Spin Jam teaches us all not to judge a book by a cover, or a game by it's packaging for that matter.

Often times we (the press) lump all of these $10 bargain titles together for the PlayStation and treat them as some sort of distant cousins to the rest of the library of games. Spin Jam, however, is really quite a surprise and contains quite a few of the production values found in higher price games.<br><br><br>Quite simply, Spin Jam is a puzzle game. The game takes place in a circle surrounded by colored traps. You shoot colored pieces at a spindle in the middle, which you can rotate. If you match up three or more pieces of the same color, the pieces on the other side of the spindle are launched outwards. The launched pieces must then be aimed toward traps of the same color. As in most puzzle games, the basic play is easy to get a hang of, but achieving higher scores can be quite a task.<br><br><br>Spin Jam’s visuals are very basic but still appealing. The actual game area itself mainly consists of a circle with colored balls inside of it, which while won’t wow your friends for its graphical prowess it certainly does the job. Outside the game area, however, are some well-drawn characters and backgrounds that react to the moves (not unlike Taito’s Bust-A-Move series). The style of the selectable characters brings a unique look to the game, which nestles itself somewhere between the ultra-cuddly look of many of the Japanese cartoons and the Saturday-morning cartoons that American kids watch.<br><br><br>Play modes include a basic arcade mode where you just go for your highest score, a story mode where you battle against the different computer controlled opponents, and a versus mode where you can square off against a friend. After completing the story mode as different characters, you are rewarded by unlocking new items in the gallery.<br><br><br>Spin Jam’s music is pleasant and non-obtrusive, and never really annoys you to the point where you’d want to shut the game off (see Tecmo Stackers). <br><br><br> <br /> Let’s be honest here, don’t go into this game expecting the next Metal Gear, Shenmue, or Mario. If you’re looking for great way to pass some time with a simple puzzle game that the whole family can enjoy, your ten dollars will be well spent on Spin Jam.<br><br> <br /> <br />