We've had points, ribbons, stars, and these days there's nothing quite like a sweet hat to reward someone's progress, but little else excites my senses like a good jingle. Think back on all those hidden rooms you've found in Zelda games - you probably enjoyed what you found inside, but I really hope you smiled the first time you heard the fanfare, because otherwise we can't be friends.

So if Beat Sneak Bandit is remembered for one thing, let it be its glorious reward sound. Every time you finish a level and the summary screen appears, Simigo's rhythmic platform puzzler wiggles its funky hips for a handful of beats before ending on a synth stab, and if it's possible to avoid joining in by bouncing your head from side to side then I haven't discovered how, which is a shame because I already look silly enough on public transport without dancing in my seat.

It's the sort of detail that can leave a decent game lodged in the memory, but Beat Sneak Bandit is much more than that. It's a classic game of single-screen obstacle courses, each set over four stories of a maniac's mansion, where the goal is to gather up clocks without being caught, but there's an inspired twist: you can only move in time to the beat of each level's infectious soundtrack.

Read more…