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Krystaloids :: News 


Allen Gall
Games Editor
Smartphone & Pocket PC magazine
allen@pocketpcmag.com

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The game I played most this week:
Krystaloids


 

Classic Arcade: Krystaloids

Krystaloids is one those Asteroids/SubSpace/Sinistar type games where you fly your little ship around taking out asteroids and the evil Krystaloids, which are creating the asteroids to begin with.  At your disposal are standard-issue guns, bombs, teleporters, and a slew of power-ups.  The developers were thoughtful enough to throw in an overheard map as an overlay in the top left section of the screen.

The game play of Krystaloids is rather limited: all you really do is buzz around and shoot stuff (and collect power-ups, too).  Probably the coolest thing about the game is the graphics.  All the game objects contrast well against the colorful backdrop of space.  The map is easy to read, as is your ship compared to all the targets.  The special effects aren't bad, either, although they're not the best I've seen.  The one problem with the graphics is the animation: while the game moves quickly, everything animated object jerks along.  The game's objects appear to be dropping frames.  This is most noticeable in the ship's movement, especially when rotating: it's a little hard to line up targets.  The problem appears to be something in the rendering rather than a lack of processing power. 

The frame dropping problem aside, Krystaloids isn't a bad space shoot 'em up.  It doesn't have quite enough to propel it to the top of the list in this ever-crowded category, but if you want something simple that still looks and plays well, you could do a lot worse.
 
Title: Krystaloids Developer: In-fusio
Genre: Classic Arcade Demo: Y
Platform: Windows Mobile 2003+ Price: $4.95
Discuss this game Rating (of 4): 3.2/4.0

News: Games Central Column

I've decided to retire from the column I've been doing for the magazine for the last five years.  The reason?  I have other interests, and there just aren't enough new games that interest me enough to continue writing a regular column.  Those of you who subscribe to the magazine will be able to view my last column in the next issue.  Rich Hall, main editor of the magazine, is looking for someone to fill in.  If you can help out, feel free to drop him a line at the magazine.  If nothing else, it might be a chance for you to gain some exposure as he seeks a permanent solution.  And to those of you who read my column over the years, thanks for reading my drivel. :)

Discuss...

 

 



 

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