'Jewel Master: Cradle of Rome 2'
Rising Star Games
Nintendo 3DS
$29.99
ESRB rating: Everyone
Review rating: 2.5 stars
Just like the Soviet Union, where the game was born, "Tetris" rose to captivate the entire gaming world before falling to become bargain bin material. Since then, game companies have been trying hard to resurrect this style of puzzle game by adding unrelated features and complex scenarios. "Jewel Master: Cradle of Rome 2" falls into this category, but all the fluff surrounding the game can't hide the fact that it's just a complex variation of "Tetris."
It's up to the player to swap tiles to line up similar icons in this "match-3" game. Doing so will earn gold and materials that can help return ancient Rome to its former glory and propel the player into the role of the exalted potentate! Special bonuses that eradicate several blocks at once can be earned, and using them strategically is the key to success.
Earning gold seems like its own reward, but players will quickly discover that houses take so much material to produce that only grinding through level after level will do the job. This is supposed to be a way for the developers to motivate players to continue, but at this slow rate, I say let Rome fall into ruins!
I am also disheartened by the complete lack of usefulness that the top screen of the 3DS offers. All it displays are incredibly boring scenes during each match, and the images showing each structure during the "purchase" phase are only slightly more interesting. There really is no benefit to having the 3D feature, and there isn't any type of local or online multiplayer!
In the end, "Jewel Master: Cradle of Rome 2" is a fun puzzle game, but there's no motivation to buy it on the Nintendo 3DS.
'Quantum Conundrum'Square Enix
Windows 7/Vista/XP (Xbox Live, PSN)
$15.00
ESRB rating: Everyone
Review rating: 4.0 stars
I admit that puzzle games didn't interest me until "Portal" came along. Apparently, all it took was a coherent set of physics-based puzzles to make me as excited as Charlie Sheen on crack! Now a similar game, titled "Quantum Conundrum," has been released that's quirky and fun, but it definitely has its ups and downs.
Players take on the persona of an unnamed youth who once again finds himself at the mansion of his genius uncle, Professor Quadwrangle. Only this time, the science guy has accidentally transported himself into an alternate dimension, and it's up to his nephew to make things right again. Sadly, the storyline is the least enjoyable portion of the game.
Visually, the game looks similar to a Saturday morning cartoon complete with oversized furniture and complicated tubes filled with glowing liquids. Conveyor belts wind through the house, and giant vats of acid fill certain rooms. In addition to cardboard boxes to play with, players will discover that this mansion has more hidden safes tucked away than Mitt Romney!
Players can use Quadwrangle's Inter-Dimensional Shift device (or IDS) to alter physics in four distinct ways. The physics-based fun begins with the Fluffy dimension that makes everything lighter, and soon the self-explanatory Heavy dimension becomes available. Eventually, players get to utilize the Slow-Mo dimension to slow everything down, and the Reverse Gravity dimension throws everything up to the ceiling!
Even though the game seems to be designed for a younger audience, the puzzles become more and more complex, to the point of being downright maddening! Sometimes the answers are painfully obvious, while other times it takes split-second timing and lots of trial-and-error to make it to the next area. I am not complaining though, because figuring out the solution to each puzzle is a large part of what makes "Quantum Conundrum" so enjoyable.
'Jewel Master: Cradle of Rome 2'
Rising Star Games Nintendo 3DS
$29.99
ESRB rating: Everyone
Review rating: 2.5 stars
Just like the Soviet Union, where the game was born, "Tetris" rose to captivate the entire gaming world before falling to become bargain bin material. Since then, game companies have been trying hard to resurrect this style of puzzle game by adding unrelated features and complex scenarios. "Jewel Master: Cradle of Rome 2" falls into this category, but all the fluff surrounding the game can't hide the fact that it's just a complex variation of "Tetris."
It's up to the player to swap tiles to line up similar icons in this "match-3" game. Doing so will earn gold and materials that can help return ancient Rome to its former glory and propel the player into the role of the exalted potentate! Special bonuses that eradicate several blocks at once can be earned, and using them strategically is the key to success.
Earning gold seems like its own reward, but players will quickly discover that houses take so much material to produce that only grinding through level after level will do the job. This is supposed to be a way for the developers to motivate players to continue, but at this slow rate, I say let Rome fall into ruins!
I am also disheartened by the complete lack of usefulness that the top screen of the 3DS offers. All it displays are incredibly boring scenes during each match, and the images showing each structure during the "purchase" phase are only slightly more interesting. There really is no benefit to having the 3D feature, and there isn't any type of local or online multiplayer!
In the end, "Jewel Master: Cradle of Rome 2" is a fun puzzle game, but there's no motivation to buy it on the Nintendo 3DS.
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