Blow It Up PC Review

Let’s be up front here – this is a variation of what Angry Birds brought to the masses which was arguably a variation of Worms which in turn was a variation of Scorched Earth etc. So with that out of the way… is it any good?

When you keep the premise simple, in this case apparently an alien invasion has occurred and the invaders have stripped the natural resources and imprisoned your friends. Your task is to get your friends back and show the invaders what for! Line up your shot and destroy structures to destroy the alien invaders, the more efficient you are the better your results.

See? It sounds very similar doesn’t it. But much like movies that follow a similar story type where the enjoyment is in the details. Blow It Up starts you with a basic unit but before too long you come across one of your captured friends and are able to free them with the credits you’ve accrued.This friend adds a new attack style… with this new ability you are able to progress further, eventually finding another incarcerated friend – you free them, providing a new attack type and so on and so on.

The “maps” between destruction levels are an interesting touch. Basically you just walk from one challenge to another which means you can somewhat choose the order you do things in, other than areas you have to unlock by completing a certain number of previous levels. Occasionally you find friends that you can save and as mentioned this then gives you new attack types.

What I particularly like here (over I think all other similar styled games), is the physics used and the fact that destroying the structures can send bricks flying towards you or at least appearing to fly towards the screen. It just adds a nice level of depth to the levels.

Visually it’s pretty basic and has a very low-fi blocky style that is almost like it’s made of knock off Lego bricks. The colour scheme is fairly muted tones but as mentioned, the real joy is when the structures are destroyed. Sometimes it’s not just a case of taking out the block at the base and watching the rest come crashing down, sometimes you have to hit a target, in a certain way in order to push/knock a structure in a direction that then achieves your goal. In this sense there is a bit more strategising to complete some levels and that adds a bit more fun to what can otherwise become pretty rinse and repeat.

Final Thoughts?

It’s not a complicated game, it’s not overly big (though there is a level editor and steamworks integration) but it’s a good bit of fun and easy to just pick up and play for a few moments between other things. The price is about right for what you get too, not too expensive but not so cheap that the creative team is selling themselves short (I hope).

A worthy little time waster to add to your collection.