Denki Blocks!

"A New Type of Puzzler That Will Drive You Mad!"

Unless you live in England (or shop on Amazon's UK site), you probably have never heard of Denki Blocks. That presents a bit of problem in writing a review. On one hand, I feel like I need to describe the game a bit, but on the other hand, describing Denki Blocks to someone who has never played it is a bit like describing what asparagus tastes like to someone who has never tasted it.

Almost impossible.

Prior to reading this review, I would suggest visiting Denki's website and downloading the demo that they have of Denki Blocks. Play with it for a little bit and then come back and finish reading this review.

Here we go.....

Denki Blocks is a new ''digital toy'' from the folks at Denki (published by RAGE). As far as I can tell, this is the first game they have put out, and it is a great first effort. The only way to truly understand Denki Blocks is to play it, but I'll try to do my best to describe what it is like. Denki Blocks is a puzzle game that combines some aspects of chess, puyo puyo, tangrams, and mazes. In a nutshell, you control what the game calls gum-blocks. This vary in size, shape and color. At the start of each puzzle, there are different colors, shapes and sizes of gumblocks on the screen which you have to move around until all the blocks of the same color are connected to each other. Whenever 2 blocks of the same color contact each other, they ''stick.'' Now the hard part - you cannot move any blocks individually - when you move, all the blocks on the screen move. As you create bigger and bigger groups, this movement becomes more and more difficult, requiring a huge amount thinking time before making moves. Oh yeah, you can get bonus stars if you can arrange the blocks in certain ''bonus shapes.'' Now, go download the demo and see what I'm talking about.

Graphics
The graphics in this game are ''cute.'' Think Hello Kitty! cute. Yep, this game is the devil masquerading as a cute little cat. Not only are the graphics very cartooney and cutesy, they are also very colorful and appropriately detailed. Each set of 25 puzzles has a different ''theme'' based on who the puzzle master is you are challenging (and there are at least 15 puzzle masters). The puzzle masters have cool little animations as you play against them, which is not essential, but it is still cool. In the head to head races, the stadium is not very detailed, but looks great nonetheless. All in all, this looks like a kid's game, but don't let the looks fool you!

Control
I just had to mention this - You control this whole game using only the directional pad (well, you can use the B button to take back your last move, but that is often not much help - you usually have to start the puzzle over). The control is smooth and quick without being erratic. Yes, good games can be very simple on the surface.

Sound
The sound in Denki Blocks consists of what I would call ''cutesy'' background music as well as some rudimentary sound effects when the blocks move and stick together. It sounds simple, but I like it. The sound integrates really well into the gaming experience without overpowering anything. It reminds me of Mario games in that way. Also - for whatever reason, I just love the sound the blocks make when you move them around.

Replayability - Rent or Buy?
If you like puzzle games, this game is a definite buy! There is a great deal of replayability, and many, many, many (at least 200) puzzles to solve. The inclusion of a multiplayer mode as well as a time trial mode and a mode where you attempt to solve puzzles in the fewest moves possible make this a game that will last a long, long time.

Trust me, download the demo and you will be hooked!

Final Words
After playing this game for hours on end, it is no surprise to me that it won ''Best Game in Show'' at the 2001 ECTS. As we are seeing more and more ports on the GBA, it is very refreshing to see something new that plays so well. This is a game that everyone in the family can enjoy - it starts off simple enough for young children, but it quickly progresses to a level difficult enough that seasoned puzzle fans will have a hard time with it. You can find it on the UK version of Amazon, if you cannot wait for it to be released in the States.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 03/18/02, Updated 03/18/02