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PQ: Practical Intelligence Quotient

While puzzle games have become more prolific, finding ones that actually do something different can be a chore as many copycat puzzle games proliferate the marketplace. That’s not necessarily a bad thing (imitation is the sincerest form of flattery – or some such nonsense) but when looking for something new, then often times prospective players are stuck with taking a leap of faith only to find that the game in question isn’t fully realized.

PQ from D3Publisher isn’t one of the copycat puzzle games, nor is it one that never finished development in a rush to market. Instead it is one of those truly rare puzzle games that does something fairly original, as well as provide a goal. The whole premise of the game is to find out how smart you are. There is a series of 100 total puzzles (mostly of the “box” variety where the player needs to move a series of crates around) each equipped with a timer. The score is based on how quickly each puzzle is completed – if at all.

The game is not, however, without problems. The first is the intelligence aspect. Let’s be honest, the full name of the game is PQ: Practical Intelligence Quotient. Now, I’m not an English major, but one would think that it would be PIQ (for Practical Intelligence Quotient) not simply PQ (for Practical Quotient). This may be a small thing, but if you’re going to be testing my intelligence, at least don’t start off by insulting it.

Getting past that, there are several types of puzzles to be had (mostly variations on box movements) but one of the biggest problems with the game is the complete disregard for the player the camera has. Being unable to actually see what the playing field is like doesn’t help when attempting to discern where to drop a box to fill a gap in order to complete the level.

While the biggest problem is the camera that will hamper viewing (and completion of certain levels) there will be a few puzzles that not matter how brainy, will frustrate endlessly. Thankfully, there is a method of skipping ahead. Granted, a failing grade for the level will be handed out, but it might be better than slamming the PSP against a brick wall out of frustration. There is a pause (triangle button) that could help relieve the tension when you need to step away from a puzzle for a moment – the puzzle is obscured from view during this time, so don’t think that you can actually use it to help solve the puzzles quicker.

While most of the puzzles are variants of the old crate style puzzles that are relics of adventure games from years gone by (which, unfortunately, still employ the tired device to this day). One might think that this would be a boring challenge would be in for a surprise as other elements are thrown in. One particularly nasty bit tests memorization when the player’s avatar is given a series of directions and has to enter a large box, then follow the directions in order to get out. Once inside, it can be impossible to get out again in order to reacquaint yourself with the directions if lost.

The audio is mostly forgettable, but nothing horrid enough to make you want to turn down the sound. The graphics are clear enough when the camera is cooperative. On a technical level, PQ comes through. It is possible to go through levels that were already completed in order to get a better score, but the actual intelligence ranking won’t change. There is also a tutorial at the beginning that is optional, but should be required as it really does lay out the various puzzle types that players encounter, and when the game starts stacking they types together (and it happens pretty quick) the player could be taken by surprise and not know what to do, which isn’t a good thing when under a time limit.

PQ: Practical Intelligence Quotient isn’t a great tool for any real standardized measurement of how brainy a person is, but it is a very well done variant on the puzzle genre. Having a yardstick to measure the player’s performance at the end of the game only goes to make this even more distinctive and worth picking up for any gamer that likes to exercise their brain.

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Posted by Daniel "monk" Pelfrey on Feb 22nd, 2006 and is filed under PSP Reviews, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can post a comment, or trackback from your own site.

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