A while in the making for a while and updates from the developer TokyoDan, TOT or The Octagon Theory has seen the light of day. By the name it seems like a game that would be more in the genre of Bond (James Bond) or Bourne (Jason Bourne) filled with high action and spy kind of stuff, it is no where close to that. It is in fact a game that can be played between upto 2 players, exciting, suspenseful, requiring strategy but not the spy stuff.
So what is TOT?
It is a game played by upto 2 players or played against the AI/device. It is played on an Octagonal board hence the name The Octagonal Theory. It reminded me of my time playing on the ZX Spectrum that was similar but more of a real time action than turn based. The aim of the game is quite simple, the octagonal board has a hole in the center, so claim the board with your pegs while pushing the opponent off the board either outside or inside. This is achieved by using different pegs that are in short supple (depending on the level) and push the opponents peg in a particular direction as defined on the peg. There are 4 types, a uni-directional push, a bi-directional push, a quad-directional push or a 8-way push. The angle on these pegs can be changed to the direction you want, available in increments of 45˚, so the 8 directions areNW N NE W . E SW S SE
The game kind of grows on you as you play it, the first attempt was a bit frustrating or rather a bit overwhelming. However the second time around, it was kind of clearer on how it works and what it does. I know that it is a big ask to add a tutorial level that is like the CBT of earlier years, where it progressed only upon doing what is expected. This would be really a big boost to the first time player.
The game fells much better on the iPad than it is seen in the screen-shots. There are many other computer board games that are in a similar vein where the player colours the pegs to their colour, the player with the larges number of coloured pages (their colour) wins. Here it is not about reclaiming the pegs and colouring them in your colour, but pushing them off the board, this is also tricky as when you push, the peg moves in that particular direction, leaving your peg in a perilous position for the opponent to play and maybe push you off the board. It does warrant a lot of strategy almost like chess to play, however let that not sound like a deterrent, if you cannot play chess, it does not matter, a quick match with moves (without much thought) can also be hours of fun.
The game is not based on total domination, but on the outcomes in a particular number of turns.
Is that all?
well if that was all, it would be a different story, TOT has one more card up it's sleeve. It has the ability to host AI opponents that you can script yourself. Now many would ask, why is that such a cool thing? Why does the app not just have an AI built-in? It does, but you can also add more externally, the cool thing about this functionality is being able to have different AI's. As the game gets popular and starts to get more coverage, there could be a time when you can play against a custom AI than a human player, and developers that love to model their own little AI bots will love the API for TOT AI bots.Impressions
There are two types of games, the ones that are rock solid and have a lot of logic and stuff the hood, but looks like plain Jane in terms of the UI, then there are other that look like super models and have just that to go by. There are a couple of that are good blends in between. TOT is a plain Jane with a bit of make-up, which means that it is a wonderful game with a pleasing UI and gameplay. However, if this was a Rovio, Chillingo, Zynga or similar release, it would have a lot more make-up. The not so glitzy UI is also perhaps the saving grace as it does not distract from the gameplay and lets the player focus on the game.Screenshots
In fact the above two videos also show that it is a game that can be played by anyone, even Nonagenarians enjoy it.
SUMMARY
Software : The Octagon Theory
Version : 1.0
Publisher : M&D Enterprise
Website : http://theoctagontheory.com/
Twitter : @tokyodan
Platform : iOS
Price : $2.99
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Thanks for the great review.
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