Month after month I wade through waves of action, real-time strategy,
first person shooters, and adventure games, and man does it get me
worked up! So when Microsoft's
Pandora's Box arrived I was actually a little excited to play it.
Puzzle games are becoming somewhat of a rare breed on the PC, and much
to my suprise, Pandora's Box
really does a great job representing itself as a puzzle title that has
fantastic presenation that doesn't interfere with some great
puzzle work.
Even more to my suprise, this title isn't comprised simply of
block fitting, and beating the clock. There are a lot of image
combination puzzles which can be a real challenge to even
a person with a pretty sharp eye. This is brought about by the way space
management and perspective must also be taken into account. Moving one
image might end up creating the
need to move another, and then another. Just when a person thinks they
are home free, they find one piece that won’t fit unless
everything is moved.
This title simply oozes with style. A slick contemporary interface
compliments the the puzzles which utilize some of the finest artwork I
have seen since my last trip to the local musem.
The background music and sounds do little to get in the way. The puzzles
have their own little click n clack effects, which if undesired, can be
turned off completely.
In the single player game it is up to the player to stop seven tricky
beings that have escaped from the Pandora's Box. This takes the
player around the world as they try to undo
what these seven beings have done. Ultimately the player must capture
these beings and bring order back to the world. This just goes to show
Pandora's Box is evil.
As nice as it is to find a puzzle game that actually tries to have a
decent single player game, sometimes a person might just want to hunker
down and solve some puzzles. A main menu
feature allows just that. The player has instant access to hundreds of
mind-bending puzzles that increase in challenge which can really
test a players skill.
Puzzle games still require a taste for puzzles from the consumer.
Microsoft has a trial version for download that should satisfy
anyone's curiosity. I recommend those who usually
aren't drawn to puzzle titles to at least give it a shot.
Presentation can really be the key to any title’s success. It
sounds a little shallow, but when you think about it, Pandora's
Box has a lot going for it with the pure variety
and challenge found in these puzzles. Combine that with the very modern
look of the title as well as its thankfully subtle audio presentation,
and Pandora's Box becomes the best
representation of what we have look forward to in puzzle games of the
future.
-- Ryan Thompson
