REVIEW : Poly Bridge (PC)
Poly Bridge 2 is a simulation puzzle play created by Dry Cactus. The game assigns jobs to players to build a bridge to help a vehicle cross over a body of water, under flying planes, around boats, and more. What begins as a mere task normally ends up as a disorganised mess, and that is by design. Dry Cactus has a fun play on its hands, even if it is a flawed one.
The first Poly Bridge launched in 2016 to a lot of success. The game prides itself on sensible laxatives and a building functionality that resembles that of real life, with the combined twist of cooky and fun off the wall video game fun. The series looks to up the ante. And it does so adequately.
Poly Bridge 2 uses various tools to get the job done. Paths are used to drive on. While steel is a more expensive and more powerful version of said fortification. Rope and cable wires are used to provide for suspension style bridges, further expanding the options for creativity. While hydrodynamics help creates draw bridges to make way for approaching boats and the like.
Poly Bridge 2‘s most prominent flaws are the absence of aid that it gives its players. While the devices are different and cool, they can be rather complicated. There are several tutorials, but even those aren’t all that helpful. When creating a simplistic bridge, the “triangle” method of putting fundamental pieces in a triangle configuration above or below the road helps keep the bridge together. This tutorial assists illustrate one of the core mechanics, but the hydrodynamics tutorial is not as effective. The tutorial tells the player to snap a few buttons but doesn’t describe why. And when it gets to things like ropes and springs, there are no tutorials. There is a tip section, but that region is again only insignificantly detailed. The first Poly Bridge was lacking in the essential message, which is why the community moved in and filled the interwebs with innumerable tutorial videos and how-tos. Dry Cactus had lots of time to build a better and more useful “help” section with Poly Bridge 2, but it appears to have blown that chance.
Thankfully, any level can be skipped entirely and retorted to at a later time, but that’s not an ideal way to proceed through a game. Additionally, when a player blows a level and reverts to it, all the progress is saved, indicating the bridge design the player has built will still be there. This is a nice touch as someone may want to simply take a pause from a tough level and come back to it at a distinct point.
At the start of every level, there is a quick summary that describes when each item will move in the simulation. Each piece is labelled with a letter in the alphabet. For example, “A” might be the ambulance vehicle, “B” might be the hydraulics for the draw bridge, “C” might be the boat, “D” might be the hydraulics for the draw bridge again, and “E” might be the bike. In this sequence, the player must build a bridge that is powerful enough for the ambulance to cross first, then build the hydraulic system that can lift for the ship to cross under the bridge, and ultimately secure enough for it to settle back down for the bike to drive across at the end. In this scenario, the game runs beautifully. And when all these pieces come together the game is an absolute blast. It is truly fun to create a bridge that works like a giant puzzle for each piece that needs it.
Some of the coolest levels are the ones that combine every tool in the game.
Poly Bridge 2 also begins with a sandbox mode where players can build whole levels from the ground up, with all the devices and trinkets of the regular levels. This covers all the vehicles, a budget, anchors in the water, and more. After completion, the level can then be posted online for others to enjoy. It will be exciting to see the excellent levels that fans make, from simplistic creative hurdles to off the wall wonky creations.
PREVIEW : Willy Morgan and the Curse of Bone Town (PC)
