Kotaku 
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Denver, 9:50 PM
Sun Dec 20
15 posts in the last 24 hours
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11/30/09
11/30/09
11/30/09
12/01/09
11/30/09
11/30/09
PSN and PC are going to happen at some point after these versions are released without question.
11/30/09
11/30/09
Fine I guess PSN will get it eventually and possibly with a expansion like the first Puzzle Quest on PSN. It would be a lesser blow to the wallet for x2,x3 dipping.
11/30/09
I wonder what those fists could possibly do. If I remember right, the skulls do damage and they seem to have gotten rid of the gold piles; but I can't imagine what the fist would be for unless it's something like... more damage?
11/30/09
And maybe a bit more on topic: I hope the Interface does change enough to NOT remind me of the cold, sterile look Galactrix had.
11/30/09
The main disappointment is that the gameplay is Bejeweled Twist - not like Bejeweled. And simply, I'm not sure if it's as fun as the original style of play. Not to mention (from what I've heard), the game punishes you brutally for idle moves as you get into the game, something that I have found so far to be necessary to get to your moves a lot of the time. Another major difference is that the enemy does not move - it's only you moving. The enemy attacks through explosive tiles you have to match before their timer runs out.
I enjoyed what I have played so far, but I'm sad to say I wasn't blown out of the water (like I figured was the only result for a Puzzle Quest clone engineered by the masters of both the originators of the combined genres).
11/30/09
About "idle twist" - yes, the game punishes you for twisting without a match, but honestly this was never much of a problem for me. The problem is really that there are few creatures you'd ever really want to use because their abilities are so powerful.
I can't wait for PQ2 even though I'm going to want to twist all the damn time :P
11/30/09
11/30/09
11/30/09
What other games have done this? The only one I can think of is the newly released Gyromancer.
11/30/09
11/30/09
11/30/09
11/30/09
Oh my god. Die, Kotaku. You messed up my picture.
11/30/09
11/30/09
This isn't to say I didn't like the game - I enjoyed it quite a bit, but it wasn't something you could play a lot of before wanting to gouge your eyes out.
11/28/09
11/27/09
I didn't have problems with the hexagonal matching, which was novel. The AI was less cheap, and it was harder for the computer to get extra turns (matching five for extra turns instead of four saved the game).
The simplified "character" (ship) customization wasn't too bad (there were a few easy mode spam attacks, but not quite as many as in the first game), nor was the silly story, which, let's face it - was just about as silly in the first game.
But the pacing of Galactrix was awful - particularly the endless, redundant warp gate hacking and the glacial plot. The hacking gets easy after a while, after a steep curve, but you still come to resent it.
In short doses Galactrix is still sort of fun. But the relatively complicated and drawn-out puzzle mechanic overwhelmed all of the other game elements - ship parts, story, enemies, etc. Good on them for being adventurous, but this retreat to their familiar mechanic proves that they were aware of these problems, too.
11/27/09
11/27/09
11/27/09
11/27/09
11/28/09
I'd rather see squeenix and infinite interactive team up and make an awesome puzzle battle type game with an intricate and amazing story.
11/28/09
11/27/09
Or perhaps it's really been that long since I've played Puzzle Quest.
One thing I really hope they keep is the animated world map - it bugs me that Gyromancer just has a path and some psychedelic artwork in the background when you're moving around.
11/27/09
It looks like the screen real-estate has been tweaked a bit. It might differ between game versions, we we'll see.
11/27/09
DON'T SWAP THOSE GEMS TO GET RED MANA! Don't you see!? You're setting the goblin up for a 4-purple score and an extra turn! Go get those OTHER reds instead!