Puzzle Quest Review – This should be illegal…

By DarkArmada

I’ve locked myself in my bedroom, asked for a voluntary ban at the local and have booked myself into a classy rehab retreat… Sound familiar? No it’s not drugs or alcohol. Not even close… Smoking? Nope. It’s the latest addition to my Xbox Live Arcade library – Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords and I’ve already written to it’s developer, Infinite Interactive to demand the addition of warning labels to every game. This game is addictive, unnaturally addictive. Don’t say I didn’t warn you…

My first thought was “Not another puzzle game *sigh*” but what I discovered after entering the “Warlords” universe was a deep and complex mixture of RPG and puzzle flavours that tantalised the tastebuds and excited my mind. It is this mixture that will trap you right from the beginning. After getting into your first game, don’t be alarmed if it’s 3AM all too soon.

You start with some basic options, male or female, your face, name etc and the usual RPG elements, Knight, Wizard and so forth. Once in, the game offers you much needed assistance in getting your head around the gameplay, but never fear, 15 minutes in and you know what’s going on.

The plot is a familiar one, the kingdom is in danger and you are tasked to save it. How you do so is up to you. You have the usual tasks to complete and will often find yourself off the beaten track with the many side quests on offer, looking for that quick EXP grab or coveted armour. Along the way you will meet like minded companions who will join you on your quest, adding bonuses to you during battle.

This is what differentiates Puzzle Quest from the plethora of other RPG’s available. As you would have guessed, there is a puzzle element to this title. When you enter into a battle with a foe, you enter into the puzzle mini-game resembling the likes of Bejeweled. You have a board full of crystals and you pick two adjacent crystals to swap, attempting to match three to five of these crystals each turn.

Each coloured crystal represents a different mana type – air, earth, fire and water with experience and gold represented by purple stars and stacks of gold pieces respectively. Lastly you have skulls. Matching 3 or more skulls causes damage to your opponent, how much damage depends on any item or skill modifiers you have invested in.

Each opponent is different, bringing with them specialist abilities that can greatly hinder your chances of winning. Never fear, you have your own spells which are powered by the mana types on the board. Finally, matching 4 or more tiles gives you another turn, adding yet another layer of strategy that can turn the tables in any heated match.

You can understand now where the addiction in this game lies. After getting your fill of the puzzle side, you have the RPG side with all the bells and whistles you’ve come to expect. Buying and selling items, running errands, visiting the local inn and so forth.

Graphically you can tell that this has been ported over from the handheld realm. Menus are simply laid out and everything is easy to read. Don’t expect any 3D animations or full motion video, but then again that’s not what this game is about. Sound is basic but not annoying, all well applied and minimally repetitive.

As expected, the XBLA port includes online multiplayer options allowing head to head through Xbox Live and a fair spread of achievements. But that isn’t what Puzzle Quest is about… Who would have thought that RPG and puzzles genres would meet so beautifully in the middle?

© 2007-8 Lee Edgerton

Unnaturally Addictive 9.2/10

Filed under: Xbox 360 3rd Party Games Tagged: | "Puzzle Quest review", "Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords review", "xbox 360 arcade games reviews", "Xbox Reviews", Arcade, arcade game reviews, arcade games, Infinity Interactive, review, XBLA, XBLA Reviews, Xbox 360 News, Xbox Live Arcade, XboxLive