Hexteria

IN A WORD: WORTHWHILE
IN A NUTSHELL:
WHAT TO EXPECT: Abstract game of strategy and domination. Turn-based gameplay. Board-game format. Puzzle-solving focus. Simple to play. Becomes more difficult to overcome with progress. Goal-based objectives. Earn credits to unlock Help System. Earn awards to unlock new areas. Unlockable challenges make levels replayable. Relies on replaying levels to increase play time. Single-player campaign. Online and off-line versus mode. Comprehensive Level Editor.
ACHIEVEMENTS: FOCUSED ON SINGLEPLAYER.
STATUS: JUST OUT.
WHO FOR/WHEN TO BUY: FOR FANS OF PUZZLE LIKE STRATEGY GAMES. WORTH CURRENT PRICE (£6.19 or equivalent)
More info below....
THE LOWDOWN:
Hexteria (Hxa) is an abstract game of strategy and domination with the format of a board-game and a puzzle-solving focus. Made with the the Unity Engine it consists of a single-player campaign contested against an opponent AI. A versus multiplayer mode played with 2-6 players with other gamers or bots. Online or locally. With a calypso beat soundtrack playing in the background.
The game consists of numerous pre-determined levels, with a number of coloured hexagonal tiles organised in various layouts. Players begin with a certain number of tiles allocated to them. Coloured accordingly. Remaining tiles are neutral, coloured in beige until flipped by one side or the other. To win players must turn all tiles belonging to an opponent to their colour.
Players take alternating turns to rotate one of their coloured tiles clockwise. Basic tiles are marked with a pointer. When the pointer of a rotated tile hits a tile of another colour, it changes that tile's colour. Tiles pointing at adjacent tiles in a continuous sequence form chains. As the lead tile of a chain changes colour, it cascades through all other linked tiles. A number of special tiles provide additional tactical complexity. Timed turn limits add to the difficulty. Along with an suitably performing AI capable of defeating this middling player numerous times.
The campaign mode is divided into six animal themed stages with six regular and one boss level. Each of these has three distinct goals. From beating the level, to not using the same tile twice. Multiplayer mode has considerable customisation options. Maps selected from those available. Opponents can be configured. From bots, to the connectivity of other players. Be they located locally or online.
Achieving level goals earns currency to unlock additional stages after the first. Once the boss level is overcome, three new challenges unlock to increase replayability. Achieving goals or challenges also awards the player credits for use in the Power-Up shop. Unlocking hints and help mechanics. Such as undoing moves, making counter-clockwise rotations, benefiting from extra rotations or even rotating opponent tiles. A comprehensive level editor allows the creation of levels of the quality already in game.
THE GOOD:
+ Very playable single-player campaign comprised of 42x levels. With some progressive challenging levels.
+ Balanced learning curve with the game becoming noticeably difficult with every progression.
+ Very good versus mode with a strong array of configuration options for up to 6x players.
+ Very good GUI. Easy to use and functionally complete.
+ Capable AI controlled players with 4 difficulty levels.
+ Power-up shop allows the purchase of 15x help features using credits earned in-game.
+ Comprehensive level editor able to create and share additional levels.
THE BAD:
- Could have increased replaybility in SP by using the dynamic level generator from Versus mode.
- A daily level mode would have increased player focus.
- Level editor can only save games in a publishable state.
- Will rely on a core of gamers making extra-levels to keep interest in playing.
- Missing the ability to upload replays to an online platform for sharing.
AND THE REST:
* Varied mix of level design resulting in a mostly fresh experience.
* Simple turn-based gameplay with timed turn limits and pause feature.
* 9x tiles increase tactical depth including those special behaviours.
* Good incentives to replay levels.
* Calypso drum style soundtrack.
* Auto-generated replays of completed levels.
* Basic slideshow help system.
ANALYSIS:
Hxa delivered a polished experience with simple, accessible gameplay bringing with it a style of minimal interaction that falsely inferred a casual nature. At least towards the mid-game and onwards. Its puzzle-solving focus provided some head-scratching complexity that required a good deal of careful strategising to overcome. With a gentle and balanced learning curve early on, that grew in difficulty with progression. A trait surpassed in versus games, with larger maps possessing at times a somewhat mind-boggling feel.
Level design was benign at first but increased in complexity. The introduction of special tiles and board mechanics inflated the challenge. Something sure to tax the mental capability of most players. Playing the game proved absorbing on the whole. Inviting at first with its accessibly and gentle learning curve. Engaging as much as it was demanding as complexity grew.
The time limit which seemed ample for a good part of the campaign eventually felt inadequate as more and more aspects made it onto the board. Increasing the amount of mental processing required to consider which tile to rotate. When time ran out, tile choice ended up relying on luck to make a uninformed choice.
Feature-wise the game felt feature complete. Anymore tactical mechanics would have overloaded players. The difficulty was offset in a few ways. The inclusion of automated replays could prove a useful tool for those willing to learn from mistakes. Being able to purchase power-ups will make games easier if not just adding more tactical possibilities. A very nice touch.
The content for single-player was a good amount with as good a variation as could be produced with such a concept. Multi-player felt short and will require additional maps for sure. It may well prove folly to rely on players making their own maps. At least the level editor is of a high enough quality to produce maps that could rival those included by the developers.
In terms of what could have made the game better, it could have done with some sort of daily mode as incentive to play. Utilising the random-level generator from Versus mode to produce levels on the fly, once the campaign had been mastered. A rating system could also have given additional longevity to the game. Requiring players to perfect their strategies. With a leader-board to hold those that were a cut above the rest. A mechanism to upload replays to YT or other platform would have been welcome also.
VERDICT:
Polished, virtually feature complete with a measured approach to its design, this will appeal to gamers looking for a new abstract game of domination. Ideally for those who enjoy a simple style of play but look for a challenge that grows at they progress. With a range of mechanics that provides a broad gameplay experience but one that could prove too difficult for some parties.
Hxa will require a good level of grey matter to complete but for anyone up to the challenge and wanting to test their logical acumen, this is a worthwhile candidate for sure.
Thank you for reading. | Follow my curator here. | Key provided by Turn-Based Tactics

Hextremely fun puzzle game at times, and overally never repetitive with all the goals and challenges. However, there's 1 concern: the more you beat, the more coins you get; the more power-ups you can unlock, and with all these power-ups, challenges can be rendered uncomplicated easily and early in! Now, of course you can decide not to use power-ups, but there's no incentive for doing so, hence you will prefer to 'cheat' more ... This made me decide to give a lot of the challenges a rest (for now), because they turned out a bit unsatisfying sometimes. I also ended up with a lot of useless coins, having unlocked all power-ups sooner than I wanted actually.
Other than that, definitely a neat Turn-based Strategy game in which the developer put a lot of thought — down to the last detail. I also had fun with the Level Editor that works flawlessly, and there's even a validation screen, so to prevent random stuff to be published.
Last but not least, a few notes:
- There are 3 challenges per level, but if you want to play the next in the row other than the last/3rd, pressing Continue won't bring you there and you have to quit to the level selection screen first = a bit inefficient.
- Sometimes power-ups don't function in challenges whereas you receive the message "... Activated". I do understand the reasons here, but then put an X through the destined power-ups.
8.5/10 — not as challenging as expected, but more variety than expected!
PS I received this game as a gift from a friend who tested this game.

So Hexteria. As a Linux-player: It runs smoothly.
It is an abstract puzzle game. It makes you think in different and new ways, like a puzzle game should. I haven't figured out the logic quite yet, but I managed to beat the first 2/6 levels.
Good to know: You don't have to beat all the achievements at once. I am wondering whether it is possible to get all the achievements without using powerups and at the same time.
Recommended for people who enjoy abstract/mathematical puzzle games.

Very fun puzzle game to play either with friends or try the singleplayer campaign. Is very easy to learn, but has a suffuciently high skill ceiling when playing later singleplayer levels or against more experienced players to keep it interesting.

Hexteria is a great puzzle game. It's simple yet strategic gameplay always has you thinking about what tile you should turn next, and what move will get you one step closer to winning (even if it looks like you're going to lose).
The campaign offers challenging matches against an AI whose difficulty increases the more you progress. Multiplayer matches are certainly fun, and with the addition of being able to use your own maps or other's created in the level editor, as well as randomized maps it makes the game never feel too repetitive.
The graphics are smooth and clean, the sound effects are very much satisfying and the soundtrack is calm and fitting.
A magnificent puzzle game, perfect if you like turn based puzzle games. Or hexagons

A really well-thought puzzle game with nice visual art and music.
It's just a pleasure to play a bit when you don't have hours for a big game,
and in the end you might find yourself trying to complete one challenge for a good hour
while humming the tunes!

It's a great game! It's fun, challenging and it has many options to play and create different levels. It looks simple, just turn the tiles, but you really have to think ahead and make good choices, it's very clever! It's fun to play with friends, and very addicting if you just play by yourself. Amazing game, I would really recommend it!