Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords DS Review

D3 Publisher is slowly becoming a huge force to be reckoned with in the gaming industry. Last month, the company released the surprisingly fun Xbox 360 shoot-em-up Earth Defense Force 2017, which is slowly becoming a best-seller for the system (that is, in stores where it can be found). Now the company has come out of left field yet again with Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords for Nintendo DS (and PSP, which my cohort is reviewing). It's basically a modified version of Bejeweled, but it's how Infinite Interactive modified it that is so surprising here.

Instead of playing out in spell-based battles or real-time combat, however, the game unfolds in a competitive version of the classic puzzle game Bejeweled. Players have to eliminate three or more similar icons from a playfield by lining them up. If four get removed at once, the player earns an extra turn. If five or more get removed, the player gets the extra turn plus a bonus wild card that they can throw out into the battle at any time.

Each of the icons on the playfield hold vast importance. The purple stars add experience points to your player, making them more balanced in future battles. Red, yellow and blue gems can be used for extra attacks, such as confusion, gem eliminations, and special direct attacks on enemies, such as the axe. The skull icons, however, have the greatest importance. Hitting three of those in a row causes damage to your opponent, as they can damage you as well. Get a glowing one or nail four or more and you can put a serious wallop into them. Whoever gets to zero points at the end of the battle loses.

Approaching Puzzle Quest with a Bejeweled mentality is likely to get you killed quickly. I made the mistake of approaching the game that way and found myself frustrated with the fact I was getting killed without clearing advanced training. You should have seen me madly IM'img Mr. Davis and wondering what the big deal was about. But then I read the instructions (not a bad idea, if you ask me) and got the play down over the course of a few battles. Now I can't stop playing it...and I don't even like RPG's that much. That's the magic of combining two great genres into one pleasurable experience, I suppose.

The control interface works through the touch-screen, and for the most part it works very good. Players hit the shape they want to move and then the coordinating shape to swap it out with. They can also tap on sub-menus to select other attacks, as well as power-ups to give their character individual strengths. Occasionally, the game does run into a hiccup or two with touchiness, resulting in an "illegal turn" penalty that could be rather costly- especially if you've set up your opponent for a fatal blow and they take it first. D'oh!

Finally, the game offers two-player multiplayer, allowing a friend to join in the fun and test his or her battle skills against yours. However, they require a copy of the game as well- Puzzle Quest doesn't support two-player via single cart download. I suppose that might have been a little too much to ask from the likes of D3 Publisher, but, guys, it would've been a hell of a sales tactic. Imagine a friend downloading the game and not even turning off their system until they have a copy in their hands...if they can find one. This thing's selling out pretty quick everywhere.

Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords is an addictive, entertaining affair that takes a little bit of patience and learning to get down the basics. Once learned, however, you'll be hooked in no time flat and unwilling to turn a cold shoulder to it. Even with the notion of fighting creatures in puzzle combat sounding as silly as it is, you won't get enough of it. Trust us, kids. We're professionals- we must be after killing zombies with their own skulls.