Wednesday, January 19, 2011

5390 - BERMUDA TRIANGLE: SAVING THE CORAL (USA)

Bermuda Triangle is a puzzle game in the match-3 format, of which Bejeweled is the most well-known. The opening scenes tell the story: global warming and black market hunters are threatening the survival of the ocean’s coral.  To protect and regrow the coral, match three or more identical pods to release nutrients to the ocean floor.

As you match sets of nutrients, you gain points and money. The larger the combo, the more points and money you earn. When you achieve a chain of matches, a polite Asian woman announces your feat. I know this because if you accomplish a triple chain she says, “Tripper” as the word “Triple” flashes on the screen. I don’t know if this is intended, but I found it humorous and a welcome addition to the game. There are also several obstacles as you progress: Ink that prevents pods from popping, bubbles that prevent pods from popping, and shark attacks that prevent you from popping pods.

What Bermuda Triangle does, it does well. The animation and music are spirited and cartoony. There is a shop where you may purchase items with the money you earn in each level. The items, even if there are only four, each do something unique and different. There are also three play modes: story, timed, and endless mode. The story mode consists of four islands to protect, each with ten stages. The time and endless modes both host local high score tables; sorry, no OpenFeint leaderboards.

If I may hazard a guess, the second of four islands to protect should not be named “Minight Blue.” That flaw is only skin-deep and embarrassing at most. There is another issue that is more frustrating; in the shop, you don’t know what an item does until you highlight it with your finger. If you release while the item is still highlighted, consider the item purchased. Wups. I also played through endless, timed, and well over half of story mode with no sight of those black market hunters.

Screenshots:


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