Zoop

Well folks, this is as far down the list as we can get until we add a PC section, in which time we can review Zuma Deluxe! This is, however, a wonderful way to round out the reviews, as Zoop! is an enjoyable puzzle experience with a great level of challenge to keep you a comin' back.

Okay, bear with me. The basic structure of Zoop is as follows: The triangular object which you control rests in the center of a square playing field. Rows of different colored and different shaped icons appear from the four cardinal directions on this square playing field, and by pressing the action button your triangle will "attack" the object it is facing, changing the object's color to whatever color the triangle was. The triangle changes to the color that the object was. The goal of the game is to attack the object closest to the triangle and change its color to match the rest of the objects in that row, and once this is achieved, the row can be cleared by hitting all the objects in that row with a triangle of the same color. Damn, I spent quite a while carefully picking my words to try to best describe how to play this game and I barely know what I'm talking about! As confusing as that may sound, it's a lot easier to understand when you play it.

This puzzle game is very true to form, in that it becomes exceedingly difficult the further you progress. The rows add new objects at a progressively faster pace the longer you play, and you start to feel that great panicky feeling when you can't clear a row because you don't have the right colored object on the board. A fun musical score accompanies the frenzy; catchy, but nowhere near as memorable as Tetris.

In short, if you enjoy frenetic puzzle games, you can't go wrong with this one. The experience is different every time you play it, so there's a lot to come back for.