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| Source // MobyGames |
Keeping your hands busy in a world without fidget spinners can be tricky for someone who wants to do something, but doesn't want to do something too involved. Just idly fiddling with something for no real purpose other than to play, chill out, and pass the time is something I can get behind, depending on the something, I suppose.
In 2009, if you had an iOS device and wanted to chill out in such a way, you might have opted for the wrap 'em up that is Zen Bound, a simple little puzzler where you just wind a piece of string around objects.
That's it, nothing more taxing than that, but you can bet it gets thinker than you would have initially thought.
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| Source // MobyGames |
Frustrations
You know the drill. iOS titles aren't easy to get hold of, especially older ones, and Zen Bound is no exception. For various reasons, it has come and gone from App stores, and even if it were to be available, I don't have an iOS device to play it on.
It has, however, gotten a modern sequel, available on more platforms, including the PC and Nintendo Switch, and Zen Bound 2 is essentially Zen Bound with a graphics boost. But I didn't buy Zen Bound 2 to find that out.
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| Source // MobyGames |
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| Source // MobyGames |
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| Source // MobyGames |
When money is tight, you want a return, and I'm not talking about a Steam refund before the time limit. Zen Bound isn't an expensive game, but when you know it's all about wrapping string around objects to paint their surfaces efficiently, you have to ask yourself whether it is worth it.
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| Source // MobyGames |
Fun Times
For once, I'm somewhat willing to say that it probably is worth the time and money to get winding. Probably. It's hard to say.
On the one hand, Zen Bound is elegantly presented, even on iOS devices before Retina displays were a thing. It's not quite a work of art, but it's not a cheap cash grab in a market that is going ballistic either. Zen Bound is a sort of toy, sort of puzzler, sort of distraction, and a simple way to just zone out for a bit.
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| Source // MobyGames |
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| Source // MobyGames |
You have a set length of string, and a target coverage number to achieve by wrapping that string around the object in the right places. You can't just wrap the object in circles because you won't have enough string, and so you have to work out how to cross off the most surface area in the shortest length of the string as you can.
Objects come in all sorts of shapes, from geometrically sensible, like a couple of stairs, to the intricacies of a statuette, like an animal carving with four legs and long ears.
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| Source // MobyGames |
Final Word
So far as I can tell, based on minimal looks at Zen Bound, that's Zen Bound. Something to just sit back and play with. There's a goal, sure, but that's not the point of the game, really. The point is to explore an object and interact with it in a way you probably never would, all thanks to a piece of string.
If I were to play Zen Bound or buy Zen Bound 2, would I like it? I probably would, yeah, but for how long? When does Zen Bound become stale or repetitive? When does the gimmick cease to be interesting?
That's my one big stumbling block with this game. It looks like there's no depth but more of the same. It looks like there is little more than 'wrap string around stuff', and as pleasing as that may be in the right situation, I can't see that situation coming up in my life too often - and I can't see myself paying a couple of quid to find out, not right now at least.
There's a chance I'll pick it up somewhere down the line, sure. It's a slim chance, but I can't rule it out. Zen Bound does look nice, after all, and I have been known to be silly enough to spend a couple of quid on a game of FIFA that's a few years out of date, knowing that it does next to nothing different from the other games.
We humans are weird, aren't we? £40 for a game that does nothing new but offers a comfy, enjoyable time? Easy purchase. £4 for a quirky little distraction, something new and different? Steady on, now. I can't justify that...
Fun Facts
It's not all about wrapping string around objects. Sometimes you've got to wrap the string around nails hammered into those objects, and tie the end of the string off, too.
Zen Bound, developed by Secret Exit, first released in 2009.
Version watched: iOS, 2009 (Pocket Gamer)