Puzzled (video game)
1990 video game
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Puzzled[a] is a falling-block puzzle video game developed and published by SNK that was released for Neo Geo arcade hardware in 1990, the Neo Geo home console in 1991,[1] and the Neo Geo CD in 1994.[2] The game was ported to mobile phones in 2005, then was re-published by D4 Enterprise on the Wii Virtual Console in June 2011,[3] and is also one of the twenty games that came pre-loaded on the Neo Geo X console released in 2012.[4] It was also ported in August 2017 to Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 as part of Hamster Corporation's ACA Neo Geo series.
| Puzzled | |
|---|---|
| |
| Developer | SNK |
| Publisher | SNK |
| Producer | Eikichi Kawasaki |
| Composer | Yoshihiko Kitamura |
| Platforms | Arcade, Neo Geo AES, Neo Geo CD |
| Release | Arcade
|
| Genre | Puzzle |
| Modes | Single-player, multiplayer |
| Arcade system | Neo Geo MVS |
Gameplay
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The visuals of Puzzled look a lot like Tetris and the core gameplay is the same:[5] the player controls tetrominos falling from the top of the screen, and filling a horizontal lines clears it,[6][7] but the objective is to clear a vertical path for a hot air balloon initially trapped at the bottom of each level, enabling it to fly off the top of the playing field and moving up to the next level of a tower.[8][9]
The tower is divided into multiple floors, with 10 levels per floor, totaling 60 different puzzles.[10][11] Some levels feature varied obstacles like robots floating around the puzzle to attack the balloon, regenerating blocks, and gold blocks that need to be cleared multiple times before disappearing.[8] The player can also use a power-up called an "L-Ball": a meter fills up as lines are cleared, and once ready, the player can trigger a lightning ball to explode outwards from the balloon's current location, removing surrounding blocks.[8]
Development and release
Reception
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| GameRankings | (Switch) 30%[12] |
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| Nintendo Life | (Switch) 3 / 10[13] |
| AllGame | (Neo Geo)   [14] |
| Hobby Hi-Tech | (Neo Geo CD) 6 / 10[15] |
| Joystick | (Neo Geo) 90%[16] (Neo Geo) 91%[17] |
| Mega Fun | (Neo Geo) 76%[18] |
| Micom BASIC Magazine | (Neo Geo) [19] |
| Neo Geo Freak | (Arcade) 13 / 20[20] |
| Player One | (Neo Geo) 92%[21] |
| Tilt | (Neo Geo) 14 / 20[22] |
In Japan, Game Machine listed Puzzled on their December 15, 1990 issue as being the most-successful table arcade unit of the month, outperforming titles such as Carrier Air Wing and Raiden.[23]
The graphics of Puzzled were described as being simplistic and unremarkable but well-designed and efficient.[6][10] The sound effects were also considered minimalistic but enjoyable for a game of this type.[6][10]
The game's multiplayer portion was criticized for not featuring any interactions between the two simultaneous players.[10][11]
