[ElementK]

Why can't I ever rate a DS game low...well, here's a good one for a quick car ride: Drill Spirits!

Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits isn't what the box makes it seem. Behind the mask of cartoonish pictures lies an incredibly creative and addictive puzzle game. If have any like at all of puzzle games, you will love this one.

GAMEPLAY: 9/10
The game shines here, as all good puzzle games should. There are three modes to play in single player:
Mission Mode
In mission mode, you dig around the world to rescue your friends. Each country has a longer tunnel to dig through. You have to dig through multi-colored blocks to get to the bottom. If two or more blocks of the same color are together, if you drill one, they all go. There are also some brown blocks that take several shots to drill through. It sounds easy, right? Nope. It gets hard to breathe underground, so your oxygen meter is constantly going down, and you have to pick up little oxygen capsules as you go. When you break the aforementioned brown blocks, you lose 20% of your oxygen. Also, if you take out blocks underneath other blocks, the blocks above (that aren't in a chain with others of the same color) fall down, and you have to avoid being crushed. If you manage this, any blocks that fall upon blocks of the same color and form a chain of 4 or more will instantly disappear. You have three lives to make it as far as you can. When you make it to the bottom of a stage, you unlock a new character.
Pressure Mode
Pressure mode is my favorite mode. It is similar to Mission Mode, except a huge drill monster is coming down on you the entire way. You can also collect Power capsules while digging, which allow you to fire out a fireball at the monster, which also destroys any blocks above you.
Time Attack Mode
In Time Attack mode, you attempt to drill through the same business as the other modes in the shortest time possible. No need to worry about oxygen in this mode, though. This is where the gameplay loses a point. It is VERY hard.

You get currency based on the length you make it through each mode, which can be used in the Driller Store to buy things to help you in the game, such as starting with 5 lives on Mission mode instead of 3.

There is also a Multiplayer mode where up to 5 people race to the bottom of a tunnel. I haven't tried it myself, but it sounds like a good time. ^_^

GRAPHICS: 7/10
The graphics are sharp and nice, far better than the Gameboy could do. But after seeing Super Mario 64 DS, I think it's safe to say they could have been better. But we all know that Graphics don't make the game, right?

SOUND: 9/10
The sound is clear, catchy, and upbeat. Always great for a game, right? Yes, until it starts to get annoying. Many songs are just the same few measures repeating over and over and over again...but that's a minor flaw, because there are only a few songs that repeat themselves and annoy you. Just a few.

REPLAY VALUE: 9/10
It's a puzzle game. You can play it over and over again and not be bored. Perfect for a long plane flight, car trip, or a rainy Sunday afternoon. It's not like the game ends at any point, anyway! JUST KEEP PLAYING!

OVERALL: 9/10
This is an incredible "out of nowhere" game. Seriously, just get it. It's something every DS owner should buy if they have a lot of time to kill, travel a lot, or just love puzzle games. I know I love it.