''Nemrem'', known as ''Zengage'' in North America and ''Somnium'' in Japan, is a

puzzle video game Puzzle video games make up a broad genre of video games that emphasize puzzle solving. The types of puzzles can test problem-solving skills, including logic, pattern recognition, sequence solving, spatial recognition, and word completion. ...

developed by

Skip Ltd. Skip Ltd. (stylized as skip Ltd.) is a Japanese video game developer that has a close relationship with Nintendo. Nintendo has published all of their Japanese releases; with the only notable exception being '' LOL'' (''Archime DS''), which skip ...

and published by Nintendo for the

Nintendo DSi The is a dual-screen handheld game console released by Nintendo. The console launched in Japan on November 1, 2008, and worldwide beginning in April 2009. It is the third iteration of the Nintendo DS, and its primary market rival is Sony ...

DSiWare This is a list of games and applications, collectively known as DSiWare, for the Nintendo DSi handheld game console, available for download via the DSi Shop and unplayable on earlier DS models. An update released for the Nintendo 3DS in June 201 ...

digital distribution Digital distribution, also referred to as content delivery, online distribution, or electronic software distribution, among others, is the delivery or distribution of digital media content such as audio, video, e-books, video games, and othe ...

service.

Gameplay

The game involves players sliding colored tiles on a game board in order to match the positions of colored balls resting on the same board. Some puzzles in higher-level stages may feature obstacles that could send some colored balls bouncing elsewhere or get stuck, etc.

Development

''Nemrem'' was announced for the

service on January 28, 2009, and released two days later alongside '' Art Style: Picopict'', another title in the ''

Art Style ''Art Style'' is a video game series created by skip Ltd. for WiiWare and DSiWare. The first game in the ''Art Style'' series, ''Orbient'', was released for WiiWare in September 2008. Another two ''Art Style'' games, ''Cubello'' and ''Rotohex'', ...

'' series.

Reception

''Nemrem'' received mixed reviews from critics upon release. On ''

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

'', the game holds a score of 65/100 based on 5 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews". JC Fletcher of ''

Joystiq ''Joystiq'' was a video gaming blog founded in June 2004 as part of the Weblogs, Inc. family of weblogs, now owned by AOL. It was AOL's primary video game blog, with sister blogs dealing with MMORPG gaming in general and the popular MMORPG '' Wo ...

'' felt that being released alongside ''

Picopict ''Picopict'', known as ''Pictobits'' in North America and as ''Pictopict'' in Australia, is a Puzzle video game, puzzle video game developed by Skip Ltd. and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DSi's List of DSiWare games and applications, DSiWa ...

'' caused it to be overlooked when it was released in Japan. In their group review of DSiWare games, '' GameSpy'' writers Brian Altano and Brian Miggels gave it a rating of 'worthless', suggesting that the name ''Zengage'' feels "pompous" due to it lacking engaging gameplay. They also criticized it for not having a memorable style or "Zen-like qualities". They suggested that it was boring and a waste of money. Jon Jordan of '' Pocket Gamer'' felt it was "nothing to get excited about", and that a person's enjoyment of the game is more about whether they like cerebral puzzles or not. They also praised the presentation as "pleasant" despite also being "fairly muted". Craig Harris of ''

IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa dist ...

'' praised it for enhancing the concept of

slide puzzle A sliding puzzle, sliding block puzzle, or sliding tile puzzle is a combination puzzle that challenges a player to slide (frequently flat) pieces along certain routes (usually on a board) to establish a certain end-configuration. The pieces t ...

s, a genre which he criticized for being over-saturated on DSiWare due to the ease of making them. He also noted it as one of the most challenging DSiWare games, praising its soundtrack as "brilliantly relaxing" and commented that the relaxing music was meant to keep players caLm during the game's most difficult puzzles. He did not enjoy it much, but felt that people who like difficult games would. On the other hand, Neil Ronaghan of ''Nintendo World Report'' praised it for its depth, calling its aesthetic "cool and somewhat creepy".

References

External links

Official website
2009 video games DSiWare games Nintendo DS-only games Nintendo DS games Puzzle video games Skip Ltd. games Video games developed in Japan {{puzzle-videogame-stub Nintendo games Single-player video games