Planet Puzzle League review

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.

Even if you're one of the millions who have already dropped money into this series, there's enough new content to make Planet a compelling purchase. For starters, there are now item blocks that cause various effects to take place on the puzzle grid. Activating an item block requires you to link it up with two other blocks of the same color. One item causes all your opponent's blocks to randomly change color, another turns some of their blocks into unusable garbage and a rather helpful one makes every single block you clear count as part of a combo chain, whether you matched up eight in a row or just three of the same color.

The new items aren't much of a plus for solo play, but Planet's biggest boon is its hypnotizing multiplayer. All those combos create tons of garbage blocks that'll launch over to your opponent's side and clutter up the place - similarly, the item blocks make life miserable for all involved except the one who triggered them. Two can hit each other up on the Wi-Fi Connection (yes, worldwide) while up to four can sling some colored bricks locally. Want more good news? Four can play locally with just one copy of the game, a very nice gesture, given that the other three will probably end up buying it anyway.