Item - Brain Drain

This is an undistinguished end to the series; although not as bad as the previous book, it shares some of that volume's flaws. The puzzles don't integrate well with the plot, and some of them are completely random or pointless. Some of the graphic design also leaves something to be desired -- the very first puzzle is supposed to have letters printed on a checkerboard pattern, but rather than actually putting the letters where they belong, the designer has chosen to draw the squares separately and put the letters that go in them off to the left. I assume this was done because it would have been more difficult to print letters on a black background, but doing so would not be that hard and would certainly be less confusing. The adventure's plot, which once again centers on Luigi rather than Mario, has some potential for humor, and while there are a couple mildly amusing moments, it doesn't begin to exploit the full possibilities. This is at least partially because the adventure feels especially short -- although there is only one victorious ending (just like the rest of this series), there are quite a few different ways to reach it. Some involve finding items needed at crucial moments and others involve sheer luck; the variety means there is some replay value in attempting to go back and get a higher score, but it makes the story itself seem somewhat rushed. In any case, I wasn't motivated to do too much replaying, as my rather miserable score attests.

My High Score - 450

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