Tidalis (2010)

Developer: Arcen Games, LLC
Platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux
Genres: Casual, Indie
Rating: 3.2 of 5, 239 player ratings
Typical playtime: about 2.0 hours
Where to get it: Steam

The 3D catalog: game boxes on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalog in 3D

The same catalog has a room you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real games from it when you tell them what you feel like playing. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this game is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

a cheerful but deceptively deep block puzzle that coaxes you into chaining colorful streams

puzzlecasualcolorfulcuterelaxingdifficultretroaddictive

What players say

Players find Tidalis a mixed puzzle experience. The stream-based matching mechanic is novel but often confusing and hard to chain reliably. Many note the campaign has random difficulty spikes, and the story is so poorly written it feels unnecessary. Repetition sets in quickly, though some appreciate the variety of block types.

Screenshots

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More by Arcen Games

This page is from Underplayed Gems, a catalog of older and overlooked games. Not quite it? You can browse by platform and genre, or take this one into the 3D catalog and ask the Catbot for something closer.