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Like the dozens of brick-breaking type games that have come before it, Fairy Treasure entices players by having creative levels and power-ups to keep you hooked. But what stands out is that Fairy Treasure has extremely detailed and lush environments that makes the rather mundane gameplay suddenly feel like it's the most exciting thing since Sudoku.

There is a story line to Fairy Treasure, which is told through a couple of pages of text before you start playing. There's a troll that stole the fairy treasure from the Kingdom of Trollandia, and it's up to you to travel down the river to its cave and bring it back. The game is level upon levels of stone-breaking madness, so by level 50 or so, you'll have forgotten your purpose - if there really was a purpose. There are over 120 levels and three different difficulty settings. Don't be fooled, this game could take a while, and it's very addictive.

You use your mouse to control a paddle that is floating along the river at the bottom. The physics of the game are somewhat realistic. Since you are floating, the angle that your ball will bounce will vary depending on the tilt of your paddle. What I have difficulty understanding is when your ball goes through some foliage, it ends up moving up. There's not much to complain about though, since most of it makes sense; and it's only rare instances in which you feel like your ball isn't going where it should.

You get one ball to start, but with various power-ups, you can have up to three balls, or your ball could become stronger. Most stones take a few hits to break, but with a stronger power-up, it only takes one hit. Some of the better items turn your ball into a flaming nugget and takes out everything in its path. Those are rare, but those are the ones that let you fly by the level. The level isn't complete until everything is gone from the screen. Fairies will help you finish off the last pieces if you're taking too long. There are certain items that fairies don't help with, so sometimes you could be stuck trying to hit that one gem in the corner for several minutes.

There are some characters that will hinder your progress. There are witches that like to create more blocks and some that cause your ball to become weak, rendering it completely useless. There are these devilish-looking statues that drop fireballs at you, and if you get hit, you could lose coins. Otherwise, everything you hit results in some kind of goody being dropped, but it's hard to catch most of them, since you'll probably want to be ready when your ball comes back.

The background images are superb, and the artwork reflects the fantasy-like world beautifully. A lot of detail was put into the items on screen. Each location that you visit has a different background picture, but they're all nicely done to make you feel at one with nature. The music helps, too, by having a mix of upbeat woodwinds or the tranquil strum of a harp. The visuals and audio are definitely some of the stronger points of the game. The sounds of the various items breaking and falling into the water is worth noting, since there are times when it's so chaotic, you wouldn't even notice that you missed something until you hear that faint "plop."

Fairy Treasure can offer hours upon hours of repetitive fun. It definitely comes highly recommended for those who enjoy a casual game you can pick up and play. Take frequent breaks, because it's too easy to continue after each level until your arm begins to cramp.