Dogpile puzzles combine Balatro, Tetris, and a pile of puppies

One day, video game critics and journalists will prepare a comprehensive study of the impact Balatro It was on the industry – how many games that came after tried to capture its essence by adding complex systems to simple, easy-to-understand games. Until then, I’ll play Dogpile.

Dogpile It is a roguelike game based on matching 3 sets, which is based on the style of merge games such as Suika game By adding a Balatro-Like evolution. The result is a cute and relaxing toy (in both type and liveliness) that appeals to both the growing numbers and the dog-loving patient in me. Drop identical dogs on top of each other to create bigger dogs that reward you with points to unlock higher levels. The smallest unit of dog is the Chihuahua, where two Chihuahuas fuse to form a Pomeranian (at least that’s what I think), and so on. The dogs kind of pile up on the field TetrisAnd also like TetrisIf the dogs spread out over the surface of the playing field, the game will be over.

Merging dogs is the simplest part of the game. It’s where the player has the least amount of control—everything is subject to the whims of gravity, physics, and trajectory—but also where… Dogpile It is the most exciting. The dogs themselves are cute, twisted into fun, awkward shapes that occasionally show a hole or two. Introducing modifiers such as making dogs bouncy or magnetic adds an interesting physical element to the game – Dogpile It is match 3 TetrisYes, but it was designed using a physics engine. It sounds pretty silly, so the ‘kid gets distracted by the rattle of keys’ saying one dog paws at another dog to make a dachshund is a playthrough worth highlighting in the year of the toy master 2025. But the little guy does it with a satisfying ‘pop’ accompanied by a cute little ‘arf’ that Like Benoit Blanc, I have to.

Although the game has nothing to do with poker, you can see its DNA Balatro Running all the time. He loves BalatroIn each round, you are dealt a hand from a deck of cards containing dogs as different suits. Like too Balatroyou can get money to spend on modifying your deck with more cards and tags that work similarly Balatrojoke. For $15 (in-game money, no microtransactions), you can either purchase a Chow Chow card or a tag that makes certain dogs spin in place to move the dog pile for more merge opportunities. When you win a round, you can also visit the grooming salon where you can directly modify your dog’s cards. You can give your dog positive traits like “friendliness” that will make him magnetically attracted to his matches. Or you can get rid of negative traits like fleas, which cancels out any positive traits the card may have.

Building your dog deck full of synergies to increase your points is where it’s at Dogpile It is the most like Balatro And where the bulk of your strategic thinking comes into play. I like to give my dogs a barking trait that causes them to disturb the pile by barking when it falls. This combined with the tag that awards points every time a dog barks, results in a mind-blowing display of counters filling up and cash register sounds going off that really pushes you into the fact that a lot of this stuff Well intentioned, celebrate Balatro-Likes Utilize psychology plus gambling to make them stick.

Dogpile Doesn’t feel very deep. There are no boss challenges. Failing to achieve the minimum score does not end the race, but instead makes you choose from a set of negative events or traits that can be easily ignored or are so detrimental that you lose the game outright. Unlike Balatro, Dogpile It doesn’t convey the same sense of endless possibility for the types of decks you can build.

Dogpile It’s not the first game to overcomplicate the humble match-3 genre, and I don’t know if there are similarities to it Balatro Intentional or not. But I like seeing how games can pay BalatroA formula that goes beyond poker – especially if there’s a dog involved.

And yes, you can pet them.

_{Dogpile Available now on Steam.}