Planet Puzzle League review at N-philes.

"I always thought that Tetris Attack for the Super Nintendo was the best puzzle game out there. The only thing that slowed me down with that game was the frame rate drop the, thanks to the SNES’ lack of processing power A few years later, this Panel de Pon experience lost its Yoshi's Island branding to all things Pokémon, but it was still top notch. Puzzle League then had brief stints as part of the Japan-only Nintendo Puzzle Collection and in a GBA compilation with Dr. Mario. Finally, thanks in part to the success of the Touch Generations line of "gaming for everyone", the classic puzzler gets to have its own unique identity on the Nintendo DS as Planet Puzzle League. They may as well have called it "Sex on a Handheld" because this newest iteration not only surpasses its predecessors in every way; it is arguably the best handheld puzzle game yet."

Full Source: N-philes

Planet Puzzle League review at Cubed3.

"The Nintendo DS has been lucky to receive many different already classic puzzle titles since launching back in March, 2005, but now a different class of game is here: Puzzle League, what many may know as Tetris Attack from the SNES. Since originating from Japan as Panel de Pon on the SNES, the game has been released across numerous formats under various different guises. Yoshi adorned the Super Nintendo edition in the West, and then Pokémon were added for the Game Boy Colour and N64 versions, with it being stripped down completely when being joined by Dr. Mario in a puzzle-duo on the GBA. But now it is back, stripped once more, yet with heaps more added to it for the DS. Could this be the definitive release?"

Full Source: Cubed3

Planet Puzzle League review at Pocketgamer.co.uk.

"Easily beating out Captain Planet and the Planeteers for the crown of dorkiest association of brainy do-gooders, Planet Puzzle League calls forth worldwide puzzle fanatics for a crusade against boredom. Alongside Picross DS, it's also the latest addition to Nintendo's Touch! Generation series of games that attempt to extend the DS's casual appeal with simple puzzle gameplay beefed up by online multiplayer (at least it is in the US, as the game's not yet confirmed for Europe).

Flipping your Nintendo DS on its side to play, the goal in Planet Puzzle League is to clear blocks on the touchscreen by aligning three or more of the same colour, after which they disappear. You can only move one block at a time, sliding it horizontally. Blocks of six colours (red, yellow, green, blue, purple, and gray) push up from the bottom of the touchscreen and once the six by 12 block screen fills up, your game ends."

Full Source: Pocketgamer.co.uk

Planet Puzzle League review at NintendoWorldReport.

"Puzzle League has gone by many names. In addition to its current name, you may also know it as Tetris Attack, Pokémon Puzzle Challenge, or its Japanese name, Panel de Pon. Whatever version you choose, you're in for a great puzzle game. Planet Puzzle League, however, is by far the best version out there.

The premise of this puzzler is simple. You are presented with a playing field filled with blocks of various colors. These blocks can be moved horizontally to create sets of three. If you manage to set up more than three blocks, you'll earn combo points. Once a set is created, it disappears, and any blocks above the set fall down. These two mechanics create a chain system. If a falling block, or blocks, land and form more sets, chain points are scored. Additionally, the pile of ever-rising blocks stops rising momentarily, giving you precious time to set up and trigger more chains and combos. If the blocks touch the top of the screen, it's game over. The end result is a game that is easy to learn, and incredibly fun to master."

Full Source: NintendoWorldReport

Planet Puzzle League review at Eurogamer.

"Puzzle League DS is a derivative of Panel de Pon. In the interests of full disclosure, I think Panel de Pon is a bit crap. "Bit of a handicap for a Panel de Pon reviewer," you might think. In practice, it doesn't make a huge difference. Describing why it's so liked or loathed isn't hard. And it's worth getting that stuff out of the way quickly, anyway, because it'll leave more space to talk about Intelligent Systems' superb DS port job. This really is one of the best puzzle game packages around."

Full Source: Eurogamer

Planet Puzzle League review at DS Advanced Media Network.

"Planet Puzzle League is Nintendo’s latest attempt at silently stealing your so called life, and after fiddling around with the final copy of the game, we’re pretty sure it will be a great investment for everyone who gets a chance to experience what all the fuss is about. It combines some of the best puzzle action with a clean interface, simple directions, easy to use controls, and fantastic multiplayer/online action. But what sets this title apart from other gems like Meteos and Lumines? Read on."

Full Source: DS Advanced Media Network via Gonintendo

Planet Puzzle League review at Gamespot.

"Planet Puzzle League is the latest block to drop in an old series of simple puzzle games known as Puzzle League (or Panel de Pon). The idea in these games has always been to shift like-colored blocks into rows or columns of three, prompting them to politely vanish. It should sound familiar, and not just because the series has been around for 15 years. Everyone, at some point in their gaming career, has matched colored blocks and made them disappear. So what separates Planet Puzzle League's colorful cubes from the other blocks, jewels, and pills you've sorted in your life? Two things in particular: The DS stylus, which makes sorting blocks easier than ever before, and global Internet play, so you can challenge the square-pushers of the world. These two new features make Planet Puzzle League a nice place to revisit, though its staying power is questionable."

Full Source: Gamespot

Planet Puzzle League review at Hookedgamers.

"The Puzzle League series began way back in 1996 with Tetris Attack for the Super Nintendo. At the time, the puzzle genre was fairly new; the genre's only memorable game was Tetris. The general consensus was that it was the king of puzzle games. But Tetris Attack changed all that.

Despite the name, Tetris Attack really didn't have any relation to Tetris at all. Tetris Attack had a much simpler goal--all you had to do was match up three blocks of the same color and you scored points. You scored more points if you managed to match up more than three. The game immediately earned tons of fans with its highly addicting gameplay and absolutely amazing soundtrack."

Full Source: Hookedgamers

Planet Puzzle League review at Portable Video Gamer.

"Puzzle fans rejoice, the Panel de Pon series hits the Nintendo DS in Planet Puzzle League. The popular puzzler series has had many iterations on various Nintendo systems; you’ve probably heard of Tetris Attack for the SNES or Pokémon Puzzle League / Challenge for the N64 and Game Boy Color 2005’s Dr. Mario / Puzzle League compilation for the GBA opened the way for the series into nex-gen handhelds; this time, Nintendo and Intelligent Systems have taken the formula one step further, introducing touch screen controls, wireless worldwide multiplayer, and a variety of new and interesting features and gameplay modes that make Planet Puzzle League the best game of the series. Read on and find out what makes this game a worthy addition to DS gamers whether they have mad puzzle skills or not."

Full Source: Portable Video Gamer

Planet Puzzle League at GameAlmighty.

"The DS finally has a puzzle game! The drought is over! All of you people who have been complaining about too many first-person shooters on the DS can now kindly shut the hell up. Sarcasm aside, the DS needs another puzzle game like the Xbox 360 needs another retro arcade game. Fortunately, Planet Puzzle League offers so many options and has such a great presentation that it joins a select few at the top of the heap.

Puzzle League has actually been around for well over a decade now, though it has appeared under a variety of different names, including Tetris Attack, Pokemon Puzzle Challenge and even a Dr. Mario game at one point. Apparently Nintendo thinks the concept can stand on its own without the need of a shoehorned license and they’d be correct. Planet Puzzle League shows all other companies how to make a great game. From its excellent interface, solid sound effects, crisp visuals and plethora of options, this is the Tetris/Bejeweled/Meteos knock-off to rule them all."

Full Source: GameAlmighty

Planet Puzzle League review at Game Informer.

"The fact that Intelligent Systems developed this title is a dead giveaway – Planet Puzzle League is a reworking of Tetris Attack. Sure, it’s not terribly original, but I’m not complaining about another chance to play one of the all-time greats – especially when this new DS version has been created with such care. The touch-screen functionality (which allows you to slide blocks with the stylus) fits perfectly, and Wi-Fi play means that you can take your skills online. A lot of other nice features also make appearances here, like a daily mode that allows you to test your skills once a day and plots a chart of your progress à la Brain Age."

Full Source: Game Informer

Planet Puzzle League review at Gamesradar.

"This one really snuck up on us. Seems like two or three weeks ago this wasn't even on a list anywhere and then pow, it's coming out the first week of June. The quick turnaround isn't surprising, however, as Planet Puzzle League is yet another rehash of a game better known as Tetris Attack or Pokemon Puzzle League. Odds are you've played this before, but odds are just as likely you loved every single moment you spent with it.

And so it goes with this latest version - you just won't be able to put it down. When you close your eyes to finally drift into the sweet release of sleep, you'll still see colored blocks swapping places to form groups of three or more. The blocks disappear once linked, but crafting combos is the key to victory. Connecting four of a kind starts a combo timer that, once charged, keeps the stack from rising. The rush to keep matching blocks turns into a blazing fever that you'll never overcome. Simply put, it's one of the most intense, rewarding and addicting puzzle games ever created."

Full Source: Gamesradar

Planet Puzzle League review at 1-up.

"Hardcore gamers may shudder in trepidation at Nintendo's "blue ocean" approach to game marketing, fearing that this newfound dedication to casual gamers puts the future of hardcore-oriented games in jeopardy. But that's silly, because it's not a zero-sum game; it's not as though Super Smash Bros. Brawl is in danger of being canceled to make room for another Brain Age, for instance. And on top of that, it means quite a few old-school fan favorites are getting new life, repackaged for a wider audience without gameplay compromises -- in short, making good gameplay more widely accessible.

Case in point: Planet Puzzle League for DS. Puzzle League, aka Panel de Pon (its Japanese title), has been around for more than a decade, riding the coattails of Nintendo's more popular franchises. It's as though the company has always been afraid that its exceptional head-to-head puzzle gameplay would bomb without being disguised as something different, which is why it's alternately been repackaged as a Tetris spin-off, a Pokémon title, and the poor cousin to Dr. Mario."

Full Source: 1-up

Planet Puzzle League review at IGN.

"Planet Puzzle League is a fantastic example of Nintendo's recent evolution to approach gaming in a way that appeals not just to the hardcore gamer, but also to its newest pride and joy: the casual gamer. The title is simple a republishing of the company's addictive Panel de Pon design. Nintendo's finally settled on the branding Puzzle League in the US, and now it's about advancing and evolving the design to follow the advancements of the company's systems. Planet Puzzle League's core puzzle element is just as fun and addictive as it has been since its original NES/Super NES/Game Boy iteration, but the addition of major elements like touch-screen control and online multiplayer -- and even minor inclusions like a "Daily Play" option -- brings a ton more depth. And its classy, subdued presentation makes it even more approachable to the non-gaming crowd."

Full Source: IGN

Planet Puzzle League Review at DS AdvancedMN.

"Here at Advanced Media Network, we have quite a list of Puzzle League addicts. Some of us became addicted when we played Tetris Attack on the Super Nintendo, others didn’t get a chance to play Puzzle League until the Pokémon fever started and Pokémon Puzzle League hit the scene. Now, we’re getting our Puzzle League fix in the form of Planet Puzzle League -- a dual screened version of the hit, and highly addicting puzzle game -- and we’re ready to play again, and forget about having a life in the process."

Full Source: DS AdvancedMN via Gonintendo

Planet Puzzle League 'Modes' trailer at Gamevideos

Info starting to surface from the Nintendo Media Summit.

Planet Puzzle League
IGN Planet Puzzle League hands-on.
Planet Puzzle League trailer at Gametrailers.
Planet Puzzle League impressions at Kotaku.
Planet Puzzle League video at Gamespot.
Planet Puzzle League hands-on at Joystiq.

Brain Age 2
Preview at 1-up.
Preview at Gamespot.
Hands-on at IGN.
Brain Age impressions at Kotaku.
Brain Age 2 interview at Gamespot.
Brain Age 2 hands on at Wired.
Brain Age 2 hands-on at Joystiq.

Picross DS
Trailer at the Wired.
Picross DS screens at Gamespot.
Picross DS impressions at Kotaku.
Picross DS trailer at Gametrailers
Picross DS screens and video at 1-up.
Picross DS "Puzzle" trailer at Gamevideos.

Jam Session
Jame Session Screens at 1-up.


Enjoy.

Preview: Planet Puzzle League

Yea, yea. The Nintendo DS has plenty of puzzle games right? We all know this, and with the current puzzle games available for the DS, you really have to make a slam dunk of a game to actually do well. Most puzzle games that are released anymore just seem to be slight variations of basically the same thing.

So what does Planet Puzzle League have to offer thats new? Besides for also having so many play modes that they are too numerous to mention, the game is also going to fully support the Nintendo wifi capabilities (including microphone support) to challenge players from across the globe. Left handed? No problem! Want to rotate the screen to play at a different angle? Sure! There is a ton of customization features that they really put into the game to place it a step ahead other puzzlers in the market.

These features, along the capability to have your stats tracked on a daily basis, are really making Planet Puzzle League appealing to we puzzle loving enthusiasts of the world. I have a fear that it may end up being another puzzle game clone, but considering the features, I think this title is well worth checking into.



Source: Nintendo, IGN, Gamespot, 1-up