GENRE
	Puzzle
	DEVELOPER
	Budcat Creations
	PUBLISHER
	Majesco
	LOCAL WIRELESS MULTI-PLAY
	Yes
	Wi-Fi/GLOBAL ONLINE MULTI-PLAY
	No
	MICROPHONE
	No
	BUY NOW AT

A game designed to appeal to the increasing number of older, casual gamers needs to be straightforward, easy to use and not frustrating. New York Times Crosswords manages to exhibit all of these qualities and deliver a satisfying play experience.

visuals

The subdued colors are a nice change from the ubiquitous black and white of the printed page, and an impressive title animation video looks the best yet seen on DS. The menu items are creatively sorted into a crossword of down and across choices. Oddly enough, other visuals relate less to crosswords and more to "lunch." Perhaps in anticipation of people playing the game on lunch break, milk cartons, apples, and slices of pie adorn many navigation buttons.

audio

Simple clicks and pops give just the right amount of input feedback. This is especially important when mom, dad, grandma or grandpa isn't sure if they're clicking the right button. Background music is vague enough not to interfere with thinking, but repetition makes it get old fast and will soon have players disabling music in options, or turning down sound to off altogether.

gameplay

Where New York Times Crosswords really shines is in the gameplay department. Options abound for everything from what kind of puzzle played, rules for playing and how to get the letters into the little boxes. All of this means that players can tailor the game to their own likes and play in a way that makes the most sense and is easiest for them. This is exactly what is necessary to get casual and non-gamers, who are often unsure of themselves when it comes to games and game controls, into a game.

To explain more in-depth before moving on, players can exercise the options mentioned above to: use either the touch screen or buttons to navigate, and enter letters via either a touch screen keyboard or the exceptional handwriting recognition function. Puzzles can be done in order for the day of the week or selected at random, and can be played timed for a score or untimed. Up to three incomplete puzzles can be saved for later completion for up to four separate player "profiles" or saved games.

There's even a hint function for those who are seriously stuck, enabling any puzzle to be solvable, no matter how difficult the clues. Of course, using hints takes away some sense of accomplishment and fun of figuring out clues, and so should only be used when completely stuck, or to check a word for correctness. The hint function operates by inserting the next absent correct letter and thus does not do anything if the word was already correct.

multiplayer

Single card download play adds instant appeal to any DS game. Multi-card play is also offered, and both modes are for up to four players. There are two multiplayer game modes, Co-op and Vs. In Co-op mode players all work together on the same puzzle whereas in Vs. mode players work individually. Points are awarded per correct letter, deducted per incorrect letter, and tallied at the end. Like a paper puzzle, it's also just as much fun to work on puzzles with another person in an over-the-shoulder manner.

overall

New York Times Crosswords seems an ideal candidate for induction into the Touch Generations series. At around 1,000 different puzzle of varying difficulty, a plethora of options, ease of use, and single-card download play, there's little if anything that New York Times Crosswords got wrong. The ease of use especially makes it the perfect choice for the casual gamer in the family who just got a DS.

9.0/10