To some, Meteos: Disney Magic could be considered blasphemy. Not only is a significant change made to the core gameplay mechanics, the setting has gone all Kingdom Hearts on us. Instead of launching alien trash into the sky, we’re shooting cannon balls back at the Black Pearl, or sea gems at King Triton. The original Meteos is highly regarded, so it’s understandable to see that sort of backlash, but a refusal to pick up this title based on the license alone would amount to skipping an important step in the evolution of one of the most promising new puzzle series in years.
Just like in the original Meteos, Disney Magic requires players to line up a combination of three or more of the same block in a row, either vertically or horizontally. The blocks fall in a steady stream from the sky. When the pieces are lined up they explode and launch into the air, propelling any piece on top of them skyward. If the blast wasn’t strong enough to clear them past the top of the screen, you can line up more pieces in the rocket-powered cluster to keep the blast going, or send up another group from the bottom of the board to join forces with those already airborne.
Disney Magic makes a fairly substantial change to the gameplay, which will drastically alter any strategies learned in the original game. The first title only allowed players to move their pieces vertically, but here, you can move them horizontally as well. This removes some of the careful planning, but opens up a long hallway of doors in terms of additional strategies. Is it slightly dumbed down? Maybe, but it becomes a much more accessible game because of this. Also, the game has adopted the DS "book style" holding stance as seen in Brain Age.
Another stigma this game faces is the Disney licenses slapped onto it. And while it doesn’t necessarily hurt the game, it doesn’t really do anything to make a better product either. The original Meteos set levels on different planets, and each planet had its own field of gravity. This meant the pieces would be heavier on some planets, or launch easily on others. There’s no discernable reason why each Disney story (read: level) has its own gravity, but it’s nice to see that gameplay element made the trip to this edition. The music isn’t as high quality as it could be since the tracks sound like Midi versions of songs from the movies, but they’re not distractingly bad, just disappointing.
A lack of Wi-Fi multiplayer is a serious downside for this title, since it practically begs for worldwide competition. Instead you’ll have to settle for system-to-system multiplayer (up to four players, in fact) and a moderately sized "story mode." Of course, there’s no real story, just levels to beat with restrictions, mostly of the "launch X blocks in this time limit" type, but it provides a decent challenge on the later levels.
In short, Meteos: Disney Magic isn’t anywhere near the train wreck people expected, and instead proves to be a pivotal step in the development of a series destined for classic status. Sure the lack of great music, slapped on licenses, and a lack of Wi-Fi play might deter some until the official Meteos 2 hits, but puzzle fans would be doing themselves a disservice ignoring this game.
