A blog about casual gaming

671
Icy Gifts

Icy Gifts

This fun chain reaction game takes the core game-play of the classic Boomshine and soups it up with colourful graphics, upgrade paths and achievements.

Bookmark and Share
Published by Tasha on 3rd February 2011

When developer Danny Miller created a little chain reaction game called Boomshine in 2007, he did not have particularly high hopes for it. The game was incredibly simple. Nothing more than an oblong box with small spheres bouncing around. All you did was click somewhere with your mouse to create an explosion, the idea being that any sphere that came into contact with the detonation would in turn blow up, setting in motion a chain reaction.

Despite its simplicity and basic graphics, Boomshine proved a huge success. People were enchanted by the simplicity and addictiveness of the game, and played it in their millions. More than three years after its creation, and Boomshine is still to be found in many people's list of must-play Flash games.

As with all popular new gaming concepts, Boomshine has been much imitated. Disappointingly, few of the copycat games have added much to the original, usually - as with the pretty Flower Reaction - simply improving on the very basic visuals rather than expanding on the game-play.

That is why we were delighted to come across Icy Gifts, a new chain reaction game by the guys at Silen Games in which you have to unlock presents encased in ice blocks by blowing them up. Icy Gifts is clearly inspired by Boomshine - its core game-play mechanic is pretty much identical - but the game offers so much more.

Boomshine always had the feel of a partly finished prototype that did not quite fulfil its potential. Icy Gifts has taken the core features of Boomshine and added all the extra trimmings that people nowadays expect from a game. So you have a series of achievements to aim at, and also an upgrade path for your explosion. The points you accumulate by completing levels can be spent on increasing the radius of your explosion, giving it a magnetic ability to attract things into it, and so on.

You can also put your points into boosting the number of shells that appear on each levels. Shells are among a number of new objects that appear in Icy Gifts. When they come into contact with an explosion, they fire off projectiles that cause other objects to detonate. Other unique objects include acid spots which explode things that run into them, and mines, which do what mines do: blow up. The size and power of the acid spots and mines can also be increased by upgrading them.

By providing a range of objects, each with their own unique powers, Icy Gifts provides more complex and varied game-play than the passive spheres of Boomshine.

Boomshine
Boomshine

Icy Gifts' game-play is clearly inspired by Boomshine.

Icy Gifts also differs from Boomshine in its presentation. Whereas Boomshine is a relaxing game with subdued visuals and trancy music, Icy Gifts is a colourful extravaganza of a game, featuring cute cartoony graphics and an upbeat soundtrack. Whether Icy Gifts, with all its extra features and funky design, works better than the simple purity of Boomshine is a matter of taste but there is no doubt that Icy Gifts is an intriguing and fun addition to the chain reaction genre. Play the game here.


Bookmark and Share

Add comment

Submit

Follow us

  • Twitter

    Be the first to hear about new posts by following us at @casualgirlgamer

  • Facebook

    Alternatively, you might want to become a fan of our facebook page, which you can find here.

  • RSS

    Subscribe to Casual Girl Gamer’s RSS feed here

  • Email

    Enter your email address below and we’ll keep you posted when we have new articles.

    Go

Game reviews

  • Lume

    State of Play's new puzzle adventure title Lume might be made out of cardboard cutouts but it is in no way a one-dimensional game.

    Read more
  • The Tiny Bang Story

    Beautiful hand-drawn graphics, nicely balanced and creative puzzles and a great sound track, The Tiny Bang Story delivers on all fronts.

    Read more
  • Castaway 2

    Robinson Crusoe had it lucky. He was only stranded on a desert island once. Things are not so easy for the hero of RPG adventure game series Castaway.

    Read more
  • ClubWorld

    If the idea of running your own nightclub gets you excited, then Tapulous's latest iOS game might have you dancing around with joy.

    Read more
  • Insectonator

    If the only good bug is a dead one, then you will be doing one helluva lot of good work in this cheery insect massacring game.

    Read more
> More game reviews

Popular articles

  • Top ten launching games

    There is something about the idea of wantonly launching objects - in particular small animals - into the air that tickles human beings. We would never do it in real life, of course, but give us a game that let's us do it, and we simply can't stop playing.

    Read more
  • Top 10 Christmas Games

    Get into the festive spirit with our list of the best ten christmas-themed games you can play online.

    Read more
  • Top 30 Online Tower Defense Games

    Tower defense games are among the most addictive games around, and we have 30 of the best of them for you to play.

    Read more
  • Top 10 Puzzle Games

    Puzzleophiles rejoice. We have collected together ten brilliant puzzle games - all of which you can play for free in your browser.

    Read more
  • Top ten hardest games

    So you fancy yourself as a bit of a mean gamer. You always opt for the hardest settings when playing games. Well, we have a challenge for you - ten of the most difficult online games we could find.

    Read more
> More popular articles

Developer spotlights

  • Jake Elliott

    You won't find any resource-management or mindless slash and dash games in Jake Elliott's portfolio. What you will find are thought-provoking games that encourage you to ponder on the human experience.

    Read more
  • Con Artist Games

    Chris Condon of Con Artist Games has a reputation for developing some of the most polished games on the web. Casual Girl Gamer speaks to him about his gaming philosophy.

    Read more
  • Gregory Weir

    By combining great story-telling with imaginative game worlds, Gregory Weir has created some of the most thought-provoking games on the internet.

    Read more
  • John Cooney

    Armor Games' head of game development John Cooney - or jmtb02, as he is better known - is one of the most prolific and imaginative game developers around.

    Read more
  • Evan Miller

    In ImmorTall, indie developer Evan Miller created one of the most emotionally moving games to grace the internet. We speak to him about his gaming philosophy and plans for the future.

    Read more
  • Mateusz Skutnik

    Mateusz Skutnik is a rarity: a gifted artist who is also a skilled coder. He is responsible for some of the most beautiful casual games on the web.

    Read more
> More spotlights