Polarium (DS) Review
Introduction
Back when I got my first Gameboy for Christmas in 1992, one of the games I got for it was Tetris. I love Tetris, its a game so simple and yet so fun. This is what makes a great puzzle game, a game that is simple to play yet hard to master. So we now have Polarium for the DS, another one of those puzzle games that seems so simple yet on the inside is a game that will take you awhile to master.
Well over 15 years down the track do we have the first great puzzle game for the DS or do we have just another Tetris clone? Lets have a look.
Graphics
Nothing special here at all, these graphics for any other non-puzzle game would be called bad, but if the graphics where any more advance they might over complicate the game. So the graphics are functional and that is all they need to be for this game, granted the graphics dont show off the DSs power and they could have been done on a Gameboy Colour with out much change they do look nice and crisp on the DS.
Sound
This is one part of the game that they could of put a bit more effort into, where Tetris for Gameboy had a great soundtrack (those funky Russian beats are the reason no other Tetris game has been able to top my preference of the Gameboy classic), the music that plays in the game consist of maybe 2 or 3 tracks. Having said that you dont notice them enough for them to be annoying so I guess the music is supposed to be laid back, having said that the tracks that do get used in gameplay do get used well, in Challenge the music is a bit more up tempo giving then mode a more exciting feel to it, while puzzle mode is more laid back, letting you concentrate on the puzzle. The only other noteworthy aspect of the sound is the clicking of tiles, which adds to the feel of the game.
Gameplay
Heres were the main part of any great puzzle game cones into play. In Polarium you have clear lines of Horizontal tiles by getting them all of the same colour, you do this by drawing a single line over the tiles once you have gotten to were you want to end your line just tap on the screen to flip all of the tiles over, if you have a complete horizontal line of the same colour then that line will disappear. In Challenge mode you have to keep clearing lines of tiles as fast as you can, there is always a continual set of tile patterns coming down from the top, if the tiles reach the read line at the top of the screen its games over. You get more points for the more Tile rows you clear with 1 line. After you clear 100 rows the speed and tile patterns pick up.
Puzzle mode is a lot more laid back where you have a single line to draw to clear a set pattern, there are over 100 patterns to do, which most can only be unlocked after completing the last set of 10, this mode is a lot more laid back then challenge mode. You can also create your own patterns which you can give to your own friends for them to complete.
Lastly there is a nifty little Versus mode. Which only requires on card to play viva game download, each player will start with a certain number of rows of tiles each time you clear a row it will get transferred to your opponents screen, the player who clears all tiles on their screen first wins, or the player with the least tiles on their screen when the time runs out will win. To jump things up a bit if you clear a row which contains a Random tile you can use several attack moves on your opponent which will do things like flip all of their tiles to confuse them or increase the rate of speed that their tiles drop at.
Value/Lastability
Well as with any puzzle game this one you can pickup at any time, there is no story to get into, it just as simple as picking it up playing a quick challenge whenever you want to and this is the appeal that puzzle games have, there is also the great versus mode, which for me was the best part of Tetris for the Gameboy, it passed away the hours on long car trips in my younger days. Also the game is the cheapest DS game on the market, and will be great value for money. Its a game that anyone can play, and will last you until and as with most puzzle games it only ends when you stop playing it.
Overall
If youre a fan of puzzle games like me, then you should get this game, while being no were as easy to pick up an play as Tetris was, it will after going through the tutorial become quite easy to understand. This game is how puzzle games should be made, a fun challenge mode, a highly enjoyable puzzle mode and a great puzzle mode what more could you want from a puzzle game.
