PyTraffic

Made By:
Michel Vandenbergh
Website : http://alpha.uhasselt.be/Research/Algebra/Members/pytraffic/

Positive points:	
-   Vast amount of puzzles
-   Integrated help facility
-   Several degrees of difficulty

Negative points:	
-   Becomes dull quickly
			

You may have seen or played the game Rush Hour by Nob Yoshigahara (the original creator) before, either in its original form, or in a slightly different variant thereof in adventure games. The essence of the Rush Hour puzzle is very straightforward: get the (red) car out of a six-by-six grid full of automobiles by moving the other vehicles out of its way. The difficulty with this kind of puzzle lies in the manner the other automobiles are arranged, they are often so intertwined that many moves are needed in order to solve the puzzle. 

PyTraffic sets out to bring the puzzle game classic over to the PC.
The seasoned adventure gamer will probably wonder why someone would want to play this as a stand-alone puzzle, as the Rush Hour puzzle - along with the “slider puzzle” - is one of the most recurrent puzzles in the adventure game genre. The question is thus: does PyTraffic succeed in making this game more than just a stand-alone puzzle?

The answer is, sadly, no.
To creator gives the puzzle as it is: classic Rush Hour fun (or terror, in case you fail to solve the blasted puzzle). Does he add something extra? Yes, a few added options create a bit of variety in the game. The board comes in five slightly different layouts in order to create a bit of variety. In the background plays a fun little tune that may get annoying as time goes by - but it is always possible to turn the music off or let the game play your own preferred audio tracks. 

In terms of gameplay the game has 5 different difficulty settings, ranging from trivial to expert. Trivial being absurdly easy (e.g. move the car blocking the exit one space) and expert being unnervingly difficult (in which case you may find yourself trying to figure out which pieces you can move, at all).
Thankfully the game does include two different solutions: either you can ask the game for a single hint (in which case the completed puzzle is not counted as ‘solved’), or you can switch the game into demo mode, in which case the game solves the puzzle for you. The demo mode can be switched on and off and any point into the puzzle, which is rather nifty and helpful if you find yourself thoroughly stuck.

Eventually we come to the following conclusion:
The game succeeds in what it sets out to do: offer the player a trove of “Rush Hour” puzzles in several degrees of difficulty.
It offers a few different layouts and a solution, but this won’t convince all but the most avid puzzler to play more than a few puzzles before getting tired of the game.

The game comes with about 19.000 different puzzles ranging in difficulty from "Intermediate" to "Expert". The “Trivial” and “Easy” levels are automatically generated. The website also explains how you can create your own layout or “theme”. 

Editor's rating: 3
Multiplayer modes: 	none
Age rating:		all ages