Strata for iPhone brings colourful fun with layers

So you’ve just updated to iOS 7 and you’re not feeling the flat design? Are you missing a bit of the old skeuomorphism? Ease your withdrawal with iPhone game Strata!

It’s a simple enough premise: you’re presented with a small grid containing a pattern of coloured squares, and you have to strategically layer strips of ribbon so that when you’re finished, the colours of the top layer of ribbons match the coloured squares below. Easy enough to start off with, but as you progress through the game the grids become larger, the patterns more complex and you have more colours to play with, making matters a whole lot trickier.

It’s straightforward enough to complete each puzzle, as if you make a mistake you can simply undo your way back to the start, but if you’re anything like us then it’ll become a matter of pride to earn a perfect score by not using a single undo, and instead staring hard at each puzzle to try and work out the entire sequence of moves in your head before making a single move. That’s normal, right?

We like Strata a lot. The woven looks and earthy tones might not sit well with the dayglo iOS 7 aesthetic, but it’s still a good look and it’s all wrapped around a cracking little puzzle, at a bargain price too.

Key info

• Works with: iPhone, iPad, iPod touch
• Price: $0.99 / £0.69
• Developer: Graveck Interactive
• Version: 1.0.1
• App size: 27.4 MB
• Age rating: 4+

Words: Jim McCauley

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How far can you get in Strata? Tell us in the comments!