Puzzle Quest: Galactrix Review

In a nutshell, Puzzle Quest: Galactrix a puzzle game in space with pirate aliens, some RPG elements, and a rather dispassionate (read disposable) text based story. I will be honest and tell you that I never played Puzzle Quest before but I don’t think that has any bearing on the entertainment value that this game proposes. Technically, the graphics are okay, nothing interesting but at least it’s not ugly and the audio is competent. Despite the somewhat lackluster presentation, Puzzle Quest’s game core game play is fun, engaging and enjoyable.

There are two modes of play: Single Player and Multiplayer. Within Single Player, you can create a hero and enter Story Mode or head straight into the meat of the game in Quick Battle. Within Multiplayer you can play with friends locally on the same console or through a local area network. You can also play on the PlayStation Network but I didn’t have much luck finding anyone online to play with. I attempted to play a game with someone, multiple attempts with the same stranger on PSN, but my connection to that player was lost each time. I don’t know why that happened; certainly my PS3 didn’t lose its network connection. Maybe that stranger didn’t want to play with me, the only other person on the network playing this particular game at that particular time.

Despite my unsuccessful attempts to play Puzzle Quest: Galatrix on PSN, the offline experience was enjoyable. There are two parts to Puzzle Quest: Galactrix: the first is the puzzle and the second is the quest, although you actually must quest first in order to get to the puzzle portion of the game. Questing involves traversing space in search for celestial bodies, space stations, pirates, story characters, and space booty. The puzzle portion of the game involves batting AI opponents on the puzzle board. You battle you opponents by clearing numbered gems on the board to deal damage to your opponent’s shields and hull until total annihilation. Likewise, your opponent can clear gems on the same board and attempt to obliterate you. There are gems of different colors on the board as well and clearing these gives you different effects in battle. At the end of the battle, you can apply points towards improving your spaceship’s attributes.

I must say that I really enjoyed playing a puzzle game with an opponent. At first, I was quick to compare this game with another popular puzzle game, Hexic HD. While the puzzle style is similar, Puzzle Quest is a much more active puzzle game whereas Hexic HD is comparatively more passive. Having an opponent on the same puzzle board added a very enjoyable amount of depth and strategy. Competing for resources and hit points liken Puzzle Quest: Galatrix more to checkers or chess. Probably my only gripe with the game is that for what it is, a small downloadable game, it is rather pricey. For a $19.99 price tag at the time if this writing, I expect maybe much more engaging graphics. I do recommend it if you are looking for a casual game that will grow with you should you require a more serious challenge. Skip the story and go straight to Quick Battle or find play someone online or a real live friend if you have one.