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Dokuro review: The Mr. Skullhead Show

Heidi Kemps — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 13:30:00 EST

Let's talk about puzzle games. When you hear the term, your mind usually goes to falling-block stuff like Tetris and Puyo Puyo, right? But it's broad terminology: it can also apply to games in which you are presented with a series of problems that need solving - say, escaping a room, moving objects into certain positions, solving riddles ... you know what I mean, right?

Well, I have an issue with these games: I'm almost universally terrible at them. I can't really tell you why, either. I like most of the ones I play, mind you. But as soon as I start feeling that twinge of frustration from a solution that eludes me, I hop on the internet and turn on Youtube. If I don't, I'm just going to fluster myself trying to figure it out. By the time the game reaches its climax, I have a controller under one hand and my laptop under the other, checking to make sure I'm doing everything right.

This is one of the reasons why GungHo and GameArts's Dokuro sticks out so much. For perhaps the first time since the original Portal, I'm not immediately running to the online solution bin the moment things start to get tricky. I'm savoring the feeling of gradually figuring things out for myself, discovering how mechanics work together and deducing how they can be used to accomplish the task at hand, and I'm loving it.

Gallery: Dokuro

Continue reading Dokuro review: The Mr. Skullhead Show

Dokuro review: The Mr. Skullhead Show originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 24 Oct 2012 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Vita's Dokuro out on October 16

JC Fletcher — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 20:00:00 EST

There's too much to play this month even if you restrict yourself to just PSN releases. Case in point: Dokuro, Game Arts and Gungho Online Entertainment's puzzle-platformer about a little skeleton guy escorting a princess out of a trap-filled castle.

Dokuro launches on Vita October 16, the same day as Silent Hill: Book of Memories. Though we're panicking about finding time to play all this, we can't complain about having too many things to play on Vita for once, especially with Sony's "spend $100, get $20 back" PSN deal.

Continue reading Vita's Dokuro out on October 16

Vita's Dokuro out on October 16 originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 08 Oct 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Vita puzzle platformer Dokuro chalks up PSN release in Oct.

JC Fletcher — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 17:00:00 EST

Dokuro, a very cute puzzle platformer from Grandia developer Game Arts, will be released on Vita in North America in October. The PSN exclusive game stars a little skeleton man who attempts to rescue a princess from the Dark Lord who kidnapped her ... and who happens to be Dokuro's own master.

Dokuro must move ahead of the Princess, manipulating the environment and solving puzzles to create a safe path for her. Later, you gain access to abilities, like a "Hero Transformation" that lets you fight, and chalks that allow you to redraw the chalk drawing-esque environment.

Vita puzzle platformer Dokuro chalks up PSN release in Oct. originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 14 Sep 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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