My First App Vehicles, now a universal application, is a very nice puzzle app for preschoolers with a lovely visual style and a great amount of content.

My son found My First App Vehicles himself while looking at the folder of new apps to review on my phone. I can see why this app caught his eye, as this app’s icon is bright green with a tractor – a vehicle he really enjoys. This is a nice image that represents the bright and bold color choices found within this whimsical app.

Three different styled puzzles are included, and I think it is interesting that a selection of eight vehicles is chosen for the jigsaw and matching style activities, and a different selection of vehicles is used for the tilt-style game – an activity that I have not seen a lot of in applications.

The choices of vehicles are delightful, colorful and simply a lot of fun, such as a 1960’s Hippy-style bus, royal horse-drawn cart or alien space ship, along with traditional choices like police and fire vehicles. I appreciate the subtle textures used here, as many backgrounds have a lined pattern found in expensive decorative paper – a nice touch.

I am impressed with how one can choose the number of pieces within the jigsaw puzzles section, ranging from two to nine, as well as including the rotation of pieces or not, depending on the level of difficulty one is looking for.

A nice level of “grab” is included, drawing pieces to the correct spots when a piece is brought close, but no other hints or reference images are given, making these puzzles potentially quite challenging, even for older children.

After each puzzle is complete, a colorful clown pops up onto the screen congratulating the player. This animation, although cute, can get a little redundant for adults, but fun for the children who are enjoying these puzzles.

The music included, although upbeat, can also get to be repetitive for adult ears – easy to fix as the music can be muted, making this a great quiet game, but I wish the sound effects were not automatically silenced along with the music – something to think about for a future update.

The Turning Game is this app’s take on the classic slider game where players scroll vertically, looking to match two halves of the same vehicle. When a vehicle is complete, a fun animated interaction with sound effects rewards young players.

I really like the “pinball” section of the app – a name I find a little tricky – as in most pinball games, one is trying to avoid the ball falling into the holes, but at a glance, parents will understand this “tilt” style game where one holds the iPhone in one’s hand while attempting to manipulate the device to get the ball into the holes provided.

This is good variation on the classic, low tech. game that all kids will at some point be exposed to. I am surprised that not more kids’ apps have styled games like this before. The small silver ball used with added reflective qualities and subtle shading found within the holes themselves makes this game-play incredibly life-like compared to the way this classic game is played – elements I have really enjoyed.

Eight new vehicles are offered in this section, and it is worth noting that the vehicles included within these activities are not introduced with narration, so adults may need to explain what some of these vehicles are, especially if this is a first vehicles app as the name of this app suggests.

I really like the choice of the red double-decker bus and street cleaner, as these vehicles are a little different from those found in other apps but still contain the same great colors and whimsical sensibilities found in the other puzzle sections.

This is a lovely, simple app that could keep a child entertained for a very nice length of time, making this a lovely choice to add to a collection of puzzle apps.

By Age Range, By App Feature, Just For Fun, Preschool, Puzzle, Reviews, Toddlers