The Snowball Action Puzzle is a neat action/puzzle hybrid from Japan. The idea is simple: you control a 3D duck who must kill all the enemy ducks in each level by throwing snowballs at them while avoiding theirs. While this makes it sound like a simple SnowBrawl clone, there is a catch: some enemy ducks sit atop pillars and other places that are out of reach. So you have to first throw snowballs at switches and other triggers to make them reachable. On some levels you have to escape balls dropped by flying birds, and many levels have stronger enemy ducks that take more balls – as well as more powerful weapons – to kill. With smooth graphics, zany anime-style characters, and clever level designs sporting a fun blend of action and puzzle elements, The Snowball Action Puzzle is highly recommended to fans of both genres, and especially anyone who likes SnowBrawl but wishes the gameplay were more sophisticated. My only gripe is that it is sometimes hard to gauge a ball's trajectory, due to insufficient shadows and other 3D cues. The red crosshair can make up for that... if you can see it in the snow. Two thumbs up! Reviewed by: Underdogs |