This is a reskin of Puyo Puyo from Compile. It uses characters from one of the Sonic the Hedgehog cartoons, which was released by Sega as a stopgap between other Sonic games, much like Sonic Spinball.
This isn’t the first time Sega has worked with Compile, and they will eventually buy the rights to the Puyo Puyo games. This series was released in North America under different names, as another version of the game was reskinned with Kirby characters on the SNES.
I’ve never played this version of Puyo Puyo before, so I’m looking forward to it. I’ve liked the other versions of the game I’ve played, and I should enjoy this one.
TLDR: This is a fun puzzle game that would be more fun with a second person.
A Brief History of Puyo Puyo in North America
The Puyo Puyo series has been going since 1991, when Compile released the first game. That company made the games until 2000, when Sonic Team took over development. Since then, Sega has been the series’s publisher and owns the IP.
The first Puyo Puyo game was released in North America as Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine in 1993, and Super Puyo Puyo was released as Kirby’s Avalanche/Kirby’s Ghost Trap in 1995. After these two games, the series’ other releases outside Japan would be called Puyo Puyo.
There are 28 games in the Puyo Puyo series as of 2025. Sega owns the rights to the series, and there have been two crossovers with the Tetris series. I’m unsure how successful the series has been on the console, handheld, or arcade, but it seems the series is still going.
Narrative
This puzzle game has a story to it! This was probably necessary to explain what was going on and to make narrative sense for this game’s place in the Sonic the Hedgehog games. The other spinoffs probably have something similar to it.
Anyway, Dr. Robotnik has set his sights on Beanville and is planning to menace the residents with his Mean Bean-Steaming Machine. He is planning on grouping the “Bean Folk” up in groups of four, and steaming them. You have to group them up, but instead of steaming them, you set them free.
You also have to “bust open” the henchbots’ dungeons to advance to the next stage. I know what they’re trying to say, because I’ve played games like this before. The manual, and my terrible retelling of it, don’t do a good job of conveying what is going on.
When you look at the game, it will make more sense. Just like Tetris, Columns, and other puzzle games, if you fill up your screen, then you lose. When your opponents’ screen is filled up, you win.
The story isn’t all that necessary to enjoy the game. It is nice to have, and it explains what is going on. I would like to know if the troubles of the Bean Folk are explored in any other Sonic the Hedgehog media, but I seriously doubt it.
Gameplay
Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine is a falling block puzzle game. This format has been repeated so many times with countless other puzzle games. It works very well for a game like this.
Most modern games are Match Three games, where you have to arrange items into groups of three or more. Mean Bean Machine and other Puyo Puyo games differ a little in that they are Match Four games.
This means you need to arrange your little jelly beans into groups of four or more, based on color. These don’t have to be in a straight line or shape. Once they are grouped, the beans disappear, and everything drops down to fill the vacant space.
The story mode consists of 13 stages. Each ” boss” is taken from the Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog cartoon show. It is a nice way to promote one of the two cartoons with Sonic in it.
Overall, it is a nice game. It can be challenging sometimes, but that’s part of the fun. Once you get used to it, you’ll find a fun little puzzle game.
Visuals
The graphics look good. The story is told through cut scenes between each stage, and the play field looks good. The developers did a good job of replacing the Puyo Puyo characters with Sonic characters.
One strange thing about the game is that your character is never shown. It would make sense that you play as Sonic, or one of the characters from the cartoon, but you never see it. It’s a little strange.
There isn’t too much else to say about the graphics. They get the job done. The original game was released in 1991 and still looks good in 1993.
Reviews at the Time
I did my best to avoid the reviews from the 2000s, because the reviewers seemed not to understand that the base game hadn’t been released in North America before Mean Bean Machine. This resulted in considerably lower scores in the 2000s and 2010s than when the game was released in 1993.
In the early 1990s, Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine received mostly 9s and one perfect score. At least Wikipedia thinks it got a perfect score, but it isn’t when you look at the review. This starkly contrasts with the 6s and 7s it got in retrospective reviews.
According to Wikipedia, Game Pro gave the game a 5/5. According to reality, it was closer to a 4.25/5. I’m assuming whoever looked at it only saw the “Fun Factor,” where the reviewer gave it a 5/5. The other three categories are 4, 4, and 4.5.
Mega, a UK publication, gave the game a 90/100. Their math seems a bit off as the reviewer gave the game a 7 for graphics, 6 for sound, 9 for gameplay, 7 for game size, and a 9 for addiction. I have several questions about these categories, but I guess they will remain unanswered. Somehow, this adds up to 90 percent.
Reviews for the Genesis/Mega Drive version of the game are intermingled with reviews for the Game Gear and Master System versions. I ran into this a few times while looking up these, and had to abandon a few.
The media really liked this game when it was released. Granted, it didn’t get too much media coverage. It wasn’t a mainline Sonic game, and people were probably happy to see something close to Sonic.
8/10. There isn’t too much to this, but it is a fun puzzle game. Much like Tetris, once you’ve played a few games, there isn’t anything else to offer.
Pros
- Easy to learn, Hard to master
- Good Graphics
- Fun Gameplay
Cons
- A bit too hard at first
- Better as a two-player game
Conclusion
There is something odd about my copy of the game. I have it complete in box, meaning I have the plastic clamshell case, manual, and the cartridge. When I got the game about fifteen years ago, something else was in the case.
For some bizarre reason, it had a copy of the Lion King manual and the Mean Bean Machine manual in the box. I’m not sure why it’s there, or if the person I bought it from knew about it. I had even forgotten all about it until I opened it up recently.
So, now I have a manual for a game that I don’t own, or at least I’m not sure if I own it. This is just one of the many strange things I’ve come across when I was collecting video games. I could probably sell the manual, but I think keeping it where I found it is funnier.
I had fun with this game. It isn’t all that special, but it is fun for a while. I like Puyo Puyo, but it isn’t for everyone.
If you liked this post, check out my other reviews, such as My Favorite Retro RPGs and My Favorite Beat’em Ups.