PSP World

PQ: Practical Intelligence Quotient

Popular, intellectually challenging games like Chess, Crosswords and general Logic Puzzles have been around for a long time and more recent times have demonstrated a continued obsession with anything which taxes the old grey matter. The 80's had Trivial Pursuit, which was at the centre of all dinner parties with individuals boasting that they could retain the greatest number of relatively obscure facts. The 90s continued with the rather trivial theme with TV's Who Wants to be a Millionaire, which is still popular now. More recently we've had the global success of Sudoku, which more traditionally challenges the brain’s ability to use a variety of skills including mental arithmetic. US Publisher D3 are eager to tap into this market with their latest release, Practical Intelligence Quotient, a kind of 'best of' every type of puzzle you've ever encountered from the last two decades or so, the question is, 'are you up to the challenge?'

PIQ challenges you to solve 100 logic puzzles split into ten rounds of ten although you can break off at any time as everything's saved automatically. The puzzles themselves take place in a single box room although there is one puzzle that relies on your memory to choose the correct path through a series of doors. Everything starts out simply enough and you'll either move boxes to clear the path or build them up to bridge gaps or make stairs. Things move up a level with the introduction of security guards (get caught in their flashlights and it's back to the start) and lasers, which can't be simply turned off but can be moved behind other boxes. Each level is scored against the clock and where applicable, the number of moves you make so there's little time to think before you start to solve the puzzle ahead. You will occasionally be forced to look around on some of the sections though because, in areas involving escalators and conveyer belts, making one false move could have you either trapped or wasting a significant amount of time getting back to the start. You can, of course, restart the puzzle or simply skip it all together but this will cause huge penalties in your overall score.

The score themselves are shown at the end of every round and include deductions for incomplete puzzles or anything which has exceeded the time or move limit. Frustratingly your full IQ level isn't calculated until you've completed all 100 levels and it's only then you can go online in order to see how you are faring in the World Rankings. Obviously this is your main source of replay value and, as with all on-line games, the aim of being the best on the planet will always keep you coming back for more.

Visually the whole thing looks like the VR section of Metal Gear Solid or the 1980s Disney movie Tron. If you have no idea what I'm talking about you'll have to imagine a game midway through development where the play area is made up of simple wire frame with no textures or light sourcing and your main character is a simple outline (but still very well animated) figure. While you could argue that this is a very quick and cheap way of doing things it actually works in the game’s favor allowing you to concentrate on the puzzles without becoming distracted by the visuals.

The audio, like the visuals is kept to a minimum so as not to interrupt your train of thought but expect a kind of futuristic techno played at a low volume. The sound effects are also very fitting but again only used when they are absolutely required to indicate a 'happening' of some description.

The control is simple enough, not to mention responsive, but even if it weren't there are a number of on-line tutorials to work through before you even enter the 'real' game. The only problem you are likely to have is with the camera as some puzzles need to be seen from a different angle in order to work out the best solution. Unfortunately here the camera can only be 'swung' around with the shoulder buttons making it very difficult to stop exactly where you want it.

While PIQ isn't without its problems it does provide an entertaining and challenging little game even if the 100 puzzles don't last nearly as long as you'd thing they would. Obviously the on-line scoring does add much to the replay value but you can't help feeling that the absence of a multiplayer is a huge missed opportunity. Still it's certainly different from the growing amount of racing games, which appear to be dominating the PSP and definitely one you'll come back to again and again.

By Andrew Blanchard

Review Round-Up

IGN: 7.4
"Those looking for a deep, involving puzzle game will find it in PQ: Practical Intelligence Quotient. There are a good number of puzzles, most of which offer enough of a challenge to engage puzzle nuts without distancing novices."

GameSpot: 7.0
"...if you're just looking for some deliberate and challenging puzzles, and you're willing to look past an interface that is occasionally awkward, PQ is a fine fit."

GameSpy: 7.0
"PQ isn't a perfect game, but it's still a darn good puzzler."

Detroit Free Press: 2.5
"PQ doesn't fare well when compared with the likes of Lumines, chess or crosswords -- or even Sudoku, the new grid in town. By those standards, PQ is a pretty poor relation in the family of cerebral games."

Aggregate Rating: 6.2