| No One Can Stop Mr. Domino! | |
| Developer: | Artdink |
| Director: | Tomotsu Satō |
| Producer: | Masahisa Okamoto |
| Programmer: | Tatsuo Oku |
| Artist: | Shuji Kasai |
| Composer: | Shingo Murakami |
| Platforms: | PlayStation |
| Genre: | Endless runner, Puzzle |
| Modes: | Single-player |
No One Can Stop Mr. Domino! 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.
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.
The game received mixed reviews from critics upon release. In Japan, Famitsu gave it a score of 25 out of 40. 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." 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. Dominos unique charms make it worth playing."[1]