Mr. Driller Drill Spirits

"Good to get if you already have Mario and Feel the Magic"

Greetings gamers! The_mr_pants here, and this is my second review to write for a game. Enjoy!

Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits for the DS is a nice game to play pretty much anytime. It is, as you may have already heard, VERY addicting. It has a story, but it's best not to pay attention to it, since it doesn't make much sense. The object is to drill your way through colored bricks to reach the bottom without getting squashed. If the brick's colors match, then they'll all disappear. It's not as easy as it sounds; you have an oxygen bar and if it gets depleted, then you'll die. However, there are plenty of air tanks to collect so you can prevent that from happening. That pretty much wraps up how to play, so I'll tell what I think of it.

Graphics: (5/10) Nothing too special, but puzzle games really aren't known for their graphics. There's not much to say in this department other than lots of colored bricks and tiny characters with big eyes.

Gameplay: (8/10) I gave this an eight out of ten simply because of how addicting this game is. Even if you get game over constantly you'll never be satisfied until you beat it. It has three main game modes to chose from: Mission Driller, Pressure Driller, and Time Attack. Mission Driller, is the main story of the game. The Drillers have gone on vacation, so you have to save them or something like that. Like I said before, it's best just not to even pay attention and play the game. If you find it too hard, then you can buy items from a special store with your saved up points like life up and barrier. You can use those items in both Mission Driller and Pressure Driller modes. Pressure Driller has you drilling away from a giant drill that attacks you by spitting out more bricks and filling the screen up. You collect red power bars and fire bullets back at it to destroy it. Easier said than done. Time Attack has you racing to the bottom and beating the record the game sets for you. All three modes are fun and very challenging.

Sound and Music: (7/10) The music in this game is more opinioned based. Some people may find it repetitive and tedious, others may find it rather catchy. I find it catchy, though it can get on my nerves at time. There is voice acting in this game, but it sounds more like that rat from The Mouse and the Motorcycle. Another thing is that at the dudes in that gave have higher pitched voices that the one random girl. Just try to ignore it.

Replay Value: (7/10) If you can get through everything in the game, then you would have played this game enough. You can only unlock characters and new stages once you beat the easier ones, that's about it. There is a multi-player driller race mode for two-five people, unfortunately, you have to find people who have the game since it doesn't have a single-pack link. As of today (1-23-05) I have yet to play multi-player Mr. Driller, but I do know that all you do is race to the bottom, first one there wins.

Overall: (7/10) Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits was the fourth game I got for my DS and is the one I play the most, now that I already have beaten Super Mario 64 DS. I think it's one of the best DS titles currently out along with Mario and Feel the Magic.

As for renting or buying, the choice is yours. You really can't rent DS games anywhere so if it looks boring to you, stay away. However if you're trying to beef up you DS collection, I would definitely recommend this. Well that about wraps up my review. I hope you try it out sometime and good luck!

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 01/23/05