SEGA Ages: Columns 2: A Voyage Through Time (Nintendo Switch) Review

Though beloved in the eyes of many, the original Columns was very limited in scope and presentation, only offering one Gem style and background, and very few music tracks. Columns II fixes this with plenty of terrain variety, jewel shapes and colours per level and round, and lots of bombastic music types to get the creative juices flowing. It's rather easy to compare between the two games, as the original is included with this version as a bonus.

The Columns concept meets the required criteria of every great puzzle game; easy to play and tricky to master. Given a grid of distinctly coloured shapes, the requirement is to clear rows of three or more gem shapes in a horizontal, diagonal or vertical orientation. Reaching the top of the screen results in instant game over. This concept is simple, but does somewhat lack the compelling stacking variety of other notable puzzlers like Tetris and Puyo Puyo, and certain shape styles in later stages can be straining on the eyes at times.

The content core of Columns II lies in the Arcade Mode, of which there are three variants: Original, a straightforward level by level sequence that tasks players with clearing certain flashing gems to progress. Skull Smash is the same but removes random insertions of cranium gems that raise the floor of the grid when cleared, and Stage Select is as it sounds; handy for the new SEGA Ages feature of unlockable portraits when certain levels are cleared. Each of these three variants also has a Versus section with the rules applied to player against player action. Two other notable modes include Infinite Jewels that more closely resembles the classic Endless style ofColumns play, and Online Versus, a means to compete with other Switch players across the globe.

Familiar additions to the SEGA Ages line are also present in this game. Selectable difficulty options, a music player, Save and Load Slates, Online Leaderboards, a means to customise controls to the player's liking, and plenty of Visual Display tweaking to hand such as background wallpapers and TV Optical Filters. Fans of SEGA's lesser known history, and puzzler newbies looking for something simple to get their teeth into will be greatly served with this Voyage.