Cross Words on Nintendo DS Review

Rated E by the ESRB (Entertainment Software Rating Board). This game is for everybody who loves crossword puzzles, word searches and anagrams. It's a great game to play by yourself or with a sibling. You will use the stylus for the majority of each game, the control buttons can scroll up and down but the stylus is the best tool for writing and highlighting. Larger buttons will respond to the touch of your finger.

To get started you need to see the title screen which gives you the choice of Training or Main Game. If you are left handed the game will rotate to accommodate you and if you are right handed it stays the same as the default. If you choose Training will be given a tutorial of the game. For those who need help learning about how each game is played this is an in depth and step by step way to understand how the game works and how you are scored.

When you choose Main Game you get to create a profile. Tap on New Profile and choose which hand you normally write with, then you can spell your name by writing out the letters. Once you have created a profile name, you can choose which game you want to start with. The choices are Crosswords, Wordsearch and Anagrams. There is also an Options button that lets you delete or rename your profile. You can also see the credits roll and find out who created and worked on the game.

Crosswords: There are two choices; easy and medium when you start, if you finish those two levels then hard and expert are added to your list. There are 200 crosswords in easy and 300 in medium. You begin by selecting a puzzle under easy or medium and then you can start the game. You will write letters on the blocks after you zoom in, if the letter is red, its wrong, if it's black, then its correct. Your handwriting is recognized by the game and will place the letter you have written in the block. You can erase by a single tap on the eraser picture at the bottom. You can choose down or across to move throughout the puzzle and if you need hints they are available but they will cost you points. Each puzzle is timed so if you have to walk away make sure you pause your game.

Wordsearch: You have two choices, small and large. Giant is another level but you have to finish the two levels before that option appears. You have 5 pages of easy word search games ranging in subjects such as animals, book topics, colors, body parts and shopping. There are plenty of subjects to choose from and completing each one will mark a slash through the number. On the small choice you locate up to 14 words, 42 words on the large. Drag your stylus along the word to highlight it and it will highlight the word on your list meaning that you have found it.

Anagrams: This game is the most difficult because you have to create words that fit into the blocks. You are given a choice of short, medium or long. Each type of game depends on how many letters you can use. Short has three and four letter words, medium has three, four and five letter words. Long has three, four, five and six letter words. You drag the letters into the letter holders and tap OK to see if the word shows up in the word boxes. You can align or shuffle the letters and it will rearrange them so you can see them differently.

Each game has a Give Up button, but you have to clear at least half to activate it. You can also save and quit your game to keep your work so you don't have to start over each time you want to play. There is music for each game and it's very non-threatening. This game is great for quiet nights and long road trips. It's also a great way to keep your mind sharp and to teach kids about words and how to solve puzzles.