Puyo Puyo!! 20th Anniversary (Game)

Puyo Puyo!! 20th Anniversary

GAME » on July 14, 2011

Nintendo 3DS (Platform)Nintendo 3DS eShop (Platform)Nintendo DS (Platform)PlayStation Network (PSP) (Platform)PlayStation Portable (Platform)Wii (Platform)

A competitive puzzle game that honors the 20th anniversary of the Puyo Puyo series. The game features several gameplay modes and 20 different rulesets.

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Overview

Puyo Puyo!! 20th Anniversary is a video game created to honor the 20th anniversary of the Puyo Puyo!! Series. It first released for the DS on July 14, 2011 and was later released for the Wii (Platform), 3DS and PSP on December 15th. Like Puyo Puyo! 15th Anniversary, 20th Anniversary features a variety of different characters and rulesets. The Wii and 3DS versions feature online play.

Puyo Puyo!! 20th Anniversary Mini Version

"Puyo Puyo!! 20th Anniversary Mini Version" is a scaled-down version of the game that was released onto the 3DS eShop on November 7, 2012. It includes Free Battle mode and Ringo Andou's single-player story. Free Battle has the Original, Tsu, Fever, and Pair Puyo rulesets while allowing the player to choose between Arle Nadja (Character), Amitie (Character), Raffine, and Ringo.

Universal Rules

Though 20th Anniversary features a variety of different rulesets, they all have certain mechanics in common. Sets of different colored Puyo (Concept) fall into each player's 12 (plus a hidden row) x 6 field. Players aim to connect at least four Puyo of the same color either horizontally or vertically; connected Puyo do not have to be in a straight line. When four or more Puyo of the same color are connected, they pop. After a set of Puyo is cleared, gravity causes any "hovering" Puyo to fall down; another full set of Puyo may be completed, this time worth many more points than the previous set. This is called "chaining."

Each time a complete set of Puyo is made, gray "Nuisance Puyo" are sent to the top of each opponent's field. Once they finish placing their currently-controlled Puyo onto the field, the Nuisance Puyo then fall into their field. Nuisance Puyo cannot be matched with any other color, but they are erased if they are adjacent to a cleared set of Puyo.

If the player cannot bring any new Puyo into the field, they are eliminated. Spaces that will disqualify a player if occupied are marked with an X. There is one X in rulesets based on early games and two Xs in Fever rule and many "gimmick" rulesets.

Offsetting

Offsetting is a mechanic available in every ruleset except Original rule. If a player clears Puyo while Nuisance Puyo sits at the top of their field, the amount of Nuisance that would've been sent to the opponent is instead deducted from their waiting Nuisance. If no other Nuisance remains, the garbage Puyo are sent to the opponent as usual.

Dropsets

Puyo Puyo Fever introduced Puyo sets larger than the standard pair, along with Dropsets. The Dropset is a character-specific list of Puyo shapes that will drop. Because these alternate shapes take up more than one column, rulesets using dropsets will always feature two Xs at the top of the screen. Possible shapes include:

Witch's dropset begins with a Reverse-L followed by L-Shape.

Pair: A standard set of two Puyo, one on top of the "pivot point", that may or may not be the same color.
L-Shape: A set of three Puyo. The pivot Puyo and the Puyo above it are always the same color, while the Puyo to the right of the pivot point may or may not be.
Reverse-L: An L-shaped Puyo where the Puyo to the right of the pivot Puyo is always the same color as the pivot point, while the Puyo above may or may not be.
Twin-Pair: A set of four Puyo that consists of two colors.
Giant Puyo: A complete, 2x2 set of Puyo. Instead of rotating this set, players can change the color of the Giant Puyo to whatever they chose.

Most characters' first Puyo set is a pair; the exceptions are Feli (Character) and Witch (Character), who start with L-Shape and Reverse-L pieces respectively. Arle's dropset consists entirely of pairs, referencing the Puyo Puyo games that she starred in.

Margin Time

Margin Time is a mechanic introduced in Puyo Puyo Tsu as a means of speeding up matches. Each rule has a time limit (that can be modified by the player) that, upon being reached, steadily lowers the threshold of points required to generate a Nuisance Puyo; in essence, it multiplies the Nuisance Puyo that is sent per chain. The default Margin Time is 96 seconds in pre-Fever rules and 192 seconds in Fever rule, with other modes having various default Margin Times.

Rulesets

20th Anniversary features 20 different rulesets, all of which can be played with 2-4 players and optional teams. Listed below are the four "main" rulesets that were directly lifted from previous games. In addition to copying the key mechanics of each game, these rules also mimic several presentation choices from their origin games. For example, characters only call out five "attacks" in Original rule, the sound effects that play when Nuisance is sent to the opponent are used in rearranged order under Sun rule, and the Puyo drop smoothly (instead of in half-Puyo-sized steps) under Fever rule.

Puyo Puyo (Game)

Both players have Nuisance Puyo

The arcade Puyo Puyo was the first entry in the series to be entirely focused on competitive gameplay; as such it does not contain Offsetting. Additionally, the player can only preview one set of incoming Puyo, the player cannot rotate their Puyo if the currently-controlled set is surrounded on both sides, and the scoring formula is different than other modes. However, unlike the original game, Margin Time is implemented.

This rule contains one X, located at the top of the third-from-left column.

Puyo Puyo Tsu

Draco offsets waiting Puyo

As Puyo Puyo Tsu is the foundation of nearly every Puyo Puyo game released after it, Tsu rule could be considered the game's "vanilla" rule. The player is given one chance (per 30 Nuisance Puyo) to Offset before the garbage falls into their field. The only feature unique to Tsu rule is its "All-Clear Bonus": clearing the entire field will give the player a Nuisance bonus on their next successful chain. This rule contains one X.

Puyo Puyo Sun

The sun in the middle controls the flow of battle

Puyo Puyo Sun builds upon the mechanics of Puyo Puyo Tsu. Whenever either player offsets waiting Nuisance Puyo, the sun located between the two fields will randomly distribute Sun Puyo. Sun Puyo act like Nuisance Puyo except that, when cleared, they increase the number of Nuisance Puyo that the opponent will receive. Clearing the entire field will drop free Sun Puyo into the player's field, based on the size of the chain that cleared the field. This rule contains one X.

Puyo Puyo Fever

Instant 5-chain; just add Green Puyo

Puyo Puyo Fever uses Dropsets; as a result, there are two X's at the top of the field. Whenever the player receives Nuisance Puyo, they will not drop until the player fails to Offset. Offsetting Nuisance Puyo adds to the Fever gauge while simultaneously increasing the amount of time that the opponent will have in Fever Mode. Filling the Fever gauge activates Fever Mode, in which several nearly-complete chains are dropped into the field for the player to finish. Clearing the entire field outside of Fever will give the player a nearly-complete 4-chain and add to their Fever time; inside Fever it "levels up" the preset chain size and gives a time bonus. Character-specific scoring formulas are used.

Other Rulesets

The other rulesets include:

Nazo Puyo: Named after Puyo Puyo's challenge-based spinoffs, each player is given a random task to accomplish. Completing a task before the opponent(s) grants the player one point. The first player to gain four points wins.
Non-Stop Fever (must be unlocked): Players immediately enter Fever mode. Each player is given a preset amount of Nuisance Puyo that must be cleared before they can attack their opponent(s).
Mini-Puyo Fever: Based on Non-Stop fever and Puyo Puyo 7's mini-Puyo Transformation, this mode shrinks the Puyo, effectively giving the player a 10x16 field.
Giant Puyo (must be unlocked): The player uses giant Puyo, effectively giving them a 3x6 field. Only three Puyo need to be matched in order to pop.
Giant Puyo Rush: Non-Stop Fever, except with Giant Puyo. Nuisance Puyo only drop one at a time.
Excavation (must be unlocked): Players are given a preset field of Puyo. They must clear a path to a randomly-placed star that is surrounded by Hard Puyo. (Hard Puyo are Nuisance Puyo that must be cleared twice.) Popping Puyo next to the star will send infinite Nuisance Puyo to the opponent(s).
Mini-Puyo Excavation: Excavation, but with Mini-Puyo.
Gust: Randomly shifts all of each players Puyo to the left or right on certain intervals.
Slot: In the middle of the screen, there is a roulette and a total of popped Puyo that are needed to activate it. The player that brings said total to zero will receive a random effect in their favor. Dropsets are used in this mode.
Foursight: Players can see their next four pairs of Puyo. Most rules only allow players to see two pairs, while Original rule only reveals one.
Block: Unclearable blocks are placed on each player's field, restricting the amount of space that they have.
Active: If the player matches four Puyo, they are immediately given control of their next pair. This allows the player to drop Puyo while the current chain is still popping.
Spinner (must be unlocked): After a set amount of time, each player's field is rotated 180 degrees.
Cross Spinner: After a set amount of time, each player's field is split down the middle and each piece is rotated 180 degrees.
Quartet: Puyo drop in groups of four.
Ice Block (must be unlocked): In this mode, Nuisance Puyo act like Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo's Counter Gems: they consist of Puyo encased in ice that, after three turns, turn into regular Puyo. Clearing Puyo next to an ice block will immediately break the ice. Like Puzzle Fighter, each character has a unique Nuisance dropset.

Pair Puyo

Arle and Carbuncle offset Puyo together

In addition to these rulesets, there is a special mode known as Pair Puyo. Four players are split into two teams. Each team receives a certain number of lives, and play ends whenever a teammate's field is filled with no lives remaining. Whenever both teammates clear a set of Puyo at around the same time, the game begins to keep count of the number of chains that are cleared between the two. After a certain amount of time passes with neither player making a chain, the team performs an extra attack based on their combined chain total. Pair Puyo uses Dropsets.

Rule Customization

After selecting a rule, the game offers the player a variety of settings that he or she may modify; the available settings vary per ruleset. Nazo Puyo is unique in that its only modifiable setting is the BGM.

Margin Time: This lets players adjust the amount of time that must pass before the effects of Margin Time occur.
Chain Limit: The game will not recognize any chain smaller that the value set for this setting. It is disabled by default.
Nuisance Puyo Rate: Each time the player matches Puyo, the points that he or she gains is divided by this number to determine the amount of Nuisance that the player generates. This is the number that is modified to create the effects of Margin Time. It defaults to 70 points in Original/Tsu rules and 120 elsewhere.
Puyo to Match: The number of Puyo that must be matched in order to pop.
Nuisance Puyo Type: Determines whether Nuisance Puyo are regular or Hard Puyo. Hard Puyo must be "cleared" twice. This is only available in Original, Tsu, and Sun rule.
Fever Count: Determines how fast the Fever gauge fills.
Fever Power: Modifies how much garbage is sent while in Fever mode. By default, Fever chains build less Nuisance than chains in normal mode.
Slot Machine Puyo Requirement: In Slot rule, determines how many Puyo are required to trigger the slot machine.
Block Pattern: In Block rule, determines the configuration of the solid blocks.
Spin Count: In Spinner and Cross Spinner, determines the interval between each spin.
Frozen Turn Count: In Ice Block rule, determines how many turns that it takes for frozen Puyo to break free of the ice.
Life Count: Determines how many lives that each team starts with in Pair Puyo.
BGM: Changes the background music. Each character's single-player theme is available from the start, and players can also unlock remixes of the MSX/FDS Puyo Puyo's default BGM, Popoi's theme from Puyo Puyo Fever, the second single-player theme from the arcade Puyo Puyo, and the final floor BGM of Puyo Puyo Tsu.

Gameplay Modes

20th Anniversary includes a Story Mode which, like 15th Anniversary's story mode, is unique for each playable character. The player stars with Ringo Andou's story, unlocking other character's stories along the way. This eventually leads to the Extra story, which contains the game's final boss battle. For each battle in Story Mode, players can either choose between four rules (two of which are always Original rule and Tsu rule) or select a random rule.

Several Endless Modes are also included, where players match Puyo until they lose. These modes include Endless Battle and Endless Nazo Puyo, among others. A cheat code allows characters to use their Fever-rule dropsets in these modes.

The chain simulation lets Ringo use Permutation whenever she wants

20th Anniversary, like its predecessor, features a tutorial mode. In addition to teaching the players the basic rules of each "main" game, it also includes tips on creating large chains. Specifically, the tutorial covers the "stairs" and "sandwich" methods of building chains, and also includes notes on using "transitioning" to build a chain on top of another chain. Challenge Test gives players challenge missions to accomplish, while Challenge Battle pits the player against a powerful opponent with the ability to instantly drop his or her Puyo. The game also features a chain simulator, which lets the player build and save various Puyo configurations and execute them.

The in-game shop lets players purchase alternate costumes, voice sets, and Puyo skins using points earned by winning matches. Buying advice from Popoi will occasionally unlock a gameplay rule featured in 15th Anniversary

Characters

There are more than 20 characters, spanning the early Madou Monogatari (Franchise)-based games, Puyo Puyo Fever and Fever 2, and Puyo Puyo 7 (Game). Notably, the only playable character that was not usable in either Puyo Puyo 7 or 15th Anniversary is Witch.

When playing under Fever or Slot rules, each character has their own unique Dropset. Draco Centauros and the cast of Puyo Puyo 7 have received new dropsets, as they previously used the dropsets of Fever-era characters that have been reintroduced in this game. In Ice Block mode, each character is given a 5x6 Nuisance dropset that determines the color that each "frozen" Puyo will be.

Some characters have unlockable costumes and/or vocal sets, and a cheat enables all Madou-era characters to use their classic voice patters when playing a Original, Tsu, or Sun Rule match.

Madou Monogatari

Arle Nadja (Character) - Alternate voice
Carbuncle (Character) (initially locked)
Draco Centauros (Character)
Suketoudara (Character)
Witch (Character)
Schezo Wegey (Character) - Alternate voice
Rulue (Character) - Alternate voice
Satan (initially locked) - Yellow Satan/Alternate voice

Fever and Fever 2

Amitie (Character) - Red Amitie/Alternate voice
Raffine - Alternate voice
Klug (Character)- Strange Klug
Sig - Black Sig/Alternate voice
Feli (Character) - White Feli
Yu (Character) and Rei
Ocean Prince (Character)
Dongurigaeru (Character)
Rider
Onion Pixy (Character)
Lemres (Character)
Ms. Accord (initially locked)

Puyo Puyo 7

Ringo Andou (Character) - Alternate voice
Maguro Sasaki (Character) - Alternate voice
Risukuma (Character) - Alternate voice
Ecolo (Character) (initially locked) - Unusual Ecolo/Alternate voice

Soundtracks

The soundtrack that comes with the 3DS, Wii, and PSP versions of the game.

To honor the anniversary, two soundtracks were released. The first is named Puyo Puyo!! Anniversary Sound Collection and includes twenty-seven songs from Puyo Pop Fever (Game), Fever 2, 15th Anniversary, and 7 respectively along with songs from this game. The second is the official two-disc soundtrack of 20th Anniversary.

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