Developer: T&E Soft Publisher: T&E Soft Release: 12/20/96 Genre: Puzzle
It is hard to be innovative within the puzzle game space. Tetris is so perfect that it has endured with very few changes and additions. The match three genre still persists to this day with the addition of RPG elements and such. Most games are content to put their spin on these well-worn formulas to mixed success. But something truly original is rare. Cu-On-Pa is a unique title within the SNES library unlike anything else and fun yet challenging. I would like more of these please.
Cu-On-Pa is a port of the computer game Endorfun. The title is an allusion to the game’s subliminal messages designed to elicit positive feelings in players while playing. Of course that was removed when it hit the Super Famicom but you have to admit it is a clever play on words. Cu-On-Pa has been fan translated which might sound odd for a puzzle game but the game’s mechanics need explanation if you hope to succeed.
Cu-On-Pa is both simple yet complex. The basic premise is easy: you control a multi-colored three dimensional cube and must destroy all the life panels on each map. To do so the color on the top of the cube must match the life panel as it rolls over it. As you move the cube it rotates and cycles through its colors making destruction tricky. The colors of the cube follow an alignment: red is opposite purple, yellow is opposite green and blue is the other side of light blue. If you can remember this pattern theoretically it should be simple to manipulate the cube and clear the board. The game is anything but however.
There are many advanced movement techniques and mechanics at work. The hell wheel is a move to destroy pieces four panels away. A corner drop is like moving a knight in chess. C-Return is a roundabout way of destroying a panel right next to you. It sounds silly but is necessary in a tight pinch. My favorite, the Act of God is hard to remember but exactly as the name implies. The cool thing is you can combine these maneuvers to eliminate life panels in rapid succession. Technically they are not necessary but once you start playing you will inevitably execute them by accident. A happy accident, mind you, but still one worth pursuing.
Standing in the way of your progress are color panels. These random tiles appear to impede your progress at the worst times and are a road block. They are also the only thing close to a power-up in the game. Destroying a color panel changes it into a thunder panel. When a life panel of the same color is destroyed all similar thunder panels explode. These explosions can chain and cause other thunder panels to blow up as well as nearby life panels. Causing these actions is key to clearing certain levels in record time and a good tactic when a particular panel occupies a spot that is hard to reach.
No matter how much you practice once you enter the game that training goes out the window. Each level is timed and the mad rush to beat the clock will make your forget everything you just learned. It is actually pretty funny as the game is generous with its time. Some maps start with all life panels present and allow you to plan your attack. Others unveil each one piece meal as you progress. Although the map of each level is small they still offer plenty of complexity. A simple corner or hole in the floor is enough to throw you off and force you to take the long path to eliminate one panel. All while time marches on. It is in this respect that Cu-On-Pa is at its best.
For as much as I like the core mechanics of Cu-On-Pa it lacks the addiction factor of the best puzzle games. Part of it is due to design; because the goal is to beat the clock and clear the board it does not leave room for elaborate planning to maximize scoring. In fact the level design punishes that instead. If you put in the time to memorize all of the mechanics and how to apply them the game is insanely fun. But it is also repetitive. The levels play around with the shape of the tile placement but that can only carry it so far. I would love to have seen more creative use of thunder panels to clear the board. The few instances of such hint at a level of depth that sadly goes unrealized.
In Closing
This was a tough review to write as Cu-On-Pa is simple yet complex. There is a lot to like here as the mechanics are sound and the design is solid. But the game is not built for longevity like the classics in the genre. Cu-On-Pa is fun in short bursts but could use extra modes for replay value.
