#495 – Puzznic

The “Puzz-” prefix in the title means that this is, indeed, a puzzle game.

PLAYERS: 1

PUBLISHER: Taito

DEVELOPER: Taito

GENRE: Puzzle

RELEASE DATE: November 1990

A Puzznic Smoothie sounds like the worst kind of new-age health drink, but Puzznic itself is downright delicious. Match two blocks of the same design next to one another to make them disappear. The blocks can be seated on top of each other or sitting side by side, like schoolyard chums. As long as they’re touching, they’ll disappear. The blocks can only move horizontally or down (they can’t move up, what with gravity and all). Each level only gives you a minute to complete the puzznic, but if you can’t stand obnoxious a-melodic noise structures, you’ll want to complete it in thirty seconds. Once thirty seconds hits, the happy-go-lucky music gets a nose piercing and tattoos and decides to hate everything in society, including your earbuds. Truly some of the worst game music I’ve ever heard. Thank goodness the levels are so fun. Like any rewarding puzzle game, the early levels ease you into the block disappearing, while the later levels challenge your mind to its utmost. 160 levels ensure you’ll be hooked, like some smoothie-loving, corporation-hating hippie.

But wait! There’s more! Gravnic is an alternate mode where you modulate gravity in all four directions to make like-colored gems disappear. Like Puzznic, you only have a certain amount of moves before you have to retry the level, but also like Puzznic, the continues are limitless – plus it’s another 80 levels of greatness. Have fun, but don’t disrespect. Puzznicula knows where you sleep, and that you don’t want its music lodged into your brain.

A-