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Labeling this collection Capcom Puzzle World is a bit of a misnomer; it's much more limited in scope than Capcom's recent classic compilations and not nearly as well put together. What you do get are 3 games: Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo, Buster Bros. Collection, and Block Block, as well as online play and extras. What you don't get is stable gameplay, plain and simple. Hoping my experience was just a fluke, I looked online and it seems to be widespread, with gamers all over reporting freezing and extended load times on Capcom's own site as well as GameFAQs and other forums. For most of you, this fact alone will be a deal breaker, but for the brave, read on and make sure to keep your receipt in an easily accessible place.
From a visual standpoint, Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo and Buster Bros. appear as if they were custom built for the PSP. They look sharp and colorful--downright fantastic on the widescreen display. Block Block doesn't fare as well visually, simply because it is a vertical game in a horizontal frame (and there's no option to turn the display).
Chances are, you've played or owned these games on other formats before, but having such a great looking, and complete version of Puzzle Fighter would be worth the price alone...
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A lazy addition, Block Block also recently appeared on the PSP via Capcom Classics Collection Remixed. In this Arkanoid clone the goal is to break multi-colored bricks by rebounding a ball off a horizontally moving paddle. Some bricks drop powerups that help clear stages more quickly. It's fun, especially with a friend, but doesn't offer anything new to the genre and uses so little of the screen that you'll be squinting to see the details.
If you've played the Buster Bros. Collection on the original PlayStation than you've played the games offered in Puzzle World: Buster Bros., Super Buster Bros., and Buster Buddies. The Buster Bros. formula works because it's simple, challenging, and fun, though by today's standards we've seen better and more addictive action puzzlers come along. Using an upgradeable rope gun, the hero in this game has to pop bubbles as they fall from the sky. The bubbles get smaller as you pop them (think: Asteroids), but there's gun power-ups and other items to help you along the way.
Diehard fans will argue that the previously mentioned games are merely extras. The real selling point is Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo and, when it doesn't freeze up, the experience is near flawless. Add the WLAN play, and it really is a superbly done port. Essentially a Tetris-homage using characters from popular Capcom fighting games, Puzzle Fighter offers the arcade experience as well as additional modes.
If you've played the import Dreamcast version, then you can expect the same expanded offerings in arcade: X, Y, and Z modes, as well as versus, gem edit (where you edit your counter attack pattern), training videos, and other goodies. Each mode is a different rule set based on a different classic puzzle game. X mode is the "original" Puzzle Fighter formula (which is actually based on Sega's Baku Baku Animal). The Y mode is a fast-paced derivative of Columns, and Z mode is loosely based on Tetris Attack, where you rotate existing clusters of gems as they advance from the bottom of the screen.
Chances are, you've played or owned these games on other formats before, but having such a great looking, and complete version of Puzzle Fighter would be worth the price alone, if the game wasn't so glitchy. From a jaded point of view this is just another example of Capcom reusing content and failing to iron out the emulation. From a fan's perspective, it's disappointing that Puzzle World isn't as robust or polished as any of Capcom's recent classics collections. If you do decide to take the plunge, make sure to keep the receipt handy.
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