Elems

Elems looks like a small puzzle game built around elements, matching, or combining simple pieces, and that is usually the draw for players who want something light rather than demanding. By our assessment, its best trait is the clean, quick read of that kind of design: you can understand the loop fast, and the game can work well in short sessions. The trade-off is that this style often lives or dies on how much variety the rules actually have, and the ceiling can be low if the combinations do not keep opening up. In practice these games are about neat little decisions and a steady pace, not long tension or heavy story. Elems sits with the many minimalist puzzle games that rely on clarity more than spectacle, so it makes sense for anyone after a small brain-teaser and not much else. The name suggests exactly that kind of compact scope.