Zookeeper Battle review: why you should spend your evening forcing zoo animals to fight

There are very few mobile games that I can honestly say I’ve been addicted to. Games like Doodle Jump, Fruit Ninja, and Jetpack Joyride have captured my attention for a few weeks, but very rarely have I found it difficult to put the iPod down. Well, until now: Zookeeper Battle may just be my first real addiction.

When I first picked it up, I thought it would be a typical ‘match three’ puzzle game. It might be fun at first, but I expected it would soon become tiresome and repetitive. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Japanese developer Kiteretsu’s Zookeeper Battle has added so many new and refreshing elements to the genre that it is hard to imagine the game getting old.

It’s like the Pokemon Puzzle League… but fun

Zookeeper Battle allows for you to face off against competitors from around the world in a five round puzzle battle. You and your animal companion will spend 30 seconds trying make as many animal matches as possible. For every match you get of monkeys, pandas, giraffes, crocodiles, or lions you will get points towards your attack. Any match of hippos or elephants will be added to your defense. When the 30 second round is up, your attack points will be matched up with your opponents defense, and vice versa. If you managed to rack up an attack of 70 and your opponent had a defense of 30, your opponent would lose 40 hit points. You continue this battle system for five rounds or until someone is KO’d.

On top of the animal tiles that make up the puzzle game, there are special power ups that get thrown in the mix every once in a while to really stir things up. There is a bucket of paint (causes color blindness for your opponent), the boss button (causes useless boss tiles to show up on your opponent’s screen making it difficult to make matches), hearts (to replenish HP), and a random tile that will wipe away all of a specific animal. These power ups really spice up gameplay.

So what makes Zookeeper so great?

Zookeeper Battle is fast, sweet, simple, and so addictive that it should come with a warning from the Surgeon General. However, there is much more to Zookeeper Battle than puzzle battles. You can create your own zoo, decorate your avatar, and even take on quests to protect your zoo. There are different events that happen throughout each month that also help keep things fresh. For a free game, Zookeeper really has a lot going on.

Zookeeper Battle may not win any awards for being the most visually stunning game to hit the mobile field, but it gets the job done. The game uses vibrant colors, cute characters, and just looks good. The style doesn’t take itself too seriously and fits the cute nature of the game.

The music used in Zookeeper fits the cute tone of the game very well too. You are not going to walk away humming the themes, but you also are not going to be racing to find that mute button. Although the music is simplistic and at times tiresome, it does add to the experience.

The only issue I have with this game is that I can’t play it all day. Zookeeper Battle is a free download, and like most free games, it limits the number of matches you can have. However, the game is slightly unconventional in how fast it gives you more chances to play. You are limited to 6 plays, but one play is automatically replenished after every 15 minutes. Sure it would be nice to keep playing without the limitation, but this seems like a great compromise.

In the end, I have nothing but praise for Zookeeper Battle, and would like nothing more than to stop writing and go back to playing.