Tested Version: PC / Steam
The evolution of the videogame medium is impressive, we have passed within a few decades from controlling two white rods to venture into incredible virtual worlds. Yet, after all this we rediscover ourselves wanting to play some of these historic titles.
This is the case of Puyo Puyo Tetris 2, which combines the mechanics and the game created in the 80s by the Moscow programmer Aleksej Pažitnov with the colorful and fun world of Puyo Puyo, launched in the 90s by Masamitsu “Moo” Niitani.
The title, which has already landed on all consoles, has finally arrived on PC via the Steam platform. This is the sequel to the crossover video game that from 2014 to now has amused many gamers thanks to a colorful and lively gameplay, rightfully entering among the best puzzle games of recent years.
Story
The plot of this title continues the story of its predecessor, that is, after the worlds of Tetris and Puyo Puyo have been separated. Unfortunately, it seems that the protagonists of the successful plan have lost the memory of what happened.
The whole story, however, is turned upside down as a mysterious girl named Marle manages to merge the worlds again in order to achieve her goal, which is to allow all the inhabitants of the two worlds to have fun.
All this hustle and bustle will force our heroes to work together again to separate their worlds again and avoid potential damage caused by a new forced merger.
It must be admitted that the narrative does not offer us something new, on the contrary, it seems a useful pretext to present a new chapter. In fact, from the filler chapters (the never loved fillers) to the twists, we are faced with a series of widely predictable and obvious events.
On the other hand, it is necessary to remember that despite a not exceptional plot we are faced with a light and enjoyable narration, even accompanied by some successful and funny exchanges of jokes.
The newness
Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 presents itself to us in more or less the same game modes as its predecessor. Fortunately, however, in order to avoid a more of the same, the development team has pulled the Technical Battle out of the hat.
This mode combines the typical gameplay of the two worlds with a series of dynamics deriving from role-playing games. In fact, we will have to choose three characters (a leader and two support) and face the teams of enemies who unfortunately want to challenge you.
Each character is equipped with some unique abilities, each of them can be used within a single mode (Tetris or Puyo Puyo), thus offering a fair balance, a factor that will force you to squeeze your brains. Among the various powers available, there are some respectable ones, able to put any opponent in difficulty, from the possibility of creating lines useful for making Tetris to the enhancement able to change the color of the Puyos on the screen.
Other abilities, on the other hand, vary according to our statistics, allowing us to enhance attack and defense, eliminate dangerous status changes and heal our health.
The advancement will allow us to unlock and equip a series of cards, the latter will be useful to increase the level and statistics of our team.
Having said that, we realized that the gaming experience could be unbalanced at times, especially during the boss-battles that will put us against much stronger characters than usual.
Among other things, the development team wanted to enrich the title with the introduction of the dynamic difficulty, a modification exclusively available for the adventure mode that can change the difficulty level independently, all without the player being aware of it. .
Unfortunately, this novelty has not been managed in the best way, in fact, you may find yourself confronting particularly weak opponents or with extremely high CPU levels, so as to transform the entire gaming experience from fun to frustrating.
Gameplay and other modes
After talking about the interesting Technical Battle and the introduction of the dynamic difficulty, we remind you of the basics of the game and which modes are present in Puyo Puyo Tetris 2.
First of all, if you choose characters from the world of Puyo Puyo, you will get points by combining at least four cute little creatures of the same color, by skilfully combining these combinations you can collect points and put your opponent in difficulty.
In case you prefer the Tetris world, you will have to join the typical blocks of the series, known as tetrominoes, and form entire lines. Once you clear four lines at the same time you will do Tetris and earn a lot of points.
As mentioned earlier, this title does not offer a lot of news. In fact, it fully incorporates the modalities present in the prequel, here are what they are:
- Versus: this is the best known mode of the game and will allow you to confront an opponent in intense challenges in Tetris or Puyo Puyo (players can freely choose which world to rely on);
- Exchange: this fun mode will lead you to make the most of your intelligence. In fact, you will experience both the proposed puzzle games, as after a certain amount of time, the board will be modified by switching to that of the different "world";
- Party: in this case, you will not have to worry about the lives available, because the points will make the difference. Among other things, within this mode you can use a series of power-ups, some that will make the game easier, others that can complicate your opponent's life;
- Big Bang: only good reflexes could lead you to victory, the challenge will lead you to clear the screen several times within the time limit. If you love challenges, this is the perfect mode.
Multiplayer, what a passion!
The real essence of Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 lies in the ability to play together, both locally and online. In fact, you can have fun in the company of close (COVID permitting) and distant friends, the latter being made possible by an exceptional matchmaking system.
Unfortunately, however, this mode carries with it a defect that afflicts the game since the first chapter, we are talking about the choice of the opponent. In fact, not a few times you may find yourself dueling with the typical Japanese player who will humiliate you with a few moves. In any case, trust us if we tell you that you will have fun even in these cases.
Technical sector
The graphic sector of the title is not particularly burdensome for the PC, despite this, it must be admitted that it is definitely enjoyable, from the color palette to the design of the characters.
The audio side also deserves proper attention. In fact, between particularly catchy songs and the Japanese voices of the protagonists, our hearing will be pleasantly satisfied.
In addition, great credit must be given to the work of localization. In fact, the Spanish translation of the texts as well as being of quality, manages to offer the same charge of joy and enthusiasm as the original language.
Final Comment
Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 is the sequel to the beloved crossover puzzle game that confirms its incredible validity, even without particularly innovating. The gaming experience, in fact, seems to offer a renewed version of what the prequel has already presented to us. The innovations introduced by the Technical Battle and the possibility of resorting to an adaptive difficulty may not represent a reason for resorting to purchase at launch. Finally, we advise you to take this opinion with a grain of salt, we believe that games of this type are more enjoyable on consoles, perhaps on Switch.
