Parents' Guide to Mr. Bullet - Spy Puzzles

This puzzle app is like soft-serve ice cream, with super-simple physics puzzles that take very little thought or skill to solve, serving less as entertainment and more as a backdrop to a torrent of ads. Mr. Bullet - Spy Puzzles tends to abandon the traditional methods of puzzle games. The first few levels of most games are expected to be easy, giving players a chance to learn the mechanics and the rules. After that, though, players tend to enjoy the feeling of a rising challenge. Unfortunately, Mr. Bullet - Spy Puzzles doesn't know the meaning of the word "difficulty" or -- when it comes to ads -- "restraint." Levels start with straight shots at enemies and progress to having obstacles: platforms (both moving and stationary), destructible boxes, rolling balls, and exploding TNT. The latter are meant to increase the difficulty, to force players to think more and anticipate how bullets and grenades will ricochet off of them. Unfortunately, over-simple setups mean puzzles generally take about two seconds to solve. This is bothersome enough when you're hoping for a challenge, but worse when you're forced to watch an ad every three levels.

There's no other word for it: Ads in the free version of Mr. Bullet are relentless. If you opt not to spend $2.99 to get rid of them, you'll spend far more time watching ads than solving puzzles. This gives a sense of rank repetitiveness that's tough to handle, and though there's some sense of progress unlocking additional modes and character skins, ultimately, it's not enough to make up for the app's shameless overuse of ads. Despite some colorful art (and colorful blood that parents could rightly take issue with) and a range of different game modes, Mr. Bullet - Spy Puzzles isn't worth your mobile device's memory, especially since its creators' aim (pun intended) is more financial than fun.