Previous Next

There's no story to this game, so I'll just make one up. There was this Irishman, this Englishman and this Scotsman, and they were on their way to a chicken sexers' convention when one of them had this idea about a banana, a pint of cream and a lasso..

Erm... sorry, just going a bit loopy there. When you enter your local software emporium, wad in hand, and buy Loopz - you don't just get one puzzle game, you don't just get two puzzle games, you get three different puzzle games (and that's not counting the two-player options).

It doesn't take long to get the hang of things because the objective of each game is exactly the same: make loads of loops and gain masses of points. Different shapes are released on to the board one by one, and all you've got to do is rotate and move them in appropriately loopy positions before the timer runs down. Bonuses are awarded for getting mega-juicy scores and clearing the screen.

Easy? Well, sort of. The bigger the loops, the more points you score but the more shapes you squash on to the screen the tougher it gets. And there's nothing as frustrating as getting a tiny little short bit when what you really want is a great big enomous long one - but that's life.

Game A lets you pick your own difficulty level (right up to 9 which is mind-bogglingly fast) and in Game B you work your way through the stages systematically. Game C, on the other hand, is a totally different kettle of fish. Fifty complete loops are dismembered (yeuch!) one by one before your very eyes and afterwards you have to put back the missing pieces in the right place.

Loopz is definitely fast and it's also bags of fun - especially in two-player mode where you get the added pleasure of sabotaging your mate's designs. The long-term addictiveness of Tetris, say, is missing, but if you still haven't had enough of puzzle games, you could do a whole lot worse than splash out on a copy of Loopz.

1. A bit bland in the long term.
2. Not all that stimulating visually.
3. Two player option doesn't have much going for it.
4. There are already quite enough games like this.

1. Three different games to choose from - five if you count two-player games.
2. Loads of bonus games.
3. Three soothing tunes.
4. Clever shape combinations - no two games are ever exactly the same.
5. Passwords for Game C.
6. No multiload.
7. Straightforward control method - not too hard, even for your granny!
8. Well-graded difficulty.