Tiles of Fate

Game: Tiles of Fate
Publisher: American Video Entertainment Inc.
Release Date: 1990
Platform: NES

So one day a company decided that they should make a game. And this game would be a game everyone knew and loved so this company would make millions of dollars and retire to Tahiti. What game is more well loved by people wanting to kill time? Soli – I mean Mahjong. Then this company went, you know what Mahjong REALLY needs? Canons. Also you know what people love nowadays? Ridiculous magic based move systems. Oh wait, and explosions.

Clearly this is Mahjong as Michael Bay intended.

So the basic premise is clear: it's Mahjong. But you are also conquering Chinese dynasties as you progress through the stages. Because I suppose throwing in a random history lesson means parents were okay letting their children play this for hours on end. So here's the plot: you control the forces of symmetry. That's right. Symmetry. But symmetry is a fickle magic power and can only move in 90 degree angles for reasons which us mere mortals can never understand. And how does symmetry make the tiles disappear? Well with a fireball naturally. One tile will shoot a fireball at the next tile and they will vanish in a small but exquisite 8-bit explosion. In addition to controlling symmetry you can collect magic upgrades which will allow you to stop the timer, destroy bricks in the way of your perfect 90 degree angle world and cast a spell which will make the next available move for you. I beat the entire game without ever using them because I don't have the manual and couldn't figure out how to access them, and as it turns out it's not necessary.

There's a level editor where you can create and play your own level that's pretty fun. Though it turns out I like making them utterly impossible to solve.

Final Score:

4 bits out of 8
As a game it's pretty meh. It's Mahjong, which is significantly easier to play with a mouse rather than with a d-pad. I have better time killing options than this particular game. But it's not awful and if you have a serious hankering for exploding chinese tiles with the power of symmetry, than this is your game.

The Story So Far:

Tiles of Fate: Completed 12/3/2010
Binary Land: Currently on Level 5
Tetris: Currently on Level 19
Dr. Mario: Currently on Level 21