‘Burglars, Inc.’ Review: A Criminally Good Puzzler

Puzzle games on iOS frequently feature pretty visuals or clever gameplay mechanics. But what they don’t often have is an interesting story. Fuzzy Orbit Games’ Burglars, Inc. (out now, free) has all those things and more.

Set in a city that’s been overrun by greed and corruption, Burglars, Inc. initially casts players as a plucky wannabe hero named ChaseTired of standing idly by as her home town descends further into chaos, Chase decides to join up with the titular Burglars, Inc., an underground vigilante group that uses their burglary skills to right wrongs and fight back against injustice. (There’s more to the premise and Chase’s motivations than that, but I don’t want to spoil anything.)

The first four levels of Burglars, Inc. are an extended tutorial in which a master thief, Hackett, teaches Chase (and players) the basics of his craft. Things are a little slow to begin with, as Hackett takes his sweet time explaining the ins and outs of how chaining together puzzle pieces to crack safes and bypass security systems works. However, the game picks up significant steam and gets more intense once trickier puzzle mechanics, multi-stage missions and against-the-clock challenges are introduced.

As Chase works her way up the ranks of Burglars, Inc. by pulling off increasingly complex missions around the city, the game keeps things fresh and exciting by continually adding new puzzle types, gameplay elements, additional characters, and unlockables like tools and gear to the mix. This provides Burglars, Inc. with an addictive sense of progression, and makes it difficult to put down once you’re invested in the story and gameplay.

The demo version of Burglars, Inc. lets you try out a very generously sized chunk of the game for free (I think I played for a couple of hours or so), before you run into a paywall. You’re then given the option to make a one-off IAP of $2.99 to unlock the remainder of the game’s content. And trust me, you’ll definitely want to continue playing to see what else the game has to offer and where Chase and her friends’ story goes.

If you couldn’t tell, I thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent with Burglars, Inc. The core gameplay is fun and exciting; the story is entertaining throughout (with some witty and well-written banter between characters); and everything else about it, from the art direction to the original score, is impeccably polished. Highly recommended to fans of pulpy, comic book-esque stories and challenging puzzle games.

Verdict

Burglars, Inc. is a riveting story-driven puzzler filled with badass characters and explosively exciting heist based challenges. If that sounds interesting to you, I encourage you to — at the very least — check out the game’s trial version (which is an absolute steal considering the generous amount of content it offers for free).

Interesting premise, characters and story
Unique and varied puzzles
Exceptional presentation and art direction
Tons of free content (a one-off IAP unlocks the full game)
A bit slow to begin with (but fun once it gets going)
4.5
Excellent