Leap Into This Puzzle Game: Flipside to the Divine

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Flipside of the Divine is a nifty free game with a unique mechanic and an original look. You are a nameless Aztec-looking guy who must run from platform to platform, avoiding snakes and other monsters while struggling to reach the exit. What sets this apart from many other games is that thinking is more important than reflexes, though reflexes surely help. The 'key' is that you must walk over, or jump to, assorted flat panels, like floor tiles hanging suspended in the void. Some of the tiles, though, are 'flipped' so that they are open--you will fall through to your screaming death. Fortunately, you have a magic bird that will flip the five tiles in front of you--closed become open, open become closed. It doesn't matter how near or far the tiles are--it's always five. This is very key.

Sound simple enough? Add in tiles that can't flip, and, even worse, tiles that shatter when flipped--removing them from the map and leaving nothing but empty space. Oh, and hungry snakes, which flip tiles as they pass along the map. And some tiles can't be jumped to or landed on. You can identify the different tiles by different graphics--shattering tiles look different from flippable ones, which are different from 'locked' tiles which neither flip nor shatter, and so on. Each level is a logic puzzle as well as a jumping game; the most obvious route is often the wrong one, and must use the ever-evolving "rules" of the world to solve the puzzle and reach the exit.

Flipside of the Divine is a lot of fun, if sometimes frustrating. The controls are a bit simple, the graphics fairly primitive--but it's original and free, both of which count for a lot. Despite the game being in beta, I found no stability issues. The application notes a small number of known issues and quick fixes, should you experience them.

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