Review:
Bejeweled 2 Deluxe Review

Bejeweled 2’s varied selection of gem matching puzzle modes has something for everyone.

After my friend and I would waste our valuable Friday nights hammering at a neglected Puzzle Bobble 2 arcade cabinet situated in the corner of an otherwise trendy nightclub, we used to joke that the heinously addictive game had been designed in an underground laboratory of abducted masterminds. As part of an inspired plot for world dominance that would make even the most ambitious Bond villains feel a little humble, if memory serves me correct. Bejewelled 2 Delexe, the sequel to PopCap Games’ infamously compulsive puzzle game, is clearly the next stage in this evil scheme. Soon the world and its grandmother will be transfixed to a global grid of PC monitors, perpetually switching colourful gems in a state of near-hypnosis.

Okay, that was a bit silly. But there’s no denying that PopCap have landed upon the ultimate formula for addictive gem-swapping. Whatever your tastes in puzzle gaming, there’s bound to be a game mode in Bejeweled 2 (I’ll drop the Deluxe) that will cater to your tastes… and slowly drain your time from you until you find yourself in videogame rehab.

The Bejeweled series has slowly expanded from its PC roots and is currently available on almost every major system – the most recent iteration made it to the PSN in early 2009. It even comes as part of a series of PopCap trials on many new PC packages. So if you’ve yet to play it, you’ve perchance noticed it on your console’s online shop or found your cursor hovering over an unclicked icon.