Flipull

System: NES

Review

Game Type: Puzzle
You control a cute little blob that tosses blocks bearing various patterns at a pile of blocks on the opposite side of the screen. Each time you toss a block it must plow through at least one block of the same type. Once it strikes a block of a different type it will knock that block out of the stack and back to the blob. If you get a block back that can't be used on your next shot, it will count as a "miss", and you'll have to take one of your limited supply of wild card blocks. Run out of wild cards and the game is over.

Gameplay: 80/100
The NES is one of the few systems that was never blessed (cursed?) with a port of the inexplicably addictive Zoop. Or is it? If this game weren't so hard to find I'd be certain that Zoop's creators used Flipull as the basis for their work. The idea of having pieces plow through targets that match their color and swap with those they don't is almost identical.
Flipull is much slower paced than the 16-bit adrenaline-fest, though. There's a time limit in the standard mode to keep the pressure on, but you'll need to resist the temptation to sit back and start randomly destroying stuff. You have to think ahead two or three moves or you won't last past the first few stages. And the puzzle mode eliminates the time limit altogether to give you much-needed time to strategize.
The controls consist of Up, Down, and the block launch button. No confusion there. Not so with the bizarre set of rules, though. You'll have to play several times to even begin to get the hang of wild cards, time limits, slamming the blocks into walls and pipes to drop them from above, and more. There's a lot more to know about this game than I can describe here. Once you've figured out all its complexities Flipull can be quite addictive, though.

Graphics: 70/100
If it weren't for the butt-ugly colors used for the blocks and backgrounds I might like the graphics - nay, the entire game - even better. Colors aside, though, the game looks pretty good. Your little blob is well-animated, and the cool background patterns change with each stage. The PacManesque cinemas you see every ten stages are a nice touch.

Sound: 70/100
The tunes are cute but they loop a little too soon, and are re-used every three or four stages. Ditto for the sound effects; they're cute but if you hear them too often they can get annoying. Put a CD on the stereo instead. (Preferably something relaxing for when the game pisses you off.)

Overall: 80/100
The creator of this game has to be a genius. So does anyone who hopes to play it well. Flipull is too complex for players weaned on Tetris Attack and Puzzle Fighter. If you don't mind slower puzzlers, though, this can get quite addictive. No matter how many times you fail, you'll find yourself playing "just one more game". (I once played until 4 a.m. in this fashion.) If you're one of those masochists who doesn't passionately hate Lode Runner et al, this is for you.

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Copyright © 1997/1998 Jay McGavren. All Rights Reserved.