Although already released on the Dreamcast, Sega’s Sonic Team has taken ChuChu Rocket! and shrunk it down for the GBA. I have never played the original, but heard from many that this was an excellent puzzle game and shouldn’t be ignored. When you have Sonic Team behind any game, you know it’s got to be fun and interesting. This tradition lives on in ChuChu Rocket! for the Game Boy Advance.

Gameplay-wise, ChuChu Rocket! is a puzzler where you need to lead space mice (ChuChus) that are in a Space Port to their rocket. Why do they need to go to their rocket? Well, there are space cats (KapuKapus) that have invaded the space port and are hungry for ChuChus. Not the most detailed story, but it is a puzzle game. Like you really need a story, eh? ChuChus come out of hatches, and you lay arrow panels steering them towards their goal. A very simple idea, but it takes a while to master it. The gameplay is addictive, frustrating, and down right insane.

ChuChu Rocket! has different single player and multiplayer modes. The single player game is all about puzzles. You are allotted specific arrow panels that you need to lead your ChuChus to their rocket without harm. You’ll need to avoid cats, holes, or just figure out how to navigate a maze the correct way. Sometimes there are different objectives like “Feeding the Cats,” or other things…but usually it’s just get the mice to the rocket….and it isn’t always easy. There are supposedly around 2500 unique puzzles to play through so you’ll be plenty busy.

Then there are the infamous multiplayer modes. I haven’t been able to play multiplayer with real people but the AI seems to be challenging enough (with turning up the difficulty). The object is to direct as many ChuChus to your colored rocket as you can within the allotted time. But now you have people fighting against you…as well as cats! Not to mention the rules change every few seconds. Basically there are sudden moments where there could be “Mice Mania” or “Speed Up” where there’s mice spilling from everywhere, or a “Kitten Frenzy” or a “Cat Attack” where cats or kittens are unleashed and you can lose huge amounts of the mice you’ve (or your opponents have) gathered. You can also direct the cats to other rockets too. This is one of the places where this can get ugly….as well as a whole lot of fun. You could have a whole truckload of mice, but if someone (or some people) sends a couple cats your way, the game totally changes shape. What it boils down to is ChuChu Rocket! = pure multiplayer mayhem. The best part, of course, is the fact that you only need one cart for all the fun.

Ultimately ChuChu Rocket! is a huge blast--single or multiplayer. The meat of this game is held in its multiplayer modes, but it is a good time alone. The reason these impressions took so long was because I couldn’t put this game down! One thing I have to point out is that it’s extremely weird to see Sega’s and Sonic Team’s logo pop up on a Nintendo console. After playing ChuChu Rocket!, I more than welcome them with open arms! ChuChu Rocket! is a puzzler’s dream. And for being the only puzzler in the US launch, if you need a break from your other GBA games, grab Chu Chu Rocket. You won’t be disappointed.