Overview
Babel no Tō ("Tower of Babel") is a puzzle/platformer from Namco in which the main character has to lift and place various L-shaped blocks in order to proceed to the exit. There are a total of 64 stages and each is progressively more difficult. Exacerbating the issue is the player character's intolerance for getting crushed, roaming enemies and a limit based on how much power the player has remaining, which drops each time the player character lifts a block. The player character can also collect items that occasionally appear in the world, but these usually confer point bonuses and nothing more. Should the player manage to successfully complete a stage, they will be given an extra life to help with the next one.
Every eighth stage is a "reprieve room", where there are very few blocks and the exit is easy to reach. However, the player needs to figure out the special technique to make a symbol appear, as these are instrumental for completing the game once the 64th floor has been reached. These generally involve tricks like holding a direction down on the D-pad for a length of time.
Babel no Tō would be eventually repurposed for the Arcades with a "Vs. Babel no Tō" version. It is also available on two Japan-only Namco compilations: Namco Gallery Vol. 3 for the Game Boy and Namco Anthology Vol. 1 for the PS1. It was finally localized for the first time for western audiences as "Mystery Tower" for Nintendo Switch on June 5, 2023. Vs. Babel no Tō, or Vs. Mystery Tower in the west, was released for PlayStation 4 and Switch by Hamster Corporation as part of their "Arcade Archives" line on March 5, 2025.
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