Puzzled (video game)

Puzzled^[a] is a falling-block puzzle video game developed and published by SNK that was released for Neo Geo arcade hardware in 1990, the Neo Geo home console in 1991,^[1] and the Neo Geo CD in 1994.^[2] The game was ported to mobile phones in 2005, then was re-published by D4 Enterprise on the Wii Virtual Console in June 2011,^[3] and is also one of the twenty games that came pre-loaded on the Neo Geo X console released in 2012.^[4] It was also ported in August 2017 to Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 as part of Hamster Corporation's ACA Neo Geo series.

Puzzled
Developer(s)	SNK
Publisher(s)	SNK
Producer(s)	Eikichi Kawasaki
Composer(s)	Yoshihiko Kitamura
Platform(s)	Arcade, Neo Geo AES, Neo Geo CD
Release	Arcade WW: 20 November 1990 Neo Geo AES JP/EU: 1 July 1991 Neo Geo CD JP: 9 September 1994 NA: October 1996
Genre(s)	Puzzle
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer
Arcade system	Neo Geo MVS

Gameplay

Gameplay screenshot

The visuals of Puzzled look a lot like Tetris and the core gameplay is the same:^[5] the player controls tetrominos falling from the top of the screen, and filling a horizontal lines clears it,^[6][7] but the objective is to clear a vertical path for a hot air balloon initially trapped at the bottom of each level, enabling it to fly off the top of the playing field and moving up to the next level of a tower.^[8][9]

The tower is divided into multiple floors, with 10 levels per floor, totaling 60 different puzzles.^[10][11] Some levels feature varied obstacles like robots floating around the puzzle to attack the balloon, regenerating blocks, and gold blocks that need to be cleared multiple times before disappearing.^[8] The player can also use a power-up called an "L-Ball": a meter fills up as lines are cleared, and once ready, the player can trigger a lightning ball to explode outwards from the balloon's current location, removing surrounding blocks.^[8]

Development and release

Reception

Aggregate score

Aggregator	Score
GameRankings	(Switch) 30%[12]

Review scores

Publication	Score
Nintendo Life	(Switch) 3 / 10[13]
AllGame	(Neo Geo) [14]
Hobby Hi-Tech	(Neo Geo CD) 6 / 10[15]
Joystick	(Neo Geo) 90%[16] (Neo Geo) 91%[17]
Mega Fun	(Neo Geo) 76%[18]
Micom BASIC Magazine	(Neo Geo) [19]
Neo Geo Freak	(Arcade) 13 / 20[20]
Player One	(Neo Geo) 92%[21]
Tilt	(Neo Geo) 14 / 20[22]

Reception

In Japan, Game Machine listed Puzzled on their December 15, 1990 issue as being the most-successful table arcade unit of the month, outperforming titles such as Carrier Air Wing and Raiden.^[23]

The graphics of Puzzled were described as being simplistic and unremarkable but well-designed and efficient.^[6][10] The sound effects were also considered minimalistic but enjoyable for a game of this type.^[6][10]

The game's multiplayer portion was criticized for not featuring any interactions between the two simultaneous players.^[10][11]

Notes

1. Also known as Joy Joy Kid (Japanese: ジョイジョイキッド, Hepburn: Joi Joi Kiddo) in Japan