While its puzzle and role-playing-game mechanics are just as addictive as those of its predecessor, Puzzle Kingdoms takes a huge hit in its presentation. The story--told mostly through walls of text--really only serves as a contrivance for battle. The art design is generic and ugly, and the few animations and sound effects throughout the game are horribly executed. An attack during battle, for example, displays a brief picture of your troop along with a cheap sword clank. When choosing your warlord, your only customizable options are gender and name, and the two available portraits are stock RPG characters. The game's music is adequate but entirely forgettable. Although the core mechanics are solid, the shoddy presentation makes Puzzle Kingdoms seem rushed.
Generic art design doesn't do the game any favors.
The Wii and DS versions of Puzzle Kingdoms are essentially identical, save for minor changes to the control schemes and visual fidelity. The Wii version is prettier to look at, but the DS game has superior controls. As has become a staple of many Wii games, Puzzle Kingdoms tacks on such needless motion controls as swiping the Wii Remote to attack when simply pushing a button would make more sense. It's just easier to slide the tiles you want with the DS' stylus than it is to point at them with the remote.
Because the story and core mechanics are basically the same on both the Wii and DS, your decision will boil down to whether you want to play the game at home or on the go. Either way, you can't go wrong for the asking price. If you're willing to ignore the production values, you'll find an addictive adventure worthy of the "from the creators of Puzzle Quest" moniker that is so proudly displayed on the Puzzle Kingdoms box art.
Puzzle Kingdoms (Wii):
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