Kami by State of Play Games

Kami or "Paper" is a beautifully designed puzzle game for the Mac and iOS. The game embodies certain aspects of eastern philosophy, as the user strives to create "oneness" or one color within a limited number of attempts. During the process of cyphering puzzles, the game feels like a struggle between Yin and Yang, opposing forces of positive and negative shapes that evolve interchangeably to become a single color or unified experience. Consistent with the eastern influence, the application features meditative music and sound effects to support your journey to oneness. The concept for Kami is brilliant, yet is equally enhanced by the aesthetic quality of duplicating the art of origami. Every color that is changed or transformed takes on the form of folding paper, triangular shapes that flicker toward completion and/or dissolution

Each game is provided with a number, divided by zero . In order to successfully solve the puzzle, you must arrive at a single color within the limits of the number provided (e.g. "4"). If you are successful, you are presented with an origami gift that is sealed with the label "perfect." If the number is "4" and you happen to solve the puzzle within 5 moves, you get a label marked "okay." If it takes you longer to solve the puzzle (in this case, 6 times or more, you get a beatifully folded origami message that says "fail." You feel so heartbroken when you receive the latter, but it only motivates you to continue until you get it right. And therein lies the rub. The game can be very addictive as you strive to be "perfect" (an ideal we all strive for but which consistently alludes us).

Kami is available in Game Center, so you keep track of your scores and track your progress across devices. The only limitation I encountered is that scores and achievements arrived at on iOS devices are not updated on the desktop version, which appears to operate independently of the iOS versions. The game, however, is consistent across platforms, in terms of the features and design, except on the desktop the format of the game is horizontal, while the iOS versions are vertical. Overall, the game is beautiful, fun, challenging, and immensely fulfilling.