Game: Num One: Revised Edition
Genre: Puzzle, Matching, Casual
System: Steam (Windows)
Developer|Publisher: C5H5 Games Lab
Controller Support: None
Price: US $2.99 | UK £2.09 | EU € 2,39
Release Date: March 2nd, 2022
Review code provided with many thanks to C5H5 Games Lab.
Num One Revised Edition is a match-three puzzle game with bright colors and a user-friendly UI. It’s a puzzle game in its purest form: lining up matching numbers to combine them and make bigger numbers for as long as possible.
Gameplay in Num One: Revised Edition
The gameplay of Num One is very basic. Using a mouse, players just need to move blocks from one location to the other to make sets of three identical numbers. There are several different colors of 1’s which must be matched by color, but the other numbers can be any color and still be matched together. A group of three or more can be vertical, horizontal, or make an L-shape.
Each tile has a smaller, secondary letter that denotes what level the tile is. The higher the level of tile, the further the tile can be moved across the board to create a match. Tiles cannot be moved to a new location if that doesn’t create at least one match.
As the player continues to combine more and more numbers, they will create new numbers, which is the goal of this game. Combining three FIVE bricks together to make a 15 block, for example, will get the player a little closer to getting all the possible blocks.
A User-Friendly Game to Play
The first thing I noticed when I opened up Num One to play it for the first time is how absolutely blinding and awful the colors were. I was absolutely delighted to find that the colors of the squares were so simple to change, and I could alter them to whatever I wanted them to look like in both light and dark mode. This made finding a color combo that didn’t hurt my eyes much easier.
The menu also made changing the shapes of the 1’s pretty easy too; this would make the game a lot more accessible to those who have difficulty distinguishing colors. Regardless of what kinds of colors are perfect for your specific needs, you can change the block to suit you.
The UI of this game is also extremely well-polished. There is a different weight to all the blocks based on how large the number is in the block. There is a squishy bounciness to block as you break them, making each match feel good to interact with. The movement of blocks falling on top of one another is also visually pleasing, with the little jello-y blocks squashing and then reshaping in a way that makes the game even more engaging.
Playing Num One: Revised Edition
There are several levels in Num One, each one with a different number of total colors and different sized boards. For example, the starting level is a 5×5 with 5 different colors of 1’s. The rest of the levels are 8×8 and have a range of total numbers of colors of 1’s from 3 to 7.
While the game’s basic premise is very fun with addictive lining up of matches and trying to get higher and higher numbers, I had a couple of issues with the game. There would occasionally be a massive number of the same colored 1’s all together, either at the beginning of the game or that would spawn in from the top of the board. This would cause issues later on, as the chances of seeing 8 of the same color 1’s line up would be exceptionally rare. So if I ended up with an eight or a seven in the early game, it would be nearly impossible to get rid of it.
Even if I didn’t manage to combine three odd numbers together, I was usually left with something that would not match any of the other blocks I had. Nothing else combined together to make a 21 block. This meant there was a dead spot on the board where I just had to work around the block I couldn’t do anything with.
There was really only one other thing I didn’t like about Num One, and that was the music and noises. The sounds of the blocks falling and the background noises were all awful, but it was easy enough to turn them off. I wouldn’t recommend having them on if you are sound sensitive.
Conclusion
Overall, Num One is very well put together. I liked it; it’s fun to play and is well made with a functional and beautiful UI. The game is accessible to the color-blind and is a unique spin on the traditional matching game. And you can replay the tutorial any time you want to! If I could change one thing, I would make it so every so many matches you make, you can delete a block that’s clogging up your space, that would make all the difference to me.
Super fun, very cheap, and a new twist on a classic favorite.
Final Verdict: I Like it a Lot.
