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»Planet Puzzle League
"A game by any other name..."
It was the spring of 1996. I had absolutely no interest in puzzle games of any type. I was at Blockbuster, renting a game for the weekend like always. They had a promotion for a new SNES game called Tetris Attack, rent it and get another game rental free. Since this essentially made the Tetris Attack rental free, I decided I might as well get it. I went home and played it, and magic happened. Within minutes I was completely addicted and my gaming horizons were expanded. Ever since then Tetris Attack has been my unquestioned favorite puzzle game. Tetris Attack may very well hold the record for most names for the same series; known as Panel de Pon (the first name and fairly consistent in Japan), Pokémon Puzzle League, Puzzle League, and now, Planet Puzzle League.
Yes, the legendary (to those who have played it) puzzle game has arrived on DS, and with two major additions. But I’ll get to those when they come up. The basic gameplay of PPL is like all great puzzle games, simple sounding but taking a lifetime to master. Rows of six blocks rise from the bottom of the screen, with death the penalty for them reaching the top of the screen, like every puzzle game. You can move blocks horizontally, and if you get three or more of the same type in a vertical or horizontal row they disappear, causing any blocks above to fall into place. You can make insane combos by setting it up so falling blocks complete another row of three. In the previous games you used a cursor to switch blocks, but one of the two big changes to Planet Puzzle League is the option of using the stylus. The control style of the game was clearly made for the stylus, and I’ve been using it ever since I got the game, although you can still play the game traditionally if you want.
That’s the basics of the game, but not the true potential. The real meat of Planet Puzzle League is vs. mode. In this mode, 2-4 players play the basic game and try to bury their opponents in garbage. Every combo you make send garbage blocks onto your opponent, which drop from the sky and bring you closer to doom. Now this is where the game differentiates itself from other puzzle games, no amount of garbage is a death sentence. Unlike most puzzle games, garbage blocks do not interfere with you combos or interaction with the blocks. The garbage blocks turn into normal ones if you make a block touching a garbage block disappear, so garbage blocks can help you set up combos. With enough skill, you can survive anything. This makes for absolutely spectacular matches between skilled players, where both spend almost the entire game buried in garbage, keeping combos going with literally one second to act between them.
And now is the time to mention the second and most important addition to Planet Puzzle League: (drum roll) online play! After over 10 years, the Tetris Attack formula is finally online. This is one of the best multiplayer games of all time, and you can now play against an infinite supply of human opponents. The online mode isn’t exactly the most robust on DS (two player only), but it’s still one of the best multiplayer games ever made. This gives the game essentially endless replay value, and makes me recommend it to everyone, no matter how many versions of Panel de Pon they own. In addition to online battle mode, there are a ton of single player modes, where you can solve puzzles, play for a high score, take on the computer, and more. I haven’t spent much time doing those, but if you’re new to the game you’ll probably want to practice before going up against online players who could have been playing for over a decade.
The graphics in Planet Puzzle League are pretty good from a technical standpoint. The game has a high-tech/space theme, hence the title. You can choose from several backgrounds and block designs, some of which are pretty flashy. The graphics lack the charm of previous versions which had Yoshi’s Island or Pokémon characters, however. The soundtrack is solid, nice background music although the game gets so intense you’ll hardly notice it.
Replay, of course, is through the roof. There are hundreds of puzzles and tons of one player challenges to overcome, but the real meat is online play. Planet Puzzle League is perfect for picking up and playing, whether it’s for a quick test in the Daily Play mode (picture Brain Age), an attempt to complete that puzzle you were stuck on, or an intense battle for online supremacy.
To recap, Planet Puzzle League is the best puzzle game of all time. It won me over within minutes when I first experienced the formula, so even if you have no interest in puzzle games I recommend it. Despite lacking the graphical and story touches of the previous versions, the sheer replay value makes this the definitive version of Panel de Pon. I’ve wanted to play this online for years, and it’s finally happened. This game is a true classic, one of the best masterpieces of the beloved 16-bit era. Buy it, that’s all I can say.
Article by: KI Simpson
Posted on: Jun. 14th, 2007 |
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Review Recap |
| Gameplay |
| The best puzzle action anywhere. |
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Graphics |
| Not as charming as previous versions, but viewed objectively it looks really good for such a simple game. |
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Sound |
| You’ll hardly notice it, but it does a good job for what it attempts. |
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Replay Value |
| Couldn’t possibly be higher. |
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