Reviewed: February 18, 2006
Reviewed by: Mark Smith
Publisher
Oberon Media
Developer
PopCap Games
Released: November 22, 2005
Genre: Puzzle
Players: 1
ESRB: Everyone
8
8
8
8
8.0
Supported Features:
Screenshots (Click Image for Gallery)
Zuma Deluxe is one of the first batch of Xbox Live Arcade games to debut on the new Marketplace, and while Zuma can be enjoyed on other formats like the PC, Palm devices, and even cell phones, you’ll never see it look this good or play as well as it does on the Xbox 360.
The premise is simple, launch multicolored balled at an advance lines of other multicolored balls that are snaking their way toward the center of the screen. Try to form clusters of matching colors to remove those balls from the chain thus shrinking the string of balls and hopefully eliminating the entire chain before it reaches the golden skull.
Zuma offers two modes, the Adventure mode with more than 20 unique realms to explore, and the Gauntlet, a true test of your puzzle solving and aiming skills. Collect coins and power-ups while matching colors to shrink the advancing chain and go for the high score.
Zuma combines color and pattern recognition skills with some dexterity and the ability to accurately aim your frog to launch the balls at the appropriate angle. As portions of the chain are removed you have a few seconds to aim your next shot through the temporary gap, not only earning “gap bonuses” but also removing clusters further back in the chain. Coins will also appear randomly around the screen and can be collected by shooting them with a ball.
I wish there was more to talk about, but this pretty much sums up the gameplay in Zuma Deluxe. I find it amazing that such a simple concept can lend itself to countless hours of addictive gameplay.
Despite its simplistic design, Zuma is a real visual treat with colorful textured backgrounds, all with a definitive Aztec flavor. Even the colored balls feature a rough texture and bump mapped surface lighting. Even the menus and stats screens share flashy colors and an ancient quality.
There are some nice visual touches with the animation including some simple particle effects, motion blur, and screen shaking. It’s probably more than most would expect from a simple puzzle game, but it certainly shines on the Xbox 360 and makes this version of Zuma stand out from the other formats.
Sound effects are simple with the thunk of balls colliding with each other and then retracting to fill in the missing gaps created after each shot. There are also some interesting effects to accompany the flashier visuals and even some powerful rumbles that got my subwoofer kicking.
The music is also quite nice featuring some tribal tunes that reside in the background and never seemed to get annoying, no matter how long I played. Great stuff!
I’d classify Zuma Deluxe in the same category as Tetris. This is a game that you can never truly win, but that won’t stop you from playing it for years and years trying to best your previous scores. And the more you play the better you get. Zuma Deluxe is one of the few Xbox Live Arcade titles that is truly worth the price of admission.
For those looking to add 200 points to their gamer score, you’ll have your work cut out for you. There are 12 objectives ranging from merely playing the game for 24 hours to collecting 100 coins or completing the various game modes. Some challenges are next to impossible like clearing any level in under five seconds or scoring two-million points.
If you enjoy challenging puzzle games that require a bit of skill then Zuma Deluxe is a fantastic offering in the growing line-up of Xbox Live Arcade titles. It will delight and challenge both young and old alike with its bright colors, enchanting music, and addictive gameplay.