Grindstone

Genre: Unlimited Pattern Puzzle

Players: 1, Online Leaderboards

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Review:

Grindstone is an Unlimited Pattern Puzzle game where players guide a burly warrior through hordes of color-coded monsters to form chains while being careful not to stop within attack range of enraged monsters. Originally released on iOS in 2019, this game was considered by many to be one of the crown jewels of the Apple Arcade lineup, and now comes to the Nintendo Switch in 2020.

The presentation in this game is good, featuring stylized hand-drawn colorful, cartoony characters that are fairly well-animated. One of the nice little touches here is the way your warrior slices his way through monsters, with special animations for tougher enemies, and when players highlight the path they choose to take, enemies tremble in fear and anticipation. The sound here is quite good too, with every enemy defeated making a satisfying squishing noise as they’re sliced to bits, your warrior grunting with each strike, and with the action being backed by a rhythmic tribal-sounding soundtrack. The way this game’s sounds truly sell the bloodthirsty rampage of your warrior is one of this game’s biggest delights.

The gameplay here is also really compelling, with players taking their time charting a path through the enemy horde that can deal the most damage while landing the hero in a safe spot. As they work their way through the game’s campaign, players will unlock equipment and items that can allow them to get free attacks on enemies, jump spots on the board, or do other things, and a part of the strategy here is to equip the right gear before a level. The touchscreen controls are of course ideal here, as this is a game that originated on a mobile platform, but players looking to use Joy-Cons or a Pro Controller will find that to be perfectly sufficient. Of course, beyond the strategy and controls, there’s just something viscerally satisfying about setting your hero on a warpath and watching him tear his way through the enemy horde.

When it comes to complaints, what I have is mostly minor nitpicking. I wish that equipment you outfit your hero with wasn’t so limited in its use. Also, as with many Puzzle games of this type, the way the board randomly refills spots with new monsters means that often you’ll be at the mercy of that random placement after a move, particularly a major move that clears much of the screen. Finally, this is a Puzzle game without a major multiplayer component, and this is a genre that’s often best with multiplayer play.

Still, these are very minor complaints, and overall Grindstone is a wonderful Puzzle game with an original presentation that makes it a visceral thrill to literally attack the puzzles thrown at you. Fans of the genre should absolutely give this game a look.

tl;dr – Grindstone is a Puzzle game that has players guiding a warrior through hordes of color-coded monsters. It’s a compelling, visceral Puzzle game that’s a delight to play, with only a few very minor complaints I can point to. Fans of the genre should definitely give this game a try.

Grade: A-

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This game has been nominated for one or more of eShopperReviews 2020 Game Awards:

Winner:

Best Puzzle Game – This year, my selection for Best Puzzle Game came down to two main contenders, with Grindstone just barely edging out Manifold Garden. While I thought the reality-warping gameplay of Manifold Garden was mind-blowing, Grindstone’s compelling gameplay of slicing through monsters in rapid-fire succession was just too compelling to resist.

Runner-Up: Best Sound Design

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