Polarium for a song
by Ben Zackheim 
{ Apr 21st 2005 at 9:01AM }
We like deals. We assume you like deals, too. Polarium, the new puzzle game for the Nintendo
DS, is already going for fire sale prices. Fry's has the game for $23 in store and
$25 online, via Outpost.
This is usually a sign of one of two things. Either the game is awful and they can't move units, or the publisher thinks they should get the hot potato in people's hands ASAP. Good word of mouth is everything in gaming. Polarium may not have garnered the best reviews, but it does have good buzz going, from what we've heard.
Everybody is talking about puzzle games these days. Could this be the beginning of a trend?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Tyler Weir @ Dec 18th 2005 8:44PM
Polarium is lots of fun. It's a great game for the "casual gamer." I don't have the time to devote to most games, but I do have 10 minutes to whip off a game of Polarium.
I'm looking forward to Meteos. The DS is well-equiped for puzzlers.
Chris Norman @ Dec 18th 2005 8:44PM
The fact that I've heard nothing about plans to port Picross to the DS is completely perplexing. If ever there were a platform more ripe for the title (although maybe Nintendo Japan feels they blew their wad with the 20 or so that they released for the SNES, that never made it over to the U.S.)
Also, I'd kill for a DS Mario Paint.
eb @ Dec 18th 2005 8:44PM
It says 24.99 on outpost.com but when you try to add it to your cart, you get 29.99. Lovely.
Arson @ Dec 18th 2005 8:44PM
I imported Polarium back during the games drought (you know, that time ago... oh wait, we're still in it). It's a fun little puzzler with a minimalist design. My only gripe with it is there's no game clock... beating the puzzles with a game clock would have added so much longevity to the game.
SetupWeasel @ Dec 18th 2005 8:44PM
Polarium was released for less than a typical DS game in both Japan and Europe.
Chris @ Dec 18th 2005 8:44PM
Gamers are getting older. This means gamers are getting jobs. This means gamers have less time for games. Hence, quick pick-up games are becoming more popular because you can drop them just as quickly whereas Final Fantasy will suck your life away.
boon @ Dec 18th 2005 8:44PM
I imported Chokkan Hitofude months ago, and it was only $24. It's a great little puzzler that I still go back to. The Challenge mode is next to impossible for me though.
the2bears @ Dec 18th 2005 8:44PM
If I can get my DS back from my wife (Zookeeper addict) I'll feed her dependency with this...
Bill
Matthew @ Dec 18th 2005 8:44PM
Chris, I totally agree with you.
someone @ Dec 18th 2005 8:44PM
Polarium is fiendishly addictvely impossibly brilliant in puzzle mode. My damn sister is better than me and I STILL can't beat her high score. It's becoming embarrassing now, I'm running out of excuses.
VAStateOfMind @ Dec 18th 2005 8:44PM
The Outpost/Fry's online price now correctly shows $29.99 on both the web page and in the shopping cart. Frankly, I haven't seen this game for any cheaper than this price, online or in the stores. In fact, I PRE-ORDERED it at a GameStop store a couple weeks back to ensure I got my mitts on it on release day. (I've never pre-ordered anything in my life.) They're charging $35.00 in the store -- ouch -- but it is well worth even that price.
I am a puzzle fan, and Polarium is the one DS game that I have been waiting for months to arrive in the U.S. I finally picked up my copy from GameStop yesterday, and played it for HOURS last evening. We're talking "digital crack." I can't imagine why its average review score hovers in the mid-70s (out of a possible total of 100), because I think it's a phenomenal, enjoyable game.
Yes, reviewers have been razzing the game's Challenge Mode (which works a bit like Tetris, with falling rows of tile) because of its use of repetitive formations, but since I rarely clear tiles the same way EVERY time given the time limits, I've found very little repetition in Challenge. Yes, the initial 100 puzzles included in Puzzle Mode will eventually run out, but with the password system and the ability to create and share new puzzles, Polarium's shelf life is extended indefinitely. I haven't had a chance to test Multi-player Mode yet -- my two sons refused to compete with me last night. (They each have their own DS, and after beaming them the Polarium demo last evening they were each screaming at me in frustration -- in a good way.) Multi-player Mode is almost universally praised in reviews, though.
My Zoo Keeper addiction has been cured -- and replaced with another in this game. Polarium is VERY HIGHLY recommended -- at any price -- if you're a puzzle fan (and even if you're not). You can spend as a little as a few minutes or as much as a few hours playing this gem...
keltainensusi @ Dec 18th 2005 8:44PM
This and zookeeper are constantly fighting over my DS playtime, when I insert other, it will be only game i play for weeks until I replace it with the other.. its vicious circle!!
Low scores for polarium are probably due its grafical outlook. But for me it means nothing, gameplay is right up there with tetris <3
WizarDru @ Dec 18th 2005 8:44PM
All I know is my wife picked it up yesterday, and after a long, LONG day at work, I got home and tried it. Thirty minutes later, I was saying: "I've got to put this down and go to bed." I was still saying it 10 minutes later. Solid.
Zookeeper is actually pretty good, too...but the music may be the most annoying EVAR.
Geez @ Dec 18th 2005 8:44PM
#10 tell me about it, I share the same pain. My sister (28 yrs old) has become addicted to the DS, she visits at the weekend and can barely put it down even though she's a "non-gamer" - and she's got all three high scores on Polarium. Anyway it's a REALLY good game and one everyone should own and enjoy, regardless of reviewers desire for fancy graphics as well as amazing gameplay.
And this game cost me 2/3 the usual DS games price at the Euro launch, it obviously didn't take long to make so we get it cheap - I suppose that's the joy of the DS, new original games that are a joy to play and cheap to buy.