Pros: Blowup!! Casual is a fun, Tetris-style puzzle game that will put you straight into high score domination mode. While this isn't a mind-blowing game, for its genre, Blowup!! Casual was made very well. In "Basic" mode, you get 3 minutes to blow up some robots by stacking them according to color, as more robots fall from the sky. In "Puzzle" mode, things are a bit tougher and you've got to plan your blowups just right so you can clear the screen completely (a tough task). Sounds simple enough, right? The finer points of the game come from things like the graphics -- some classic 8-bit flavor here that will remind you of your Tetris days. The music is also spot on, again, harking back to the days when video game music was nothing more than synthesized MIDI goodness. And by showing the global high score at the end of each game, Cravemob really captures the heart of what drove you to pump...

Cons: There's really no explanation of what you need to do in the game, and you're pretty much just thrown into playing. I wish there was some semblance of a tutorial or at least some basic instructions. Blowup!! Casual isn't too tough to figure out, but still, you end up wasting the first few games just trying to understand what's going on -- not a very good user experience at first blush. Another minor con is that there's no iPad version out yet.

Pros: Blowup!! Casual is a fun, Tetris-style puzzle game that will put you straight into high score domination mode. While this isn't a mind-blowing game, for its genre, Blowup!! Casual was made very well.

In "Basic" mode, you get 3 minutes to blow up some robots by stacking them according to color, as more robots fall from the sky. In "Puzzle" mode, things are a bit tougher and you've got to plan your blowups just right so you can clear the screen completely (a tough task).

Sounds simple enough, right? The finer points of the game come from things like the graphics -- some classic 8-bit flavor here that will remind you of your Tetris days. The music is also spot on, again, harking back to the days when video game music was nothing more than synthesized MIDI goodness. And by showing the global high score at the end of each game, Cravemob really captures the heart of what drove you to pump quarter after quarter into the local arcade -- nothing beats the thrill of owning the all time high score. Nothing.

All in all, I'd recommend Blowup!! Casual. It's a cheap date (just $0.99) and at the time of writing this review, Cravemob was offering the game for free for a limited time. You've got nothing to lose here, so pick it up at the App Store and have fun reminiscing about the good ole days.

Cons: There's really no explanation of what you need to do in the game, and you're pretty much just thrown into playing. I wish there was some semblance of a tutorial or at least some basic instructions. Blowup!! Casual isn't too tough to figure out, but still, you end up wasting the first few games just trying to understand what's going on -- not a very good user experience at first blush.

Another minor con is that there's no iPad version out yet.

Pros: I am addicted to “Blowup!! Casual.” There, I said it. After my review of the original (“Blowup!!”) a couple months ago, I started playing “Blowup!! Casual,” and haven’t put it down since. In both games, the goal is to “blow up” blocks of same-colored robots – the larger the grouping, the larger the score. The difference between the two games is the original can be played into infinity, while the casual version has a 3 minute time limit. I like having this adrenaline rush for a specified amount of time, rather than tensing up for hours on end. Plus, with such a short time frame and presumably a smaller audience of players, my high score “world rank” is much less embarrassing. Puzzle mode is also enjoyable. The goal is to fully clear a predetermined stage of robots, without new ones entering the play space. I found it difficult to complete these levels...

Cons: It’s addictive – so many important things were left uncompleted because I was playing “Blowup!! Casual” on repeat.

Pros: I am addicted to “Blowup!! Casual.” There, I said it. After my review of the original (“Blowup!!”) a couple months ago, I started playing “Blowup!! Casual,” and haven’t put it down since.

In both games, the goal is to “blow up” blocks of same-colored robots – the larger the grouping, the larger the score. The difference between the two games is the original can be played into infinity, while the casual version has a 3 minute time limit. I like having this adrenaline rush for a specified amount of time, rather than tensing up for hours on end. Plus, with such a short time frame and presumably a smaller audience of players, my high score “world rank” is much less embarrassing.

Puzzle mode is also enjoyable. The goal is to fully clear a predetermined stage of robots, without new ones entering the play space. I found it difficult to complete these levels perfectly, and was pleased that there was no time limit. Therefore, much of game play is staring at the screen in “The Thinker” pose.

Also, the music and sound effects are excellent. I highly recommend picking up a copy of this or the original “Blowup!!”

Cons: It’s addictive – so many important things were left uncompleted because I was playing “Blowup!! Casual” on repeat.