Kami

Game Info

With a name like Kami, even though the main menu image insinuates that the word means paper, I still felt it a necessity to do a little research on what the word means.  While it does mean paper and once you play the title makes sense, I also found out that it has some other meaning that may or may have not made the game a little more interesting.  Kami’s are the spirits or phenomena that are worshiped in the religion of Shinto, so being that isn’t what this game is about let’s talk about how paper is a driving force to this title from Flyhigh Works, State of Play and Circle Entertainment.

Like most other puzzle titles, Kami doesn’t take the approach of having a story or elaborate plot that intertwines the puzzles throughout.  Instead, the developers took the simplistic approach and laid out the levels in a easy to navigate menu and it just laid out level after level, which is completely okay by me.

The gameplay will be reminiscent of another eShop title called Color Zen.  As most of you have probably not had the opportunity to play the aforementioned title, the best way I can describe the gameplay is that you simply will want to make the screen one solid color.   You simply tap which color you would like to change the paper tiles into on the color palette that is at the bottom of the touch screen and then tap the block area you would like to paint over.  The later level designs get pretty difficult as the colors start weaving their way through each other.  I always stuck with the sound strategy of which color can I eliminate completely.

The challenge though is doing it in a certain amount of moves.  I didn’t even realize it was possible to fail until I got stuck in a later level and I said, “screw it” I’ll just use tons of moves and skip the level.  Nope, you still need to finish it in a set amount of moves.  Thankfully, there are helpful little rewind buttons that take you all the way back or just one move, that will help you beat each level without having to constantly restart from the menu.  There are a total of 63 levels that will keep you entertained between 2-4 hours depending on your skill level.

The bottom screen is where you will be playing a majority of the game, which is a bummer because the paper colors and animations on the top screen are pretty impressive.  The bottom screen looks a little more dull and boring, but it’s the formula and not the graphics that drive this experience.  The soundtrack is fitting with the relaxing and calming sound of Far Eastern music.

The Recommendation

I really enjoyed my time with Kami.  It’s an easy concept to understand, but has enough challenge involved that it will keep even the most experienced of gamers interested in completing the whole title 100%.  If you enjoy puzzle games, Kami with it’s interesting look and addictive gameplay is one game for $2.99 that you should not pass up.