E3 2008: Hands on with Puzzle Quest: Galactrix on DS
They had us at 'Puzzle Quest'
As though by magic, last year's Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the WarLords came out of nowhere to cement a spot as one of the best titles available for DS. If you haven't treated yourself to its crazy, yet altogether entertaining mix of puzzle-solving and role-playing, then you're in luck – Puzzle Quest: Galactrix will offer a second chance to get in on the action. Following our hands-on with the DS version during E3, we're more excited than ever about this stellar sequel.
Set 20,000 years in the future, Puzzle Quest: Galactrix chronicles a precarious time for the human race. Having entered the galactic community, humanity has made far too many enemies and now stands on the edge of extinction. By taking command of your own ship, your goal is to prevent human kind from fading into the stars in a series of puzzle battles that pit vessel against vessel.
An enormous star map has you navigating dozens of solar systems, each with their own map filled with planets and roving ships. Factions governing each system force you to open diplomatic ties, as unfriendly factions will draw you into battle.
Unlike the first Puzzle Quest game that had your hero facing off in direct combat, your ship does all the fighting. Later in the game, the opportunity to acquire new ships opens up and you can manage a fleet of various vessels tailored to specific battle scenarios.
Battles take place on a circular board filled with hexagon tiles of various colours. You and an opponent take turns lining up three or more tiles of the same colour to remove them from the board. Special mine tiles launch an attack, the amount of damage represented by the number written on the mine. Obviously, the objective is to whittle down your enemy's shields to then blast away their hull's hit points for the win.
You're afforded one opportunity per turn to move a tile one space. It's ideal to use it in a way that lines up at least three mines, but most of the time you'll just group basic tiles instead. The various colours correspond with different functions. For example, eliminating blue tiles from the board refuels your ship's shields, whereas red ones boost the power of your weapons. Yellow tiles are important for keeping your ship's energy up and green upgrade the embedded computer system. Lastly, special white tiles transfer intelligence reports to your captain that reward with valuable experience.
What's interesting is how new pieces shuffle onto the board once you've cleared a set of tiles. In the zero gravity environment of outer space, new tiles move in from all sides of the board. It's a subtle, yet highly clever tweak that adds variety to the game and forces you to come up with new tactics. Another change to the core gameplay affects the requirements for extending your turn. Instead of clearing four-of-a-kind, the game now demands you eliminate no less than five tiles from the board to go again.
For a sequel, Puzzle Quest: Galactrix looks to make enough changes to distinguish itself from the original while still embodying that great core Puzzle Quest experience. We're eager to get details on multiplayer, which we're told mirrors what was available in the first game – however, that's going to to have to wait until the game's early 2009 release.
