At Segalization, unfortunately our opportunities to write about the Puyo Puyo series aren’t in abundance. So we feel happy to see a week of competitive Puyo Puyo events ahead of us, alongside a Niconico broadcast from Sega to celebrate the franchise’s 25th anniversary in Japan. We may not hear much about Puyo Puyo in the West, but Puyo Puyo is indeed a long-standing Sega franchise.

Puyo Puyo, as most any other game series, can be played according to the player’s wishes. But Puyo Puyo in a competitive setting operates under the assumption that certain strategies are more desirable than others. You don’t always want to focus simply on connecting four like-colored Puyos that are on an upper row together, as an example, as you’ll find it harder to inundate your opponent with garbage. It is a setting that converges towards rewarding players that can think quickly and creatively, keep an eye on themselves and their opponents, and react and attack in order to keep oneself at an advantageous position as much as it makes sense. Stakes can often be higher in competitive Puyo Puyo, where the rewards might include money, other prizes, or even pride itself.

Check out this image below for a schedule of competitive Puyo Puyo events, with stream URLs (Niconico or Twitch, depending on the event) accompanying each event. For our Western-based readers, please do keep in mind that events taking place in Japan (S-Rank League, 25th Anniversary Stream) are ahead of you. For example, the first day of S-Rank League is already underway. Segalization does not take credit for the creation of the image below.

Kudos to competitive Puyo Puyo players around the world who keep their games alive through their dedication to the game’s strategic combat, and the desire to make their opponents lose. All in the name of fun!

Interested in learning more about the fundamentals of high-level Puyo Puyo? This NeoGAF thread not only covers some basic history of the franchise and offers some suggestions on Puyo Puyo titles to buy, but it also gives a good rundown on vocabulary that defines competitive interactions and fleshes them out. With visuals! Don’t be intimidated by the density of the information – read items one step at a time, and don’t be afraid to come back to the reading another time if you don’t understand it immediately.

One place for Puyo Puyo discussion is Puyo Nexus, a forum and fansite for the Puyo Puyo franchise. They cover news on Japanese Puyo Puyo tournaments on and also run tournaments of their own.

You may also consider the r/puyopop subreddit for discussion, fun, and assistance, which also hosts a Discord chatroom of its own.