Puzzle Pits, designed to provide hours of mind bending enjoyment, is actually a frustrating experience.What starts out as a challenge turns quickly into the almost impossible as Puzzle Pits goes from being a nice, friendly, mental exercise to an excruciating and mundane mental torture session.
In Puzzle Pits you solve each level by pushing barrels and other objects around into certain configurations while avoiding hazardous areas and using magic gems. And while the early levels are challenging but solvable, you'll hit the proverbial wall all too soon. I was privy to the passwords for all the levels, so my progress wasn't too inhibited, but those unfortunate enough to purchase this game may not be so lucky. Although Plasma Works, publishers of this mind boggling creation, promise to provide clues on their website for each level and provide instructions for figuring out the passwords to every 10th level, this probably won't be enough to keep you interested in Puzzle Pits.
This is the journey of a young apprentice (that's you) on a mental training journey. Remember the old Kung Fu series where the impatient, overconfident young boy learns the ways of life from the wise, soft-spoken elder? Well, in this case, your teacher isn't Kwai Chang Caine, but Master Flosh, and his trusty cane Blackie. Through a second person dialogue with Flosh at the beginning of each level, you learn what you must do to master the level and move on. If you're able to understand his accent, bear the dialogue's tiresome tone, and overlook the witless humor, the knowledge he provides is usually helpful.
Set at a three-quarter perspective, the graphics are unattractive and blocky, reminiscent of the games of yesteryear. The lack of any way to adjust the level's viewpoint is also frustrating and dated. A topical view of the level would at least give you some assistance in developing a strategic plan and possibly figuring out the solutions. And if all of this isn't bad enough, as you begin moving around using either the keyboard or mouse, you'll notice something else amiss: the silence. Even Kung Fu had theme music. But in Puzzle Pits, aside from the scraping, crackling, and dripping sounds from various elements in the game, you're practically playing in a library. Even the Jeopardy theme would have livened up the atmosphere.
Perhaps the most important element missing from this game is fun: It's simply not a pleasurable experience. And although Puzzle Pits is obviously designed to test your mental ability, I wouldn't count on your brain sticking around very long to play it.
