1. Games
    Compile games  Sonic Team-developed games  International releases  Other releases 

2. Gameplay

3. Development

4. Reception

5. References

6. External links

• Compile (1991–2000)
• Sonic Team (2001–present)}}

• Compile (1991–2000)
• Sega (1992–present)}}

Games

Compile games

The first Puyo Puyo game was developed by Compile and released in 1991 for the MSX2 and Family Computer Disk System; the latter release was published by Tokuma Shoten as a pack-in for their Famimaga magazine. The puzzle game features characters from the 1990 RPG Madō Monogatari 1-2-3, also developed by Compile. The game includes "Endless" mode, where the player attempts to amass a large score, "Mission" mode, where the player is given a pre-configured board and must attempt to satisfy conditions, and a two-player competitive mode.

Compile and Sega collaborated to create an arcade version of Puyo Puyo. It was released in October 1992 for Sega's System C2 hardware.^[2] Unlike the previous release, the game focuses entirely on competitive play; the single-player mode consists of a gauntlet consisting of either 3, 10, or 13 computer opponents, while the multiplayer mode allows two human players to battle each other. The game was ported to several major platforms in Japan, with the Mega Drive becoming a bestseller.^[3]

The game was followed by Puyo Puyo 2 in September 1994, also released for Sega System C2.^[4] 2 adds the ability to counter the opponent's chains; additionally, it changes the single-player gauntlet from a linear structure to a roulette-based structure that requires the player to pass certain score thresholds to advance. Like its predecessor, 2 was also released on a variety of home platforms. In 2004, it was included in the Sega Ages 2500 line of PlayStation 2 games.

Puyo Puyo Sun, released in 1996 for the Sega Titan Video arcade hardware, adds a "Sun Puyo" mechanic that allows the player to send extra Nuisance to opponents. Puyo Puyo~n, released in 1999 for the Dreamcast, adds character-specific powers that assist the player in clearing Puyo. Compile's final Puyo Puyo game, Puyo Puyo BOX, includes ports of the first two arcade games alongside original content.

Compile also released a variety of spin-off titles on home consoles, handhelds, and through their Disc Station disk magazine. The Nazo Puyo series expands on the original Puyo Puyo's Mission mode, with the 1994 Nazo Puyo: Arle no Roux for Game Gear, 1995 Super Nazo Puyo: Rulue no Roux for Super Famicom and 1996 Super Nazo Puyo 2: Rulue no Tetsuwan Hanjouki for Super Famicom introducing RPG elements. Other notable spin-offs include the roguelike Waku Waku Puyo Puyo Dungeon (1998, Sega Saturn and PlayStation), Puyo Puyo DA! dancing game (1998, Arcade and Dreamcast), and Arle no Bouken: Mahou no Jewel monster-collecting RPG (2000, Game Boy Color).

Sonic Team-developed games

Sonic Team's first Puyo Puyo games were Minna de Puyo Puyo for the Game Boy Advance, released in Japan in 2001 and elsewhere in 2002 as Puyo Pop. It is one of three games named Puyo Pop, the others being the Neo Geo Pocket Color port of 2 and an N-Gage-exclusive game.

Sega released Puyo Pop Fever on November 26, 2003 for their NAOMI arcade hardware. The game features an almost entirely new set of characters, alongside new gameplay mechanics such as Fever Mode. Like its arcade predecessors, Fever was ported to many platforms; the Dreamcast version notably serves as Sega's final first party video game. A direct sequel, Puyo Puyo Fever 2 was released in 2005. Fever 2 added more characters and an expanded single-player mode. Puyo Puyo 7, released in 2009, adds a third protagonist and includes a new "Transformation" gameplay system.

In addition, games celebrating Puyo Puyo's 15th and 20th Anniversary were released. Puyo Puyo! 15th Anniversary (2006) includes more than ten gameplay rulesets, including the rules of the first Puyo Puyo, 2, and Fever, reintroduces characters that were absent from the series since Minna de Puyo Puyo, and gives every character in the game a single-player story. Puyo Puyo!! 20th Anniversary (2011) adds even more rulesets, such as Sun rules.

Puyo Puyo was a mini-game in Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai Deluxe/DX in 2015. In the mini-game, the Vocaloid you play with has to win against the Vocaloids that you are not playing as currently. Also costumes of Arle and the Dark Prince are unlockable in the mini-game. Technically, the mini-game marks as the first Puyo Puyo game overseas in over a decade.

International releases

The 1992 arcade Puyo Puyo was translated to English with character name changes and minor visual changes to the Harpy (renamed Dark Elf) character's skit. {{citation needed|date=August 2018}} The Game Gear port of the 1992 arcade game, when used in a non-Japanese Game Gear, loads a similar version titled Puzlow Kids; however, the Game Gear version never officially left Japan. {{citation needed|date=August 2018}}

Instead of directly translating the Mega Drive version of the 1992 arcade game, Sega decided to replace the Madou Monogatari cast with Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog villains. The resulting game, Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, was released in 1993. Nintendo followed suit in 1995, modifying Super Puyo Puyo into Kirby's Avalanche (Kirby's Ghost Trap in Europe). Spectrum HoloByte also released a Puyo Puyo title for Microsoft Windows 3.1 and the Macintosh in August 1995, under the name Qwirks.^[9]

The next localized release was in 1999, when SNK published the Neo Geo Pocket Color port of Puyo Puyo 2 in English as Puyo Pop. Unlike the arcade translation, most characters kept their original names; only the character Satan retained his English arcade title of the Dark Prince. {{citation needed|date=August 2018}} After the Game Boy Advance Puyo Pop, Puyo Pop Fever saw a worldwide release, with North America receiving the GameCube and Nintendo DS versions and Europe receiving it on the majority of platforms it came out on. {{citation needed|date=August 2018}} Finally, the Mega Drive version of 2 was released, untranslated, on the Wii's Virtual Console as an import title and the arcade version of 2 is included in Sega 3D Classics Collection. {{citation needed|date=August 2018}} Also the N-Gage Puyo Pop was released worldwide in 2003. {{citation needed|date=August 2018}} As the game Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai Deluxe/DX was released worldwide, consequently also its Puyo Puyo mini-game saw release outside Japan. Sonic Runners ran a collaboration event with Puyo Puyo!! Quest in July 2015. {{citation needed|date=August 2018}}

On January 12, 2017, it was announced that Puyo Puyo Tetris would come overseas on the Nintendo Switch and the PlayStation 4 in Q2 2017.^[10] This marks the first time a localized Puyo Puyo game was marketed overseas under its original name.

In August 2017, the game Sonic Mania and its July 2018 enhanced remake, Sonic Mania Plus included a canonical version of the Mean Bean Machine from Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine as the boss of the Chemical Plant Zone, which acts as a minigame version of Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, which must be beaten in order to progress. ^[11] It's also possible to unlock a standalone version of the minigame. ^[12]

Other releases

An unofficial Puyo Puyo game named Super Foul Egg was featured as a cover disk for Amiga Power after the magazine commented that the Amiga lacks a good substitute. {{citation needed|date=August 2018}}

Disney Interactive released its own version of Puyo Puyo for Windows 95 and Macintosh named Timon & Pumbaa's Bug Drop in 1995 as part of the Disney's Game Shot series of PC games. This version features Disney characters Timon & Pumbaa from The Lion King, and Puyo are replaced by bugs.^[13] This version was later included in the PC compilation game Timon & Pumbaa's Jungle Games, simply titled Bug Drop.

2003's Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg features an unlockable Puyo Pop minigame, which requires the use of the Nintendo GameCube – Game Boy Advance link cable to download the minigame to a Game Boy Advance, but it must be linked with a Puyo Pop (video game) GBA Cartridge in order to play.^[14]

In July 2005, Bandai released Kidou Gekidan Haro Ichiza: Haro no Puyo Puyo (機動劇団はろ一座 ハロのぷよぷよ) (lit. "Mobile Theatrical Company Haro: Haro's Puyo Puyo") in Japan for the GBA.^[15] It is based on the Mobile Suit Gundam anime series and presented in the style of the SD Gundam series. In this game, Puyo are replaced by Gundam's mascot, Haro.

Other clones include the 1995 game Outfall for Amiga^[16] and Candy Crisis for Windows and OS X.^[17]

On September 10, 2015, it was announced that Rin Hoshizora of the anime Love Live! will serve as the new star of the Puyo Puyo games, though it is unknown if this is to be a one-time spin-off (similar to Haro no Puyo Puyo) or a part of the main series.^[18]

A new mobile game, Puyo!! Touch, was released for iOS and Android devices in November 26, 2015.^[19]

A free-to-play version, Puyo Puyo Vs., was released for Microsoft Windows and focuses on multiplayer battles, but the service shutdown in 2016 due to the low market-share of people playing.^[20]

Gameplay

The objective of the game is to defeat all opponents in a battle by causing the third spot from the left in the top row (which is depicted with a red X in later versions of Puyo Puyo) to become occupied by something that does not immediately leave. The Puyo (plural: Puyo) are round, slime-like creatures who, in most variations of the game, fall from the top of the screen in pairs, triplets, or tetrads. The piece can be moved, dropped, and rotated using the controller or joystick. The piece falls until it reaches another Puyo or the bottom of the screen.^[22]

When four or more Puyo of the same color line up adjacent to each other, they disappear. Puyo connect horizontally or vertically, but not diagonally; the whole group needs not be a line, but can be any tetromino or larger. This is called Popping. For example, the A pieces pop in grids 1 and 2, but not 3.

The Puyo above those that are cleared fall onto other pieces or the bottom of the screen. Simultaneous Pops (同時消し, simultaneous erasing) are created when more than one group is formed at a time. For example, grid 4 has a popping group of five, grid 5 has two Simultaneous Pops of four for a total of eight Puyo popped, and grid 6 has three groups of five for fifteen Simultaneous Pops.

A Chain is made when falling Puyo cause a new group of Puyo to Pop, making a chain reaction. For example, grid 7 will form a 2 Chain, grid 8 will form a 3 Chain, and grid 9 will form a 5 Chain.

When a Chain is achieved, Nuisance Puyo, or Ojama Puyo (お邪魔ぷよ, hindrance Puyo) are sent to either clog the opponent's screen or to cancel out (offset, 相殺) the Nuisance Puyo sent by the opponent. Nuisance Puyo are translucent pieces that disappear when Puyo are popped next to them. If multiple groups of Puyo are cleared in succession due to a chain, the amount of Nuisance Puyo will increase based solely on the number of steps in the chain. Nuisance Puyo are cached above the opponent's playing field, and do not fall until the attacker's chain concludes, and then the defender puts down a piece. Nuisance Puyo block the opponents' playing fields, and can cause them to lose if one is placed the third spot from the left in the top row.

Development

In March 1998, Sega obtained the rights to the Puyo Puyo series and its characters from Compile, while Compile continued to develop and publish Puyo Puyo games, even on platforms that Sega was competing against. These games include Sega in their copyright information.^[24][25][26] Prior to assuming full development duties for the franchise, Sega ported Puyo Puyo 2 to the WonderSwan and Neo Geo Pocket Color.

Reception

As of 2001, the series had sold over 10 million copies.^[27] In 2016, Sega reported that the series has sold 22 million copies (including retail and digital sales) since they obtained the rights.

References

External links

• {{official website|http://puyo.sega.jp/}} {{jp icon}}

• Transaction velocity of money
• Trans-activating crRNA
• Transactive memory system
• Transactive Memory System
• Transactor
• Transactor Publishing
• Trans Aer
• Transaereo BN-2A-27 Islander crash
• Transaereo BN-2A-27 Islander Crash
• Transaero Airlines
• TranSAFE-Alp
• Trans-Afghan Gas Pipeline
• Trans Africa
• TransAfrica Forum
• Trans-African Highway 6
• Trans-African Highway 8
• Transafrik
• Transair Georgia Tu-154B (85163)
• Transair-Gyraintiee
• Trans-Alaska Pipeline Authorization Act of 1973
• Trans Alaska Pipeline System
• TransAlbany
• Transalkylation
• Transalkylidenation
• Transall C-160D