‘Cut the Rope: Time Travel’ for iOS and Android game review

The original Cut the Rope has been a rousing success. Known for its simple yet challenging gameplay and adorable animation style, the game was a hit with all age groups. It later spawned a sequel in the form of Cut the Rope: Experiments, which introduced new levels and gameplay mechanics.

Now, a year and a half after Experiments came out, developers ZeptoLab have released the third installment in the series, labelled Cut the Rope: Time Travel. The new game features the now familiar gameplay with some new twists, such as an extra character and not one but two candies in each level. Let’s see how this one performs.

Gameplay

Cut the Rope: Time Travel borrows much from the previous two games. The main difference here is, however, there are two hungry monsters to feed. The premise is that the game’s protagonist Om Nom has gone back in time and comes across his ancestors, a different one in each level. So you now have two monsters in each level and two candies to feed to each of them. You have to feed them individually and you can’t just feed one monster both candies. Also, if you drop either or both the game ends.

Once you wrap your mind around this concept the rest of the game is classic Cut the Rope. There are several new mechanics, involving metal chains that can only be cut using blades, ability to pause time and freeze candy and other objects mid-air, bombs that explode when you drop candy on them and the resultant explosion can then be used to propel the candy to a desired point, flying candy that floats around and follows the motion of the other, regular candy and a large clock that can be used to move some of the objects on the screen around. My favorite, however, is the one where you have just one monster on the screen at a time and you have to use the candy to flick a switch on the screen for the other one to appear from behind a stone platform.

Other than these, Cut the Rope: Time Travel features some of the mechanics from two games, such as portals, rockets, bouncing platforms, etc. The old mechanics coupled with the new ones are enough to make the game feel fresh.

The problem is that Cut the Rope: Time Travel is too easy. The original game has some incredibly tough levels that will leave you scratching your head for hours or even days but Time Travel can be finished in an afternoon. As usual, you first have to figure out the way to deliver the candy to the monsters, which usually takes less than 30 seconds in most levels and after that it’s a matter of timing to execute the solution, which for veterans of the game shouldn’t be too difficult. You can blaze through most levels with consummate ease and only a handful of levels pose any real challenge. It doesn’t help that there are just 90 levels in the game, most of which can be completed in under a minute.

Graphics and Sound

Visually, Cut the Rope: Time Travel looks identical to the previous two games in the series. This is not exactly a bad thing as both of them are visually stunning and have some of the most wonderful character animations in a 2D game. Cut the Rope: Time Travel ups the ante by introducing a few more of those amusing and adorable animations and the new characters also look great. They do, however, behave identically to our usual Om Nom and the different ancestors bring no change to the gameplay, which is a disappointment.

The sound in the game is fine but nothing special. The background music is new but sounds similar to the one in the first game and not nearly as memorable. The sound effects for the characters are great, though, especially their mumbling when they fall asleep after you feed one of them.

Verdict

Cut the Rope: Time Travel is a good third installment in a series of very enjoyable games. The new game brings with it some new gameplay mechanics but maintains some of the best parts from the older games. Unfortunately, most people will find the game a bit too easy and miss some of the challenge from the first two games. This game is great for kids, who will find the gameplay and especially the visuals very enjoyable but adults won’t be as amused.

Rating: 7/10
Pros: Brings an interesting new twist to familiar gameplay, amazing visuals and character animations
Cons: Far too easy

Download

iOS: iPhone • iPad
Android: Free • Premium