"We need you! Save our planet! (And have fun doing it!)"

Out of all the titles that caught my eye in the initial Nintendo DS presentation at its E3 unveiling, Meteos was possibly one of the biggest. Hearing about who was responsible--Masahiro Sakurai (the maker of Kirby and Super Smash Bros.) and Tetsuya Mizuguchi (the man behind Space channel 5 and Rez)--it was part of the draw. Seeing the stylings of the game made it even more appealing. But the biggest perk of the game was how it was played, and it was to make good use of the touch screen. And now that it's finally out in North America, I was able to finally see if all this appealing info made for a good game.

Heck yeah!

Meteos is an intense action puzzle game that places you in a universe (literally) riddled with strange planets and even stranger alien inhabitants. The story of this game (yes, an actual story!) is that a strange eye-shaped planet called "Meteo" has been spreading colored meteor-like objects (the "meteos") throughout the galaxy, and these meteos would then attack nearby planets, causing them to explode. But soon, it was discovered that when three similar meteos aligned, they would ignite and be sent back into space. After learning this, the inhabitants of all the worlds decided to use this knowledge to attack the planet Meteo and make the universe safe again.

The gameplay is simple to learn. The meteos fall from the sky automatically, but you don't control them as they fall like you would in a Tetris game. But the game will be over when they get too far to the top! So, in the stack of meteos that build up below, you swap Meteos around in vertical positions (moving meteos up and down columns) in the hopes of aligning three or more of the same color. Once you do, they rocket to the top and are launched skyward. But if there are lots of meteos stacked on top of the ignited meteos, it may not be as capable of launching to space, and it may slowly descend back to the pile. So you may have to make more threesomes in the mass of meteos above or below to give it a boost! If things are falling too slow, an accelerator is available to help you get more meteos to launch.

And it's not just limited to that. Because of the variety of planets, the gameplay could be drastically changed. While the planet Geolyte is the basic standard in all effects, other planets may be different in the number of meteos and/or columns, the effects of gravity, weight, and launch, and the types of meteos you'll find. And there are some items in the game that may sometimes appear to either help or hinder your performance. One item can help boost your meteos into the sky, while another can destroy certain meteos. But one could make a smoke screen within a small area, and another can disable your accelerator for a brief time. If you want to keep and use one, tap on it to enable it. If you don't want it, launch it into space before it takes effect!

For the solo gamer, Meteos has a number of single-player modes to keep them occupied. The Simple mode can offer a nice quick challenge against a number of computer-controlled planets with the rules being the best survivor in the time limit (Time) or the one still standing after everyone else loses all their chances (Stock). The Time War can improve your performance with challenges that force you to get as high a score as possible in the time limit or to launch the set number of meteos as fast as you can. The Deluge mode is a standard survival mode where you try to survive as long as possible in the planet of your choice.

Perhaps the most notable of the single-player modes is the Star Trip mode, where you embark on a journey through several planets in order to face off against the planet Meteo. There are three ways to play Star Trip mode. One is the Straight mode, where you face off against a number of randomly-selected planets before fighting Meteo. Another is the Branch mode, where you choose the planets in a branching path to face Meteo. A third is the Multi mode, where you must face from one to three opponents in a branching procedure, and you must complete special missions to access the higher paths, such as beating the opponent in a certain amount of time or launching a certain number of Meteos into space before it's over. With all this, there are several endings to view, from bad endings to good endings, to the occasional strange ending.

Of course, a game of competition is silly without the ability to play against other people! Meteos offers a few ways to play with up to three of your friends! If your friends have their own copies of Meteos, they can participate in a full-blown Vs. Mode that allows players to choose their preferred planets, set handicaps and rules, and enable CPU opposition. The profiles of opposing players are saved in the game's memory, and meteos you launch are placed in your collection (we'll get to that later). If your friends don't have their own copies, the player that owns a copy can transfer the data of one of four preset planets to all the players for the Vs. Mode. No data is saved for this option, however. Also, you can upload a demo version of Meteos to other people that offers a single-player game and a Vs. game, compatible for play against other people with demo versions...but not against a full version!

And about those meteos you launch... if you manage to launch meteos into space that aren't used as ignition fuel, they're added to your collection. There are different meteo types, some more rare than others, and these are used for the "Fusion" option, a sort of store that will exchange a certain number of particular meteos for sound test additions, new items, and especially new planets. Certain meteos are exceptionally rare and can be purchased in the Fusion store as well, but you can sometimes find them appearing every rare occasion on the different planets... This collecting of meteos and purchasing of new things are one of the things that really prolong the game's life span.

Now about the visuals. This is somewhat of a mixed bag... You are likely to be in awe at the impressive opening movie, and you may find that the Meteos menus are very similar to those in Smash Brothers Melee and Kirby Air Ride. The planets look more realistic in this game than their inhabitants, which look like living icons. The meteos themselves...they differ between planets. Some are simple shapes, others may have rock-like designs on them or even look like old-school video game graphics! But this whole mixed bag is an interesting style. Nothing jaw-dropping, but it's at least attractive. Sometimes there may be a drop in the speed of the game with everything happening all at once, but it won't ruin your gaming experience.

Sound-wise, it's also a very mixed bag. Its main theme is an impressive tune that may also remind you of Smash Brothers. As for each of the planets, the themes can mix between solemn marching tunes, western guitar, pop, metal, world music, a little freakish horror music, and occasional ambient sounds. Very nice. The sound effects when launching meteos are also different as well, sometimes making a little music, and sometimes making sound effects to go along with it. Nothing like Rez or Lumines in terms of direct musical integration, but it's something.

Are there downfalls? Well, not too many I can see. Just that minor issue about occasional slowdown, but again, nothing that will ruin the game. It's fun to play the game, and it's obvious that the developers made sure to offer enough for solo and multiplayer gamers to get the most out of this game, and to have them coming back for more. This addictive game is likely to stay in your DS for a very long time. I highly recommend buying this title, as it's one of, if not THE best game to get for the system by far.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 07/06/05