You got your puzzle game in my platformer! You got your platformer in my puzzle game! … Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure is both. This game is equal parts puzzle and platform based gameplay. EA certainly has been on a run of wonderful new IP’s recently and Henry fits in quite nicely with them.
You play as the title character Henry Hatsworth #1 in the “Pompous Adventurers Club.” You are on a quest to find all the pieces of the “True Gentleman’s Suit” before the #2 guy, Leopold Charles Anthony Weasleby The Third (yes that is his full name) can. Along the way, you have the help of Cole, who is far “to young” to go out on any adventures. So he will give you mission info, and also keeps a shop where you can buy upgrades to your suits and your abilities. You have to make your way through five varying sections of the world. Each of the main levels has several “sub-levels” that you must make it through in order to defeat the sub-bosses and then finally the main boss of the level.
The game itself looks great. Each sprite is animated very well and moves smoothly across the screen. The art is very colorful and well suited for this whimsical happy adventure. I also really enjoyed the sound design of this game. The soundtrack (which you can download from the official site for free) is very well put together. It uses a lot of string instruments and has a very orchestral feel to it. The “voices” of each character are hilarious. None of them actually speak more than a few real words, but it doesn’t matter. Most of their dialogue is mumbling and nonsense but each is done in a “voice” that makes the character come to life. It’s hard to explain but once you hear Henry or Cole or any of the other cast speak you will know what I mean.
The gameplay starts off pretty simple but as you progress through the game things start to get a little more complicated. At first, you just have to kill enemies with your cane, a la Scrooge McDuck. Then once you start attaining pieces of the suit you can use a sword, gun, bombs etc. Once an enemy dies on the top screen (the “real” world) it then makes its way to the bottom screen (the “puzzle” world). To completely defeat an enemy you must then play a kind of Bejewelled “Match Three” type game to get rid of them. Enemy blocks vary depending on the strength and type of that enemy in the real world. Some are just simple one hit kill types, that are easy to do away with. However, others take lock themselves into place and you have to move blocks around them to defeat. If the enemy blocks aren’t disposed of in the puzzle realm, they can escape into the real world and physically attack you. It sounds complicated but once you get the hang of switching back and forth, via the “X” button, it becomes second nature.
Also on the puzzle side of things are certain power-ups that help you out in the “Real World.” You can get power-ups like stopping time, lightning, and health. Almost every action in the real world has an equal action in the puzzle realm, and vice verse. As you get rid of matching blocks, and enemies, your special meter fills up more and more. Once it has been filled twice, you then gain the use of your special “Robot Suit.” This is a source of some of the funniest bits in the game. When activated you get a simple animation of Henry saying “Good Show” and his friends joining him in a cup of tea. Then a large robot suit flies through the air with a heavy metal soundtrack and the Union Jack flag streaked across the background. Hilarious stuff really, and that is what makes Henry Hatsworth such an addictive game. Not only is it a well put together game but its also pretty funny too.
As you progress further and further into the game, the levels start to get much more difficult, as do the enemies. Further on the game really forces you to use the puzzle realm and real-world actions hand in hand to accomplish your goals. Some of the later boss fights seem a little cheap until you figure out the pattern for them, much like any other platformer. All in all, this is probably one of the better games that I own on my DS. It’s a game that fits snugly between Professor Layton: and the Curious Village and New Super Mario Brothers. Not bad company to keep if I do say so.
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