NES RATING #2 - Kickle Cubicle

NES RATING #2

Kickle Cubicle

Produced by:  IREM

Distributed by: IREM

Released:  September 1990

Kickle Cubicle is a puzzle game with some action elements, where you play as Kickle, a balloon riding bald-headed snow-baby who has freeze-breathe and kicks ice blocks.  The general idea of this game is to freeze enemies and kick them to create ice bridges to reach different parts of the board, spring-launch ice blocks, create ice mounds to act as defensive shields against enemy projectiles, and collect all the red bags to advance to the next stage.  The game ranges from quite easy to needing to capitalize on chain reactions in much more difficult levels.  Overall, it's quite the puzzle game.

This plays much like the Adventures of Lolo NES puzzle series, as you're a cartoony character running around, avoiding enemies (and each have a special "trick" about them) to use or avoid, and trying to collect items to move on to a different part of the world you're on.  At the end of the four worlds there is a boss to fight.

Kickle Cubicle features colorful graphics, with very nice (if not basic) cinema scenes as you enter each palace for the boss battle.  Luckily, especially in an action puzzle game like Kickle, with enemies roaming, items bouncing around, and obstacles to clear, everything appears clear and colorfully.  Overall, the graphics are good for a game of this type.

The music could be more unique, as you get one song for the duration of the game (differs for the boss battles) but honestly, it's not an annoying tune and you focus much more on the strategy of getting off each stage than what music is playing.  Still, it's something that could have been improved.

The game is incredibly easy during the first collection of stages, then moves to the second, "Fruit Land" where a few of the stages will have you thinking just a bit.  Moving onto the third world, and things get a bit more challenging.  I find the steady progression to be a good thing.  Just when you might get too comfortable (towards the end of the second world) things begin to pick up.  The boss battles are fairly easy, so don't go looking for some Zelda 64-esque epic encounter.  You are Kickle, and you kick cubes of ice, remember.
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Overall, Kickle Cubicle is an addictive puzzle game in the sense of Adventures of Lolo, but offers a bit more to the player, in my opinion.  While the initial 20-30 boards are no doubt easier than it's more popular puzzle game counterpart, once things get challenging, I believe Kickle becomes the superior game, due to the action elements and chain reactions you must work with.

Continue mode and password save mode are included, a must for these puzzle games.

Check it out, if only for "kicks"...

RATING:  B+