Packing Panic! review

Packing Panic! may just be my new favorite app game. The game layout can be summed up as using your skills at Tetris to fill a suitcase without overlapping items and if that does not sound like a recipe for fun I don’t know what does. The game was developed by Gábor Détári, costs $1.99, and is compatible with an iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad. The $1.99 price tag is with a limited 50% off. There is an HD version awaiting approval and as soon as it is out it will be given to users as a free update.

There are 40 levels in the game, which should keep you occupied for a while. You are given an empty suitcase and a packing list and you have to find a way to organize everything on the list in the space provided as if you are piecing together a puzzle. You can take out or put in whichever of the objects in the list you want at any time in your effort to fit them all in. The items are backlit as Tetris shapes and the inside design of the empty suitcase is made up of a plane of squares that guide you with fitting the objects together. Everything about the game, including the design, is appealing. The suitcase and items—there are 30 total—are all rendered in a 1950s retro style with everything from a revolver to a stamper. It is clear that the items were chosen for their shape; who packs 4 revolvers, a pearl necklace, 5 badges, a metal pipe, and an opened knife?? You can skip back and forth between the levels and keep track of which ones you have accomplished with a list of numbered shelves with the phrases, “Uh-oh! Still have to pack this,” or “Phew, already packed,” written next to them. As you may have already guessed, the higher the level, the more there is to pack in.

Packing Panic! is a slower paced game that requires spatial thinking and patience. It is a lot of fun and I cannot foresee loosing interest in it any time soon. I would definitely snatch it up while it is still on sale.

AppSafari Rating: 5/5

AppSafari review of Packing Panic! was written by Vanessa Paszterko on October 5th, 2010 and categorized under App Store, Developers, Fun, Games, iPad apps, Puzzler, Strategy, Universal. Page viewed 8788 times, 2 so far today. Need help on using these apps? Please read the Help Page.