Columns Crown

"For puzzle games on the go, you can't go wrong with Columns Crown"

Columns Crown

Gameplay: 8/10
Graphics: 8/10
Sound: 7/10
Ingenuity: 8/10
Replay Value: 9/10

Many of you old school gamers, and Sega fans will remember the Columns franchise from back in the day on the Genesis. Some would call it Sega's answer to Tetris, but that just isn't true. While the two games are similar (what two puzzle games aren't?), it's not fair to call Columns a Tetris clone. I'm sure all of you know how to play Tetris, so I won't even bother explaining it. In Columns, lines of three gems fall from the top of the field. Each line is made up random color gems. You must align three or more like colors of gems either horizontally, diagonally, or vertically. Columns Crown does have a story mode, which is kind of cool. You play as either a boy or a girl and you must defeat monsters to win back the gems for the sacred Columns Crown (hence the name of the game).

The gameplay is pretty simple. Survival mode is pretty self-explanatory. You rack up big combos and see how long you can go for, and if you can beat your high scores. Despite sounding boring, this is where I spent the bulk of my gameplay, and it's where most of the replay value is. Most of the fun of puzzle games is seeing how high of a score you can get, and since this is portable, you can play it wherever you go. Besides Survival mode, there are a few other ways to play the game. In Story mode, you battle various other opponents to win back the gems from the Columns Crown. When a battle against an opponent begins, you will see two fields on the screen. One is yours, and the other is whoever you're battle against. As you get big combos, more blocks will fall onto their field. This is what most puzzle games have in their battle modes. Thankfully, Sega has included one very nifty innovation; magic gems. Magic gems are special gems that will fall when you have cleared a certain amount of gems. The more powerful the magic gem, the more regular gems you must clear before it falls. Each one has a certain color alignment (just like the regular gems), except when you line up three in a row with the gem it activates a special power. This can range from bumping up your enemy's field a few rows, to stopping gems from dropping down on your field for a limited time. This innovation makes the game a lot more fun and exciting than battle modes found in other games. Since your opponent has magic gems of his or her own, you never know what's going to happen. This adds another layer of strategy to the match. Not only do you have to work all the gems out in the right way, but also you need to plan your magic gem attacks well. For example, you might leave two in a row with the magic gem and save it for later, but if you wait too long, you might not be able to get it again. In addition to story mode, and survival mode, there is a Flash Columns mode as well. In Flash Columns, there are already gems on the field when you start, and at the bottom of them is a gem from the columns crown. You must clear out all the gems on the field and get to the one at the bottom before your field fills up. This mode is pretty fun, but it can get a little frustrating after a while. Thankfully, there is a two-player mode, but I haven't been able to find another person near me than has this game. I would imagine that it would be very fun if you were able to do it. Like most puzzle games, this has a lot of replay value. Trying to collect all the gems for the crown, and seeing if you can beat your high score in Survival mode can be pretty fun, and since the game is portable, you can play it wherever you want. It's great for killing time.

The graphics are very well done, and look a lot better than the old Columns games on the Genesis. The characters have expressions that go along with the match. If you start to lose, they look worried, but if you get a big combo, they jump for joy. The field is colorful, and there are some cool looking effects for when you get a large combo. All of the characters are pretty well drawn, and the effects from the magic gems can look pretty neat too.

Sound and music is so-so. There are some parts in the game that the music is just irritating (like the opening), but there are other times when it's really not so bad. The bad music is short lived, but the rest of it isn't really memorable. It's nothing that will grind your last nerve, but you might want to pop in a CD, or listen to the radio while you're playing it. However, since it's a puzzle game, the sound isn't very important. Each character makes noises based on your actions to go along with their expressions, and the magic gems have sound with their effects, but besides that, there's nothing to write home about.

If you want a good game to play with friends, or if you love puzzle games, this is for you. For Sega fans, and puzzle fans, this will be an awesome game that you'll be hard pressed to put down. For everyone else, it might not have a lot of replay value, and it probably won't suck you in and keep you addicted to it. If you're a puzzle fan, then go out and pick this game up. You won't be disappointed. Other gamers might want to reconsider buying it, or get it for a marked down price.

Final Score (Not an average): 84%

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/19/04