RSS
Not only is Mr. Driller a pet name for my dentist, but it is a touching game for the Nintendo DS!
December 10, 2004 | 2:27 PM PSTby: Stephen Smith
Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits is literally my first DS game review. The feeling of excitement just seemed to build as I opened the packaging, and inserted the game into my relatively new DS. After my brief first play session I breathed a sigh of relief. Mr. Driller is back, and better than ever.
As you probable already know Mr. Driller is a fairly well known franchise, spanning across such platforms as the original Playstation, Dreamcast, and even our very own Game Boy Color. Despite its cross platform status, this series is more of a cult favorite than a full-fledged hit. One reason why this may lie is the fact that Mr. Driller is a puzzle based game like Tetris. Usually, it is difficult for any puzzle game to separate itself from the pack, even if it incorporates new ideas and play mechanics.
If you have never had the opportunity to try out Mr. Driller, here are the basics. Your character descends into a shaft filled with multi colored blocks. You simply drill blocks to remove them and attempt to make your way down through the shaft to the finish line. You simply line up four or more of the same colored blocks to cause a chain reaction to eliminate them with one strike. Where the design really comes into its own is in two subtle details that make Mr. Driller unlike anything on the market. The first is you need air, apparently this is a needed commodity for drilling, and if you don’t pick up the air icons as you drill, you will no doubt perish. Basically think of your air supply as a timer.
The second one --however-- takes a bit of explaining. Essentially, gravity plays a very active role in Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits. Falling blocks can kill you instantly. The way to combat this problem lies with the way same colored blocks behave. Once you have two or more of the same colored blocks lined up they congeal, creating a larger block that is less likely to fall.
This is essentially the basic game design that all of Namco’s Driller games possess. Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits does add some new features to the series. The foremost change revolves around the dual screen setup of the new Nintendo DS. The bottom, or touch screen is where the game takes it focus. But as you slowly drill downwards, the top screen shows a extended view of what is directly above the central play field. This really helps players know where crucial weak points are located, and because of this, players can make a better judgment call on how to compensate for the various actions that may or may not take place. This really is my favorite feature of Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits, it makes the game far more enjoyable because I don’t have to remember where I stacked certain blocks. It's right there on the top screen.
Another addition that takes advantage of the Nintendo DS is in the area of control. Players can use the control pad, or opt to try the stylus. Controlling your driller with the touch screen is very different at first. Due in large to the need to tap the block (or blocks) that you want drilled, while moving your driller is accomplished by placing the stylus on him/her, and dragging them across the screen. As far as I can tell though, there's no real advantage to using the touch screen over the control pad. They both work, so it is up to the player to decide what control scheme they prefer. I prefer using the stylus because it creates an experience unlike any puzzle game I have ever played.
Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits contains four distinct play modes that include:
Mission Driller: This mode allows the player to visit different locales for his drilling exploits.
Pressure Driller: One of the most unique additions is Pressure Driller. In this mode a Destroyer Drill is sent to eliminate you. To make sure this doesn’t happen, you shoot fireballs at certain weak points on the Destroyer Drill. How does it work? You collect power capsules. The intricate part, though, is you can charge your fireball up to three times to do extra damage. But your character can only shoot one fireball at a time. In other words, you cannot store multiple shots, only power up your fireball.
Time Attack: This is the standard "beat the clock to the finish line" mode. What makes this unique is that picking up certain icons will cause the screen to flip, or turn 90 degrees.
Driller Race (Multi player): Wirelessly compete against up to five people in a race to the finish line. The downside to this is that it requires each participant to have a copy of Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits.
All of these game modes encompass multiple locations and as you progress through the game, new content and characters will be unlocked. The new characters span from the typical, to the whimsical. You have a robot named Holinger-Z, to a genius talking dog-named Puchi. These drillers also have special abilities like Holinger-Z who can survive one hit from a falling block or Taizo Hori, who can destroy blocks faster than anyone else in the game. All the characters have advantages, and weaknesses, so this adds variety to the overall game design. A total of five characters are hidden in Drill Spirits, and if you add in the default driller Susumu Hori, you have a grand total of six.
Want to know how big of a geek I am? Well, when I read that Taizo Hori --the star of the classic Namco arcade game Dig Dug-- also happened to be the father of the previously mentioned Susumu Hori; I almost shed a tear of joy.
...
While I was waiting for my review copy, I began to look at other impressions of Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits. Some felt that the Nintendo DS abilities weren’t fully realized in this product. This, to some extent is true. Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits doesn’t require you to use the touch screen, and it is honestly --as I stated earlier in this article-- just up to the player. But I feel that this is a mute argument, as a game doesn’t have to take full advantage of every little aspect of any system to be good. Besides, this is a first generation launch title. They haven’t had that much experience with the Nintendo DS architecture.
Here is the Drill!
All things considered, Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits is a success. My only real complaint is the lack of single cartridge multiplayer. I fail to see why they couldn’t include this. Even if you don’t consider yourself a fan of this genre, the gameplay is so well executed that it can easily appeal to a more diverse audience. Definitely a a wonderful addition to the DS growing library of games.
-- Stephen Smith
As you probable already know Mr. Driller is a fairly well known franchise, spanning across such platforms as the original Playstation, Dreamcast, and even our very own Game Boy Color. Despite its cross platform status, this series is more of a cult favorite than a full-fledged hit. One reason why this may lie is the fact that Mr. Driller is a puzzle based game like Tetris. Usually, it is difficult for any puzzle game to separate itself from the pack, even if it incorporates new ideas and play mechanics.
If you have never had the opportunity to try out Mr. Driller, here are the basics. Your character descends into a shaft filled with multi colored blocks. You simply drill blocks to remove them and attempt to make your way down through the shaft to the finish line. You simply line up four or more of the same colored blocks to cause a chain reaction to eliminate them with one strike. Where the design really comes into its own is in two subtle details that make Mr. Driller unlike anything on the market. The first is you need air, apparently this is a needed commodity for drilling, and if you don’t pick up the air icons as you drill, you will no doubt perish. Basically think of your air supply as a timer.
The second one --however-- takes a bit of explaining. Essentially, gravity plays a very active role in Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits. Falling blocks can kill you instantly. The way to combat this problem lies with the way same colored blocks behave. Once you have two or more of the same colored blocks lined up they congeal, creating a larger block that is less likely to fall.
This is essentially the basic game design that all of Namco’s Driller games possess. Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits does add some new features to the series. The foremost change revolves around the dual screen setup of the new Nintendo DS. The bottom, or touch screen is where the game takes it focus. But as you slowly drill downwards, the top screen shows a extended view of what is directly above the central play field. This really helps players know where crucial weak points are located, and because of this, players can make a better judgment call on how to compensate for the various actions that may or may not take place. This really is my favorite feature of Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits, it makes the game far more enjoyable because I don’t have to remember where I stacked certain blocks. It's right there on the top screen.
Another addition that takes advantage of the Nintendo DS is in the area of control. Players can use the control pad, or opt to try the stylus. Controlling your driller with the touch screen is very different at first. Due in large to the need to tap the block (or blocks) that you want drilled, while moving your driller is accomplished by placing the stylus on him/her, and dragging them across the screen. As far as I can tell though, there's no real advantage to using the touch screen over the control pad. They both work, so it is up to the player to decide what control scheme they prefer. I prefer using the stylus because it creates an experience unlike any puzzle game I have ever played.
Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits contains four distinct play modes that include:
All of these game modes encompass multiple locations and as you progress through the game, new content and characters will be unlocked. The new characters span from the typical, to the whimsical. You have a robot named Holinger-Z, to a genius talking dog-named Puchi. These drillers also have special abilities like Holinger-Z who can survive one hit from a falling block or Taizo Hori, who can destroy blocks faster than anyone else in the game. All the characters have advantages, and weaknesses, so this adds variety to the overall game design. A total of five characters are hidden in Drill Spirits, and if you add in the default driller Susumu Hori, you have a grand total of six.
Want to know how big of a geek I am? Well, when I read that Taizo Hori --the star of the classic Namco arcade game Dig Dug-- also happened to be the father of the previously mentioned Susumu Hori; I almost shed a tear of joy.
...
While I was waiting for my review copy, I began to look at other impressions of Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits. Some felt that the Nintendo DS abilities weren’t fully realized in this product. This, to some extent is true. Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits doesn’t require you to use the touch screen, and it is honestly --as I stated earlier in this article-- just up to the player. But I feel that this is a mute argument, as a game doesn’t have to take full advantage of every little aspect of any system to be good. Besides, this is a first generation launch title. They haven’t had that much experience with the Nintendo DS architecture.
Here is the Drill!
All things considered, Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits is a success. My only real complaint is the lack of single cartridge multiplayer. I fail to see why they couldn’t include this. Even if you don’t consider yourself a fan of this genre, the gameplay is so well executed that it can easily appeal to a more diverse audience. Definitely a a wonderful addition to the DS growing library of games.
-- Stephen Smith
November 20, 2009
