FantaVision

Fantavision is a real-time puzzle game that relies on quick color matching and symbol recognition skills from the player. The game consists of a series of stages set in darkened, 3D environments where brightly colored fireworks called '"flares" are launched onto the screen and will hover for a period of time before disappearing. Using the DualShock 2's left analog stick, the player controls the direction of a guideline ray extending from a circular cursor that allows a flare along the ray to be "captured" with the controller's X button. The goal is to string together three or more flares of the same color and then detonate them by pressing the circle button, thus increasing the player's score.

Different types of flares can be encountered including "peonies", which explode in a circular fashion; "willows", which have sparks that descend downward in dome shape; and "multiflares", which break apart into smaller pieces that can be detonated a second time. More points can be obtained with chain reactions caused by new flares touching the sparks of detonated flares of the same color. This creates a "daisy chain" that allows flares of multiple colors to be detonated simultaneously. Flashing flares called "wilds" can also be used to directly chain together flares of different colors.

Fantavision was developed by Sony Computer Entertainment Japan during the transition period to the corporation's next generation console, the PS2. After completing Ape Escape for the PS1, Fantavision was one of a handful of projects supervised by former head of Japan Studio Shuhei Yoshida before he left Japan to become vice president of product development at Sony's North American division. Yoshida recalled that the game was essentially created by a team of just three to five people in a mere six months time.

Fantavision was director Katsuyuki Kanetaka's first game project, the concept for which he had devised around 1995. He stated that he was inspired by the fireworks shows he saw at Lake Biwa in his youth. Kanetaka admitted to having no experience programming, but prototyped Fantavision on the computer application Klik & Play and refined the idea through much trial and error. With the PS1 technically incapable of displaying the sheer number of desired visual effects on-screen simultaneously, the director felt the impending release of the PS2 was the right time to pitch the game.

Overall, Fantavision received a slightly above-average response from critics. It holds a score of 72 out of 100 on the review aggregator Metacritic, corresponding to "mixed or average reviews". Despite largely receiving middling evaluations from the publications, Fantavision won the editor's "Puzzle Game of 2000" at IGN's "Best of 2000 Awards for PlayStation 2" and was a runner-up for the "Best Puzzle Game" of 2000 award for both GameSpot and Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. During the 4th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Fantavision for the "Console Innovation" award.

The general presentation of Fantavision has been universally compared to the arcade game Missile Command by Atari. Opinions on the particle effects and environments in Fantavision were largely favorable. The colorful, simulated pyrotechnics enjoyed such descriptions as "mesmerizing", "pretty", "beautiful", "gorgeous", and "jaw-dropping" by various media outlets. Eric Bratcher of Next Generation lauded, "The screen constantly erupts in blossoms of bright, overloaded color and even the backgrounds pack a visual punch as you move from Earth to outer space and beyond."