Meteos

[chuddy_2001uk]

Our very own DSdude blows this game apart in this huge review..

Handheld gaming systems have become synonymous with puzzle games as far as game popularity. One such example is the game of Tetris for the original Game Boy. With its simplistic game mechanics and straightforward control, it was definitely a system seller (although the game was far from new). So far, all of the following portable systems have either had their own iteration of Tetris designed for the machine, or a completely new and innovative game full of addiction. Just look at the Sony PSP, with the game of Lumines. Certainly, this was one of the most addictive and enjoyable games for the system, easily topping several other titles in other genres. The Nintendo DS has had its fair share of fun and addictive puzzle games, but none of them had the lasting appeal of Tetris or Lumines. Enter Meteos, a brand-new touch-based puzzle game with a whole new take one the Tetris theme. Rather than assembling pieces together to eliminate them, you align several different “meteos” together to make them launch into space, effectively eliminating them or collecting them. It may sound a bit complicated, but the concept is simplistic and the controls are easily accessible. Easily the best combination for a puzzle game, Meteos is set to do what Lumines did for the PSP. Let us take a deeper look into the world of Meteos.

The reason I brought up the game Lumines for the PSP is because of the fact that both these games share the development studio – Q Entertainment. This studio is headed by the mastermind Tetsuya Mizuguchi, who also created games such as Rez and Space Channel 5. So it’s no surprise that Meteos is instantly a classic to those who play the game. Of all the puzzle games the DS has to offer, Meteos easily outclasses and outperforms the other games to a point in which it feels as though it were in another league entirely. I could go on and on describing the game, discussing its pros and cons, but that wouldn’t present a proper opinion on the game, just a thorough review of the title. So let’s take a little from column A, and a little from column B. After all the hype from both portable systems, the resulting drought of original and enjoyable titles seemed endless. The months of April, May, and June showed a steady increase in the purchase of DS titles, along with more innovative titles that connected well with gamers. June saw the release of great titles such as Kirby: Canvas Curse, and Bomberman. Along came Meteos, which easily surpasses the other titles in terms of replayability and value. For me, it reminded me of all the excitement and enjoyment I had when the system originally launched.


Now that all the obvious bias is out of the way, let’s take an educated look into the several factors to which I will be scoring the game for its review. Upon initiating the game, you’ll be greeted with a menu which bears some strikingly similar effects and/or feeling to that of Super Smash Bros (brought about by Masahiro Sakurai’s days at HAL). From here, you’ll be given your options on which to play the game: Meteos, Fusion, Wireless, Options, and Extras. Pretty basic stuff, but it’s always fun to move around the menu icons, and dragging one icon to a certain area causes the others to move around and auto-arrange themselves. Even the menu leaks the “innovative” feeling, which helps set the tone for the game itself. “Meteos” contains all the single-player game types, all of which are quite self-explanatory, and even give you a description on the top screen if you still want to know about the mode. Again, all the menus that are similar to the main menu can be moved around. It’s a nice touch that adds entertainment value. Wireless contains the multiplayer game modes, while Fusion is the database in which you, well, fuse meteos. Options should be pretty self-explanatory. Extras is where you’ll find the sounds that you’ve unlocked, where you can view your statistics, and even send a demo of Meteos to your friends without the game which contains both single player game modes, and multiplayer game modes (although you can only play demo vs. demo, and can only play demo vs. full game when you go into single-cart multiplayer – but in that case, it’s only a multiplayer demo).

Gameplay

The gameplay itself is mostly straightforward, except for a few combos and/or techniques to be learn as you play. Like many puzzle games, blocks fall from the sky and you must match up certain colors. However, this is the only familiar thing you may notice about Meteos when compared to other puzzle games. Rather than said blocks disappearing, the blocks turn into rockets, jettisoning the blocks above them into the air. Depending on the strength of your combo, you may simply launch the blocks only slightly in the air, or into deep space. However, if a column of meteos fills itself up and you don’t launch them into the air, it is automatic annihilation. In the challenge modes, and even multiplayer modes, the meteos are stored to be used as ammunition against your competition. The touch screen plays a major part in this game, and would be extremely difficult to play without it. The developers go as far as include D-Pad play for those who think they can play without the touch screen. You’ll soon find out it is much harder than it seems, and will end up going back to the stylus-touch screen combo to properly play the game. Certainly, Meteos is exclusive to touch-based gameplay. As such, it becomes maniacally fast-paced, and isn’t one of those games you can just indulge yourself into while simply sitting and watching, making a few hand motions here and there. However, this doesn’t make the game any less accessible or addictive, it is quite the contrary. I’m sure you’re ready for me to go into detail pertaining to the gameplay modes, so let’s start with the single player first (under the menu “Meteos”).

- Simple

Simple mode is essentially playing the game without any restrictions or actual goals. This is most likely the mode that you will be playing after all the story modes have been completed, or if you just feel like playing the game without having to worry about a time limit or having to obtain a certain amount of Meteos. You pick a home world to play on, and you can choose your options such as how much stock you want, or how much time you want, difficulty, CPU level, and which team you would like to be on. This is the most customizable game mode out of them all, easily enabling you to play the game however you want to. You can even set up CPU players to play against, simulating that multiplayer feel when no one is around. This is the most straight-forward mode of the game, and aids you in training you for different scenarios that you may encounter during certain game types. It’s great for your first time playing because you can practice here without any real negative effects towards your statistics.

- Star Trip

This is what you would call the “story” mode of Meteos. Unlike many puzzle games with little or no storyline (or in some cases, storylines that don’t fit the gameplay at all), Meteos contains a story which fits perfectly within the gameplay and is quickly adaptable to. The developers really put some thought into their story so it would fit well while you’re playing and it is more believable than most. You’re basically going planet to planet, defending them from certain doom. Every planet you come across, no matter which route you take, has its own unique style of meteos and planetary race, along with a unique set of sounds, visuals, and music. Together, these elements blend together to make each planetary experience one-of-a-kind, and really help put emphasis on the story. Again, that Smash Bros feel comes into play, where you can pick your home world, change the difficulty, and route. From the simplest route, you simply go to the next planet ahead of you, saving them along the way. However, there are more complex routes that allow for less linear gameplay, and certainly add length to the story itself. When you arrive on a planet, you’ll be given a view of it on the top screen, while the bottom screen tells you how many meteos you must collect/destroy in order to proceed, as well as other possible restrictions. It’s obvious that extensive work was put into the story so as not to leave it short and unsatisfying.

- Time War

This is the mode in which time restrictions are set into place. You can choose between two and five-minute time wars, or 100 to 1,000 meteo wars, all of which have time limit restrictions or time-based scoring. None of these modes seem out of place, or feel as though they were tossed in at the last minute. They blend effectively well into the game itself, so you’re not left with the feeling that you’ve missed something. The two-minute time war is simply to see how high of a score you can attain before the time limit runs out. The five-minute war is the same, only with a longer time limit (obviously) and on a different planet. Now, here’s where we differ from time restriction. The 100 Meteo War is a test to see how fast you can launch 100 meteo. Your score is based upon the time in which you complete this task. The 1,000 Meteo War is the same as the 100, except with a larger amount of meteo to launch in order to reach your goal. Again, your score is based on the time it took you to finish. All of these modes take place on different planets with different styles, so don’t expect this to end up a repetitive selection of gameplay options. These modes greatly increase your effectiveness with the stylus and launch combos, allowing you to perfect your game while also helping unlock extras.

- Deluge

Deluge is a fairly straightforward game mode, similar to the “Simple” mode mentioned earlier. However, you do not get to customize how you want to play. You are simple thrown into the game with a set difficulty, and continue to play until you’ve failed. You only have one chance to reach a high score here, and it quickly becomes a frantic struggle to keep going. You do, however, get to choose your planet. Basically, this is a “get a higher score” type of mode. You also collect meteos by playing this mode, rather than using them as ammunition. There’s not much else to this mode, although that does not mean it is not as fun as the others. This is definitely one to test your “survival” skills.

- Tutor

This is basically just a video example on how to play the game. It familiarizes you with the gameplay and teaches you how to complete the missions and how to increase your likelihood for winning. It’s just a video, not an actual game mode.

That’s about it as far as single player goes. It amazes me at the amount of depth that the single player has. Let’s not forget, though, that there is also a multiplayer mode. These can be found under the menu titled Wire-less. In here, you’ll find options to play either against other people with the full Meteos game, or download play with people who do not have the game. You will also find the option of “Profile” in which you can see your profile as well as the profiles of other Meteos players you’ve faced. Your profile card shows your home planet, your name, your history of playing Meteos, and the message you put into your DS as your personal message at the bottom. Keep in mind, all of that is shown on the top screen. The bottom screen lists all of your foes that you have faced, and their respective profiles. Let’s dive into the multiplayer aspect of the game. “VS.” is the mode in which you can play multi-cart multiplayer (where everyone playing has a copy of Meteos). You can either create a group, or join a group to play the game. When creating a group, you can also add in CPU players if you’re a little short on opponents. You can customize their home planets, teams, and handicaps. You are able to select the rules of play (time/stock, difficulty, etc.) just like any other multiplayer game. It is quite obvious that Meteos was built for multiplayer action, and as such, it plays incredibly well and makes for an incredibly competitive and fast-paced experience.

The game is amazingly fun to play in the presence of others, which makes the game much more unpredictable than it normally is. The game only stores the profiles of other people who have the game, so your single-cart games won’t get logged into the stats. You can, however, use your unlocked features in multiplayer, possibly giving you the upper hand during those frenetic multiplayer sessions. It’s always fun to aim your launched meteos at the other players, effectively slowing them down and increasing your score. However, it is possible for other players to dump all their meteos on a single player to completely wipe the other team out. It makes for a fierce, extremely competitive experience that leaves you satisfied or out for revenge (not to say that wanting revenge is a bad thing while playing this game). What of the people who do not have a copy of Meteos to call their own? Well, multiplayer is still available. Here’s where it starts to get a bit tricky: the demos sent out in multiplayer and the demos sent out that contain both single player and multiplayer cannot interact with each other. Sound complicated? Let me try to explain here. Under the “Extras” menu, you are given the option to send out a demo of Meteos that contains a single player demo, and a multiplayer demo. The only way you can play multiplayer with this demo is if the other person has the same demo that you do. The single-cart multiplayer demo is not the same thing. That is simply a multiplayer demo for use only in single-cart mode, and will not be compatible with the “Extras” demo. Hopefully that will clear some confusion. It’s great to see the developers went to such great lengths to ensure that everyone will be able to play Meteos on their DS (single play or otherwise), whether they actually have the game or not.

Graphics

The actual visual style and presentation of Meteos is amazing for a game of its genre. Most other puzzle games have simplistic menus and gameplay fields, leaving the actual gameplay to make up for the lack of style. This is not the case with Meteos. It perfectly blends artistic style with somewhat cutesy characters to create a very fun and eye-pleasing game. Each planet has its own specific design and its own meteos designs. None of the planets are alike in more than one aspect, and as such, creates a unique experience every time you move on to another planet. Of course, this game doesn’t really push any of the DS’s 3D capabilities, but that in no way detracts from the overall visual presentation. In fact, everything about the game has a unique style and visual superiority not found in other puzzle games. It is hard to find a game like Meteos, as it definitely stands out among others in terms graphics. The only thing that I can criticize here is the fact that some of the animations look a bit cheap, and the fact that the top screen during gameplay doesn’t render a full-blown 3D representation of space. However, keeping everything 2D retains the visual uniqueness that Meteos has, and it shouldn’t be counted out for consideration based solely on the lack of actual three-dimensional elements.

Sound

How does sound come into play for Meteos? Surprisingly, it appears all the time. No matter where you are in the game, you are not left without a lack of fun sounds and great background music. Each planet has its own music and sounds, and each suits its planet very well. Nothing here seems out of place. Even the music in the menus retain a sort of epic space-story feel to it that really adds to the satisfying nature this game has. There’s just so much about those menus that reminds you of Smash Bros, so it’s inevitably hard to stray away from the designer’s roots. Certainly, there is no full-blown high-quality music going on, but for what the game offers, it fits each situation perfectly and without error. Occasionally, though, some sounds when launching Meteos may become a bit repetitive, but this is to be expected if you launch similar combinations. However, everything about these sounds and music meshes extremely well amongst the rest of the game, so no doubt the sound plays a large role in helping set the mood while playing the game, and warning you of your coming loss. The audio in this game is much better than that of most other puzzle games on the market, though, so Meteos receives a higher rating because of how in simply differs so much, yet remains simple with its audio.

Lifespan

The question remains, though, concerning the replayability and lifespan of this game. Like most puzzle games, Meteos has an extremely high value of replayability and is certainly one to keep you coming back for more (addiction, anyone?). The amazingly addictive touch-based gameplay makes for a highly replayable game and extremely competitive multiplayer experience. It is safe to say, then, that you’ll be playing Meteos for quite some time after you’ve completed the entire story mode (which is not an easy task, mind you). There’s just so much to perfect on, and so many ways to beat your scores. There is also the incentive of unlocking several extras by simply completing certain goals, or playing the game for certain periods of time. The game rewards players on several different levels, so it’s easy to keep playing the game to see what you can unlock. Upon collecting meteos, you can also use those to obtain even more unlockables, adding even more to the lifespan of the game. You can even unlock different sounds during the course of the game. Then, obviously, you can also unlock several different planets as well. If you’re not satisfied, keep unlocking more planets. Each planet or feature unlocked adds so much more length to the game that you would not believe. This is no “play for a week then move on” game, even as a puzzle game. Truly, Meteos is above all others in terms of gameplay length.

To conclude my so-called “review,” let’s again see how this game matches up against the review numbers. The gameplay is simple and addictive, while allowing for multiple modes of play to keep you addicted and constantly playing. Nothing about the gameplay is difficult at all once you figure out how to play (which should only take a few minutes at most). Even with multiplayer, the experience is enhanced with the addition of multiple players trying to take each other out. The visuals are simplistic and highly stylized. Nothing seems too out of place or out of the boundaries of the game’s presentation. However, this isn’t a game that pushes the limits of the Nintendo DS in terms of three dimensions. Though, in the course of the game, this does not take away any of the fun to be had while viewing the game. The sounds are certainly unique and of a high ear-pleasing rate. Certainly nothing in terms of fully orchestrated music, but the game outputs some very much appropriate music and sounds that blend well with the actual game itself. As far as lifespan, this one’s a classic. There are so many parts of the game which you can come back to and improve upon, especially with all the unlockable features and multiple planets to be discovered. This game screams “replayability” at the top of its lungs. A great game full of innovation that suits the DS perfectly. Definitely one game to keep your hands moving and keep you on your DS for quite a while.




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Graphics - 9 / 10

Nothing in terms of 3D visuals or pushing the DS’s graphical limits, however, this in no way makes the game any less fun to play. Simplistic and highly stylish.

Sound - 9 / 10

Everything fits in well together within the game and each of the different planets and/or game modes you may encounter. Not the best music we’ve seen from the DS, but definitely superb to listen to.


Gameplay – 10 / 10

The gameplay suits the DS so perfectly, and at the same time retains a simplicity and enjoyment factor similar to that of Tetris for the original Game Boy or Lumines for the PSP.


Lifespan - 10/10

When playing puzzle games, you would expect the replayability to last for quite some time. Meteos is one DS puzzle game the will keep you coming back for more, easily an addictive and highly replayable game.

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Verdict:

9.5 /10

Meteos is the kind of game that you may dismiss at first, but will immediately love upon playing the game. Everything about this game is put together so well, and the development team spent a lot of time to ensure this. Meteos is like the second coming of Tetris, but with an entirely new element of gameplay. Possibly among the more innovative games on the platform, Meteos is not one you should miss!

[Euan]

Didn't comment on this on the old format of websites, but a great review for the greatest DS game ever... OK, maybe not quite!

[Dorla]

Great review and agree with all you say as well. Meteos is my most played game at the moment and I find it hard to put down. Must - match - colour - bricks!

Heh, most people are put off by my long reviews. Glad to -finally- hear some appreciation (Yes, Euan, you too!).

[ShadowMarth]

Oh come on, we all complimented you on it back on the old formatting, but it got... "misplaced".

Yeah, I know. I'm just an attention whore...

:D

[lemmywinks]

I've been playing meteos for a while now... is it natural to dream of multi coloured blocks!?

yeah... it is...

everytime i walked somewhere that had tiled floors(which is like, nearly everywhere >_>) thats all i could think about...

[chuddy_2001uk]

lol, ditto :P I had those tetris dreams all over again...

[ShadowMarth]

That happened to me with everything I saw. Even Conan O'Brian's head.