Suika-like games are usually built around the principle of merging two items together to upgrade them to the next item in the chain. Planetris does things a little differently. Here, the idea is to throw glass marble-like planets into a central gravity point, but you have to merge three together in a triangle formation for them to ascend to the next planet type. It is such a simple change to the formula, but it completely changes the way you play.
Planetris’s playing area is circular and requires you to move your mouse around the perimeter to choose where to fire the next planet into orbit. The physics have a slightly low gravity, soup-like quality to them. Firing a planet into a collection of them early on will cause a ripple effect reaction, and whilst this effect reduces as the playing area becomes full of planets, reactions still happen. All the different sizes of planets you can ascend to are round, too. This means that naturally, they’ll roll and slide off of each other, and this is where the main key strategy of Planetris comes to the fore. For a triangle formation to be accepted, each planet must be touching the other two in the triangle. That means no lines of three or any lopsided triangles count, and so nestling planets together is the way to survive. It reminds me of getting the balls ready for a game of snooker before breaking, only this is in planetary form.
Whilst the gameplay is methodical and slow, it suits the zen and spacey atmosphere of the game. It is priced at just 89p, and that’s because there is only one level layout and theme, and there is a very specific end goal to reach. Planetris isn’t endless and that’s a good thing. You can replay the game as the next move is randomised, but Planetris doesn’t quite have the staying power of bigger puzzle games. It also has some frame rate issues when the playing area is full, meaning that you’ll have to fiddle about to select the exact trajectory of your aim before firing. Again, it’s 89p, so keep your expectations in check.
Come for the triad-based gameplay, stay for the oddly satisfying chain reactions and happy accidents. Planetris is a small, but well-formed Suika-like that is worth more than a couple of biscuits.
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