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Kraut Lite

by Eric March on February 19, 2009 at 1:14 pm

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(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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App Name:	Kraut Lite
Developer:	Monsterkodi	Version:	1.0
Publisher:	Monsterkodi	Size:	10.2 MB
Category:	Logic & Puzzle Games	Price:	Free/$1.99

Okay, I don’t know what meaning this has to a German in Germany, but over here in North America, “Kraut” is generally considered a racial slur against Germans. However, Monsterkodi, a.k.a. Thorsten Kohnhorst, is German, so I guess he’s allowed. Plus, “kraut” means herb” or herbaceous (though in the context of “sauerkraut” from which the slur was derived, it means cabbage) and that’s pretty closely related to what this game is all about.

Kraut is another matching game — HOLD IT! Stop right there. Don’t move another inch. This is not what you think, so just get the idea that you’ve played this before right out of your head. I wouldn’t be reviewing it if it were just another Bejeweled clone. I wouldn’t have even downloaded it.

So what separates this from other matching games? Almost everything. Sure, the object of the game is to match four or more of the same type of flower to eliminate them from the board, but that’s largely where the similarities end. The game board is divided up into three areas: The ramp, on the top left, shows the next sets of 3 flowers that you’ll be given, in order from right to left. The top right area is the jump, which is the staging area where you can rotate the piece before you place it in the main play area. The main play area, of course, is where you drag the flowers to make matches.

Matched flowers earn you pollen, and your pollen score is displayed in the top left below the ramp. The more flowers you are able to match at once, the more pollen you score. Pollen earns you extra bugs when the score reaches multiples of 50, 100 and 200. The bugs, consisting of butterflies, ladybugs, and bees, are helpers. When dragged over flowers, butterflies will eliminate all flowers of the same type in a 3×3 area; ladybugs will eliminate all flowers regardless of type in a 3×3 area; and bees act as a wildcard, and will match whatever colour flower(s) they are adjacent to. These can be employed at any time during the game, provided you have them to use.

There are two play modes in Kraut: Arcade, and Campaign. Arcade mode is just what I’ve described above, but you must race against the clock, which ticks down with increasing speed as you advance in levels. At the start of arcade mode, you can choose the size of the board, from 5×5 to 7×7, your skill level, and which flowers you want to use. Campaign on the other hand is something entirely different. In Campaign mode you’re whisked off to a field of flowers, but only a central group is available. Each flower is accompanied by either a type of flower or a type of bug. Each type indicates a different sort of single puzzle you must solve in order to advance. Bug challenges require you to use the indicated bug to solve preset puzzles using only that type of bug. Flower challenges require you to solve particular types of challenges using the arcade mode style gameplay, though without the timer.

With each solved flower in the campaign field, new flowers will spring up offering new challenges in an ever widening circle. Each puzzle type has a number of puzzles that need to be solved to complete a set, and completing a set earns you awards, which are essentially trophies that can be viewed from the main menu, and will additionally unlock things like new flowers.

As if the relatively unique nature of the game wasn’t enough, Monsterkodi went and packed this game with brilliant graphics, sound effects, cute music, wonderful animations, and an overall sense of style and a sense for the little things that I rarely see in games. There are so many little notions, florishes, unexpected animations and generally cool things, and it all fits together seamlessly. Even in achieving a high score, you get to paint your signature using whatever colour flowers you want, and on the campaign field you can pinch to zoom in and out, which is not necessary but a nice touch. I’ll admit, I was duly impressed; Kodi did a fantastic job from top to bottom on this one.

What’s more, this lite version gives you a lot with which to evaluate the full version. You get unlimited arcade play, plus a good couple dozen campaign levels to play with — more than you could ask for, really, and if you want to gain access to all of the campaigns, it’s only $2, which is much less than what I think an addictive game with this much polish is worth. But hey, you folks reap the benefits of his generosity: A lengthy lite version and a cheap full version. Go ahead, give it a shot yourself and see if you still think I’m overhyping this one. Betcha you’ll have a hard time telling me where I’m wrong.

Check out the developer’s video below, plus a bunch of my own screenies.