Gunpey
- November 28, 2006 10:42 AM PST
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Gunpey for the Nintendo DS is a bright, vivid game that offers players one and only one task: to connect the lines from one end of the screen to the other. Who knew achieving such a task would be so darned difficult?!
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Complete with the game's own unique soundtrack, Gunpey (named after the creator of the game), is a must have for those in dire need of a new kind of music-related puzzle game to play.
Read Between the Lines. Or Connect Them.
At first, the game can seem a bit daunting; loud colors are thrown everywhere, and the music is anything but normal. Gunpey DS has a very unique art style as greens, magentas and other neon colors abound with the power to overwhelm an unsuspecting player.
The gameplay itself is a bit confusing to figure out at first if you have no idea what this game is about. You are presented with a grid, five columns wide and ten rows tall, and four different segments of of lines- two diagonals that either slant upward or downward, a V-shaped line and an upside-down V-shaped line. The goal here is to connect a complete line from one side of the screen to the other to destroy them. The screen shifts upward every so often, so if a line segment is caught over the top, you losemuch like Tetris.
As simple as it sounds, the difficult part of the game is actually thinking fast enough to connect enough lines in good time. Players can combo the lines, and if they're really good, they can build massive lines that clear up the whole screen and unleash powers that will put their opponent at a momentary disadvantage. The music that accommodates the game also syncs with your moves.
The Colors Man, The Colors!
The graphics, although blaringly loud in color, are actually very detailed for a two-dimensional setting. For some levels, the graphics can be a bit too much, with a lot of stuff going on in the background of your playing field as it distracts the eyes with an unprecedented level of discomfort. The art is unique, but it could leave players either loving or hating it.
The controls are quite simple but a bit glitchy at times. Using the stylus, players can only move the lines vertically in their own columns. It feels more intuitive to be able to move them horizontally as well, but the challenge is in the restriction of the column. For those uncomfortable with using the stylus, the D-Pad, B and Y buttons serve as worthy alternatives, although it feels a bit slower than using a stylus.
The music varies according to the character you play against, but for the most part the rhythms can be annoying and catchy at the same time. The PSP version has a techno theme going on, like its other famous game Lumines, but the DS version has a more eclectic mix of music.
Overall, fans of Lumines and Meteos will not want to skip out on this purchase. Gunpey DS is challenging, and if players are not shocked by the brightness of the game and the quirky music, then they should definitely check this title out.
