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Here is an excellent first release from Alexander, aka Cogitare Computing (from the Latin word meaning to think). The weight-based puzzles will make the player think a lot.

One night Kate wakes up to find all her toys have come alive. Six of her favourite toys are being held captive by the rest, so she puts on her motorbike helmet and tries to rescue them. There are two types of level. The oddnumbered levels are platform based, where Kate must work her way to the top of the level to rescue a toy. This involves using switches, seesaws, weights and cannonballs in various ways – as well as objects that help her bounce higher. Touching any of the patrolling bad toys costs Kate a life. There is also a time limit to complete the level, and running out of time forfeits a life. The even-numbered levels see Kate taking on a big bad boss toy. Now there are platforms that will bounce Kate higher when she jumps on them, and she must find a way to attack the boss (as she cannot fire anything herself). Completing all twelve levels brings the end sequence.

This is a bright and colourful game with some very nice graphics. The black outlines make the sprites look very cartoony, and the changing background themes add variety. The loading screen and other presentation is very good too. Sound is excellent, with jaunty tunes really adding to the fun. The movement patterns and gravity applied to objects look realistic too. It takes a fair bit of brainpower to work out some of the puzzles and find the correct route, so there is a long-term challenge here. Fortunately the itch.io page includes some walkthrough videos to help the player understand some of the trickier problems.

At times it can be very difficult to work out what to do next, and much of the game requires some very precise timing; get the sequence of movements wrong and it’s time to try again, and again. The harsh time limits make things even tougher. Although the graphics are nicely themed, some of the sprites are a little hard to make out what they are. Twelve levels may sound like a lot, but once solved there is little to draw the player back again. And three lives is a meagre amount to start with on such a tough quest. Currently this is a download only, with a limited physical release planned (at the time of writing).

This is a sweet and charming platform game with a hard edge. It may lack in longevity but the price is very attractive.