Poly Bridge

Ever thought of how puzzle games could be interesting once again? Since Portal, many gamers have been waiting eagerly for a new, refreshing concept that combines lateral thinking, fun aesthetics and a task that doesn’t revolve from entering one hole and leaving another.

How about a puzzle game involving bridges?

The core principle behind Poly Bridge is to design and construct various bridges for multiple situations. The main idea is to allow vehicles of different sizes and weights to cross from point A to point B safely without falling into the gap in-between. You are given the materials to construct a bridge and also a budget you must work around in order to not go overboard. This limits you from overusing certain materials, hence removes cheating the game, but also provides more of the lateral aspect as you often have to think outside the box to overcome certain limitations. There are many different bridges including your standard fixed bridge, draw bridges, suspension bridges and even jumps you must create to clear larger gaps. You have to make them strong enough to withstand the weight of these various vehicles as overweighting the bridge will result in it collapsing.

That’s pretty much it. From this simple premise it might not sound much but in action this actually provides an interesting and engaging puzzle game. It’s about working within the confines of the materials at hand and also the money you have to spend. You are taught the different methods of construction and certain rules to making a successful crossing. One big tip you must remember is that triangles are your friends and, indeed, they do hold the weight of even the heaviest bridge. It has all the right components of a strong puzzler with a new framework to make it different. It’s all about relieving the tension off the bridge which, in a manner of fact, just causes more tension … for the player. So the game is certainly gripping.

Visually the game is very pleasing to look at. It’s simple, yet with a certain charm to it. I just didn’t enjoy two things; the soundtrack is highly repetitive and just plain annoying. It sounds like a ten second song on an acoustic guitar repeated over and over, with no variation. Second is the manner in which bridges collapse, meaning they’re very un-climatic and just a bore to observe. Meaning if you repeatedly fail, you’re just stuck watching the flat, dull dismantling of what you’ve built, which often just look naff.
Now the concept is great but I must confess that Poly Bridge was a love-hate relationship for me while playing. It can be a mixture of delightful lateral thinking, which is highly rewarding or to the point where the game was so picky and so infuriating that I gave up on several occasions. Crafting and layouts have to be done to painstaking perfection. It does take time to understand the full workings and complexities that this game has to offer. You need to get every component, every measurement and the construction dead on for it to work and even then, the game does have a nasty habit of just making things fall apart.

There are indications and signs on what do and don’t work with your creations, but at times it can be very obscure on what the problems are. Or for that matter, introducing new materials and situations with very minimal guidelines or prep. It’s like the training mode is there but when the game actually starts there’s a host of new problems and materials you’ve not known about. In training, you will be presented with designing a bridge with a number of strong points (let’s say 2/3 in a training mission) to build on, thus strengthening the bridge. But come early on in the game when you face the same situation it’s often halved or made fairly difficult for beginners to tackle (usually cut down to 1 or placed in an awkward position). It’s usually a case of the level’s layout being rather more advanced than the expected level of player skill.

But the overall premise of Poly Bridge is a highly refreshing one and through the tougher moments there were some I genuinely felt joy and satisfaction with. It doesn’t always make sense and, to be honest, the game can just feel a little repetitive, even though it does implement some awesome elements as it progresses. Poly Bridge is still a charming and quirky puzzle game that differs from many others and does a great job at making you come back for more. I’m sure it’s just the annoying soundtrack that made me even more angry than usual.

+ Engaging and dynamic concept for a puzzle game
+ Easy to get to grips with, for the most part
+ Highly challenging and rewarding

- Does throw you in the deep end way too soon
- The soundtrack is plain annoying
- The destructive factor is underwhelming

A Steam key for Poly Bridge was provided by the publisher for the purpose of this review