Critter Crunch-TASTIC!

 

Let me introduce you to the best PSN game right now.  Critter Crunch is a puzzle game that's been available on the iPhone for quite some time but just recently released on PSN for $6.99 which let me say...IS A STEAL.  In Critter Crunch you play as "Biggs", that cute lovable orange round thing up there.  Yeah, the one that is puking rainbows...RAINBOWS!  The core gameplay of CC is the use of foodchains.  You feed the small "critters" to the medium sized "critters" to the larger "critters" to form large chains and bonuses trying to rack up the highest score possible....and that's where things get crazy.

 

 

The main adventure mode in Critter Crunch takes you through this kind of "tv documentary" about "Biggs" and "Smalls".  As you go farther into the adventure mode you'll unlock Puzzle and Challenge levels and eventually you'll unlock Survival mode.  Not only that but each stage(about three levels) you progress through the game will introduce another "critter" that will appear as well as more power ups.  Critters range from "veggie-critters" all the way to bombs.  Not only is there a large amount of variety in critters but there's also a great variety of power-ups.  From jalepenos, that will allow you to shoot down critters, to a soda can that causes "Biggs" to burp and completely rearrange the alignment of critters.  All of this works extremely well and makes for one of the best puzzle games I've played in a long time.  But it doesn't end there.

 

So while the Adventure mode is lengthy and loads of fun Critter Crunch offers much much more.  Puzzle mode consists of 100 different puzzles from very simple to very very hard.  Puzzle mode you've probably seen in lots of other puzzle games used in the same way.  You have a limited amount of moves to clear the stage of "critters" or else you lose.  While this seems like, oh well I've done this before, Critter Crunch's puzzles find a way to be incredibly rewarding.  What I love about the puzzles is that while many of them come off as crazy and hard....once you solve them you feel this rush of accomplishment.  Plus with 100 puzzles this mode alone will keep you busy for quite some time.

 

Challenge mode in Critter Crunch consists of challenges ranging from "get x amount of food chains in y seconds" to "clear this stage without getting a food chain".  While some challenges aren't very hard there are others that can prove very difficult and some that will take you a LONG time to achieve.  The beauty of challenge mode is something that the multiplayer in the game really nails and is something I'll cover later.  Challenge mode with it's time limit creates a sense of urgency and really ups the excitement level of the moment.  Which happens just as well in survival mode as you try to last as long as you can while the game speeds up over time.

 

 

So with the single player components aside lets talk multiplayer.  Multiplayer consists of both local and online with coop and versus available for both.  Multiplayer completely caught me off guard and I absolutely LOVE IT.  Co-op is basically survival mode with two players, one plays "Biggs" while the other plays "Smalls", but it really brings me back to how much I loved playing versus and coop in these types of puzzle games.  Versus however seriously ups the ante.  In versus you try to string together as many combos and food chains as possible to screw up your opponent.  You can distort their view or cause their screen to fill up faster all the while trying to survive yourself.  Versus shiness however at how it changes the way you play this game.  While playing versus you notice this over all sense of urgency.  You feel like you need to play fast and stay completely focusses as you truly feel like you're going up against a tough opponent.  Versus mode also allows you to level up and unlock more power ups which makes the game that much more exciting.

 

Critter Crunch may have not been on many people's radars but I assure you that it should be.  For 6.99 and with the imense amount of content this game supplies this is one game no one should pass up.  Critter Crunch is an absolutely BEAUTIFUL game and has gameplay that is just as good as it's art work.  There's so much to this game that I feel like no amount of words could possibly do it justice.  Critter Crunch is the best PSN game available right now and easily the most fun I've had in a LONG time.