Game Review: Buzz! Quiz World

"Buzz! Quiz World"

For: Playstation 3

From: Relentless Software/Sony

ESRB Rating: Teen (drug reference, mild language, mild suggestive themes, mild violence)

"Trivia game" and "cutting-edge graphics" aren't terms you regularly find arm in arm, but they're practically making out in "Buzz Quiz World," which excels magnificently in its audiovisual recreation of the prime-time quiz show format.

That it looks so pretty is, of course, secondary to numerous factors ranging from user-friendliness to the quantity and quality of the questions buried inside. But it also speaks to a larger facet of what makes "Buzz!" the best of its breed and easily worth a look on a system normally reserved for blockbuster action bonanzas.

For those who already picked up "Buzz! Quiz TV" last year, "World's" presentational splash isn't any great surprise, nor are the features that debuted in that game and slide over in improved states.

"World's" online multiplayer is the most significant beneficiary, doubling the player count to eight and allowing for "Family Feud"-esque four-on-four games in which every player has his or her own buzzer controller. "World" also supports voice chat, and if you're a fan of Sony's Playstation Home service, you can win prizes for your virtual apartment. Locally, "World" still supports eight players and, if you can commandeer two bundles' worth of buzzers, eight buzzers.

"World" also introduces some welcome interface improvements. You can set up customized games in advance that cater to your preferences, mixing modes liberally or, if you prefer, leaving out the gimmicky variants and sticking to straight trivia. You can save your player profile this time, and in a nice touch, your always-affable host (named Buzz, of course) will address you by your name if it's in the game's directory.

All the question packs released for "TV" - either as downloadable content or free user-generated content created at mybuzzquiz.com - work in "World," which also includes 5,000 new questions on the disc. Unfortunately, sorting through user-created quizzes isn't any easier this time around: Sony can't realistically vet every quiz for quality and accuracy, and the in-game tool for finding the good stuff isn't as refined as, say, its "LittleBigPlanet" counterpart.

"World" also doesn't provide much for single players to do: The smattering of available modes pales in comparison to what players can do with friends locally or online, and while that's understandable - this is a party game, after all - it's still a bummer that quiz fanatics who prefer to fly solo have no rewarding single-player path through what easily is the best quiz video game in existence.

If this is your first "Buzz" rodeo, it's worth noting that the game only supports the Buzz controllers and not the standard PS3 controller. The good news is that the bundle that includes four buzzers commands the same $60 as a typical standalone PS3 game. That isn't a reflection on the quality of the controllers, either: They're satisfyingly sturdy and, because of how they emulate a game show buzzer, fun to use. Just pick up some AA batteries in the same trip, because they aren't included.

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