Ever wondered what would happen if you took The New Tetris (N64) and Lumines, put them into a blender, and went “smooch”? Chime would fall out. Chime is a traditional block-dropping puzzle game that originally made its debut last year on Xbox Live courtesy of developer Zoe Mode and non-profit video game publisher OneBigGame. Now it makes its PlayStation Network debut (minus the non-profit element) in the form of an enhanced version dubbed Chime Super Deluxe.
Game: Chime Super Deluxe
Publisher: Kuju Entertainment
Developer: Zoe Mode
Genre: Action Strategy
Price: $9.99
Verdict: Wonderful musical sequencing block fusion puzzle game that evolves the genre.
Cons: Nothing major to really warrant double the price for Chime vetrans.
Acquired via Publisher
Chime is a bit difference than your average block puzzle game. In timed mode, you have a set amount of play time–be it 3 minutes, 6 minutes, or 9 minutes–Crazy Taxi style. Each block is made up of five pieces. You can rotate them in 90 degree increments clockwise or counterclockwise. The goal is to create quads on the totally open play field and cover as much of the surface as possible with completed quads Quads are created by placing the shapes together to form 3×3 blocks or larger. After the musical beat line (think Lumines) hits the completed quad, it is stamped down into the surface permanently, thus earning you coverage. You’re now able to play on top of this surface to try and fill in the remaining gaps, or just score more points.
Free Mode has a totally different objective and serves to bring out Chime’s artistic elements. When a quad is completed and passed by the beat line, all kinds of various musical samples are triggered and the soundtrack is altered in real time. Without the time limit, Chime becomes sort of a freestyle puzzle game/musical sequencer. You are free to experiment, and since the play field is open, and non-quad formed debris blocks automatically disappear after a few passes of the beat line, it’s impossible to game over. Free Mode shows Chime’s true versatility. You can play the game in the traditional “hurry up and score” block puzzle fashion, or you can take it slow, experiment, and just chill out while matching quads and experimenting with the sounds that pour out of the game. It’s totally up to the player.
Everything I just said about the original Chime applies to Chime Super Deluxe. The main difference here is content and scoring. Boards will be altered and become more complicated/difficult each time you clear them, and you get less extra time as a bonus. You also get five new boards in Super Deluxe (for a grand total of ten). Each board features its own musical charms that start from nothing more than a bare bones backing track to a sampled musical wonderland as you add blocks, quads, and fill the play-field in. The music builds on itself the longer you play, becoming more complex, more interesting, and totally different each time. The hooks are always the same (which are strong), but all the stuff surrounding them varies with play. Make no mistake; music makes this game. If you’re one of those types who find yourself humming along with a song as you play a game, Chime will probably put you in a zen state. The chip-tune stuff obviously stands out, but the most original music by far is “The Looping Song,” which is totally sampled beat-box.
Super Deluxe comes with local multiplayer support (up to four) and online. You can play in co-op where everybody is working (likely chaotically) to clear the board as fast as possible, or in versus mode where you work even more chaotically to to beat everyone else in coverage percentage before time runs out. It’s here where the simple visual style shines because you’re actually able to keep track of the chaos thanks to clearly defined blocks and simple colors making the entertaining mess possible to follow.
So long story short, Chime Super Deluxe is better than the original release, for sure. Yet if you’ve played Chime before on the 360, there’s not a ton of stuff here to really warrant the additional clams for an upgrade. Perhaps the PlayStation audience will be more receptive to this musically flavored gem since the musical puzzle genre originated on the PlayStation brand. As an expansion of the original, Super Deluxe falls short of being worth double the price. If you’re a Chime virgin and you love games like Meteos and Lumines or just of electronic music period, most certainly pick up this underexposed gem. For puzzle game fans, Chime in either its original or Super Deluxe form is a must play. For puzzle game fans who appreciate the finer details of electronic music generation, this is video game crack.
GrE Grade: B+
Popularity: 1% [?]
