| Game Reviews From a Parental Perspective! | |
|
|
|
| Home | Forums | Review Archive | Columns | Feature Articles |
|
Home >
Review Archive >
Video Games
> Results: Magnetica
Format For Printing | Tell A Friend | Digg | Slashdot | del.icio.us | Buy This Game Scroll down for our Kid Factor. 
Magnetica, the latest puzzler in Nintendo's Touch Generations line, fills your DS with colorful marbles and endless challenge. Using the stylus, the object is to fling little colored marbles at an oncoming marble-train that slowly and relentlessly moves toward the center of the board. The marbles are magnetized by color, and the only way to eliminate them is to fling marbles into the chain, making groups of three or more, which then disappear (same colors are magnetized to each other). It's sort of like Tetris in a spiral, using colored balls instead of shapes. Every ten levels you get a silver pinball to fling, and this will disintegrate all the marbles of the color it touches. If it hits yellow, all the yellow marbles on the board disappear. The downside is that the appearance of the silver pinball heralds a small rocket that propels the chain toward the center, and the end of the game, that much faster.
The game offers four main challenge boards, each with its own creative layout, and also a wide range of Quest boards and Puzzle boards. These boards are a brisker play (expect to spend as much as 30 minutes on a single session of the main boards) and offer twists like laser walls, warp zones, clocks to stop time, and some even have holes you can fling balls into (provided you make a big enough hole in the chain) where you can get extra bonuses like points, or a handy silver pinball. The game also offers Wifi multiplayer, which is a nice addition. Magnetica is easy to get into, incredibly challenging, strangely satisfying, and the relentless gameplay and music (the music is a bit annoying in my opinion) will stay with you long after you've turned off your DS. That's the mark of a great puzzle game isn't it?  
Puzzle games are great for kids and this simple, enchanting, and nail-biting gameplay offered by Magnetica will hold their interest. The game improves dexterity and skill, especially with the stylus, as well as speed and accuracy (these are good PDA skills). It also challenges snap-decision making skills, because that marble train is relentless, it's coming for you, and it can only be destroyed by you.
The price may seem a bit high, but this game packs a lot of gameplay into a brightly colored package. It's the type of game that makes the people watching want to play - and that makes it a great intro to non-gamers and kids likely to turn their nose up at playing a puzzle game. Success breeds confidence and puzzlers encourage players not to give up. Basically it's a fun way lose your marbles without worrying about cleaning them up before someone twists an ankle. Comments? Chat about it in our forums! Format For Printing | Tell A Friend | Digg | Slashdot | del.icio.us | Buy This Game Browse Amazon.com's selection of "magnetica" themed games Home > Review Archive > Video Games > Results: Magnetica |
Read the GamerDad 2007 Holiday Guide!
|
Please Note: GamerDad is not intended to be read by anyone under 18. We stay clean, but be warned! Content Management System developed by Redbird Solutions. |
