Tetris II ReviewAfter high popularity of the first game, it was only natural that they had a second Tetris. Sometimes it is hard to make a sequel to a popular puzzle game. You have to add something different, but keep the same formula at the same time to make it work (the Professor Layton games banged the nail on the head with this). As some games made completely different puzzles to that of the first one, could Tetris II come up with a way to keep the addictive puzzle Tetris was known for yet incorporate something different at the same time while still keeping that Russian charm? This is Tetris II.
The story turns out as the evil Tetrius is now sending different coloured blocks to destroy Russia for reasons he can't quite remember....na, I'm just kidding, there is not story. That's one thing in common with the first game. Something odd about this game is that the NES version had VS modes for other players and computer, yet the Game Boy one had just Normal and Puzzle modes. I'm interested to see what the puzzle mode is like. That's what I felt Tetris needed, puzzles for you to complete. But in the first game, I don't think that would have worked without some element like gravity. Thankfully, this game has a gravity feature to add combos and a little more thinking to get things to work well. The normal mode allows you to pick a slow, medium or high speed, the level number, and music. Now, I have to say the music isn't that bad. It's quite good, even if it does get a little annoying after a while. But compared to the first game, It doesn't live up to it. My favorite one is Music A.
You start off with some glowing blocks near the bottom of the screen. You have blocks that have different colours on then, black, grey and white, like those of the glowing blocks down there. You have to do a little Dr. Mario and match up the colours in sets of three or higher. when you do that, those blocks disappear and the blocks on top, if any, will fall to the ground, simulating gravity. The game ends when your screen is filled with blocks to the top, just like the first game. The fun thing about this is that combos can be made with out your intention of doing so. It's always nice to see those blocks fall and then create another combo. If your really good, you'll set it up so you'll get combos when you make those blocks disappear.
The higher the number the level is, the more glowing blocks there are to begin with, just like the first Tetris game with Type B. I like how this game builds up as you play more. It's quite easy to get those blocks to disappear, but the remaining blocks are the problem. After a while, those remaining blocks build up and over come you and cause a huge problem....just were do blocks go when they disappear? It's only just occurred to me. I know it's out of the blue, but they got to go somewhere....right?
However, the real high-light of this game is the Puzzle mode. There are 30 puzzle levels just waiting to be solved. And I'm the one to solve them! So you pick the level, and you have a goal to clear all blocks off the screen with only a few blocks. These blocks are always the same. They are easy at first, but then they become challenging to do them in the set amount of moves. I find myself constantly thinking and resolving a new strategy to make this work. This is exactly what I was looking for in a Tetris game! This is great! A challenge with Tetris blocks, how can this get any better? Well, I have to admit that the puzzles get fairly dull after level 15. It turns into a trial and error sort of thing. So I skipped to the last level to see what it's like. It is just...how are you meant to solve this in four moves? It seems impossible, even for me! It just seems....I don't know....
The graphics are more or less the same as the first game. The blocks are a little more details than the first Tetris game, and the glowing effect on the starting blocks, although crude, adds a nice effect to the game. The controls are again, same as the first Tetris game. They are smooth and fluid. Although you can use both the A and B button to rotate them clock-wise and counter clock-wise, I only really use one to rotate them. I rarely use the A button to rotate. In fact, I never use the A button to rotate. I wonder how many people put both buttons to good use...
Overall, I give this game an 8.3/10 It's not as good as the first game, but only just. If I had a choice to play this game or the first Tetris, I'll play the first Tetris. Although the game play and concept was good, it gets a little annoying after a while, as you sometimes get the colour as well as the shape you don't want. It added a gimmick, but it also added to the odds of the shape and colours you wanted, and half the time not getting it. Although that really can't be helped in a Tetris game. Tetris is all about improvising with the shapes (or in this case, colours as well as shapes) you have in your hands. The puzzles are the best thing about this game, but even those get boring and rather annoying as it turns into the Tetris equivalent of Ade's Odyssey. That being said, the music goes well with the game, but it seemed to have lost it's Russian charm that the first Tetris game had. In fact, I felt that the first Tetris game was the only one to have a Russian feel to it....
Graphics
7 Sound
7 Addictive
8 Depth
7 Difficulty
8
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