Another week, another puzzle title for the DS. Of course, the DS touch screen makes the system perfect for puzzle games, but this doesn't mean that all puzzlers released for this format are equally as perfect; on the contrary, there are only a handful of truly great puzzle games out there for your DS - so the big question is, will Touchmaster be just be another half-hearted attempt like we've grown accustomed to, or will it be worthy of your time?

With Touchmaster you're getting 23 games for under £20, which is less than a quid per game! Now there's some maths that we can all get behind! This is not to say that all of the games included in this puzzle compendium are worth your precious time though, and you'll quickly realise that behind some of the obscure names like '5 Star Generals' you will find games known to most by more common names like 'Yahtzee'. But as with all videogames, a license doesn't always mean top quality, so let's not worry too much about the name changes!

You will probably find that you have played a few of these games before, except here there are a few twists. For starters, all games come with a time limit, which means pressure! But don't panic yet, because if you complete your task in good time then you receive precious time bonus points. Speed plays a major factor in this game if you wish to get your name at the top of the leaderboard.

The games are split up into four different categories; favourites, cards, skill and puzzle, with around six games in each category. The instructions on how to play some of the games are a little disappointing though, and nowhere near as in-depth as 42 All-Time Classics, so for most of the games you will have to work out how to play without assistance. Unfortunately, with this game being American, the Trivia game really is limited to those with an extensive knowledge of the good ol' U. S. of A. "Who was the first overall pick in the 1981 NHL entry draft?" I nearly cried when I couldn't answer most of the questions and could only be consoled by a very British cup of tea. This is only a small letdown for one game, but I did get excited when I saw that a Trivia game was available.

It would of course have been idiotic for Midway not to include any multiplayer options for this game, but again where the multiplayer could have been a triumph, if you wish to play against a friend then they have to own a copy as well. This seems a bit stingy for the types of game on offer, which are perfectly suited to cartridge sharing and aren't worth buying two copies for the multiplayer aspect. Some games allow for two-player games on one DS, although the fun is less frantic as these games need simultaneous play to make them exciting. Online multiplayer is also available though, and Midway often host tournaments in which you can try and become champ of the online world leaderboard, so at least that helps compensate for the lack of local download play.

Taking a closer look at those four categories I mentioned earlier, Favourites consists of four games that are supposedly the nation's favourite. Crystal Balls is the first of these games, which follows a similar format to Tetris, where coloured, numbered balls fall and have to be aligned, three in a row, to make them disappear and gain big points. Although the aim of the game is the same as the legendary Tetris, the fun factor is simply nowhere near as great. The best game in Favourites is Target 21, a simple card game where five columns must be filled with cards to total 21. This game can become intense, especially when the points pile high and the clock is running low.

Next up is Cards, which is quite easily the best category in Touchmaster. However, while it is the best, in some ways it is also the most frustrating, as the instructions on how to play the games are downright shoddy. Anyone can agree that it is almost impossible to sum up how to play a card game in twelve words, yet Uplift attempts to do that. Given the instructions "Get all Aces to the top of the four columns to win" I was left mind boggled on how to get the aces to the top. I soon found myself drawn to the game Go Wild (probably because I felt like doing so!) Here some clearer instructions led to a much more enjoyable experience; in fact, Go Wild is the game I found myself coming back to the most. There are three columns and you play cards of the same suit or number onto each other until you've run out of cards; the trick is to decide when to change the suit of a pile by placing a card that has the same number but with a different suit. It's very addictive fun. The other card game worth a mention is 3 Peak Deluxe, where the objective is to play a card from your deck onto another one in the playing area of value, one higher or lower e.g. a 4 can be played on a 3 or 5. This game is also addictive and has massive replay value.

The Skill pile was the first bunch of games that I leapt to and I was a little disappointed by them. Sure, games like, 5 Star Generals (Yahtzee) and Word Search are included, but the section looks like it was rushed and thrown in as an afterthought. The first thing that led me to this feeling is the fact that there are two nearly identical games, in 5 Star Generals and Pick Up 6, the only difference between the two being that Pick Up 6 uses symbols instead of numbers. Don't get me wrong - Yahtzee is one of my all-time favourite games, but I don't want two of the same game on one cart. I also found that Hot Hoops is barely a game; you are presented with a line of basketball players along the bottom of your screen and a basket slowly moving horizontally across the top of the screen, then you touch a player to throw his ball, which should end up in the basket. With only the merest amount of timing necessary, you will find yourself the master of Hot Hoops on your second go, after which you'll probably never have a third go.

Don't give up on the Skill category just yet though, as Checkers and Word Search are here to save the day, with Word Search ending up being the cream of the whole cart. Word Search comes accompanied with hilarious American style names for the word categories, with favourites of mine including "What's for dinner?", "Look, up in the sky" and "Baby, Baby!" I was laughing so hard that the tears were blurring my vision and therefore I couldn't find the words properly - that's my excuse for such poor high scores anyway, that and those damn diagonal words!

Last and least is the Puzzle section; apart from Gem Slide and Wordz, this section is scraping the barrel, the worst entries being Pairs and Mahki. Once again, two identical games are put on the same cart, the only difference being that you match colours in one game and numbers in the other. The next game in this category I came across was Times Square. Having never heard of this game or recognising it under another name, I turned to the trusty instructions for help, which read, "Play your tiles inside the grid and go for the high score!" Imagine that you have never played chess before and I tell you to "Move the pieces to win!" Another game let down by something so simple as instructions. Wordz is the equivalent of Wheel of Fortune, but without the wheel, so I guess it's more like hangman. You are given a phrase to solve by selecting letters from a grid. Choose the correct letters and they appear in the puzzle, choose the wrong ones and be prepared to lose lives! Hint: Z,X and V are bad letters to start with...

I've only touched upon a handful of games from this collection, but there's definitely something for everyone in here, so don't worry if none of the ones I've mentioned so far don't appeal to you.

When it comes to the presentation of the game, there's nothing special but everything works as it should, looking simple but effective - cards look like cards and dice look like dice, plus the layout of the menus is easy to navigate with the touch screen. The game sounds okay, although it tends to use more sound effects than music. This was a good move in my opinion, as there is nothing worse when you're trying to add cards up to twenty-one than having an annoying tune in the background, putting you off. But when you come top of the high score board there is one piece of triumphant music that will make you turn your DS up to full volume and have you marching around the room proclaiming, "I am the king, I am the king!" Or maybe that's just me - I don't know.

Touchmaster will definitely appeal to fans of the puzzle genre, but while 23 games in one package sounds like a lot, they're not all going to be suited to your tastes. Whereas some are fun to play for a while, others become very boring very quickly. Unfortunately this game is not in the same league as 42 All-Time Classics, but it shouldn't be discarded into the rubbish pile either. For its budget price I would recommend that puzzle fans take a look, while bearing in mind that 42 All-Time Classics is a better place to go for your puzzling fix, if you haven't been there already.

And for those of you who are curious, here are all 23 games included in Touchmaster, not that the names of most of them will mean anything to you!

Crystal Balls
Mahki
Target 21
3 Peak Deluxe
Go Wild
Phoenix 13
Triple Elevens
Uplift
Solitaire Classic
Power Cell
Double Take
Pond King Checkers
Artifact
Hot Hoops
5 Star Generals
Pick Up 6
Trivia
Word Search
Pairs
Times Square
Mahjongg Pairs
Gem Slide
Wordz

Reviewed by Ross Helsby for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).