Puyo Puyo Champions

Fans of puzzle games probably don’t need much of an introduction to the Puyo Puyo series, as it’s probably one of the most popular puzzle franchises that aren’t Tetris. Personally, my first Puyo Puyo experience was Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine – the American version of Puyo Puyo from the early 90s that I used to play all the time on my Game Gear – well, at least for as long as my six double A batteries would last, which really wasn’t that long at all. The Puyo Puyo franchise has seen no less than two dozen different games spanning the past three decades, and that all culminates to the bran...

For fans of Puyo Puyo then, picking up Puyo Puyo Champions should be a no-brainer. Those with only a passing interest who already own Puyo Puyo Tetris, however, might not really get much out of it. Playing against the CPU is bound to lose its appeal eventually, which leaves Puyo Puyo Champion‘s local and online multiplayer modes being the main draw. But for not much more than the price of a couple of coffees, that shouldn’t be much of an issue.

When it comes to competitive puzzle games, very few puzzlers are as enjoyable as Puyo Puyo so let's pop some Puyos online.

I’ve always said that the secret to a truly good e-sport, just like a regular sport, is that the game needs to be really easy to learn, simple to play, but hard to master. That’s why I consider puzzle games like Tetris  to be the best examples of how an e-sport should look and play. Sega’s Puyo Puyo is definitely a part of that list. I guess Sega read the memo, as they’re ready to dive deep into the world of e-sports with the brand new Puyo Puyo Champions, a stripped-down version aim...

Puyo Puyo Champions ably covers the essentials of the series at a great price point. The inclusion of the Fever ruleset provides something of interest for veteran players and the most enthusiastic of new fans created by Puyo Puyo Tetris, and should be at least considered for any party game library. However, the lack of other single or multiplayer modes or a real tutorial make this less of a definitive entry-point or second helping for newly created casual fans than it perhaps could be.