Zendoku
Encyclopedia
Zoonami
Zoonami is a video game development company, founded in 2000 by Martin Hollis, the director and producer of GoldenEye 007. He left Rare shortly before Perfect Dark was released while other members of the GoldenEye 007 team formed Free Radical Design....
and published by Eidos Interactive
Eidos Interactive
Eidos Interactive Ltd. is a British video game publisher and is a label of Square Enix Europe. As an independent company Eidos plc was headquartered in the Wimbledon Bridge House in Wimbledon, London Borough of Merton....
for the Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
and the PSP
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
portable video game systems.
Zendoku is a variation of Sudoku
Sudoku
is a logic-based, combinatorial number-placement puzzle. The objective is to fill a 9×9 grid with digits so that each column, each row, and each of the nine 3×3 sub-grids that compose the grid contains all of the digits from 1 to 9...
, offering a slightly more combative experience than simply lining up numbers. Players must now insert symbols, rather than the standard numbers. Players choose characters and choose to attack or defend against a challenger, which takes place via mini-games started upon filling in a group of numbers. The game is set against anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
-influenced backdrops and has a "light-hearted martial arts
Martial arts
Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
" theme. The game also offers single-player puzzles.
Reception
The UK Nintendo Magazine, ONM praised the DS version of the game for its colourful graphics, but criticized it for the confusing system of using symbols instead of numbers. As well as the minigames feeling tacked on and more of an annoyance, and finished by saying, "One for multiplayer only".On the other hand, NGamer
NGamer
NGamer is a British magazine which mainly covers Nintendo video game consoles and software, and also to a much lesser extent, Sony and Microsoft consoles. The first issue was released on 13 July 2006...
praised the multiplayer game highly, saying, "The thrill of using logical reasoning to kick someone's arse is a phenomenal experience."