If my mum can recognise a game of Tetris by its ear-worm-for-the-ages Type A music, it’s probably not a series that needs much introduction. Puyo Puyo, on the other hand, might be. Even now, 26 years after its initial release, Puyo Puyo has largely been ignored outside of Japan .
Puyo Puyo TetrisPublisher: Deep Silver/SegaDeveloper: Sonic TeamPlatform: Reviewed on SwitchAvailability: Out April 28th on PS4 and Switch
Puyo’s history in the west is mostly one of makeovers (it’s still probably best known here under its re-skinned 1993 Mega Drive guise, Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine), failed marketing pushes (the series enjoyed brief success as Puyo Pop in the early 2000s), and the occasional mini-game cameo, such as the one currently gracing 3DS game Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX. Meanwhile, Japan has seen over 20 Puyo Puyo games and spin-offs since the series’ 1991 debut.
Puyo Puyo’s continued obscurity over here is a little baffling, given that it’s one of the best falling-block-style puzzle games around. Slotting firmly into the block-matching puzzle subgenre, your job in Puyo Puyo is to remove blobs (or “puyos” if you will) from the board by gathering them into groups of four or more matching colours. It looks innocuous enough, given its cheery veneer, but Puyo Puyo is a considerably tougher game to master than Tetris; while Tetris is a game of speed and precision, Puyo Puyo is the more considered, tactical experience, emphasising pattern placement and forward planning.
The draw of Puyo Puyo Tetris, then, is that you’re getting two superb puzzle games in one package, and developer Sonic Team’s lively mash-up is a real treat. Key to its success is the fact that both games complement each other brilliantly when played in tandem; Tetris’ frenetic, high-speed rhythm provides a beautiful counterpoint to Puyo Puyo’s more strategic edge, and the game gets a lot of mileage from exploiting and experimenting with its dual core.