- This week our App Army community took on puzzler Neon Zone
- They found it particularly enjoyable when played in short bursts
- The mixture of racing and puzzle-solving also impressed
Neon Zone is a recently released puzzler that challenges you to escape a maze as quickly as possible. The caveat is that you’ll only have a few seconds to figure out a route. After that, you’re relying entirely on your memory. Now, I can never remember anything, so I figured the best people for the job were our App Army, so we handed the game over to them.
Here’s what they said:
Robert Maines
Neon Zone is a simple arcade game that tests your memory and your reflexes. Using swipes you guide your Velosphere through a 2D maze and must reach the exit before the time limit runs out. It’s not that simple as you are only given a brief look at the maze and as you play you only see a zoomed-in view of the maze as you guide the Velosphere to the exit.
Hit the walls or go the wrong way and you lose valuable time. Lasers and dead ends complicate matters on later levels. Not much to add to this one. It’s such a simple game that the real challenge is to complete the levels in the fastest time. It looks nice and playable. One of those games best played in short bursts. I enjoyed it.
Oksana Ryan
This game was simple to follow but so much fun to play. You have mere seconds to see a neon maze and then it zooms onto the neon ball and you have a target time to steer it to the exit line. There was a great deal of timing out and going back to the start, but it was still fun to play, and I was determined to beat the target. If you’re into brain training, quick thinking or just beating your personal bests, then I think this game could be just what you need.
Mark Abukoff
I was expecting the point of this game to be able to find your way out of a maze, and at first, I was disappointed that it wasn’t. But then as I played, played, and went back and went back, I found it kind of a cool variation. The point is not to escape, but to escape faster than anyone else. You have to be focused. I recommend putting your phone on Do Not Disturb. The aesthetic is pure cool neon 80s as is the music. Simple controls work fine. There’s nothing complex about this game, but the simple thing that it does, it does very well, and if you’re a fan of these kinds of games, I happily recommend it.
Jason Rosner
Neon Zone is a retro arcade-style puzzler where the goal is to steer a futuristic vehicle called the Velosphere through a maze in the fastest time possible. Each level gives you just three seconds to memorize the layout. You’ll want to avoid hitting walls that will cut into your time, luckily the controls are rather responsive and I really like that you can swipe early for an upcoming turn. Graphics and the synth-stylized sounds seem to be pulled straight out of an arcade as if we had travelled back in time to the 1980s. Neon Zone includes leaderboards that go right along with that quick one-more-try appeal that makes it an easy recommendation for fans of the genre.
Jim Linford
From what I’ve played of it I loved the music and the aesthetic. It starts of as a memory game. Memorise the layout of the maze, usually a few seconds and get the hell out of there. As quickly as you can. The quicker the more stars you get. You can also get bragging rights if your score is high enough. It’s definitely got an appeal and that just one more go feel. Hook. If you are an old-school arcade gamer or looking for a high-score chaser give it a go.
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