Meteos

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Meteos

Developer(s)	Q Entertainment
Publisher(s)	Bandai, Nintendo (US)
Designer(s)	Masahiro Sakurai
Release date(s)	March 10, 2005 June 27, 2005 September 23, 2005
Genre(s)	Puzzle
Mode(s)	Single player, Multiplayer
Rating(s)	ESRB: E (Everyone) PEGI: 3+ OFLC: G OFLC: PG (Disney Magic)
Platform(s)	Nintendo DS, Mobile Phone
Media	64MB + 64KB EEPROM
Input	Buttons, touch screen

Meteos (メテオス, Meteosu^?) is an action puzzle video game for the Nintendo DS portable gaming system. The name of the game comes from the Japanese word "meteo", meaning and borrowed from the English word meteor. Meteos was developed by Q Entertainment and published by Bandai. The producer for the game was Tetsuya Mizuguchi and lead designer was Masahiro Sakurai. The game was released in Japan on March 10, 2005. The US release date was June 27, 2005 (see 2005 in video gaming).

Meteos has received very favorable reviews and previews. [1] Meteos is often compared to Lumines, a game for PlayStation Portable by the same developer, which both feature falling blocks. In general, Meteos relies heavily on speed and reflexes, while Lumines relies heavily on rhythm and concentration.

1 Gameplay and controls
2 Story
3 Planets
4 Future
5 Trivia
6 Awards
7 See also
8 References
9 External links

[edit] Gameplay and controls

Screenshot of Meteos.

Most of the action takes place at the bottom screen of the DS unit (the section referred to as the atmosphere). Blocks ("Meteos") fall down from the top of the screen and start to form stacks. The player can move blocks up and down in a stack using the stylus, or alternatively by using the control pad and A button.

The player aims to line up three or more matching blocks. When a horizontal or vertical row of at least three blocks is formed, the row of blocks will ignite and turn into a kind of tiny rocket engine. The rocket then pushes the blocks above it towards the top of the screen. To lift a large amount of blocks, additional rows of blocks must be formed in a quick succession (secondary ignition). Also, if an ignited pile of blocks falls back down and, in doing so, causes another set of blocks to ignite, the pile will boost back up again, wider than before. This is called a step jump.

The goal of the game is to lift blocks past the top of the bottom screen, turning them into sparks at the top screen (orbit). If any column of unignited blocks grows beyond the top of the bottom screen and is not dealt with, it's game over (annihilation). When a stack of blocks gets dangerously high, the stack will flash and the game will sound a warning signal, until either the game ends or a quick action by the player averts the disaster.

Holding down the L or R button, or tapping the appropriate on-screen icon, activates the speeder, making blocks fall faster. Certain game modes allow the player to collect items, which produce various helpful effects when the player activates them, or, in the case of smoke screens and weights, by launching them to the opposing planet.

Further adding to the difficulty of the game is that each planet has different physics that affects the size of the playfield, the graphics used for the blocks, the speed of falling blocks, the gravity the blocks experience, and the acceleration that ignition gives the blocks. One world has blocks that fall if as if underwater; in another world, it's almost required to achieve secondary ignition in order to move blocks off the screen. Also, the types of Meteos that fall on a world or that can be launched by others will depend on that world. For all the unburnt Meteos that you do launch, these are accumulated as points in the main screen in order to unlock new worlds that you can use as your base, as well as sound tracks, additional powerups, and other features within the game.

[edit] Story

"It was a dark time... The existence of all planets was threatened by one: the evil planet Meteo. A stream of phantasmagoric matter flowed endlessly from the planet. This matter - called Meteos - crushed life and stole the sparkle of the universe. World after world fell... But then, by chance, three Meteos of the same type aligned. Fusing together, they ignited, firing the other Meteos into space! A defense strategy was formed: the civilizations of each planet launched counterattacks by fusing Meteos in different ways. Thus the last, desperate stand versus Meteo began. The Metamo Ark - a warship made of Meteos ore - set off as a bastion of hope, with the fate of the entire universe resting on a lone civilization's valor."^[1]

The game has numerous endings, which are unlocked by defeating star trip mode in different ways. After an ending is unlocked, credits roll, and the player can play a game of Meteos with tiny blocks and a very tall game board. If one uses the speeder to fill up the board, the credits end prematurely.

[edit] Planets

Geolyte
Anasaze
Oleana
Firim

[edit] Future

On September 7, 2005 mobile gamemaker Gameloft announced that they would be bringing both Meteos and Lumines to cell phones. Also, on April 26, 2006, Buena Vista Games announced they would be publishing Meteos: Disney Magic. ^[2] There is also a Meteos Online game for the PC in Japan.

[edit] Trivia

The desert planet Anasaze is most likely named after the Anasazi, the name given to the cultural group of the Pueblo Native Americans.
The planet Gigagush's soundtrack, aliens, and Meteos graphics appear to be a homage to the classic game Space Invaders.
The planet Mekks's soundtrack is clearly inspired by the sounds of the Famicom (NES) game system; the soundtrack is even named "Famicomic".
The planet Suburbion's inhabitants resemble Zaku units from Mobile Suit Gundam, and its second and third tracks resemble a famous track from the 1979 Gundam TV Series.
The planet Oleana's soundtrack is, for some reason,vaguely Reggae-like. This is probably because of its oceanic theme.

[edit] Awards

CESA GAME AWARDS 2004-2005: Award for Excellence^[3]
IGN: Editor's Choice Award^[4]

[edit] See also

Polarium — a puzzle game for Nintendo DS
Bejeweled — a puzzle game for Palm handhelds and PC, designed for stylus control
Tetris — the classic action puzzle game
Lumines — puzzle game by Q Entertainment, released before Meteos for the PlayStation Portable
Tetris Attack — a puzzle game in many ways similar to Meteos, for Super Nintendo