles in various ways. At the top of the board, a number of openings release drops into the board; the task before the player is to align the tiles so that each drop can find its way to the bottom of the board.

Deceptively simple is the only way to describe the game, though, as a subtle scoring system on each of the four game types and multiple boards help flesh the game out into more than it initially seems. As players complete paths the drops fall to the bottom of the board, and when they do the current path is eliminated and new tiles fall into place. Large scores are earned by making multiple paths on one board, and keeping paths in place as new tiles fall in.

This puts an educational focus more on problem solving than anything else. As a round speeds up players will need to think quickly and carefully to keep combos going, particularly on larger, more challenging boards.

Classroom Facts

Droplitz is a puzzle game with fairly minimalist presentation, and as such features few classroom facts. Math is involved in the calculation of scores during each round.

Creativity & Imagination

By the Player:

There is some room for player creativity during a round of Droplitz. Players must be able to see possible routes and combos among the tiles scattered across the board, and as players progress and practice they will develop a certain skill and intuition that will allow them to succeed on the game. Players will make different decisions based on their own skills and experiences, particularly as they spend lots of time with the game.

Other than this, though, players never have any real decisions to make, other than what specific game type to choose when they begin.

By the Developer:

Droplitz is a game with simple mechanics, but its unique scoring system that rewards players for careful play and its multiple boards and modes give it a depth that rivals any puzzle game in the last several years. It is at first an extremely simple-seeming game, with obvious rules and controls, but trying to tie together multiple routes through the boards and reach high scores – which often unlock new boards and modes – actually has a pretty steep learning curve.

The game’s basic mode has players trying to create routes for their drops, which are limited in number. Completing a new route refills the drop gauge slightly, but as the game continues and things start to speed up players will eventually find their stock depleted. Zendurance mode offers the same game but without the increasing pace, while the other two modes offer strange new rules, including powerups that allow players to slow time or destroy certain tiles and sticky infected tiles that slow down progress and infect adjacent tiles. Each mode also offers nine boards of different sizes, unlockable by reaching specific scores. There are plenty of goals for players to reach, and after everything is unlocked a set of worldwide leaderboards are always there to tackle.

Droplitz also has a sort of audio visual grace to it. Players can select themes in Zendurace mode, and each offers subtle visual and color changes to the board that enrich the experience more than you’d think. The game also offers a notable sort of ambient soundtrack that keeps the rhythm of the game thumping along, even between rounds. The music also changes dynamically, becoming more intense as players reach certain combos.

Business Skills

Business skills are not an aspect of Droplitz.  However, the player will need to manage the drops carefully if they want to succeed in the game.

People Skills

Droplitz is vaguely multiplayer in that players’ scores are uploaded to leaderboards in each game type and on each board. However, there are no multiplayer modes, and no narrative structure or characters in the game.

Problem Solving

Players only have one goal in Droplitz – to guide their drops from the droppers at the top of the board to the collectors at the bottom. To be successful players need to be able to scan the entire board and see possible paths quickly, and then be able to assemble these paths quickly enough to form as many as possible before the tiles are eliminated.

This puts an emphasis on quick thinking and hand-eye coordination, and this is especially true as the game speeds up. To earn high scores players need to react quickly to new tiles as they appear, as forming immediate paths as new drops are released is the key to earning high score multipliers. At extremely high levels of play, players will need to keep paths from being completed, waiting until just the right moment to finish them as new tiles fill the board.

The game’s more obscure modes also allow special powerups to be used and introduce infected tiles that need to be used as quickly as possible, adding new layers to the already deep puzzle game.

Simulation

Droplitz is not a simulation game.

Popularity

Droplitz has received generally positive reviews since its release, being praised as a great, addictive puzzle game with a simple-but-complex set of rules and mechanics. It has received criticism for its lack of multiplayer and perhaps too-steep difficulty curve.

Extra Credit

Droplitz contains no violence whatsoever.

Controls & Options

Droplitz features some basic audio options, as well as the ability to toggle hints that outline possible paths during the game.

Tips

Droplitz received an E from the ESRB.