The free game is available for Windows 10 PC and Mobile, sports a blend of minimal game graphics and eye-catching wallpapers. Gameplay is easy to pick up and play, but plays out like a chess game where each move is calculated. Overall, ERMO is a fun time waster of a game.
The layout for ERMO is colorful with a minimalist feel. The primary menu offers you the option to play the game, access the add-on menu, view your achievements and view the developer About screen. The add-on menu holds a collection of eye-appealing wallpaper backgrounds that become available as you reach high score milestones. You can also opt out of the ad support ($0.99) through this menu.
Settings for ERMO are available by tapping the Back button on Windows 10 Mobile and the Back arrow (top left corner) On Windows 10 PC. Settings offer the options to mute the sound and music, switch to a colorblind mode, sign up as a Beta Tester for future updates to the game and an option to contact the developer.
When you first launch ERMO, the game guides you through a simple tutorial that lays out how to play the game nicely. You are presented with a series of colored blocks that you need to shift vertically and horizontally so they match a color pattern displayed above them. While that sounds simple, you have a limited number of moves available to accomplish that task. You also face puzzles with multiple columns and rows of colored blocks that need to be shifted into the correct order. On the plus side, the tutorial lacks any move limits to allow you to get the feel for the game without too much pressure.
The flow of gameplay has you completing as many puzzles as possible. If you fail to complete a puzzle the game is over and your score is based on the number of consecutive puzzles solved. When you restart a game, you can choose to return at the level you failed or select a lower level to restart a game. Just keep in mind that if you see that you are about to run out of moves and know you are about to fail, there is a reset button at the bottom of the game display. You have a limited number of resets, but you are not penalized should you hit the reset to avoid failure.
A surprisingly challenging Windows 10 game
ERMO is a wonderfully designed, simply laid out puzzle game for Windows 10. The background wallpapers would be great lockscreen wallpapers and gameplay is a fun test for your skills at deduction, planning, and patience. There is no game timer, but the move limit provides enough difficulty to prevent the game from growing stale.
I enjoyed playing ERMO and while a fun game, it could use a little fine-tuning. For starters, the move counter needs to be more prominent. Currently, a small number sits next to the pattern goal and can easily be overlooked. I would rather have the move counter be more visible and displayed at the top of the screen.
While the game isn't difficult to navigate around, I also wouldn't mind seeing a settings cog icon available from the main menu. It's not a major issue but would allow the settings menu to be more noticeable. Lastly, the Windows 10 PC version needs to span the full screen. That would allow the background to standout more to help the game's casual feel.
Overall, ERMO is an entertaining game to pass the time with and exercise your brain along the way. If you have given ERMO a try, let us know what you think of things in the comments and join in on this Windows Central forums discussion to chat it up with the developer.
