''Groovin' Blocks'' is a
puzzle video game for
Wii
The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other Regional lockout, regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major ho ...
by
Empty Clip Studios
Empty Clip Studios, LLC is a video game developer based in San Diego, California and was founded in July 2007. It was formed by Francois Bertrand and Matt Shores.
On September 8, 2008, the company released their debut game ''Groovin' Blocks'', ...
. It was released in North America on September 8, 2008 as a downloadable
WiiWare game. It also released as an expanded retail of the game in North America on August 11, 2009. The game was later released for the
iPhone OS platform and on
PlayStation Network
PlayStation Network (PSN) is a digital media entertainment service provided by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Launched in November 2006, PSN was originally conceived for the PlayStation video game consoles, but soon extended to encompass smartp ...
on March 18, 2010.
Gameplay
''Groovin' Blocks'' is a falling block-type puzzle game with gameplay that has been likened to ''
Columns'' and ''
Lumines''.
[Groovin' Blocks (WiiWare) Review]
/ref> The game sees players having to clear lines of three or more blocks of the same color, and like ''Columns'' players can cycle through the falling lines of blocks, with adjacent blocks of the same color also disappearing with the matched lines. In addition, extra points can be scored when players bring their falling blocks down to the downbeats (called "Superbeats") of the game's electronica
Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that started in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mostly used to r ...
soundtrack, adding to a score multiplier.
By setting high scores, players collect stars to unlock new songs and power-up
In video games, a power-up is an object that adds temporary benefits or extra abilities to the player character as a game mechanic. This is in contrast to an item, which may or may not have a permanent benefit that can be used at any time chosen ...
s. Unlike most puzzle games which are played to infinity, each stage in ''Groovin' Blocks'' lasts for the duration of the song if the player has not yet failed the stage by filling their play area with blocks.
The game also features offline two player competitive and co-operative modes, as well as an option for colorblind players that turns the different colored blocks into shapes.[
]
Reception
''Groovin' Blocks'' received mixed reviews from critics upon release, with the Wii version getting more positive reviews compared to the PlayStation 3 version. On Metacritic, the game holds scores of 68/100 for the PlayStation 3 version based on 6 reviews,GameRankings
GameRankings was a video gaming review aggregator that was founded in 1999 and owned by CBS Interactive. It indexed over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 video games. GameRankings was discontinued in December 2019, with its staff bei ...
, the game holds scores of 75.17% for the PlayStation 3 version based on 6 reviews,IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
gave the Wii version of ''Groovin' Blocks'' a 7.6/10, calling the game a fun "one trick pony" and a "pretty impressive" first effort from the developers.
/ref>
References
{{Reflist
2008 video games
Empty Clip Studios games
Falling block puzzle games
IOS games
Multiplayer and single-player video games
North America-exclusive video games
PlayStation Network games
Video games developed in the United States
WiiWare games