Untangling minimalist puzzles in Hook 2 is catchy
Taking objects to pieces in the correct order
A few years back, Pip enjoyed Hook, a minimalist puzzle game about untangling mish-mashes of hooks and pins by removing pieces in the correct order. If you try to remove that one, the hook will snag on that pin, so first this pin needs to go but ah! that goes through the middle of this ring, so... it's interesting to understand a shape and system so you can pull it to pieces. Now a sequel is out, and it's also nice, and it's under £2, and it has a demo too.
Hook 2 is a bit like those ads for Evony: The King's Return with the minotaur, but without that idiot groaning every time he fluffs an easy puzzle. Or it's like Hook, but with more puzzles. Each level opens with an arrangement of individual hooks, loops, and pins. Click the end of one and it'll retract towards its base, unless it snags on another part in the way. So you're looking to figure out the correct order to dissemble everything. Starts simple, gets more complex as moving parts, a whole extra spatial dimension, and other complications come in.
I dig it. It's chill and just taxing enough to be satisfying. And the two-tone look is not only attractive, it's a complicating factor in some puzzles, with parts and paths hiding behind others until you look for a new perspective. That's clever. The mechnical clicks and clanks of the process are good too, the suggestion of tinkering with a gizmo or picking a lock.
I don't imagine the game will be huge, but it's nice and it's cheap. I'm 51 puzzles deep so far and haven't even encountered some of the components in Hook 2's marketing screenshots. If I had to guess, I'd say they look... controlled by wireless? Oh no. But I trust it will continue to introduce me to concepts gently then ramp up difficulty by mixing with other puzzle elements.
Hook 2 is out now on Steam for Windows, Mac, and Linux, with a 10% launch discount making the price a mere £1.52/€1.43/$1.79 until the 6th of July. A free demo is up on that Steam page. Hook 2 is also available for Apple and Android pocket telephones.
It's made by Maciej Targoni, who also made the lovely Klocki and other minimalist puzzlers.