AntiVirus: A TRU Review

I get a lot of things to review, either for me or for The Boy. Nothing ever comes for daddy.

However, in the second box of toys from Toys R Us there was a game that I could see him eyeing up instantly. A logic puzzle. "Ha ha," thought I "that'll make him happy!"

Suitable for ages 8 years and over, The Anti Virus puzzle has 60 levels ranging from Starter to Wizard. It's a white, plastic base measuring 17.5 x 17.5 x 2cm, and has dimples in it in order to hold the different shaped and coloured game pieces. There is a very attractive, laminated instruction booklet with rules, puzzles and most importantly for me, the solutions! It also comes with a nifty zip-up travel case which is going to be handy next week on holiday.

I'm handing over to The Boy's daddy to tell you what he thinks. And trust me, this is a man obsessed.

"I've always been a fan of board games, whether classics such as Draughts and Solitare or more obscure games like Abalone. The idea of a game that takes 30 seconds to learn the rules of, but hours (or more) to learn how to play effectively, appeals to my curiosity.

So when the Boy's Mummy passed me Anti-Virus to try out, I was instantly intrigued. The game consists of nine differently-sized pieces, a booklet containing 60 setups (and, if you're a quitter, their solutions), and a simple task: move the pieces across the boardwithout rotating or lifting them, to allow the red "virus" piece to exit the game board.

At first glance, it resembles the game 'Parking Lot', but where the vehicles in that can only move one-way these pieces can move two ways. And with the setups covering five different difficulty levels, the complexity ramps up very quickly. Each setting up takes less than 30 seconds per level. But as I quickly discovered, whether you solve it in 10 seconds, or it takes you an hour, there is a definite "well, let's just take a quick look at the next level" factor. I admit it; I'm hooked."

Anti-Virus retails for £14.99 RRP. Keep an eye on the Toys R Us Facebook page for updates on availability.