Puzzled (video game)

Puzzled[lower-alpha 1] is a falling-block puzzle video game developed and published by SNK that was released for Neo Geo arcades in 1990, on the Neo Geo home console in 1991,[1] and the Neo Geo CD in 1994.[2] The game was ported to mobile phones in 2005, then was re-published by D4 Enterprise on the Wii Virtual Console in June 2011,[3] and it is also one of the twenty games that came pre-loaded on the Neo Geo X console released in 2012.[4] It was also ported in August 2017 to Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 as part of Hamster Corporation's ACA Neo Geo series.

Puzzled
European Arcade flyer
Developer(s)SNK
Publisher(s)
Producer(s)Eikichi Kawasaki
Composer(s)Yoshihiko Kitamura
Platform(s)
Release
Genre(s)Puzzle
Mode(s)
CabinetUpright
Arcade systemNeo Geo MVS

Gameplay
Gameplay screenshot.

The visuals of Puzzled look a lot like Tetris and the core gameplay is the same:[5] the player controls tetriminos falling from the top of the screen, and filling a horizontal lines clears it.[6][7] However, the objective is to clear a vertical path for a hot air balloon initially trapped at the bottom of each level, enabling it to fly off the top of the playing field and moving up to the next level of a tower.[8][9]

The tower is divided into multiple floors, with 10 levels per floor, totaling 60 different puzzles.[10][11] Some levels feature varied obstacles like robots floating around the puzzle to attack the balloon, regenerating blocks, and gold blocks that need to be cleared multiple times before disappearing.[8] The player can also use a power-up called an "L-Ball": a meter fills up as lines are cleared, and once ready, the player can trigger a lightning ball to explode outwards from the balloon's current location, removing surrounding blocks.[8]

Development and release

Reception
Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
GameRankings(Switch) 30%[12]
Review scores
PublicationScore
Nintendo Life(Switch) 3 / 10[13]
AllGame(Neo Geo) [14]
Hobby Hi-Tech(Neo Geo CD) 6 / 10[15]
Joystick(Neo Geo) 90%[16]
(Neo Geo) 91%[17]
Mega Fun(Neo Geo) 76%[18]
Micom BASIC Magazine(Neo Geo) [19]
Neo Geo Freak(Arcade) 13 / 20[20]
Player One(Neo Geo) 92%[21]
Tilt(Neo Geo) 14 / 20[22]

In Japan, Game Machine listed Puzzled on their December 15, 1990 issue as being the most-successful table arcade unit of the year, outperforming titles such as Carrier Air Wing and Raiden.[23]

The graphics of Puzzled were described as being simplistic and unremarkable but well-designed and efficient.[6][10] The sound effects were also considered minimalistic but enjoyable for a game of this type.[6][10]

The game's multiplayer portion was criticized for not featuring any interactions between the two simultaneous players.[10][11]

Notes
  1. Also known as Joy Joy Kid (Japanese: ジョイジョイキッド, Hepburn: Joi Joi Kiddo) in Japan.

References
  1. "Oh! Neo Geo Vol. 23 - ジョイジョイキッド". Beep! MegaDrive (in Japanese). No. 58. SoftBank Creative. July 1994. p. 134.
  2. "Neo•Geo CD: The Arcade In A Box - Puzzled". GamePro. No. Premiere Supplement. IDG. Spring 1996. p. 106.
  3. Marcel van Duyn (27 May 2011). "Japanese Virtual Console list – June 2011". NintendoLife. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  4. "NEOGEO X FAQ". Neo Geo X. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  5. Knauf, Andreas (January 1992). "News - Neo Geo - Joy Joy Kid". Video Games (in German). No. 5. Future-Verlag. pp. 10–12.
  6. Omega Kyo (2 June 2004). "Puzzled / Joy Joy Kid" (in French). Neo-Arcadia. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  7. HG Staff (27 December 2012). "Hands-on With the Full Neo Geo X Launch Library". Hardcore Gamer. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  8. Bill Kwando (2002). "Puzzled Review". Neo-Geo.com. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  9. Tarma (2010). "Puzzled" (in French). Neo·Geo Spirit. Retrieved 26 February 2018.
  10. Tibe (2012). "Puzzled US". NeoGeoKult. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  11. Cyril Lachel (13 March 2004). "Puzzled Review for Neo Geo (1990)". DefunctGames. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  12. "ACA NeoGeo: Puzzled for Nintendo Switch". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. 2019. Retrieved 2019-06-26.
  13. Scullion, Chris (August 29, 2017). "Puzzled Review (Switch eShop / Neo Geo)". Nintendo Life. Nlife Media. Retrieved 2019-06-26.
  14. Knight, Kyle (1998). "Puzzled (Neo Geo Advanced Entertainment System) - Review". AllGame. All Media Network. Archived from the original on 2014-11-15. Retrieved 2019-06-26.
  15. "Reportaje - Clásicos en CD -- Titulos disponibles para el nuevo formato de SNK: Puzzled". Hobby Hi-Tech (in Spanish). No. 1. Axel Springer SE. March 1995. p. 29.
  16. Demoly, Jean-Marc (March 1991). "Tests - Neo Geo - Puzzle". Joystick (in French). No. 14. Anuman Interactive. p. 145.
  17. "Console News - Neo Geo: Joy Joy Kid". Joystick (in French). No. Hors-Serie 3. Anuman Interactive. July–August 1991. p. 59.CS1 maint: date format (link)
  18. Noak, Philipp; Hellert, Stefan (August 1993). "Special - Neo Geo - Puzzled". Mega Fun (in German). No. 11. CT Computec Verlag GmbH & Co. KG. pp. 28–30. Archived from the original on 2018-10-21. Retrieved 2019-06-26.
  19. Yanma; Itabashi (July 1992). "Super Soft 大特集 - 今、『NEO・GEO』がおもしろい！: ジョイジョイキッド". Micom BASIC Magazine (in Japanese). No. 121. The Dempa Shimbunsha Corporation. p. 208.
  20. "NF編集部にまる - ネオジオゲームㇱインレビュー: JOY JOY KID". Neo Geo Freak (in Japanese). No. 25. Geibunsha. June 1997. pp. 124–128.
  21. Drevet, Cyril (March 1991). "Tests De Jeux - Neo Geo - Puzzled". Player One (in French). No. 7. Média Système Édition. p. 52.
  22. Hermelin, François (May 1991). "Rolling Softs - Joy Joy Kid -- Neo Geo, cartouche SNK". Tilt (in French). No. 90. Editions Mondiales S.A. p. 79.
  23. "Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - テーブル型TVゲーム機 (Table Videos)". Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 394. Amusement Press, Inc. 15 December 1990. p. 25.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.