Puzzle games, Puzzle games! How many puzzle games can you name?  Well with Hoyle Puzzle Games, let’s see if you know all of the games included in this collection.  With the recent release of the other Hoyle games, Hoyle Puzzle Games follows the trend in the Hoyle series of games with an extensive collection of puzzle games included in the package.  Some games you might be familiar with and some you’re probably not so familiar.

Everyone should be familiar with Crosswords, Hangman, and probably Mahjong.  But have you ever played Edge Tiles, Gravity Tiles, Maze Racer, Placer Racer, or Rays?  You might be surprised that you already have played some of these games before, but under different names.  The assortment of puzzle games included is impressive, but sometimes the games don’t play as well as you might have remembered them.   

You start off in Hoyle Puzzle Games by creating your own character.  Just as in Hoyle Casino (which was reviewed previously by this reviewer), the game includes an impressive create a character menu that allows you to customize the look of your character.  You can change skin tone, face type, hair color, hair type, facial hair, hats and other options.  In fact this is the same create a character mode available in Hoyle Casino.  An impressive feature is if you have your create a character saved in another Hoyle game, you can use that character in Hoyle Puzzle Games.  Just type in the name of your character and his face pops up on the screen.  This was impressive and is a feature that I would like to see other developers implement.

Once you’ve created your character, then you’re ready to select a game.  You can click on one of the games listed on the screen or select a game from the “go to” option at the bottom of the screen.  The list of games included are: Anagrams, Crosswords, Edge Tiles, Gravity Tiles, Hangman, Mahjong Tiles, Maze Racer, Maze Raider, Memory Tiles, Placer Racer, Rays, Slide Tiles, Solitaire Arcade, Star Collector, The Incredible Machine, Time Breaker, and Word Searches.  As mentioned earlier some of the games might now sound familiar, but some are reworked versions of classic games.  For example Time Breaker is essentially a reworked version of Arkanoid / Breakout.  Placer Racer is another version of the Puzzle Bobble style game.  Some of these games have been remade hundreds of times because their timeless, classic games.  

Even a standard game, such as Hangman, can have a few different versions available for play.   You can play either classic Hangman or Challenge Hangman.  Solitaire Arcade includes five different versions of Solitaire to play.  Hoyle Puzzle Games doesn’t limit you to just one version for a few of the games.  Some of the games even include a two-player option to compete against another player. 

Once you’ve selected a game, there is a getting started page that is displayed.  This page is very helpful in understanding how the game is played.  The getting started page allows you to change the settings of the game, such as which player you’re playing with, the settings for the game (such as the difficulty) and an option to view the rules.  These are good options to include in a puzzle game, especially the short summary of the how the game is played.  However, if you select the rules option, the game will exit out of the game to the help menu.  This happens whether you select the rules option from the getting started page or from the help menu at the bottom of the screen.  Once you viewed the rules the game would then return to normal.   Now this wasn’t a big problem, it was an annoyance especially since it seems as if the game is trying to shut down just to bring up the help screen.

Hoyle Puzzle Games offers an entertaining package for those looking to test their skills in a large assortment of puzzle games.   The amount of games available should keep gamers entertained for hours.

Gameplay 6.5 

The interface for the different games are very similar but how each played was a different story.   During Hangman, both my wife and I made several comments that the on screen clues were useless especially when we found out what the answers were.  The same would hold true with other games, especially those few games that didn’t seem to belong in a puzzle game collection.  The main menu interface was easy to maneuver around, but it didn’t feel like I was selecting a puzzle game.  It seemed as if I was selecting a mission to complete in a Science Fiction game.  Another concern was the few games that you had to use the keyboard for controls.  During certain games the computer mentions you can use either the keyboard or mouse to control the game.  But after the game starts, you realize you can only use the keyboard.  The setting option before the game begins doesn’t offer you an option to change the controls.   

Graphics 6.0 

The graphics for the different game types are decent but nothing breathtaking.  Some puzzle games that I’ve played over the internet have better graphics then most of the games included in this collection.  The board games pieces are detailed and each piece is distinguishable.  Each game has its own unique look, but once again nothing dazzling.  I would have never imagined seeing a monkey swinging on a stage while playing a game of Anagrams.  The graphics for the create a character option are good with the different appearances for your character being a plus.

Sound 7.0 

Each game has it’s own unique sound effect.  The effects are based on what type of game you’re playing.  For example, the Solitaire game will have the sound of cards shuffling, while a tile game will replicate the sound of tiles moving.  Each stage also has its own unique soundtrack.  The music of the different stages is good, with some adding a nice ambiance to your game.  If you don’t like the music for the stage you do have the option to change the music.

Difficulty Medium 

As mentioned earlier, some of the game clues seem rather useless during a few of the games.  This wasn’t my own conclusion, but an observation made by someone else.  But, some of the clues had you wishing for a harder challenge.  You have the option to change the difficulty from easy, normal and hard on the games.  If you think the game is too easy, then you can bump up another notch.

Concept 6.5 

Puzzle games have been around for years.  Hoyle Puzzle Games is a nice collection of games, but doesn’t do anything outlandish in how the games are played.  You might have a few different version of a game, but each game is played just as they should be.  Probably the biggest concept pushing idea for the games are the different stages for each game.  For example Time Breaker is based on a classic game (Arkanoid) but you can select from four different ages: Primitive age, Egyptian Age, Medieval and Future.  This isn’t a revolutionary idea, but a good concept for a puzzle game.

Multiplayer 7.0 

Up to two players can compete against each other in some of the games.  Each person has to select his own unique character from the create a character list.  The games can include a timer that each player must follow when playing the game.  For example, in Crosswords you only have 30 seconds to fill in as many words as possible.  After the 30 seconds, it’s the other players turn.  It would have been nice to have an online option for some of the games, but this feature was not included in the game.

Overall 6.6 

Hoyle Puzzle Games is an entertaining collection of classic puzzle games that should please most gamers.  The assortment of games, quick start guide should please puzzle addicts.  The instruction manual does include a detailed description for each of the games included.  This is an excellent way to learn how to play all of the games included, especially those games that can be played without the need for a computer.  However Hoyle Puzzle Games doesn’t offer anything in a puzzle collection that hasn’t been done before.  The simple graphics and strange gameplay problems could cause be an issue with the casual gamer.  In fact in today’s world of games available online, Hoyle Puzzle Games might not be enough bang for your buck to convince you of the purchase.  It offers a decent puzzle collection, but not enough to keep you coming back for more over and over again.