Consolation Prize

Sudoku was a bit of a craze a few years ago. At one stage it seemed like I couldn’t even turn on the TV without some minor celebrity promoting their Sudoku book or harping on about how good it was. Thankfully the celebs have been and gone (and probably made a pretty penny or two out of it in the process) and the craze has subsided. Buku Sudoku, for the Xbox 360, is a little bit late to the party but it does a decent job of wrapping up the logic based number puzzler into an interesting package with great presentation and configurable difficulty levels that should appeal to fans old and new alike.

For those not in the know Sudoku is pretty straight forward to play once you’ve learned the fundamentals. The player is presented with a grid, most typically 9 x 9, which is partially filled with numbers from 1 to 9. The aim is to ensure that each column and row contains the digits 1 to 9, in addition the grid is split into regions (nine 3 x 3 regions in this example) which must also contain the digits 1 to 9. However the numerics in each row, column and region must be unique i.e. appear just the once in that row, column or region. It’s a simple principle but guaranteed to give your brain cells a bit of a workout.

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Since the success of Dr. Kawashima’s Brain Training on the Nintendo DS there has been a noticeable increase both in the number of games dedicated to training the grey matter and the publishers / developers jumping on the proverbial bandwagon in an effort to cash in on its success.

This effort comes courtesy of
GameLoft and according to the game blurb should:

Boost brain activity, help you develop stress management skills and develop your own creativity

This all sounds good in principle and the full game features 20 mini-games based around one of five different categories designed to enhance that squishy stuff inside your noggin (logic, math, memory, visual and focus).

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PomPom what have you done? I really enjoyed Mutant Storm Reloaded but I’m afraid I can’t really give Bliss Island too much love on the evidence of the trial game.

Lounging around on an island all day, creatures known as Zwoophs have nothing better to do with their time then blow into the air, making clouds. Surprisingly the lead character Hoshi has got bored of the task but luckily his peers have taken pity on him and decided to give him Fridays off so he can play around.

This is an excuse for lots of mini-games but in the trial you’re given the chance to try out just three. Fruit Smoothie has you blasting falling fruit into the waiting mouth of a hungry Jogoka whilst avoiding static or moving obstacles. Gem Grotto finds you controlling a flying character, via directed bursts of air, through a side scrolling course collecting gems and air replenishment whilst keeping ahead of a flaming rotating roller hot on your heals. And finally Bronze Table, which is like a game of pool but you’ve only got three shots to knock together two matching coloured balls before losing a life.

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Due to the amount of time required to set-up Consolation Prize over the last few days I’ve not had a lot of free time to play games. I have however managed to check out some of last months Xbox Live Arcade releases starting with TiQal, an Aztec themed puzzle game available for 800 points.

The aim of the game is to create square groups of at least four blocks of the same colour, using the preset shapes (made of blocks) that appear. Once a square group has been created it will start glowing and eventually be removed by an explosion after a short period of time. Rows of blocks are frequently added to the bottom of the pile and the player will lose if any blocks reach the top of the screen.

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There were a couple of new releases on Xbox Live Arcade this week. Both games, Chessmaster Live and Poker Smash, will set you back 800 MS points.

Chessmaster Live

There’s not a great deal I can elaborate on with this game. It’s a more than competent chess game based on a reputable chess engine, but don’t expect an exciting sensory experience.

The board can be viewed in either two or three dimensions, the latter of which can be rotated and panned and looks as good as can be expected. The 2D board doesn’t offer anything more exciting, feels a little out of place on an Xbox 360 console and reminds me of those portable magnetic chess games you can buy.

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Boogie Bunnies is a new puzzle game that has recently been released on Xbox Live Arcade for 800 Microsoft Points.

The aim of the game is to match three or more groups of “bunnies” in varying colours either horizontally or vertically by launching bunnies from the bottom or the left / right sides of the screen. Every time bunnies are successfully matched the “bunny bar” will fill up and once filled the player will advance to the next level. Every few seconds an additional row of bunnies is added to the top of the screen marching the crowd of bunnies further on and edging them closer to the trap (pit, water), which they will fall into, at the bottom of the screen.

There are a few minor variations in the game-play to that outlined above as every now and then the bunnies will dance acting as a double point’s multiplier for the duration. In addition red bunnies, in the roll of suicide bunny, will explode clearing the surrounding area when matched.

Boogie Bunnies is a very colourful game and has a nice isometric perspective of the action but doesn’t really break any new ground with this genre of game. Apart from being able to launch bunnies from the sides of the screen as-well as from the bottom the principles are similar to older games such as Puzzle Bobble.

With it’s cute graphics and bunnies that yelp “yippee” when successfully matched this game is probably more suited to the younger generation and is just a bit too saccharin sweet for my tastes. However, the game still plays well enough and I’m sure plenty of people will find it addictively engaging.

There were a couple of new releases on Xbox Live Arcade this week, namely Word Puzzle and ScrewJumper. Each title will set you back 800 Microsoft Points.

Word Puzzle

Word Puzzle is based upon word searches, the kind that seem to be popular in puzzle magazines, whereby the player is given a grid made up of seemingly random letters with a list of words to be found either horizontally, vertically or diagonally on the grid. To make it more difficult it’s possible that the word may be reversed, or a multi-dimensional grid employed to force the player to spin the grid in order to locate the word.

The gameplay isn’t complex and it’s therefore easy to pick up and play. To enliven the game the developers have thrown a few extra things into the mix, such as word combos, and pretty backgrounds. The trial lets you try out the “Arcade” and “Survival” modes for a limited time and all in all this is quite a decent puzzle game to add to the Xbox Live roster. However, 800 Microsoft points is a bit too steep a price in my opinion.

ScrewJumper

The other game released on Wednesday was “Screwjumper”. Players must choose a character and free-fall into various structures diving through platforms at velocity to destroy them (green objects) whilst avoiding or destroying hazards (red objects).

The destruction of the reactor core at the end of the free fall is the primary objective. If enough objects have been destroyed on the way down then the reactor will have no shielding, leaving it exposed and vulnerable. Before the reactor explodes you must escape by jetting back up the structure, once again avoiding the hazards.

The game doesn’t look great, but I can forgive this if it’s both playable and fun but unfortunately ScrewJumper is lacking in both departments. Not only are there problems controlling the character whilst in free fall, but the aiming reticle used to lob your sticks of dynamite at hazards is just as bad to use.

After a couple of attempts to get into the game I decided that this certainly wasn’t something I would consider purchasing.

As The Orange Box offers such a solid line-up of games all in one package I thought I’d review each element as and when I’ve played them rather than as a whole. First up is Portal.

Although Portal is played through a first person perspective it is at heart a puzzle game where you survive using your wits and skill. When the game begins the player awakes in a test chamber at an Aperture research facility and is informed over the intercom that they must complete a series of hazardous tests and when complete you will be rewarded with cake.

Portal does an excellent job of slowly introducing the player to the different aspects of the game, building upon skills learned in each test chamber enabling you to solve increasingly more complex tests. The primary puzzle solving element of the game is of course learning how to use the portals created by the “Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device” which you pick up during the early stages of the game.

The device allows you to create two portal openings, one blue and one orange, on most flat surfaces be it floor, ceiling, or wall and creates a physical connection between the two. Thus if you walk into the “blue” portal you will walk out of the “orange” portal. This is obviously a fairly simple example but things soon become more complex when you realise physical laws can be applied to problem solving. Thus if you fall into a portal at high speed you will exit the other portal at the same velocity and it becomes apparent that you have to use these physical laws to your advantage to jump great distances, reach high platforms or drop an object onto a button or hazard. As the game progresses you’ll have to start using more resourceful methods for portal placement, and experimenting with ideas is certainly one of the highlights of the game.

Graphically the game looks good. The environment portrays what I’d imagine a research testing facility with minimalistic design to look like. Portals deserve a special mention as being able to view into a different part of the map and seemlessly move between them in a 3D space is a feat in itself.

The test chambers are all excellently designed and you feel a real sense of satisfaction when you figure out how to complete a level. Dialog from GLaDOS (Genetic Lifeform and Disk Operating System), your guide through the game, is top notch being both informative and amusing and gets even better as the story unfolds. Also of special mention is the ending of the game which features a sublime song sung by GLaDOS.

Unfortunately it’s over all too quickly and you’re left with wanting more. As a bonus for completing the game you get access to six advanced “re-jigged” test chambers and additional game modes such as completing the chamber with the least number of portals or the fewest footsteps providing a good deal of replayability.

Even though the game is short it’s still excellent, provides an alternative approach to the first person perspective genre and is a worthy addition to the Half Life universe.