Go! Puzzle
Go figure.
Aquatica
Let's make no bones about it, Aquatica Is Go! Puzzle's attempt at bringing a Columns-style game to the PlayStation 3. Sea mines of various hues are dumped into a deep ocean well, the aim being - as always - to match up the colours (this time in vertical or diagonal lines) and cause some submarinal explosions. All very predictable, except that mines are always delivered in blocks of three and you can only flip their arrangement horizontally, not vertically.
Additionally, gameplay is spiced up with the addition of wild mines - explosives that take out all like-coloured mines on-screen once activated, usually kicking off a combo frenzy. Locked mines are totally indestructible however, and only disappear from the field of play if you can navigate them to the very bottom of the well.
Aquatica is somewhat disappointing and it's definitely the poorest game in the Go! Puzzle triumvirate. As a Tetris clone it fails to get close to the original's quality. Indeed, aside from the wild mines and combat mode weaponry, it actually feels like a substantial regression in terms of gameplay compared to its venerable inspiration.
5/10
Skyscrapers
The final game in the Go! Puzzle trilogy is by far the most original of the bunch. The aim of the game is to ascend the eponymous buildings, navigating your way horizontally across each storey by walking and leaping on like-coloured tiles in order to reach a rocket pad that propels you upwards to the next storey.
But there's a twist. Let's say you choose to take a route across the level using red tiles. At this point it's strongly recommended to devise a route that sees you using up every red tile available to you. Only if they're all gone will you get the time bonuses you require to stay in the game. The addition of different sized tiles later on in the game adds a further dimension of challenge to what is already a mentally demanding title.
Skyscrapers is the most impressive Go! Puzzle of the lot. Its concept works exceptionally well across all of the different game variations on offer - particularly in the multiplayer modes. The combination of the high-paced race to the top of each building, combined with the weapons you can dispatch against your enemy make it an extremely competitive, fun experience.
7/10