by Matt Bird

Created on: July 05, 2008   Last Updated: July 08, 2008

I'll admit that I didn't expect much of Frozax Games' Spring Up!. It certainly doesn't sound that exciting: the object of the game is, after all, to build a garden.

Needless to say I was pleasantly surprised once I started playing. True, you're essentially a glorified gardener, but you develop your pride and joy through a game that's essentially a combination of Bust a Move and pinball. The resulting fusion makes for a fun experience.

You're required to control two things in Spring Up!: a small cannon and a basket. The cannon is hooked up at the top middle of the screen and the basket follows the path of the cannon at the bottom. Between cannon and basket floats a slew of obstacles, either in the form of colored bricks, gems and wooden wheels. Your job is to fire gems of the same color as these bricks and gems, knock them out of place and then snag the falling pieces in your basket. Each time you catch a falling object you get some points that are converted into money for your garden. Once you've knocked out all the colored items in a stage you move on to the next.

Simple premise. And it works, mainly because the programmers did an excellent job with the physics. The objects don't just fall into your basket, after all. They tumble, spin and freewheel their way through the air, taking out other bricks and crystals on their way down. You need to move quick if you want to catch everything. And given that the gems you fire only take out objects of the same color you're often forced to make some tricky rebound shots. It's a nice combination of slow, deliberative aiming and hasty basket maneuvers that keep all your senses engaged.

Not that the game promotes hectic play. Far from it. All the stages are composed of nice little flowers, bright primary colors and one looping musical track that's soothingly hypnotic. Though you get bonuses for clearing stages quickly, it feels more like the game wants you to take your time.

It's a lot like gardening.

Spring Up! isn't perfect, and it's not for everybody. The meditative play style and mellow, simplistic design won't appeal to a lot of gamers. There's not much you can do with your garden aside from look at the pretty flowers. And I'll admit there are times when the pace slows to a crawl. But the large selection of levels (not to mention the ability to replay any level you want after the first successful play) should keep younger and older players entertained, even if only for a while. I'd buy it. 3.5/5

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