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Sega's puzzle series on Genesis started with this straight-forward puzzler

Puzzle games have been around since Tetris made them a big deal. One of the first puzzle games on Sega's Gensis console was Columns, an arcade port of the same name. This game would stretch into a three-game series, becoming Sega's definitive puzzle series on the Genesis. It was developed and published by Sega and released in 1990. The game has a mythological Greek theme, although you'll only see this theme displayed on the title screen. 

The game has three modes: Arcade, Menu, and Options. Arcade allows you to choose the difficulty and see how long you can last. Also, a second player can join at any time while playing Arcade. In Menu, you can play either the original game or Flash Columns. Before starting, you choose a class (difficulty), level (speed), time trial (yes or no), and BGM (3 different songs). In Flash Columns, you start with two rows of jewels (or more). The goal is to find and clear the jewel that flashes. 

Let's talk about the actual gameplay. Three jewels drop from the top of the screen. You can switch their vertical order as they descend. You can move them left or right on the grid and drop them whenever you've found the right spot. The goal is to get three or more matches in order to clear jewels and get points. Jewels can be cleared vertically, horizontally, or diagonally. Pretty basic. If you play on easy, the game gives you hints by flashing jewels that would match the ones that are descending. If you do well, jewels begin dropping faster, and if you can keep clearing at the faster pace, they'll slow down again. Every now and then flashing jewels will descend which can eliminate all jewels of the type they touch. 

This puzzle concept is nothing new today, but in 1990, I imagine it was quite different as the only mainstream puzzle game was Tetris. The puzzle aspect of the game is solid. However, the rest of the game is lacking. Modes are sparce and there's not much incentive to rack up points. The game has no story and no characters. In other words, Columns has no presentation. The game simply has no personality, and the subdued music might put you to sleep. 

If I was reviewing this game in 1990, I'm sure the score would be great, but the point of these reviews is to see if the games hold up well today. Columns doesn't due to its lack of presentation or anything interesting. There's nothing to unlock or complete, making the entire game about getting points. That's it. It's a fine puzzle game, but it just isn't satisfying. Compare this to the vibrant Puyo Puyo series or Nintendo's Panel de Pon and you'll see how boring this game really is. 

Final Verdict--3 Stars: It's Okay

Columns is a solid puzzler, but not a very interesting one. No story. No characters. No incentives to work towards. It's a nice oddity if you want to see one of Sega's first puzzle games, but that's about all it is. To be fair, its sequels would improve on the formula, but this first one isn't worth your time. We live in a world with tons of great puzzle games, so don't waste your time on this mediocre brew.