Reviews// Boulder Dash Rocks

So. The good stuff.

Boulder Dash Rocks is well presented. Rockford and his world have had a graphical overhaul to bring him up to date and the result is easy on the eye. It won't blow you away, but it works well for a DS puzzler.

It's got plenty of longevity. This is partly due to the 130+ levels on offer and partly thanks to reasons that will become apparent shortly.

It's also very easy to chew in nice, bite-sized chunks. I played Boulder Dash Rocks on my hellish commute to and from work (which consists of several short bouts of suffering on public transport). The short time limits on the levels made it very easy to pick up and put down - I only missed my stop once.

Alas (leading us into the bad stuff), much of the time I spent playing it on my commute was spent repeating the same level. (Oh, would you stop bleating about your commute. Churlish Ed.)

Boulder Dash Rocks eases you in nice and gently over the first few stages as you get used to how it works, but the difficulty curve steepens dramatically after that. The number of times I had to repeat levels quickly got embarrassing, even though I was playing alone. I came close on several occasions to doing damage to SPOnG's DS as I yelled my frustration at it.

The problem comes from the fact that there's no way of avoiding a trial and error approach. You're not shown enough of a given level to properly anticipate the obstacles coming your way, meaning that you have to fall victim to them then memorise the best way to avoid death or entombment.

Gone is the great big map view of yore to be replaced with a fairly tight focus on Rockford. As well as limiting your ability to anticipate problems, the smaller view also comes with a limited number of ways to approach problems. The puzzles are not quite linear – there might be a couple of ways to complete a given stage but there's certainly not a large selection of solutions to pick out.

That said, the game is rewarding at points. The tension added by the timer makes nipping through the exit at the last moment immensely satisfying, especially following several botched attempts at a level. I don't mind admitting that there was a bit of air-punching that went on, though thankfully not on the bus.

The DS has a special game mode all of its own dubbed Route Race. It basically involves the same gameplay mechanic as the Planet Tour, but you have to map out your route in advance with the stylus. Once you've realised that accidentally running the stylus over a tile occupied by a wall will stop Rockford going any further, it works well enough, but my general feeling towards it was a bit... 'Meh'.


It feels like 10tacle thought, "It's the DS! Must... use... touchscreen". I found myself rather promptly returning to Planet Tour, resigning Route Race to the category of 'tacked on'.

[b][i]SPOnG Score: 68%

Conclusion
Basically, enjoyment of Boulder Dash Rocks hinges on two things: how much nostalgia you hold for the original; how much you enjoy perseverance. If you loved the original, give this a whirl. It's not without its charm and it'll tickle your inner child. If you get a kick out battling your frustrations so that you can steam out of the other end and punch the air, Boulder Dash Rocks will strike a chord with your inner champion.

If neither of the above apply, leave it alone.[/i][/b]