Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords Review

When it comes to handheld gaming I generally tend to gravitate towards RPGs and Puzzle games. RPGs are great for drawn out roadtrips or relaxing out in the sun while Puzzle games are great for those shorter gaming spurts when you're just looking to occupy some time. This is probably one of the reasons why I'm drawn to games like Lumines and the original Fire Emblem.

When I first heard about Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical. Claiming to deliver "classic puzzle-game action backed with an epic story of good vs. evil" I was expecting something similar to Puzzle Fighter.

Boy was I wrong.

Unlike Puzzle Fighter, where fighting was just a backdrop, Puzzle Quest mixes traditional RPG fare with a puzzle game that is as challenging as it is fun.

Gameplay

The core of Puzzle Quest plays out as several games of Bejeweled. On a shared board players take turns connecting three or more gems in either a horizontal or vertical string. Once these gems are connected they're cleared from the board and new gems fall from above to replace them. Battles are won after one combatant reduces another's life to zero.

Damage is dealt in one of two ways. Connecting skulls deals direct damage while connecting colored gems builds mana which can be used to cast various types of spells. Each board also offers additional gem types which can be used for boosting the gold and experience players collect at the end of each fight.

Early in the game, for example, connecting three red gems will grant three red mana which can be used for casting a spell. Most spells require two or more mana types and can be used for doing anything from dealing damage to boosting your mana reserves. If you've ever played Bejeweled or HexicHD you'll pick it up pretty quickly.

RPG Elements

The RPG aspects of Puzzle Quest go far beyond simple spell casting and the concept of battling various monsters. Basically an RPG on rails, Puzzle Quest doesn't make a lot of room for exploration. The overall map offers players three types of locations: major cities, outposts and caves. 'Outposts' and caves are where the majority of the battles occur while major cities are the source of most of the games main story.

Each major city has a Tavern for collecting rumors and a Shop for purchasing armor and weapons. All major quests originate in them and they can be sieged for the purposes of building your kingdom. Cities under your control offer a new source of income and give you access to your Citadel. A fully developed Citadel gives you the ability to capture mounts and enemies, learn new spells and buy extra skill points and even forge items using runes collected from 'outposts'.

It's not a fully developed system but there is enough going on to keep RPGers tied up without overwhelming people who might be more interested in the Puzzle games.

Presentation

Right now Puzzle Quest is available on both the DS and the PSP with an XBLA version coming out later this year. When choosing between the DS and PSP version I was mostly taken by the PSP's wide screen presentation in contrast to the DS' split the screen. During battles the wide screen picture is a bit more striking and the graphics resulting in cleared gems is much more engaging. Cut scenes also appear much more cleanly on the PSP where the colors and audio really pop.

On the DS a lot of the pictures and cutscenes are split between the two screens. While the graphics and gameplay are virtually unchanged (except for the destroyed gem animations) the DS lacks some of the 'umph that the PSP's screen gives. Regardless of which console you play on there's also the issue of the game's story.

Superficial at best Puzzle Quest's story really isn't much more than a rehash of the canned RPG 'go to.' There's an ancient enemy threatening the land - you and your party are out to solve the mystery and save the world. Ready ... go! The is one of my few complaints about the game, with the amount of creativity that went into designing Puzzle Quest you expect a story that's a bit more compelling - it just doesn't happen.

Despite lacking a good story the game does deliver an extremely fun experience that's sure to keep casual and hardcore gamers entertained. Even though I already have the PSP version I'm seriously watching the XBLA release to see what extras it might offer. If you're looking for a fun puzzler you can't get much better than Puzzle Quest Challenge of the Warlords right now.