Civiballs

Description: Choose Greece, Egypt or China and solve the puzzles by cutting the chains. If you get stuck, just try another civilization!

Kongai Card: Cain Solomon
Requirements: Complete any 15 levels.

Games, let alone flash games, that deal with some kind of physics are by no means uncommon, and generally for good reason. Puzzle games like Civiballs takes physics and adds.. well.. balls. The balls are most often attached to chains, which can then be cut to allow the ball some sort of momentum in a direction, allowing you to gradually solve a puzzle by placing colored balls into the appropriate vases.

I say gradually because, while the first five levels are fairly easy, the difficulty ramps up to the point where you'll spend a small chunk of time just trying to figure out the best way to approach the puzzle, and the answer isn't always there. Personally, I'm not a particularly big fan of puzzle games, but ones that are done well - and that aren't impossible to play or complete - are ones that tend to pop up on my radar, and Civiballs is a surprisingly good puzzle game.

The learning curve on Civiballs is gradual and not overwhelming, and you actually feel some sense of accomplishment when you figure out the solutions to the puzzles and then, in some of the more difficult levels, pull them off. My only real nitpicks is that the first five levels of each civilization act as a pseudo-tutorial, leaving the last five puzzles to be the more difficult and fulfilling ones. Which, of course, means that instead of thirty levels, you're really only getting fifteen. Not to mention, even if you spend a bit of time on each level solving them, you can get the game done in two hours or less.

Fortunately, the achievements are realistic, and if you're stuck, the game offers a nice step-by-step guide, even if the website that hosts it is a little confusing in how it utilizes its flash games. All in all, the game was enjoyable for a puzzle game, and it feels fitting for just about all challengers.

Rating: 9/10

Achievement: Basket Case (Easy - 5 Points)
Description: Complete any 5 levels.
Tips: If you play through the aforementioned tutorial levels for any one civilization, you'll have this badge easy.

Achievement: Momentum Spherical Mayhem (Medium - 15 Points)
Description: Complete all 31 levels.
Tips: Fairly simple. Because there's a step-by-step guide to beating each level available at all times, try your best to figure out a puzzle before you throw in the towel. It's much more satisfying to beat a level than it is to let someone show you.