Puzzle Challenge v2.0 Review

Puzzle Challenge v2.0 is a puzzle game similar to Tetris Attack. The object of the game is to move the blocks into columns or rows of 3 or more (let's call these "bars"). When you create a "bar", by interchanging the blocks inside the brackets, those blocks are removed from the screen. Creating multiple "bars" at the same time will place additional blocks on your opponents screen. If a "bar" of 4 or more blocks is created this will also add additional blocks to your opponents screen. The blocks that are added to your opponents screen can be seen in the screen shots below as chains and ice(?). These blocks will transform into the smaller colored blocks when a "bar" is created which is touching the chains/ice. The Pixelated Poo (developer) has included two opponent modes: play against the PSP or play against another human via adhoc. I didn't test the adhoc mode but the PSP mode seems solid.

Puzzle Challenge is quite addictive. The game play is fun and seems bug free. The graphics are o.k. but the music is not. The music is the only major flaw I could find with the game. I wonder if The Pixelated Poo wanted the music to make you feel anxious. This is the only reason I can find to include background music that is this annoying. With that said, I have played this game more than any other homebrew game for the past several weeks. This is such a good puzzle game it more than makes up for the bad music. You should definitely give this one a try. I was addicted after only a few plays.

I would consider putting this on my "Best Homebrew" list if there were better graphics and much better music.

Hexaxis XXI Updated

This is one of my "Best Homebrew" picks so I have to pass along the news of an update. There are several added features and levels. This is a very good puzzle game for those of you who haven't heard of Hexaxis XXI. Here is a video of the game in action.



Definitely give it a try.

Game and Watch Fantasies v2.0 review

Game and Watch Fantasies v2.0 is a very quirky, different game. You play as a strange looking guy which can only move and jump at a set distance. In this puzzle/platformer you must navigate platforms, trees, lcd displays, and much more but often you character doesn't line up with the object you need to jump on or through. You will find yourself moving the little guy up against walls or jumping up against ceilings to reset/change the pattern in which he moves.

GWF is unique and fun. The gameplay is challenging and different. Graphics are decent and appropriate for the style of game. Controls work well and respond as expected. The music is quiet and soothing which is needed at times because of the level of frustration which can be reached trying to figure out some of the levels. The score in GWF is determined by the number of moves or jumps you make. The lower the number the better. I was doing pretty good (I think) until I reached level 15 where I proceeded to triple my score. This level stopped me cold (see screenshot above). A nice feature included in Game and Watch Fantasies is autosave. When you quit the game it automatically saves your progress and you can return to the same place the next time you play.

Even though this game can be quite difficult, it is very entertaining and if you like puzzle and/or platform games I suggest you give it a try.

The Newton War Review

Real Tech VR has released The Newton War. In this game you play as a star which has two magnetic fields: red and blue. The red field temporarily disables the enemies giving you time to grab "fragments" with the blue field and relocate them on top of the numbered activation squares. Activate all the squares found in a level and move on to the next level. Difficulty increases with the number, type, and strength of the enemies, as well as the number of squares to be activated. Gravity holes try to suck you in and the "fragments" you are trying to move.

The Newton War has excellent graphics which has become Real Tech VR's trademark. The music is very good and fits the game well. Sound effects are good as well. Controlling your player/star can be difficult at times but I believe this is because of the gameplay and not poor implementation of the controls. I liked the game as a whole but found that it got a little monotonous. This is another quality game from Real Tech VR, check it out.

New Real Tech VR game: The Newton War

Real Tech VR has released a new homebrew arcade/puzzle/maze game. The Newton War looks very good like all of their games. I'll play it and post a review in the next couple of days.

Hex-A-Hop Review

Deniska has recently released another port for the PSP: Hex-A-Hop. In this puzzle game you play as a girl who must jump from stone to stone without getting trapped, stranded, or wet. When you jump onto a stone it cracks and after jumping off the stone, it falls into the water. The graphics and music are good and gameplay is addictive and fun. One problem I hope Deniska can fix in the next version is the controls. The directional pad is useless if you need to go diagonal. This leaves you the analog stick which is only slightly better. I spent a lot of time trying to get the girl to go where I wanted. She either goes the wrong way or goes nowhere. It feels as though the stick has to be in exactly the right spot to move correctly. If Deniska can fix this problem then this will satisfy any puzzle hungry gamer. Nice port Deniska. There is even a gameplay video:

Double Review: Purple Motion and Eyeliner

Real Tech VR recently released two new games for homebrew PSPs: Purple Motion and Eyeliner.

Purple Motion:








I would describe Purple Motion as a driving game on rails. The left half of the "highway" are the slow lanes and the right half are the fast lanes. There are obstacles in the form of gaps in the road which must be jumped over and circles which must be shot. If you want to change lanes, you must wait until the road widens and make your move. There are also forced lane changes which can be jumped if you would like to continue your current path. Stars are collected along the way which give you a time bonus.

The controls in Purple Motion are responsive and work as expected. The graphics are excellent. The sound track and sound effects fit the game well.

Purple Motion is addictive and fun but the difficulty increases dramatically when the background colors change from purple to green. You will find yourself dieing often because there are 2 or 3 jumps in a row and you end up landing on a gap. My biggest complaint is that my PSP crashed almost every time I exited the game. This must be a coding problem because my PSP rarely crashes.

I would definitely recommend this game to PSP owners looking for high quality homebrew.

Eyeliner:







I'm not sure what category Eyeliner fits into but Real Tech VR calls it an arcade/puzzle game so I'll go along with that. You play as a three dimensional hexagon finding your way through a maze-like "matrix" collecting pills. Find enough pills and the security on the transporter is lifted allowing you to go to the next area.

As with all of Real Tech VR's games, the graphics are commercial quality. The controls and audio are solid.

I am an anal retentive complete-ist when it comes to the RPGs I usually play. Meaning that I don't mind side quests and usually try to solve, complete, find, and explore every thing. This game pushed me to my limits and beyond. Eyeliner is all about collecting, and collecting some more, and after you have spent so much time collecting every last pill, you get to search and explore and collect some more. I tried my best to like this game because I know someone has spent a lot of time designing and coding and debugging. I want people to enjoy the games I make (if I every finish and release one) but I just wasn't able to enjoy this game. I must admit that I didn't make it as far into this game as I would have liked. Later levels may be better than earlier ones. I believe what this game lacks is something to do while searching for pills. Some enemies to shoot would be good; something to break up the monotony.

If you are a hard core "collector" (I thought I was) then definitely give Eyeliner a try, if you're not then I would look elsewhere.

Eyeliner: Another release from Real Tech VR

Welcome to the matrix. Your mission is to infiltrate the network of a large international group.

Watching the trailer (below), I'm not sure how this little bit of story goes along with this arcade/puzzle homebrew game but I'll let you know in my review. I'm downloading now and will review Eyeliner after a couple of days of playing it.