Most people are probably familiar with the matching game Bejeweled in one form or another. You swap two similar pieces on a board in an effort to build chains of three or more so that they'll disappear and more pieces will fall to fill in the holes. It's a great game that I've played many, many times... not only as Bejeweled, but as Zoo Keeper, Diamond Mine, and an assortment of other clones. The problem is that it gets boring after a while, because the game doesn't change... it's just more of the same, forever!
Enter a new game for the Nintendo DS called Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords. Yes, it's based on the same tile-swapping game-play as Bejeweled, but they added so many new layers to the concept, that it really feels like something altogether different...
Each of the items you remove from the board adds something to the game play. Colored tiles add to your magical mana, which you use to cast spells during battle. Gold gives you money to buy things like armor and weapons, or build a citadel. Stars give you experience points to gain experience levels and learn new abilities. Skulls cause damage to your opponent. It's all very cool how they managed to merge puzzles and role-playing into something that's so much fun to play. You can even battle another player over Nintendo DS Wirless, if you both have a cartridge...
Unlike Bejeweled, which gets boring because there's no real goal, Puzzle Quest keeps you interested. You're always wanting to get more gold so you can add a dungeon to your citadel... or buy some new armor for protection. You're always wanting to get more experience so you can learn new spells and get stronger. You're always wanting to win battles so you can open up more of the map and move on to new challenges. Every choice you make actually means something, and moves you forward in the game's story...
Beautifully rendered, highly entertaining, and incredibly addictive, Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords gets my highest possible recommendation. I shudder to think how much time I'll be wasting playing it.
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I love games like BeJeweled that you can play while you’re on the phone or on hold. I’m currently addicted to mahjong… it’s actually fairly sad because I’m so freaking fast at this point I can’t hardly ever beat my own time. So I’m looking for a new game. However, I need one for Windoze. That’s where I spend my quality gaming time!
I’ve gotten a bit bored with my DS, so I’m glad to see there’s a new fun game out there.
Oh my! I haven’t gone near Bejeweled in months because I’m so compulsive with it. This game will have me full-out addicted. It sounds really cool. 😀
I have played Jewel Miner, which is pretty well the same thing, but I stopped playing it when I cleared all the mines and they only gave me a score, no big party or anything. It was very disappointing. Does your game have a big party when you clear it all?
So… what? No more blogging? When will they make a video game out of that?
All the more reason to get myself a DS! 🙂
Will definitely have to try this one. Got any suggested retailers to purchase from?
Thanks in part to Dave’s rave of the Nintendo DS, I bought a DS Lite last June. Since then, I now own 7 games for this system, with my latest being Retro Atari… hours of fun that makes me feel 17 again.
I’ve not played Bejeweled before, but will have to check this game out.
So does your mana make you stronger for puzzle battles or other kind of battles? Somehow I am reminded of the Mortal Kombat puzzle game, but this seems better….much better.
I would like to be the “Zombie” ! Cooooool ! 🙂
I may have to check that out. I’m always looking for new games for my DS. Just got Diddy Kart DS the other day.
Margalit… I really, REALLY, wish that Puzzle Quest would be released for computers. It’s swell to be able to play on-the-go with my DS, but it would be so very cool to play on the big screen of my Mac. 🙂
Avitable… You need to buy Clubhouse Games so we can play DS over the internet! Oh how I wish that Puzzle Quest was able to do this. 🙂
Geeky Tai Tai… It is addictive alright. DANG ADDICTIVE. I knew I had a problem when I was playing it on the toilet this morning. 😛
Tobi… I dunno. Probably. Ultimately, your goal is to fill out the world map and complete all the quests. Once you’ve done all that, there had better be a big ending!
Dan… Well, it’s seriously tempting to play Puzzle Quest instead of blog, but I only spend a few minutes each day, so I’m not worried about it. Yet.
Bre… YES! And, once you do, I can play a game of BlackJack across the internet with you… and Avi… and Kevin… and Chilly Willy… and…
Bogup… Not really. I buy most of my games from Buy.com, but this one I got at Shopko because I didn’t want to have to wait for it to ship!
Chilly Willy… I can honestly say that Puzzle Quest is the best portable game I’ve ever played on any system. I am totally freakin’ in love with this game!
Hilly… The puzzle grid comes up when you do battle. Collecting mana allows you to cast spells that damage your opponent, change the playing field, move pieces, etc. It’s all very, very cool.
Laurence… Unfortunately, I think you can only be a Wizard, Druid, Knight, or Warrior. No zombie. 🙁
Kapgar… Interestingly enough, I still prefer MarioKart to Diddy Kong Racing, even though I’m not any good at either of them! 🙂
Wait *I* have clubhouse games! I did not know you could play with other people or I might have taken it out of the wrapper by now :).
The Kart games rock because they’re my quickie “one off” games. I can play quickly without too much time invested in setup and quit just as quickly as situations demand. I just never have the time to commit to a long, intensive game.