Score: 8

"Nice little puzzle game"

submission: Prism-Light the Way

date: January 14, 2009

Addicting game! The graphics are perfect for the gameplay, and the puzzles slowly get more difficult, but it builds up at a good pace, so that nothing seems too terribly frustrating, as when the puzzles get tougher, your skill level will have risen as well, thus making everything at least solveable, although not always easily. I don't really like that you have to play the timed mode in order to unlock the puzzle mode, but it's only a minor irritant. Overall, a good game, although not really anything too original in the puzzle world.

8 - Recommended

Score: 7

"The Seventh part - Disappointingly easy"

submission: Phantom Mansion- Violet

date: January 14, 2009

The Violet Vault, chapter 7 in the Phantom Mansion puzzle series, was probably my least favorite of the chapters so far. The ghosts were an interesting addition, but it seemed that too many of the puzzles were much easier than in the previous chapters, and some of them didn't even seem fully formed (they could be beaten very quickly, without using half of the boxes/keys given. Then, the last couple of levels have an enormous jump in difficulty, putting those two puzzles on par with the puzzles found at the end of the other chapters. Still fun, just a little too uneven, especially considering how well the other sections were made. Hopefully Chapter 8, the final chapter, will be able to make up for this slight misstep.

7 - Check it out if you have time

Score: 8

"The Sixth Part - Interesting"

submission: Phantom Mansion- Indigo

date: January 14, 2009

I thoroughly enjoyed the addition of "Hop-Frog," the impish key thief. He was definitely one of the more frustrating of the "installment specific puzzle enhancers," although the difficulty of this set as a whole seemed less than the Fifth installment (The Blue Ballroom).

That being said, it did seem to run slightly slower than the previous parts in the Phantom Mansion series, and there seemed to be a little bit more lag than usual. Not sure if this was the game itself or my computer, but it was annoying. It didn't affect gameplay too much (except in sections that required quick action), but it was something that detracted slightly from my enjoyment of this section.

The puzzles, however, were still top-notch, and the final puzzle, like in the past few parts, was a doozy to figure out. I can't wait to play the final two chapters of Phantom Mansion...I can only hope they are as entertaining as the first six!

8 - Recommended

Score: 9

"The Fifth part in the series is a return to form"

submission: Phantom Mansion- Blue

date: January 13, 2009

After a somewhat disappointing Fourth section (The Green Gallery), the Blue Ballroom is a set of deliciously difficult puzzles with another new twist: Confusion and perpetual motion potions. The Confusion potion isn't a level changer, but rather just makes you have to pay close attention in order to not make stupid mistakes. The motion potion, however, completely changes the dynamics of some of the levels. I personally enjoy it more than the Magic Lamp found in the fourth part, as it really creates a new type of puzzle to have to solve. And although the last room was a culmination of everything this section involved, I actually found the last few levels before the final level to be even tougher, and perhaps the toughest set of puzzles to be found yet in the Phantom Mansion series.

So far, the first five installments of Phantom Mansion have been excellent, and have managed to build upon each other perfectly. Here's hoping that continues with part six!

9 - Highly recommended

Score: 8

"Fourth part in the series is both better and worse"

submission: Phantom Mansion: Green

date: January 13, 2009

I really like the Phantom Mansion series, but the 4th installment left me a little cold. Yes, the puzzles are as challenging as ever (especially the last one...that was insane!), but the magic lamp was the first "installment-specific puzzle enhancer" that I felt didn't work well. It added an extra element, but I just felt that on most puzzles it either didn't add to the difficult, or it became extremely difficult because you couldn't see the illuminated squares until you were right next to them, sometimes with monsters chasing you. It was by no means a broken or bad addition, but it wasn't as fun as the magic doors or the cursed floors. Still a great game, though, and I love how the puzzles continue to get more and more difficult.

8 - Recommended

Score: 9

"Third part in the series is another winner!"

submission: Phantom Mansion: Yellow

date: January 13, 2009

Great! This builds upon the second game, and the puzzles are starting to get even more difficult. In fact, the last couple of levels in this part of the Phantom Mansion are probably the most difficult I've encountered yet in the series!

The addition of cursed floors added another new dimension to the puzzles, and the game still feels fresh, even on the third part of the series. The only complaint I have is that in this installment there was a slight glitch where, if you push a box right in front of a moving zombie or skeleton, the monster will walk over the box, and sometimes the box will cease to function. I have not encountered this problem in the other installments in the series, however, and it's something that only really came up a handful of times while I was playing. Can't wait to play the next part!

9 - Highly recommended

Score: 9

"Second game in the series"

submission: Phantom Mansion: Orange

date: January 13, 2009

Even better than the first! The puzzles in the Orange Library are more difficult, and although there are still a few "tutorial" type levels, the game feels more complete than the first one. I like the addition of the teleport doors...they made it so the level designs could be more inventive, and added an extra level of difficulty to the proceedings. Another winner in the puzzle category!

9 - Highly recommended

Score: 8

"Great start!"

submission: Phantom Mansion: Red

date: January 13, 2009

Where it all started. The Phantom Mansion series is one of my favorite Newgrounds Puzzle series, especially because it reminds me of old-school games like Kickle Cubicle and The Adventures of Lolo (NES puzzle classics). The controls are smooth, and the puzzles are sometimes tricky, but never frustratingly difficult. The only real complaint I have about this installment is that a lot of the levels feel like game mechanics tutorials, and it seems that very few of the levels stand on their own outside of this. That being said, I understand that it's the first part of a very long game series, and so having a bunch of "getting used to the game" levels is to be expected, and it was still amazingly fun to play.

8 - Recommended

Score: 9

"Great, and unique!"

submission: Blocks With Letters On

date: January 13, 2009

I've not seen a game before that so effectively combines both linguistic skills and logic skills in the same game. The animation is simplistic, but it works well, as it makes sure the focus is on the great (and at times difficult) game at hand. It's also plenty long, with 64 different levels to complete. Another great game!

9 - Highly recommended

Score: 5

"Short and mildly humorous, but that's it."

submission: Mario's Castle Calamity

date: January 12, 2009

The animation was simple (but what can we expect from a sprite movie), and unfortunately the humor factor wasn't really present either. Yeah, some of the skits were kinda humorous, but it wasn't overly original, and "gag reel" style comedy is generally more miss than hit. Not horrible by any means, but far from the best Mario parody that I've seen. Definitely shows some promise for future videos, though.

5 - Worth a look