The Game Boy Advance has its fair share of puzzle software. For a new title in this genre to atract any attention at all, means it would have to be drastically different from its peers. It's Mr. Pants accomplishes this, and proves that there is still a number of simple gameplay ideas yet properly implemented. Yet, Mr. Pants is not a perfect playmate, but who would expect any more from a guy who seems quite proud to show off his underwear?

Developed by Rare, It's Mr. Pants is a new spin on the now classic puzzle game design. The basic idea is you need to form one colored rectangular blocks from Tetris like puzzle pieces on a flat table top play field. Each one comes in a variety of colors, and can be rotated in four different directions. The intriguing part is that you can place pieces on top of one another as long as they are not of the same color. There is also a preview window that shows the next two puzzle pieces.

There are three modes with which you can play with Mr. Pants – literally. These include:

Puzzle: You are given a certain amount of puzzle pieces to build rectangles from the pre-existing blocks on screen. There is a specific way to solve each ‘puzzle’ with the goal to clear the screen of all blocks.

Wipeout: You have two minutes to clear the entire playfield of randomly placed blocks by building rectangles. With this mode there is no order to the chaos, just a frantic race to beat the clock.

Marathon: This particular mode starts the player off with a clear playfield, and the object is to build the highest score by making as many rectangles as possible in less than 5 minutes.

The game design for It's Mr. Pants is deceptively simple, but is in reality very complex. I found this out with my first play test. Never do I read directions prior to playing a game for the first time, and It's Mr. Pants was no different. After numerous failed attempts and feeling like the stupidest person ever to play a videogame, I pulled out the instructions and finally began to understand all the subtle nuances of this game. It's Mr. Pants best feature is how you can stack puzzle pieces to effectively change their respective color as I briefly mentioned earlier in this article. I would go so far as to say that 99% of the design is built with this in mind. Puzzle mode, for example, forces the player to adapt to this game play mechanic. Even on the easy setting this mode still provides a significant challenge. Though after progressing through Puzzle mode, players will have no trouble getting fantastic scores in Wipeout, or Marathon mode.

It's Mr. Pants uses a graphic technique that I haven't seen to much of in a portable game. If you have ever seen TV shows like Dr. Katz or the more recent Home Movies you will know what I am referring too. The animation doesn’t sync up right, and looks somewhat jumpy. I don’t know how else to phrase it. Even though this may sound like a negative, it couldn’t be far farther from the truth. This graphical technique makes the game all the more interesting, and fun to play.

The oddness of this game is not just relegated to its graphics. This puzzler just seems to be brimming with a different kind of personality. Most of this stems from the huge amount of toilet humor found in this game. This is always a plus, and Rare really made it work in every way. This is good, but sometimes software houses go to far, and they are about as subtle with content as a sledgehammer to the face. Sorry for that last analogy, I just couldn't think of anything better!

Rare as everyone knows is located in the UK. So I wanted to share an experience that one of my best friends had while visiting this lovely country. She was visiting a friend, and many times they ate at restaurants. On one such occasion she accidentally spilled something onto her pants. After that, she said to the party she was with: “Oops, I have got something on my pants.” To her surprise, they looked horrified. See, pants and underpants are considered the same thing. So they thought she meant she had something on her underwear! Well, everything got straightened out with a little explanation, and she had a wonderful time. With this, I put my deducing skills to work while wearing my Sherlock Homes hat and I quickly formulate that his apparent love for his briefs is the reason why they call him Mr. Pants.

One of the truest tests of a good puzzle game is its ability to appeal to a broad range of gamers. I myself enjoy puzzle games, but as a genre they have suffered from too many cookie cutter titles that have been released ever since Tetris practically invented the genre in the 80's. Another reason why most fail, is that the developer doesn’t take the time to fully expand on their ideas. It's Mr. Pants doesn’t succumb to these problems, it's a fully realized game design developed by some of the most talented professionals in the industry.

What else can I say about It's Mr. Pants? Perhaps I could mention the significant absence of a multiplayer mode. Maybe the developers were working under a tight development schedule, or their budget was compromised somehow? Either way, players will just have to settle for taking turns trying to beat their various high scores.

Looking at the all the positives, It's Mr. Pants is easily one of the best puzzle games ever made for the Game Boy Advance. It's Mr. Pants succeeds by carving out its own unique game design, feeling nothing like any puzzle game before it. And even so, it still retains all the necessary qualities that anyone would expect from any game in this genre. Just slap two pieces of bread between all these qualities, and you got yourself a wonderful delicacy of gaming.