xbox live indie game reviews

I hadn't actually played the physical world version of Poker Squares. You can visit this link for a more detailed explanation of the game, but basically it's a cross between Sudoku and poker. You place cards one at a time onto a 5x5 grid, earning points for each five-card hand you end up with (both down and across). The game can be played as solitaire (meaning you're just gunning for a high score) or against either AI or human opponents. The AIs range from easy to rediculously hard. In any of the multiplayer variants, a single card is drawn from the deck which both players can place simultaenously. If so desired, a game timer can be added to limit how long each player has to make their move (a must in the several games I played--otherwise the game runs too slowly). At the end of each round, you gain points based on the difference in scores (if you score 30 and they score 10, you get 20 points), and the first person to reach 50 points is the winner.

It's hard to critique a card game, as you either like the real-world analog or you don't. The menus and interface are well done and the game has a nice level of polish. The music gets old fast, but it is appropriate for a parlor game. In the couple of multiplayer games I played, we both got bored long before either of us could hit 50 points, so a simple "best-of-3" approach might be more fitting. I think solitaire style games are much more fitting for something like a cell phone, where needing to kill a few minutes is often more common than when you're sitting on your couch. At only 200 points, though, this game is a steal if you like Sudoku or solitaire games.