REVIEW | Please Fix The Road

LifeisXbox’s Please Fix The Road review | Please Fix The Road is a colorful, minimalistic, laid-back, and casual puzzle game in which it’s probably not hard to guess… you’re fixing roads! Your road repair doesn’t have to be beautiful, it just needs to get the job done! Developed and Published by
Ariel Jurkowski, Please Fix The Road offers a relaxing and peaceful puzzle adventure game that anyone can enjoy.

Most Memorable Moment

The level transitions were my favorite! Seeing the many different ways each level starts was impressive. Its mix of colours and style really stood out and made me excited for each new level to start.

ℹ️ Reviewed on PC | Review code provided by PR/publisher, this review is the personal opinion of the writer.

What we Liked!

• The Art Style | The art style in Please Fix the Road is cute and charming. It has a low poly aesthetic that brings a level of charm that blends well with the colours and lighting. The whole game has a chill and relaxing tone that demands your attention. Players looking for a nice relaxing game that they can approach at their own pace will appreciate what is on show here.

• The Music | The music which is composed by Victor Kraus is superb. In the background, a light, jazzy score underlines the fact that this is very much a game you’re allowed to take your time with; there’s no ticking clock, and the tension is minimal. Each new level brings about a fusion of new tracks that blend seamlessly together creating what appears to be one continuous track. It is really quite special.

• The Animations | The level transitions are some of the most amazing and beautiful animations I have ever seen. Each level that is completed shows off a new animation that transitions the level. As you can see below the levels will split up, fold in on themselves, and sometimes, straight up turn into a vortex and then gently place themselves down ready to start the next level. The rest of the animations are basic as you might imagine, but that is secondary to what is going on here.
  
  
• The Level Design | The level design goes hand in hand with the puzzle element in mind. The tiles before you are clear and although it is not always clear what pieces to move, the map never changes size and allows you to experiment freely until you get it right. Some of the levels require multiple paths to be generated. For example, a cat must cross the road as a car needs to drive past. You will need to reach for your thinking cap here as these multiple route levels are the hardest. Placing zebra crossing parts into the level will allow your characters to walk across roads and reach their final destination.
  
  
• How it makes you think | The more I played Please Fix The Road, the more I realised there are some occasions where there are multiple solutions. It wasn’t always obvious where I should go or what I should place, but eventually, I started looking at the least obvious tiles and would map them out before attempting. It’s very rare that a game makes me think so much when attempting a puzzle, and I found this really refreshing. There were many occasions when after completing the puzzle, I would just sit there and still wonder how the hell I was supposed to know that.
  
  
• 150 Levels | Please Fix The Road has a total combined level count of 150 puzzles to complete. As you might expect these are well spaced out and there is no pressure to do them hastily. With each block of levels that is completed, a new moving mechanic is introduced that will help you complete the levels. More on this below. It’s a huge selection of levels that won’t take you forever, but since it is a casual game that can be picked up, played for 5 minutes, and then stopped, it will take the average gamer a fair few hours to get through them all. At £7.19, it’s very good value for money.

Mixed Feelings

• The Controls | The controls can be a bit unclear sometimes with only icons representing what it is you have. The only one I managed to remember entirely was the bomb icon which destroys the tiles you select. The rest of them are represented by hands, some with variations. This meant I never knew if the pieces I was selecting were to be rotated, moved, raised, lowered, or duplicated. This doesn’t sound like too much of a problem, but the issue is it made planning ahead hard because I was often mistaking these for different ones.

• Can be very difficult | Please Fix The Road starts off easy enough as it gradually lowers you into the game, but it quickly becomes a nightmare to solve on your first go, resulting in hitting the hint button over and over. Newer blocks of levels when they introduce new moving mechanics become easier again, but a majority of the time it turns up the difficulty to 11.

What we Disliked

• There wasn’t anything I disliked about Please Fix The Road.

How long to beat the story | No Story to beat
How long to unlock all achievements | 8 hours +

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