An excellent import...minor problems
With the Gamecube far behind us and the Wii's problems with playing import games, you may be wondering if it's worth your time importing this game. While you may think it boils down to the question"...how much do I like Yoshie's Cookie?"....there are several other features that make this package triple A material.
First of all, the graphical presentation is top notch. Everything is 2D sprites, but it all looks extremely vibrant and colorful. Each game seems to have it's own unique art style, which really goes a long way to make you feel as if you are playing three very different games. Dr. Mario has a sort of Paper Mario presentation to it, Yoshie's Cookie has a Yoshie's Story art style. Panel de Pon is definately the most unique art style of the three games and consists of young super deformed anime girls. Obviously here, Nintendo was trying to appeal to a younger female demographic. The music and sound effects are all fitting to the themes of the games.
Eah game has a story mode, which is a nice diversion from bare bones vs computer play, but unless you have a fairly good understanding of Japanese, you're not going to find much here that will entertain you. The matches in story mode against various characters are interesting, but can become a bit repetative after some time.
One of the best featues of this package are the multiplayer options. Each game has a 4 player vs mode and this is where Puzzle Collection really shines. The 4 player gameplay is one of the most enjoyable multiplayer experiences to be had on the Gamecube, and there are plenty of options to make it enjoyable for players of all skill levels.
This game also has best use of GBA to Gamecube connectivity that I have ever seen. Basically, you simply download the games into your GBA and play them for as long as your batteries can last, or you switch off the system. Unfortunately, there is no way to transfer your high scores back to the Gamecube. While Dr. Mario and Yoshie's Cookie look like the NES version of these games, Panel de Pon doesn't look very much diferent than it's Gamecube counterpart. While it can be time consuming and a little troublesome to hook your GBA to your Gamecube, it is a great way to practice anytime, anywhere for any upcoming 4 player matches you may be planning.
Some other features include a 3D mode in Panel de Pon and the training mode in Dr. Mario. The training mode in Dr. Mario is more in depth than the simple tutorials of the other two games, providing advanced strategies and helpful tips. The 3D mode in Panel de Pon has you turning a cylinder full of blocks, having you keep track of far more blocks than the 2D mode as the cylinder fills up. At first this comes across as quite gimmicky, but it's actually a nice feature if you are looking for a new twist on the familiar gameplay mechanics.
Puzzle Collection isn't without it's problems, but almost all of these problems stem from the fact that it's an imported game. The text in Yoshie's Cookie is displayed as incoherent garbage on American systems, so it's difficult to understand the full potential of the modes. Also, it will lock up once in a while due to the fact that it's an import. These are minor quibbles.
If 4 player multiplayer, Yoshie's Cookie and Gameboy connectivity are things you can live without, then you might want to go for the GBA version of Dr. Mario/Tetris Attack (Panel de Pon). If you decide to take the risk of importing it you will most likely be very happy with this game. It is the best puzzle game on the Gamecube, and perhaps the best puzzle game of it's hardware generation.