Tappday: Transmission

Tuesday just seem like a perfect day to feature apps that I find really fun or useful right?  Tuesday and Apps go together like peanut butter and jelly.  Salt and pepper.  Bonnie and Clyde.  You get the drift.  So from now on, TAppday will be a thing.  Heh.  Tuesday.  Apps.  Taps.  TAppday.

We’re starting TAppday off with quite possibly my favorite game that I have ever played on mobile: Transmission developed by Science Museum.

It just makes sense that I would love this game.  Transmission deals with all things telecommunications.

The entire premise of Transmission is to connect certain elements together with “signals” that transmit little blocks of information to complete a puzzle.  It’s basically a connect the dots game for the 21st century, but with more freedom…and more misery.  “Connecting to communicate” as they put it.

A simple circuit to get you started

Transmission can be wicked fun, but also extremely stressful.  If you are a hardcore gamer that likes challenges, this is it.  Why?  It offers absolutely no help on the levels.  Other than the quick tutorial for each new transmission type (i.e “world”), it gives you no hints on how to solve the puzzle.  None.  It really makes you think and I love that.

So what are these transmission types or worlds?  Transmission has entire worlds devoted to a single telecommunications element.  Think of it like Super Mario Bros.  There is a theme to each one.

You start off with the telegraph and then progress to the telephone.  The computer world comes next and then the broadcast world.  I’m not going to ruin the rest of it, but I can assure you they get more…creative.

A lot like Angry Birds, Transmission has the opportunity to acquire stars based on your performance for a particular level.  Each star corresponds to a certain task.  A common task that comes up is to not cross the transmission streams.  Harold Ramis would be proud.

Sometimes it gets challenging…

Data can be easy sometimes!

…very challenging

One of the several Transmission types

Bonus Objectives like Angry Birds

Connect to Communicate

Extremely simply settings

Super Mario Bros type of progression

Great reviews for a great dev

Completing levels with the full three stars gives you an opportunity to unlock the other transmission types quicker and a few secret worlds at the end.  It’s a nice incentive in the beginning, but soon starts to give you an aneurysm because the levels can be so difficult.

So is Transmission worth the difficulty?  A thousand times yes.

While the app is free I’d be more than willing to pay at least $1.99 for it due to the replay value.

Oh and did I mention that despite it being a free app, it has no advertisements AND there aren’t any in-game purchases.  Seriously this is how you make a quality game.