Tucked inside the case of PopCap Hits! Vol. 1 is a fold out brochure on the history of the PopCap Games Company. Started by three dudes in an attic with some old computers, PopCap went from mere fledgling game makers to developers with some serious properties on their hands - all in just two years. Since their start in 2000 they've received numerous awards and nominations for games such as Bookworm, Zuma, Alchemy and their most successful title, Bejeweled. Previously exclusive to the online arena, 2007 saw the company convert some of their games to consoles and handheld systems, as well as the Xbox Live Arcade. PopCap Hits! Vol. 1 for the PlayStation 2 offers up both Bejeweled 2 and Astro Pop at a bargain-bin price.

I had a little discussion with myself about how to appropriately score this game package. On the one hand I was looking at it through a wide spectrum, seeing how it measured out amidst the burgeoning state of gaming. But ultimately, I don't think that's a fair way to rate PopCap Hits, especially in light of the company's mission statement: developing "fun, easy-to-learn, captivating games that appeal to people of all ages." In the end I decided to base my score solely on how entertained I was each time I popped in the disc.

The more recognizable of the two games, Bejeweled 2 is the sequel to Pop Cap's 2002 award-winning puzzler. Unremarkably, its premise is reminiscent of nearly every other puzzle game in existence; align blocks (in this case, jewels, hence the name) of the same type to erase them from the board to accumulate points. With Bejeweled you align rows of three, four or five jewels (of which there are seven types) in order to score, though special jewels appear (a Power Gem that explodes when matched up and a Hyper Cube that wipes out all of one type jewel on the board) when you align four or five jewels together. The main difference in Bejeweled is that you always have a full board, and you must match jewels by switching the position of any two adjacent jewels so that at least one forms a row of three or more.

Though the description makes Bejeweled 2 sound awfully boring, the variety lies in the different modes the game offers. With Classic mode it's the basic thoroughfare; you ascend through the levels by meeting the score requirement for each stage, the game ending if you run out of moves (i.e. you can't switch any jewels on the board to make a match). Action Mode, however, adds a time gauge to the mix, which changes the game from its usual leisurely pace to a frantic race to match jewels. Endless Mode is just what it says; you can literally go on forever, because when you make a match, the replacement jewels that fall in from the top of the screen always give you another match possibility. Lastly is Puzzle Mode, a very cool variation to the Bejeweled formula in which you must erase all the jewels on the screen, which are prearranged in set configurations, by following a correct order (some have multiple solutions). Thankfully, a "hint" button is available, otherwise some of the later puzzles would be nigh impossible.

The second game in the package, Astro Pop, is a clever fusion of Tetris and Galaga. The objective in Astro Pop is more or less along the same lines as Bejeweled as far as matching puzzle pieces of a like color to achieve the next level, but Astro Pop gives you an actual character to play as instead of just a cursor. As the pilot of a spaceship, you move left to right at the bottom of the screen and use your magnet weapon to pull colored bricks down from the descending stacks, then shoot them back up to make groups of four or more to clear them from the screen. Often, when you clear a set of bricks, those below them fall up onto others and clear themselves if they're the right color, which creates a combo. But just as in Tetris, if you let the screen fill up with bricks, it's game over. Once you fill the "Brick-o-Meter" you advance to the next level, which typically introduces a new kind of power-up brick. The power-ups are plentiful and vary from destroying all the bricks on screen of one color to taking out an entire column or row.

Astro Pop has a definite addictive nature, which is mainly due to the speed at which you'll find yourself playing. At times everything seems to just work out in your favor, as brick after brick breaks away and you string together outrageous combos. I zoned out several times while playing and racked up quite a score without realizing it. I'm decent at it, but Astro Pop is one of those games that I'd love to see played by someone who's mastered it. Though it only has two modes that don't vary much, the gameplay is so intoxicating in its regular mode that there shouldn't be any complaints about variety.

So what can you say about graphics in a game like this? It's the PS2 and at this point in the console's lifespan they aren't going to rock anyone's socks, but they do the job. Colors are vibrant and easily discernable from one another and it's scaled well enough as to prevent headaches. Just like other ported Flash games, their online counterparts are much easier on the eye and sharper, but it's a give and take sort of thing. And while the graphics are average, the sound design makes up for it. I'm convinced that whoever did the music, especially for Bejeweled 2, is an Eighties child. I don't know how many times I was thinking about flicks from my childhood while playing the games! Overall, the sound effects and soundtrack bounce around enough to keep your thoughts away from the repetitious but catchy music instead of the task at hand.

PopCap Hits! Vol 1 achieves everything that PopCap out to do with the likes of Bejeweled 2 and Astro Pop. They're very addictive games, yet their underlying concepts are so simple. Their "pick up and play" factor is very appealing, especially in today's world of games that require large chunks of our time to get in to. There are no save points, no tutorials, no yawn-inducing dialogue - just good old fashioned puzzle style gameplay. Granted, with the PS2 riding off into the sunset, it's not very likely that this title will be a top seller, but if you've still got old reliable and you're looking for a puzzle fix then those three dudes who started their game company in an attic have you covered.

Reviewed by Scott Schmidt for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).