Overview
If you’ve never heard of Bejeweled, let me assure you that it’s not what you’re thinking. The game doesn't involve attaching shiny rhinestones to denim jackets. You’re thinking of the BeDazzler. This game is a little more fun than that. You have a screen full of six different jewels. Your job is to swap the gems to make sets of three. When you do that, they disappear and more fall from sky. (Think Tetris- only more sparkly) Connect four gems in a row to create a power gem. When you combine a power gem in a set of three- they explode, destroying the surrounding gems. There’s something very satisfying about that. Connect five gems to create a hyper cube. Whatever gem you swap it with it will destroy all of the gems of that color in the game with an awesome lighting blast. Very, very satisfying.
Features
There are three different game modes, but they're all pretty much the exact same thing. There's CLASSIC, which is just like the Bejeweled game you grew up playing. When the progress bar at the bottom of the screen gets to the end- you go to the next level. And you repeat that process over and over and over again.
In ACTION mode, the progress bar is slowly moving backwards. If it gets all the way to the end, you lose. Of course, you have less time each level you advance.
And finally there's ENDLESS mode which is basically exactly how it sounds. The jewels just keep coming and coming. The only difference between ENDLESS and CLASSIC is that you get a lot more points for making combinations in ENDLESS.
You can play the game in either landscape or portrait. I prefer portrait, but to each their own.
The game keeps track of your entire playing career. Every power gem and hyper cube you've ever created... it's right there. It also keeps track of the time you've spent playing. So, you know, you can look and see how much of your life you've lost that you'll never get back. I really wish games would stop including the total playing time. It sort of makes me want to re-evaluate my life- you know, get my priorities in line.
Breakdown
The Good:
Bejeweled 2 is very easy to pick up and play. I'm willing to bet five bucks that even my mom could try this game and figure it out in no time. She'd probably like it too, because anyone of any age could enjoy the game.
The graphics and sound are exactly what you would expect from a game like this. Colorful. Pretty. The background images remind me of the early computer generated images of those crazy cosmic environments- You probably had a Trapper Keeper with a similar image. They were all the rage back in the day. Look below and I think you'll agree.
The warping to the next level is a little unnecessary- but it's pretty sweet. Oh, and you can play your iPod songs while playing this game. And that's good, because the music gets a little repetitive after awhile.
The Bad:
The creepy voice is disturbing. Especially when he orders me to "Go!" at the beginning of the level. I'm reminded of Shang Tsung from Mortal Kombat ordering me to "Finish Him!" Which, I guess, isn't technically a bad thing. It just seems out of place in this game. You'd think they could have found a more inspiring voice.
I would have liked the ENDLESS version to have been endless on one stage. It sucks to finish a level with several unused power gems just sitting around waiting for their chance to blow up. It would be great to just stay on that same level and hammer things out.
Perhaps the worst thing about this game though, is the fact that it's addictive. In the three days I've been playing this game, I've lost more hours of my life than I'd care to admit. And though it's really addictive, I realized at a point that I wasn't even enjoying myself anymore. I was just playing because the puzzle allowed me to keep playing. It's fun, but... not fun enough to be dedicating this much of my life to it.
Verdict
To the people who love puzzle or jewel games, I'd recommend this one. For the people looking to waste hours upon hours of their life playing a game that's ultimately unrewarding in every aspect- I'd definitely recommend this game. It's fun for a little while. Maybe that's the trick. Play it in small doses. And get it now while it's 60% off.
