after 25 games away we break upon the shores of puyo puyo; i'm glad it's taken so long, that we've swam in the goopy recesses of 1996, so that i can appreciate what a magical, incredible thing Compile was doing. Puyo Puyo is mechanically crystalline, marred here only by the easy-garbage over-aggression inherent in Suns. the only rule is that four blocks of matching color clears -- and everything spirals out from there. but to take such a foundation and layer elegant presentation, thoughtful details, persistent characterization, light yet layered writing, and bops all the way down. the arcade version lacks the voice acting that really makes this game hit home, and the Suns were a mistake -- it's not as bad as the fever mechanic, but it's still pretty bad, it breaks the elegant interplay between long and short chains. still -- what an achievement. now i can't wait til 1994...