Board games are constantly
evolving. During the 80s and 90s, traditional roll-the-dice, pick-a-card games
were superseded by more adventurous offerings. Many had an electronic element,
but there were a few that sustained consumers’ interest without going high-tech.
One of the frontrunners was
Jenga, a puzzle game that used nothing more than rectangular blocks. Stacked
several inches high to form a skyscraper shape, Jenga challenges players to
remove blocks from its core and place them on top. The winner isn’t determined
by high score, but by the ability to survive. The loser, then, is the one who
carelessly reaches for a piece that wasn’t willing to budge, causing the tower
to fall. Sometimes by stupidity and sometimes by default, Jenga is a game with
an unofficial timer. Because no matter how good of a player you are, the blocks
that hold this structure will eventually run out, leaving no block to grab
except those that will lead to your demise.
Shown here: the Nintendo Wii version (which, visually, isn’t
that different from the DS version).
Sci-fi novelists and
filmmakers alike assume that, in time, everything will be remade in virtual
form. Chances are another millennium will pass before we’re playing holographic
games with a Wookiee. But if the next iteration of game consoles and handhelds
are any more interactive than the current crop, we might end up playing with
pieces that aren’t really there.
Jenga World Tour, a
pint-sized adaptation of the Hasbro hit, is a step toward that evolution. It
isn’t a mind-blowing conversion. The game stumbles more than a loose Jenga
tower. But there is something to appreciate about the way it was conceived,
something that shows the game could’ve worked well if certain realities hadn’t
gotten in the way. In spite of its flaws, if you’re intrigued enough to learn
the controls, you most definitely will be engaged enough to play through the
short World Tour mode. Beyond that, however, Jenga doesn’t come off as much more
than a novelty.
What a Drag
Jenga World Tour does the
obvious and uses the Nintendo DS’ touch screen as a positioning device. The game
is played sideways like Brain Age, Planet Puzzle League and other recent
releases. Any of the 50+ blocks are selectable by touch. Merely tapping a block
won’t do anything except bring up a red, yellow, or green highlight, which
surrounds the edges of the selected block to note its difficulty. Red blocks are
deemed the most difficult to remove, yellow blocks are medium, and green blocks
are said to be the easiest. This isn’t an entirely accurate reading – there are
many red-highlighted blocks that aren’t hard to remove at all, especially when
the tower has been refreshed. You’re better off judging each block by each
circumstance. If a block looks like it’s going to bring down the house, it
probably will.
With a stylus in hand,
newcomers will be amused by Jenga’s 3D shape and swiveling camera. Push the
D-pad to rise up or down or to circle around the tower, and touch the arrow
icons (on screen) to zoom or adjust the angle. For a few moments, the game seems
like it’s going to be just like the physical Jenga.
Then you touch one of the
blocks and, from that position, attempt to pull it out of the tower. This is
done by dragging the stylus away from the tower. It sounds simple and, in a
perfect world, would have been fantastic. But while the DS is capable of
producing 3D graphics, its touch-screen interactions are strictly
two-dimensional. You can only draw lines, circles, and other flat shapes on the
screen. It is not possible to lift the stylus and pull it toward yourself, as
needed to simulate the real Jenga.
This means that some blocks
are too easy to remove and others are too difficult. No matter how challenging,
one common theme prevails: to move a block, you must first adjust the camera to
correspond with the angle of the touch-and-drag pattern that’s necessary to
remove the block. It gets easier with time, but there won’t be any challenge
left by the time you get the hang of it. Once that happens, there’s a simple way
to defeat your AI opponents almost every time: start by picking pieces from the
bottom, and then choose pieces from the top. Your opponent won’t have anywhere
to go except the middle, which has been compromised thanks to your starting
moves.
Once a block has been
removed, it automatically floats to the top of the screen. Red, yellow and green
highlights appear again, this time on top of the tower to show where the block
may be placed. Quickly tap a highlight two or three times for a safe landing.
Despite the inescapable
imperfections, Jenga World Tour is a moderately interesting game. I liked how
the developers used the camera to compensate for the lack of full block
maneuverability. It may not have delivered the best results, but without motion
controls (as present in the Wii version), there are only so many things that can
be done.
Of course, I’m reviewing
this game as someone that appreciates all works of game development, not as a
casual gamer, Jenga’s target market. Those players may not be as patient.
Without saying a word about Jenga World Tour’s content, I handed it off to my
sister, a casual gamer who loves the real Jenga. When I asked what she thought
of the game, her only response was, “It’s slow.” She returned the game after 20
minutes and did not ask to play it again.
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Gameplay: 6.5
Touch and drag.
Touch and drag. And swivel the camera. Nothing more, nothing less.
Graphics: 5.0
Jenga World Tour’s
visuals lack detail and are a bit washed out.
Sound: 5.0
Not all of the music
tracks are repetitive, which is surprising considering the nature of handheld
games. But the sound effects are torture.
Difficulty: Easy
See above: “Touch
and drag.” If you can’t do that, you probably shouldn’t own a DS.
Concept: 6.0
Ice blocks are
supposed to be slippery, vine blocks are supposed to move slower, and
fire blocks are supposed to be…actually, I’m not sure what their effect
is. You’ll see a lot of block types in this game, none of which successfully
pull off the claimed ailment. You’ll also encounter levels where blocks are
frozen or disappear as a result of some environmental hazard.
Multiplayer: 4.0
If Ultimate Mortal
Kombat can pull off single-card multiplayer, Jenga World Tour has no excuse.
Overall: 6.1
An interesting
novelty, Jenga World Tour isn’t the casual market-appeasing game it needs to be
to succeed. While oddball gamers like myself may find temporary amusement, the
rest of the world will likely stick to the real Jenga game.
