Visually and aurally, Nervous Brickdown truly excels. Each mode has a very distinctive look and feel, from the retro 80’s neon of “Pow” to the cartoon jungle look of “Switch”. And the music is excellent – it’s catchy and upbeat without sounding saccharine. Visuals and music help each mode feel like a fully realized “whole”, and it’s obvious that the development team took a great deal of care in crafting the different stages. Also a welcome addition is the multiplayer mode, which supports single- card 2 player co-op.

Nervous Brickdown is fun, challenging and stylish. Few puzzlers have mixed old and new so elegantly, and each game mode is different enough to feel fresh and new. Though some modes stand out well above others (“Water”, “Speed”, and “Paper”), the variety is a welcome spice to oft-repetitive gameplay. The only thing holding the title back is it’s occasionally cheapness – there are simply too many frustrating deaths for a title that tries to do “cute” and “casual” things to a classic game.