Reviewed: February 29, 2008
Reviewed by: Stacey Meade
Publisher
Yukes Media Creations
Developer
Yukes Media Creations
Released: November 6, 2007
Genre: Puzzle
Players: 1
8
5
5
6
6.0
Supported Features
Neves for the Nintendo DS is a game all about brains. Tile puzzles have been around for a long time. Puzzles have always been a way to entertain us and at the same time, stimulate our brain. When completing tile puzzles at first you may be stumped by the puzzles. But you will soon catch on and be able to blow through the puzzles. Except for the occasional stumper you will find this game to be fun and relaxing. This game seems simple. Seven tiles piece of cake right? Do you have what it take to crack the puzzles? Better yet will you be able to stop cracking the puzzles?
Neves is a game of puzzles. Each puzzle consists of seven different tiles. You will need to place each tile in its place to fill in the shape you are creating. There are hundreds of different shapes you will be able to solve including that of a bunny rabbit and a helicopter. There is no end to the fun you can have while playing this game. It’s a perfect game to pass the time while on long road trips and any time you find your self waiting. Neves is a great way to keep you brain active.
Neves has several different play options you can choose from. It even offers a Tutorial that will go through the game with you and teach you the ropes of Neves. The first game option you will come across in Sihouettes?. Here you will be able to enter different Rooms and Room Levels and complete different puzzles. This section of the game includes every puzzle the game has to offer you just have to unlock them. Which can be especially hard, if you get to puzzle where all of the pieces are placed and there is still room left? Talk about a brain teaser. Some times you will become so frustrated and then you will figure out the simple solution and be able to solve the puzzle in seconds.
The next option you will have in Time Pressure. In this section of the game you will have to race the clock and finish the puzzles with in the time frame. While playing you will be given three minutes to solve the puzzle but the goal is to try and solve the puzzle in under a minute. You will also have the choice of choosing which puzzle you would like to try and complete. These puzzles are the same puzzles that you will find in the Silhouettes mode. I suggest trying to complete the Silhouette version of the puzzle before you try and complete the Time Pressure challenges.
The next mode of play is 7steps. While playing the 7steps mode you will only be able to grab each individual puzzle piece one time. This can be tricky if you have never tried to complete the puzzle before. So as I suggested before complete the puzzle first in Silhouettes mode. This will make completing these puzzles in 7steps pretty simple. But just remember once you pick up a tile you must place it before moving on to the next piece. If you make this mistake you will have to start the puzzle over in order to complete it. This can become pretty frustrating because the slip of the stylus and you are back to square one.
You will also be able to enter an area called The Room. In The Room you will be able to see how much of the game you have completed. It will give you a percentage on how much of each different mode you have completed as well as the amount of the overall game you have completed. The Room also offers a look at all of the puzzles you have completed in each category. Overall there are twelve categories to choose from including Character Text. Character Text are puzzles that resemble numbers and letters. The categories range from People to Transportation. You will also be able to check out Miscellaneous in this area it will show you which puzzles you have completed that are not of any particular category.
There is also the option of connection with other players by using the Bragging Rights mode. Here you will be able to display all of you accomplishments. This mode offers the fun of competing with an opponent to see you will be able to complete the puzzles faster. The final mode offered in the Options Menu. In the Options Menu you will be able to adjust the color of the puzzle pieces to the color that you like best. You will also be able to turn the Navigation helper on and off. I do not suggest doing this, it just make the game frustrating and it doesn’t really test your brain. It only tests you patience. You will also be able to adjust the In game BGM and you will be able to turn the Sound Effects on or off.
While playing this game you will notice that the graphics are pretty standard. There are no 3D effects or anything of the kind while playing the game you will basically on be using the touch screen. The top screen is basically just a screen saver that will give you random information about the game. Over all I wouldn’t say that I was disappointed. However the game comes off cheap. All of the visuals in this game are bland and there is not much detail. This game is just a straight forward puzzle game, but they could have included brighter colors and more visually stimulating backgrounds and displays. This game reminds me of an early Super Nintendo game as far as graphics are concerned. This game will not be receiving an A+ from me in the graphics area.
I don’t think anyone will be wowed by the Sound this game offers. You here the same drone over and over. The noise reminds me of the Nintendo Wii’s background music, except that music is pleasant. While playing this game I found my self turning down the sound so I could concentrate better on the puzzles. These game designers could have added some flare to this game by mixing up the music and giving it some variety. Overall I thought the sound on this game was mediocre at best and basically just filler. There was not really any effort that I noticed incorporated in the game.
Today you will find this on store shelves for the price of $29.99. I don’t think that I would pay that amount I know this game will be one that you will find in the discount bin pretty soon. The game however fun it is, is not very appealing visually and I don’t think it will interest many people. Now if you are an avid puzzler and love doing puzzles, this game offers just that. This is a mediocre game that will never be considered amazing and I think you should save your money for a game that is worth running out and getting.
I think the game designers needed to put more effort into this game. This game is really fun and enjoyable but comes up short as far as graphics and sound. However I really liked playing it and would suggest it as a good back up game for when you are tired of playing all your fun adventure games. There are many games that are being created for the sole purpose of heading straight to the discount bin and are not meant to be star games. This game is one of them. I like this game but it to me is just a prototype of what it really could have been. Just add a little more color and some fun background music and this game would have been way better. The puzzles themselves are fun and there is a ton of puzzles to complete. I also enjoyed the many options of play this game offered. The Bragging Rights mode was fun; it’s always fun to compete against other people.
