Pieces (SNES) Playthrough - NintendoComplete
177A playthrough of Atlus's 1994 puzzle game for the Super NES, Pieces.
This video shows the entire story mode.
Pieces, originally named Jigsaw Party for its original Super Famicom release, is a classic puzzle game in the most literal sense - it's a game that focuses on actual jigsaw puzzles. I remember reading a few reviews of it around the time it came out and wondering why this would appeal to anyone - a real jigsaw puzzle cost a small fraction of the price of a SNES cart back in 1994. Needless to say, I pointedly ignored it.
Fast-forward several years, and I finally sat down to give it a shot, and you know what? I know how to admit when I'm wrong. It's a great game. I suppose it just goes to show the kinds of things that we might miss if we're too quick to judge something that seems unfamiliar, but it seems as if I wasn't the only one. The game never got much recognition at all, and it remains pretty obscure, even today.
That's really unfortunate, because if ever there was such a thing as a "hidden gem," Pieces would be it. Somehow it subverts any expectations I had held for it as a puzzle game in any sense of the word. It's a fast paced, arcade-style multi-player title that ends up being incredibly fun.
It's presented something like Kirby's Avalanche or Puyo Puyo - the playfield (in most of the game types) is split into halves, and the goal is to complete three puzzles before your goofy, anime-style opponent can. With each piece you correctly place, you add to your power gauge at the bottom of the screen, and as the gauge fills, you get access to increasingly useful special moves. Some of them, like "auto" and "help," make it easier to complete your puzzles quickly, while others wreak havoc on your opponents efforts by doing things like removing already placed pieces or freezing their cursor. The unpredictable back-and-forth dynamic that this system introduces makes playing against a friend an absolute blast, and it reminds me a great deal of Super Mario Kart for how frantic it can make things.
It's a shame that most people seem to have never even heard of this one, but if you like games that sit on the more quirky end of the 16-bit spectrum, this is a standout.
And big props to Atlus for the surprise inclusion of a Rockin' Kats (or N. Y. Nyankies in Japan) tribute in puzzle form. I got a huge kick out of that one! The puzzle is actually the cover of the 1991 NES game. If you're at all interested in Rockin' Kats - it's quite a fun, unique platformer - you can find my playthrough of it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZTm4EpWL4w
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No cheats were used during the recording of this video.
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