Bridge constructor is as the name suggests a bridge building game developed by the Austrian Video Game Developer Clockstone Softwares. It’s a unique, challenging and unpredictable physics based puzzler of a game.

Bridge Constructor iOS Game

Downloading the game

You can download a demo version of this game from the app store for free or spend INR 120 and download the full version. The demo version has a download size of 46.9MB while the full version is a few MBs larger. You can enjoy the game on any of the three iOS devices: iPhone, iPad or iPod touch with iOS 4.3 or above. Just search for it on the App store to download it.

Gameplay Experience

The story of the game is that an imaginary island nation of Camatuga was destroyed by an earthquake and now needs your help in rebuilding its bridges. The aim of the game is simple; you have to create structurally sound bridges so vehicles may pass over them safely without getting drowned in the river below. The game starts with the minimalist of tutorials with the first level being the tutorial. The tutorial teaches you the basics of building bridges and is insufficient to say the least.

The game is spread over thirty different levels with a unique bridge that needs to be built every level. These thirty levels are divided among five beautiful looking sections; city, canyon, beach mountain and hills.

You construct a bridge using the different construction materials available to you onto a gridded environment and then press play to let vehicles pass over your bridge to test its strength. If the vehicles pass successfully you get a medal and progress to next stage, if not then the bridge breaks and the vehicles fall in the river below. You need to build a structurally strong and sound bridge through a process of trial and error to get that medal.

There are four types of building materials available to you; wood, steel, cables and concrete pillars. Initially only wood is available to you for building your bridges but as you progress other materials unlock with certain levels. On a given level there are certain preset materials available to you for the construction of the bridge. Different materials have their specific uses like for example the road part of the bridge can only be built using wood.

The strength of your bridge is tested by you running a couple of cars over it, if they pass then you clear the level. The other option to stress test your bridge is to run a couple of lorries over it. If the lorries cross without falling off then you clear the level with bonus points.

You also get an option to try out passing an exploding tank truck over your bridge which is available in the full version only. In case the tank truck is unable to make it across the bridge then it explodes destroying the bridge with it. The amazing part is that it doesn’t matter if the bridge is creaking, swaying or breaks off midway; if the cars make it across the river then you clear the level.

The bridges have color coded load indicator for specific building materials. A green color indicates that the bridge you have built is strong enough to sustain the load. If the bridge is not strong enough and is not able to handle the load, it would turn from green first to lighter shades of red, then dark red and then ultimately collapse. The color coded load indicator system also helps you pinpoint the weak points in your construction.

The game is not as simple as it sounds till now. It gets tougher due to the limitation of a budget imposed on you. Each building material has a certain cost and you can only buy enough material as your budget permits. This is the part where the game gets tricky. Each bridge can be built in a number of different ways. So you need to find such a construction which is within your budget, uses only the available building materials and can handle the load of a couple of cars/lorries. The game gets really tough if you don’t understand basic physics.

The game also has a hint system where you can get ideas of how to go about your construction of the bridge in the right manner. These hints cost you coins which you’ll have to spend real money to get. There is another feature in the game which allows you to build a certain bridge without any budgetary or material restrictions. Again this feature requires coins to unlock.

Social component

The game offers you a choice to connect to Facebook and share your progress and screenshots. Sadly connecting to Facebook doesn’t have much benefit in terms of gaining additional coins. Also the game doesn’t give you an option to play on multiple iOS devices.

Conclusion

Bridge constructor is a fun to play game especially if you are into engineering as it requires basic understanding of physics. The simple piano music and pretty landscapes around the bridges enhance the experience. That said the game does need a more in-depth tutorial about how to optimally use different materials in the game.

This article is written by : Yuvraj Sharma