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POPCAP PUZZLE TRIO (PC)
INSANIQUARIUM | CHUZZLE | PEGGLE
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Publisher: PopCap Games.
Developer: Various. Released: 2004-2007. Genre: Puzzle. Other versions: JAVA. Posted 1st September 2024. By Tom Clare © 2024 |
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INSANIQUARIUM (PC)
PopCap Games | Flying Bear Entertainment | Puzzle; Virtual Pets | 2004
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Coins earned in the main game can be spent populating your own personal Virtual Tank
It may carry the familiar, cosy animated vibe that was a hallmark of PopCap’s work throughout the 2000s, but Insaniquarium is a remarkably singular video gaming experience. An eclectic mix of quick-fire aquarium management and light strategy, punctuated by occasional bursts of alien shooting, Insaniquarium certainly lives up to its name. Each level begins with the player aiming to populate an empty tank as quickly as possible with fish, before feeding them and collecting coin-drops for as long as you can keep them alive. You must then spend your earnings upgrading food, replenishing the fish count and protecting the tank’s ecosystem by deploying offensive/defensive items. Once you’ve enough money to purchase three egg pieces, you’ll complete the level and unlock a new pet for good measure.
Though fish can starve should they miss enough of your food drops, the biggest threat comes from the appearance of (marvellously incongruous) aliens who warp into the tank every couple of minutes. These interlopers kill any fish they come into contact with and it’s the player’s task to blast them away with some rapid-fire left-clicks. A strange non-sequitur amongst the coin collecting, but one that keeps you on your toes at least.
Though fish can starve should they miss enough of your food drops, the biggest threat comes from the appearance of (marvellously incongruous) aliens who warp into the tank every couple of minutes. These interlopers kill any fish they come into contact with and it’s the player’s task to blast them away with some rapid-fire left-clicks. A strange non-sequitur amongst the coin collecting, but one that keeps you on your toes at least.
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It’s fun for quick sessions, although the near-constant need to click to release food and fire furiously at the aliens means you’ll need a seasoned gamer’s mouse hand to avoid repetitive strain injury, especially if you plan on playing for prolonged periods. There’s no shortage of levels, though Insaniquarium’s weakest element is a relative lack of evolution in how the stages develop. There’s gentle incentive to return, as the game allows you to populate your own customisable aquarium, with satisfaction derived from spending coins earned in-game on exotic fish or decorative features. Admittedly, the modest selection is unlikely to provide a compelling reason to return to Insaniquarium long-term, but it’s a nice idea nonetheless. Overall, the game is accessible enough, and unusual enough, that it might tickle the fancy of casual and low-stress gamers.
OVERALL: 6/10
CHUZZLE (PC)
PopCap Games | Raptisoft Games | Puzzle | May 2005
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A Bejeweled-style match-3 variant no doubt released to capitalised on the series’ enduring success, Chuzzle offers a similar experience but fails to emulate the addictive qualities of the aforementioned classic. This puzzler swaps out fruit for colourful furry animals, with the chief difference being the player can drag an entire row, either horizontally or vertically, to create matches, and these can be adjacent as well as in straight lines.
Whilst the game offers a reasonably diverting couple of hours fun, it never reaches the addictive highs of the best puzzle games, simply because it rarely feels intuitive. Too often, you’ll make a handful of matches, only to become abruptly stumped as to a route forward as finding moves can become very obscure. This happens over and over, lending the game an oddly staccato feel which is an uneasy fit for the genre.
Whilst the game offers a reasonably diverting couple of hours fun, it never reaches the addictive highs of the best puzzle games, simply because it rarely feels intuitive. Too often, you’ll make a handful of matches, only to become abruptly stumped as to a route forward as finding moves can become very obscure. This happens over and over, lending the game an oddly staccato feel which is an uneasy fit for the genre.
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Are you better at Chuzzle than Tom? If you've achieved a score higher than 249,630, then he has to admit, you may very well be.
Classic mode allows players to go at their own pace, with match hints depleting your points and the endgame occurring when the player has run out of matches three times. This is probably Chuzzle at its best, though games aren’t short. If you want a decent high-score run, you’ll likely need to set aside twenty or thirty minutes. Speed mode offers a bit more urgency, as matches must be made to quell the progress of a timer which, once its fills a bar, adds a padlock to a random row, meaning you’re unable to directly move said row in any direction unless you clear it with a match. This tends to have a snowball effect, however, and can be difficult to recover from. There’s also Mind Bender, a mode that sees the player rearranging a board of Chuzzles to match a colour pattern. This grew dull pretty quickly, and wasn’t my cup of tea.
It isn’t a bad game, but in sharing many aspects of its visual presentation with Bejeweled, it results in a rather unflattering comparison for Chuzzle. The game lacks the addictive quality and enthralling one-more-go magnetism of Bejeweled, and though it will provide some reasonable entertainment for puzzle fans, its appeal is limited in the long term.
It isn’t a bad game, but in sharing many aspects of its visual presentation with Bejeweled, it results in a rather unflattering comparison for Chuzzle. The game lacks the addictive quality and enthralling one-more-go magnetism of Bejeweled, and though it will provide some reasonable entertainment for puzzle fans, its appeal is limited in the long term.
OVERALL: 5/10
PEGGLE (PC)
PopCap Games | PopCap Games | Puzzle | February 2007
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Peggle is a marvellous brain-twister that borrows from a dizzying range of sources. Seemingly drawing inspiration from Bust-A-Move, Breakout and Bagatelle, the game delivers an addictive and satisfying puzzle extravaganza with ample depth and a mammoth array of levels.
It’s a cause-and-effect scenario that sees you launching a ball from the top of the screen into a mass of coloured pegs. That’s the only contribution the player makes as you must then sit and watch as the ball pings around the pegs, before either being lost off-screen or, with a bit of luck, being ‘saved’ via a moving ball-catcher that roams across the bottom of the screen. Whilst there may be many pegs, it’s the orange ones that count: clear all of these within ten balls and that’s the level beaten.
It’s a cause-and-effect scenario that sees you launching a ball from the top of the screen into a mass of coloured pegs. That’s the only contribution the player makes as you must then sit and watch as the ball pings around the pegs, before either being lost off-screen or, with a bit of luck, being ‘saved’ via a moving ball-catcher that roams across the bottom of the screen. Whilst there may be many pegs, it’s the orange ones that count: clear all of these within ten balls and that’s the level beaten.
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This probably doesn’t sound like the most exciting idea on paper, but in reality, it’s really moreish and one of PopCap’s most completely realised video games. With the additions in the Windows Deluxe version, you can expect an almost endless selection of high-score chasing challenges. The Adventure mode alone has dozens of levels and plenty of replayability, and there’s a catalogue of additional challenges that task you with, among other things, beating levels using fewer balls or needing to remove extra orange pegs. There are even score duels that can be played against the computer or a friend, and these are great fun too. It does a fantastic job of catering to a broad audience: everyone from occasional players to certified Peggle masters will find something to absorb themselves in.
If you like your puzzle games to be less rapid and more thought-provoking, you’ll get plenty of satisfaction from Peggle. You can unlock a raft of characters, each with a unique and potentially helpful ‘special ball’ move, such as a guided shot or a fireball that blasts through all pegs in a line. It’s addictive and absorbing, and whilst its gameplay ranks a step behind the spellbinding qualities of Bejeweled, a remarkable array of smartly devised challenges means Peggle represents outstanding value.
If you like your puzzle games to be less rapid and more thought-provoking, you’ll get plenty of satisfaction from Peggle. You can unlock a raft of characters, each with a unique and potentially helpful ‘special ball’ move, such as a guided shot or a fireball that blasts through all pegs in a line. It’s addictive and absorbing, and whilst its gameplay ranks a step behind the spellbinding qualities of Bejeweled, a remarkable array of smartly devised challenges means Peggle represents outstanding value.
OVERALL: 8/10
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VERDICT
"PopCap's eclectic selection of puzzlers will have a little something for all fans of the genre. Whilst Chuzzle fails to capture the addictive qualities of the best-in-class, Insaniquarium is a neat spin on the virtual pets formula and Peggle is fantastically absorbing." |
OTHER PUZZLE GAMES THAT ATE ALL YOUR TIME REVIEWED
Tetris (1989, Game Boy)
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Bejeweled 3 (2011, DS)
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