Siesta Fiesta review: a mishmash of gameplay

Take an established gameplay concept, add a twist, some fancy new bells and whistles, profit! That’s been the development mantra evident behind quite a few releases over the years, whether it be adding RPG elements to a match-3 game like Puzzle Quest or turning the tide on tower defence in the Anomaly games. In the case of Mojo Bones' Siesta Fiesta, they've taken the block breaking, ball bouncing action of Breakout and added some side scrolling to the mix, with a bit of Latin flair thrown in for good measure.

Broken down into various stages set over 8 regions, you control Siesta’s bed, which acts as the paddle, as he bounces his way across the levels. You’ll smash blocks, collect power ups and rack up points along the way, with your end level score rated and given a gold, silver or bronze medal based on your performance. So the elements are all there for a good twist on a classic, but unfortunately the game just doesn't quite add up. Despite having solid mechanics and an inviting art style, the game never manages to elevate itself beyond being anything but perfunctory.

New gameplay elements are introduced as the game progresses, from Donkey Kong Country style barrel cannons to water blocks and inflatable balloons, yet even these do little to spice up proceedings. It is in part the game’s mishmash of gameplay elements that ultimately leads to its downfall. It was difficult enough to be accurate in Breakout’s singular arena; add shifting borders and hard to hit targets continuously drifting off screen to that and you often end up just bouncing your way through the level frustratingly missing all of the fun bits. Reach the end of the world and you begin to realise that you’re just bouncing through the entire game missing all the fun bits.