The popularity of puzzle games is rising. With games like Puyo Puyo Champions bringing puzzle games into the realm of esports they are set to have more visibility than ever before. Not to mention Tetris getting its own movie. Put both of these fantastic franchises together into one package and Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 is born!
Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 added many fantastic new features and the franchise is now more accessible than ever before to audiences. Players have gotten their taste of just how fun puzzle games can be and need more to play. Fortunately, there are many great options to choose from.
10 Tricky Towers
Tricky Towers is the best take on physics-based Tetris available on the market. Building the tallest tower or fitting the most blocks in tight spaces is challenging enough. Add magic spells to the list and it becomes a real brainbuster! The game contains just enough wackiness to make it amazing in multiplayer matches as well. Bust out Tricky Towers at a party and let the good times roll.
9 Lumines Remastered
Tetsuya Mizuguchi, the man behind Tetris Effect, didn't just make one puzzle game. Lumines Remastered let players experience the epic 2x2 box placement that started it all. Name a modern console and this game is playable on it making it easier to try than ever before. The graphics are stunning, the soundtrack sublime, and the gameplay has the high quality the series is known for.
8 Drop Mania
What if we told you one of the best puzzle games out there was sold only from ice cream trucks? What if we then said those ice cream trucks were only found in Finland? We don't have a brain freeze, we just know about Drop Mania!
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Published by Suomen Kotijäätelö Oy, the gameplay in Drop Mania is so strong Konami would publish a knock off of sorts years later on the Gameboy Advance. Drop Mania is now abandonware and can be played for free by anyone interested in experiencing this hidden gem.
7 Dr. Mario
Dr. Mario and Tetris once shared a cartridge so it's no surprise it makes the list. While the mobile game was a serious failure, Dr. Mario Express and Dr. Luigi were both still released recently enough to be readily available. Placing pills to knock out viruses is extra satisfying in 2020. Just imagine they're all COVID-19 and clear that screen!
6 Octomania
With over 1500 games for the Nintendo Wii, it's easy to miss a few hidden gems on the console. Octomania was one of those puzzle games and was even created under the supervision of Moo Niitani, the creator of Puyo Puyo! Sorting out octopi while sending the opponent sea urchins is not only fun but incredibly quirky and cute. Who knew cooking up takoyaki could make for such fun gameplay?
Thankfully, the game is still readily available and isn't too expensive on websites like eBay. Players can still grab this one if they want to pull out their Wii from the closet and fire it up!
5 Anode
Kittehwave Software knows how to make a good puzzle game! It takes the classic block falling formula while adding lines to link between the blocks with couplers. Anode works in both single-player and multiplayer making it a flexible gaming experience. For only $3.99 it's hard to find another puzzle game with so much value.
4 Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo HD Remix
What do fighting games and puzzle games have in common? A whole lot actually! Especially in competitive titles like Puyo Puyo Tetris 2. The original Super Puzzle Fighter II was released all the way back in 1996 in arcades and borrowed mechanics from Puyo Puyo 2. It even originally outperformed Tekken 2 back in the day!
The game features rebalanced characters and new game modes making the gameplay more polished than ever before. It's hard to find a better competitive puzzle game.
3 Blockout 2
The original Blockout was released back in 1989 and gave first-person games a whole new perspective. Players look down from above a three-dimensional pit to place down Tetris styled blocks. While the game hadn't seen any ports since its lackluster Virtual Boy release, the game retained a hardcore fanbase.
A loving homage to the original, Blockout 2 was released in 2007. The game has a serious graphical update and is free to play for anyone interested in giving it a try.
2 Spaera
Spaera has a unique match-3 cascading mechanic that makes it stand out against other competitive puzzle games. The game has eight characters packed with charm to chose from while duking it out against other players. It's easy to pick up yet has the depth and complexities puzzle gamers are looking for in a title. It looks to be perpetually stuck in Steam Early Access but it already has enough content to make it worth a purchase.
1 Tetris 99
Beating a single opponent in a Tetris match feels good. Beating 99 of them feels incredible. Tetris 99 takes puzzle games and combines them with the battle royale genre to create the ultimate competitive experience. The game has countless crossovers with other Nintendo titles for themes and skins in the game giving it even more flavor. Anyone who claims to be a Tetris master needs to test their mettle in this game.