Analysis Puyo Puyo Tetris 2: the ultimate puzzle crossover

Is Puyo Puyo - Tetris 2 The Ultimate Puzzle Match the ultimate crossover? Let's do an in-depth analysis! But, before we get into the matter and for those of you who don't know what it's all about, we'll briefly explain what Puyo Puyo is and of course the great blow on the table that Nintendo gave a few years ago by offering its best puzzle game, Tetris, in Online mode.

A little history about Puyo Puyo and Tetris

Puyo Puyo is a puzzle game that was created in 1991 by Compile for multiple platforms. It was a resounding success in Japan and was later introduced to Europe in games such as Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine for Sega Mega Drive in 1993, Game Gear, and Master System (the latter released only in Europe), and two years later as Kirby's Avalanche for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (known in Europe as Kirby's Ghost Trap).

Years later Puyo puyo was appearing more and more in different consoles and arcades until 2017, when they decided to ally with Tetris to create the fabulous "Puyo Puyo Tetris", a game that had not only the modes we know from both games but also introduced new things like a story mode, online mode and endless trophies that made this game something ideal to play in free time.

After its success many were the games that introduced new experiences like Tetris 99 (which introduced a new concept to the Online mode in which not only the combos were important but also to know how to pass unnoticed the first places), Tetris Effect (and its online mode that came out later) with its design and music that gives chills of how beautiful it is, Puyo Puyo Champions ideal for training puyo puyo and become an ace of the game.. And finally, and in this year as hard as it has been 2020, Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 comes to light.

And is that, although at first glance Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 does not introduce too many new features over its predecessor, the story mode, improvements in online and new game modes make if you still do not have the previous or if you are super fan you buy this head. Seriously, do not think about it

A game with which it is impossible to get bored

As soon as we start the game, and as in the first one, we find several modes that we are going to divide into Classic and Online.

The "classic" modes would be those modes found in all variants of Puyo Puyo and Tetris, adding of course the Story mode (here called Adventure).

Adventure ModePuyo Puyo Tetris 2 has a story mode that will allow you to unlock characters (up to 28), avatars and other "cute" things with which you can customize your player account and enjoy more online and versus mode because each character has its own "magic", animations, voice, design... Join Ringo, Tee and the adorable little ball O (which only knows how to say Piiipipipipipipipi but has one of the best ultimates) in their exciting adventure facing known characters from the previous installment as well as new characters.

A classic puzzle game with story mode? Yes, it is.

IndividualThe classic mode among the classics, as in the story mode, this mode is recommended to improve your own skills and, as hardcore players, we recommend to try this category a lot if you want to make the leap to online because the rivals in Puyo Puyo Tetris are infinitely more experienced than in Tetris 99 or Tetris Effect (and this is from someone who has been playing Tetris in expert mode for decades). This mode will help you to master the very difficult "spin" with all the tetriminos (from the most known and lethal double or even triple T-spin, to "all clear" combos in Puyo Puyo)

Discover its multiplayer modes

MultiplayerIn this game you will be able to play locally up to 4 people. Here as in Individual we have several categories:

• VersusPuyo Puyo Tetris: compete in the more traditional way by choosing between Puyo Puyo or Tetris. Here it is worth noting that while in the first installment of Puyo Puyo Tetris the difference in "garbage delivery" was very unbalanced between the one playing Tetris and the one playing Puyo, in Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 they have improved that huge difference, although if you are an expert, one person playing Tetris can still beat three playing Puyo Puyo. Our recommendation is that for a "fair fight" everyone should choose the same game.
• Battle of EndowmentsVersus: in which, unlike normal Versus, here you don't know what game you're going to play and you don't "lose" if your tiles reach the top but you lose life as you receive combos as in a classic fighting game. It is curious to play a puzzle game like this with a life bar in the purest Street Fighter style.
• AlternateHere you play two simultaneous games in which you will alternate areas at specific intervals, i.e. the game will change every X amount of time and you will have to adapt.
• PartyIf with the "Street Fighter Blocks" style you were already hallucinating, hold on because they come curves and is that in the party mode we join the alternate mode with MARIO KART, okay, neither Mario nor the karts appear but the mysterious cubes, which hide incredible secrets (most of them bad for your rivals). Try to destroy them all and win the game. We like to call this mode "loses friends" for obvious reasons
• FusionThe craziest of them all. Here both puyos and tetriminos are intermingled so you will have to open your mind if you want to win. Not only you will have to think in tetris and puyo at the same time but also the new conditions as the tetriminos crush with their weight to the puyos influence your combos. A real blast and the laughs are guaranteed as you get to feel super clumsy on many occasions.
• Big BangAn alternate mode in which you will have to be fast and precise to get as many combos as possible in the shortest time possible. At first it seems easy but the challenge becomes more complicated in a very balanced way. The winner is the one with the best reflexes.

Personally we recommend playing the different modes in multiplayer or online as there comes a time when the artificial intelligence is not too smart and does not know very well what to do. It is very easy to win.

Online mode: the real battle begins

We enter the wonderful online world where a high skill level will be fundamental to defeat your rivals (seriously, they are extremely good even at beginner level, but don't be disappointed, it's normal when the game has been around for a short time, in a few months the beginner level will have some real newbies).

This mode has 4 categories:

• Puzzle LeaguePuyo and Tetris: in which you play Puyo and Tetris randomly. You can choose the modes you want to play against your opponents between "versus mode, fusion, alternate, party, big bang" and filter your opponents according to the network speed (the latter is very useful when it comes to climb in the qualifiers).
• Puyo Puyo League: classic qualifier playing Puyo Puyo.
• Tetris LeagueVersus Online of Tetris of all the life.
• League Battle of DowriesThe Battle of Endowments: in which you will fight against people from all over the world in the Battle of Endowments.

Once you enter the league you must indicate your level (Novice, Intermediate or Professional) and enter the filters mentioned above

Last but not least you have a section in the main menu called Lessons where you will be given tips and tricks to play these two great games better. In our opinion these tutorials should also have a practice mode with which you can prepare the T-spins and other moves. But it is very useful especially for those of you who are starting to play from scratch.

As a curiosity the game has an autosave mode that also saves clips of your games which you can consult in case you want to improve something or see where you have messed up. Very useful if you want to improve your skill.

In our research we also tested the game on different platforms to see if there was any noticeable difference and I have to say that it runs smoothly no matter what console you play on, be it Playstation, Xbox, PC or Nintendo Switch.

Final conclusions

In short, Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 is an improved version of the first Puyo Puyo Tetris with some more game modes. A must for lovers of puzzle games and for those who are new to the world. Ideal to play with family and friends.

The best

• Beautiful and colorful designs
• Music and effects very much in keeping with the style of the game
• Gameplay of 10 with any controller
• 100% accessible to any type of player

The Worst

• The Lessons mode needs to be improved in order to practice movements such as the triple T-spin with the different tetriminos
• Artificial intelligence of rivals in some modes needs improvement

We have made the review of Puyo Puyo - Tetris 2 The ultimate puzzle match thanks to a download code for PS4 provided by Koch Media.