Indie MR/VR Puzzle Game Squingle Arcade Opens First Public Playtest

The makers of Squingle Arcade are inviting players to go hands-on with their upcoming free-to-play MR/VR spatial puzzle game from April 16 through April 26.

Developed as a faster-paced evolution of the original Squingle, Squingle Arcade tasks players with guiding bubbly orbs of light through intricate, three-dimensional mazes while avoiding obstacles and collecting baubles.

What’s a Squingle?

The visual identity of Squingle Arcade is unique, leaning into a psychedelic, vibrant, and almost hypnotic aesthetic. When played in mixed reality, the world around you is rendered in saturated and color-shifted hues, and the walls of your living space can be altered in real-time by the game, while in VR, you’ll race through puzzles in a dynamic, ever-shifting iridescent universe.

The devs cite influences ranging from the ever-trippy Tetris Effect, to the mechanical challenge of Kururin, a series of puzzle games that appeared on Nintendo’s Game Boy Advance and GameCube in the early 2000s in which the player’s job was to guide objects through complex mazes.

There’s a timer, leaderboards, races, time attack ghosts, and accolades for finishing each puzzle in the shortest time possible.

Brief Impressions

Maybe, like me, you saw the game’s announcement trailer during last month’s VR Games Showcase and thought, “Huh. That’s a weird one.” Maybe you weren’t all that interested, or thought the game was too niche. After all, an abstract puzzle/time attack/psychedelic MR/VR game in which you maneuver blobs of light through floating tubes isn’t exactly an easily-categorized type of game.

I’ve played Squingle Arcade, and even set a few best-times, and I’m happy to report that it’s a far more interesting, engaging, and fun game than I expected it to be prior to playing. The trailer doesn’t really do it justice; in VR, it’s a mesmerizing experience, one that drove me to compulsively play again and again.

But that’s just me. Luckily, you can try Squingle Arcade yourself.

Participation in the free public playtest is offered only on the Quest 3/3S, however Squingle Arcade will support all major Meta Quest devices and SteamVR (PCVR). Players interested in the public playtest should join the game’s Discord server and follow the instructions in the announcement channel to be eligible for the playtest.

You can check out Squingle Arcade on Meta’s Horizon Store, where it will be releasing at a later date.