Puzz 3D: Bavarian Castle
Score: 90% ESRB: Everyone Publisher: Wrebbit Developer: DYAD Digital Studios Media: CD/1 Players: 1 Genre: Puzzle/ Strategy
Graphics & Sound: The graphics for Puzz 3D: Bavarian Castle are the same quality as in Victorian Mansion, although there’s a lot more gray. In Victorian Mansion’s case, the primary color was red. The graphics are detailed 2D in the building modes, relatively high-quality 3D construction mode, and absolutely atrocious 3D “look-around” mode. The FMVs throughout the game are low-budget and cheesy with bad backgrounds, but they’re passable to move along the mediocre plot of the game. The sound is forgettable, with rather generic sound effects and music. You’ll tune it out, though, as you work on the puzzle.
Gameplay: Puzz 3D: Bavarian Castle is more puzzle-building fun, this time with a Bavarian castle. I had real difficulty fitting some of the pieces together because they all looked the exact same, but I suppose that’s part of the “challenge.” It ended up being more frustrating than challenging, though. The engine is alright, but when I went to the construction mode and it was still lagging on my new system, which can run Quake II in 640x480 and colored lighting at about 70 fps, I was not impressed. And the walk-around mode is just as slow and jumpy as it was on my P166. It seems that the game designers spent more time working on the puzzle engine -- which is a good thing -- than the other stuff, and it just all feels like an afterthought. The puzzle itself is eminently playable, though, especially with the multiple difficulty levels. It’s fun, frustrating, and interesting all at once -- just like a good puzzle should be.
Difficulty: The difficulty in Bavarian Castle is variable, depending on what you set it to at the beginning. It goes from fewer than 200 pieces to more than 700. Of course, even the easiest difficulty is rather difficult because of the self-similarity of all the pieces, but once again, that’s part of the challenge. All in all, anyone can play this; it just might take some people longer than others.
Game Mechanics: Well, other than the table mechanics, with its trays and other useful tools that make it playable, the game’s engine is mediocre at best. A basic 3D view has no right to be lagging on my system, and the walk-around game puts me to sleep when I’m walking between areas. I could find no way to skip the in-between walks either, some of which are so long and dull that you want to smack the CD around a bit. That’s not why you play this game, though -- you play it for the puzzle. I suggest doing the puzzles in Puzz 3D: Bavarian Castle, and then forgetting about the whole “adventure” bit. You’ll find yourself enjoying the game a lot more.
-Sunfall to-Ennien, GameVortex Communications AKA Phil Bordelon
Minimum System Requirements: P100, 16MB Ram, 45MB HD Space, 2X CD-ROM, Sound Card, Mouse   Test System: K6-III 450, 256MB RAM, SoundBlaster Live!, Creative TNT2 Ultra w/32MB RAM, 6X/24X DVD-ROM
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