No One Can Stop Mr. Domino!

No One Can Stop Mr. Domino![lower-alpha 1] is a puzzle video game developed by Artdink and released for the PlayStation in 1998. The user controls one of five anthropomorphic dominoes, placing other dominoes in rows that will successfully topple while avoiding obstacles and working under a time limit.

No One Can Stop Mr. Domino!
North American box art
Developer(s)Artdink
Publisher(s)
Director(s)Tomotsu Satō
Producer(s)Masahisa Okamoto
Programmer(s)Tatsuo Oku
Artist(s)Shuji Kasai
Composer(s)Shingo Murakami
Platform(s)PlayStation
Release
  • JP: January 8, 1998
  • EU: September 1998
  • NA: November 30, 1998[1]
Genre(s)Endless runner, Puzzle
Mode(s)Single-player

Gameplay

The game includes six stages: a casino, a grocery store, a family home, a local park, an amusement park, and a city. Each stage is set up like a racetrack as the character will return to the starting point after each lap. The player can make as many laps as needed to clear a given stage. When the level is cleared, the player will proceed to the next stage.

Once a stage starts, the character starts to run and will not stop running. To control the character's speed and direction, the player dictates movement with the D-Pad. The characters that are not under the player's control will attempt to hinder the avatar's progress in ways such as throwing dice, turning on electrical wire, and making fruit appear out of nowhere, making the evasion of such obstacles a primary concern of the player.

A game element called a "trick tile" places the dominoes effectively by input of the Circle, X, Triangle, or Square button. This will place a domino on the current path. The player can continue to keep placing dominoes by holding down one of the aforementioned buttons.

When a full lap is completed around the stage and returned to where the first domino was laid, the character will bump into the domino. The dominoes will begin an effect of inertia, and the character will stand still while the dominoes are falling.

While active, the character's stamina will decrease. This is signified by the character's body gradually darkening. If the character's stamina is depleted, the character will transform into an ordinary domino, and the game will end. This is prevented by encountering special Recovery Tiles that can recover the character's stamina, but can only be used once for each tile.

The player clears a stage by activation of the required number of trick tiles for each stage. Score is increased by activating the trick tiles in a shorter time and in as long of a chain as possible. If the stage is cleared with a High Score, the player will be able to unlock new characters.

Characters
  • Mr. Domino is the titular character of the game, and one of the two characters that are selectable in the beginning. He runs at normal speed. At the end of his run, he jumps from the top of a building and turns into a normal domino once he hits the ground. A young woman can be seen walking as Mr. Domino falls. Eventually, she sees Mr. Domino in his normal form on the ground, picks him up and walks away with him.
  • Miss Domino is the only other character available in the beginning of the game. While she has the same speed as Mr. Domino, Miss Domino moves by skipping rather than running. At the end of her run, she runs into a wall and turns into a normal domino upon impact. Mr. Domino sees this and does the same, turning himself into a normal domino, lying beside Miss Domino in her normal form.
  • Bruce is a Domino with devil horns, unlocked by simply completing the game once. He is difficult to handle due to his fast running speed, and is thus for advanced players only. At the end of his run, he blows himself up into a normal domino, only for a crow to swoop him up and fly away with him.
  • Pierre-Domino is a Domino with glasses, unlocked by setting a High Score for each stage. He is the opposite of Bruce, as he runs slowly and runs out of stamina quickly. At the end of his run, he falls over due to exhaustion and turns into a normal domino. The sky then rains on him.
  • D△M•?0 is an alien-like Domino, unlocked by setting a High Score for each stage. While he is listed as of the unknown style, he is actually the fastest of all the characters. At the end of his run, he melts into a normal domino and a UFO beams him up before flying into space with him.

Reception

The game received mixed reviews from critics upon release.[2] In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 25 out of 40.[6] Next Generation said that "for puzzle-savvy players, the combination of technique, luck, quirky surrealism, and clever designs in Mr. Domino gives the game just enough of a hook to incite addiction."[10] GamePro said, "Though the one-false-move gameplay may turn off some puzzle fans, and the linear problem-solving makes it merely a solid renter, Mr. Domino's unique charms make it worth playing."[14][lower-alpha 3]

Notes
  1. Known as Do Not Stop Domino-kun (ドミノ君をとめないで。, Domino-kun wo Tomenaide) in Japan
  2. Two critics of Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the game each a score of 7/10, one gave it 8.5/10, and the other gave it 7.5.
  3. GamePro gave the game three 4/5 scores for graphics, sound, and fun factor, and 3.5/5 for control.

References
  1. "No One Can Stop Mr. Domino!". Acclaim Entertainment. November 30, 1998. Archived from the original on August 25, 2004.
  2. "No One Can Stop Mr. Domino for PlayStation". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on May 1, 2019. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  3. Sackenheim, Shawn. "No One Can Stop Mr. Domino - Review". AllGame. All Media Network. Archived from the original on November 15, 2014. Retrieved December 9, 2016.
  4. Hsu, Dan; Davison, John; Ricciardi, John; Boyer, Crispin (January 1999). "[No One Can Stop] Mr. Domino" (PDF). Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 114. Ziff Davis. p. 226. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2023. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  5. Grant, Jules (January 4, 1999). "No One Can Stop Mr. Domino". The Electric Playground. Greedy Productions Ltd. Archived from the original on July 12, 2004. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  6. "ドミノ君をとめないで。 [PS]". Famitsu (in Japanese). Enterbrain. Archived from the original on July 6, 2020. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  7. "No One Can Stop Mr. Domino!". Game Informer. No. 69. FuncoLand. January 1999. p. 72.
  8. Bartholow, Peter (December 14, 1998). "No One Can Stop Mr. Domino! Review". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on August 21, 2015. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  9. Perry, Douglass C. (December 2, 1998). "No One Can Stop Mr. Domino". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on August 22, 2023. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  10. "No One Can Stop Mr. Domino!". Next Generation. No. 51. Imagine Media. March 1999. p. 90. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  11. Pierce, Stephen (July 1998). "Mr Domino". Official UK PlayStation Magazine. No. 34. Future Publishing. p. 140. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  12. MacDonald, Mark (December 1998). "[No One Can Stop] Mr. Domino". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. Vol. 2, no. 3. Ziff Davis. p. 151. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  13. "No One Can Stop Mr. Domino". PSM. No. 18. Imagine Media. February 1999. p. 37. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  14. Bad Hare (February 1999). "[No One Can Stop] Mr. Domino" (PDF). GamePro. No. 125. IDG. p. 104. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 21, 2021. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
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