A re-hash which adds nothing to a classic
The gaming industry must have loved it when the puzzling classic that is Tetris was released, given the rather colourful story behind its creation and the somewhat lax nature of videogmaing law. Since the original's release there have been umpteen remakes, sequels and rehashes that have flooded the market, from the likes of Puzznic, Hextris and Zentris, some of which have added interesting mechanics to the classic formula but many of which have simply been lazy cash-ins seeking to profit from Alexey Pajitnov's genius. Unfortunately, Tetcolor falls largely into this latter camp, being simply an unimaginative retelling of Tetris crossed with Columns which completely lacks the charm of its inspirations and is only really worth playing by dedicated genre fans. For those unaware of the original, the aim is simply to make lines from falling coloured blocks, by matching up similarly coloured blocks so that they will disappear. Tetcolor lacks the varied block designs of Tetris, with only shapes consisting of one to three squares on display here. Blocks can be rotated but not rearranged and once you have lined up three same-coloured squares, they disappear. That's pretty much it to things, with the game getting progressively faster as you go but with little else in the way of innovation or originality. While the concept itself is as addictive as it ever was, it's always hard to recommend these knock-offs which add nothing to a classic and it's difficult to see why anyone would want to play this when the original is so readily available and which is so much better. If you are a genre completist, then by all means check this out, but more casual players can do better.
