Puzzle Quest: Galactrix - NA Release Announced

Aspyr Media has sent over a press release giving details on the North and South American distribution of D3's and Infinitive Interactive's space-themed puzzle/rpg hybrid, Puzzle Quest:Galactrix. The PC launch is set for February 24:

AUSTIN, TEXAS – February 3, 2009 – Aspyr Media has teamed with D3Publisher (D3P), a publisher and developer of interactive entertainment software, to bring the highly anticipated Puzzle Quest™: Galactrix™ for Windows PC to store shelves. Under the deal Aspyr will manage all North and South American retail distribution of Puzzle Quest: Galactrix for Windows PC, which is set to launch on February 24, and make it available on the company’s digital download offering, gameagent.com. D3P will maintain the rest of the digital distribution rights for the title in all territories.

Puzzle Quest: Galactrix is a rich new addition to the beloved Puzzle Quest universe. The game incorporates a powerful blend of casual and hardcore gameplay elements, similar to those adored by fans of the critically acclaimed Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords, into an all-new futuristic, science-fiction setting. An innovative hexagonal puzzle board allows for a wide range of strategic depth, allowing both hardcore and casual gamers to play on their own terms. A rich and detailed storyline and fresh gameplay elements make the world of Puzzle Quest: Galactrix a captivating new adventure to explore and conquer.

More information.

Feb 24th!? w00t w00t w00t - yeah, baby bring it on…

The combat style is is a variation of the bejeweled combat different from the one in the first game but still very addicting (uses a hex instead of a rectangle). The space RPG theme is thuroughly retro - I was expecting a dungeon crawl with a Sci Fi theme which this is definitely not.

I just hope it isn't as buggy as the demo. That thing kept crashing on me - and when you can't save the game, repeating the same 5 levels get's stale fast.

Has this been released on handheld or console yet? The first one skipped all over the map being released for different platforms.

Is this the global launch date, or just in the Americas?

It's good news - that it's being released and all, but after I spend some time with the demo, I'm not 100 % convinced on the game. I like it, and I while I tremendously enjoyed Puzzle Quest - CotW (and I still enjoy it, replaying it on a DS) I don't find Galactrix as addictive and all compared to PQ. Still I'm looking forward to the game.

Originally Posted by Polyester
It's good news - that it's being released and all, but after I spend some time with the demo, I'm not 100 % convinced on the game. I like it, and I while I tremendously enjoyed Puzzle Quest - CotW (and I still enjoy it, replaying it on a DS) I don't find Galactrix as addictive and all compared to PQ. Still I'm looking forward to the game.

Why, what's different about it that doesn't make it as addictive?

I can't really put my finger on it, yet, besides the demo doesn't allow me to save a character. But I spend literally days on the PQ demo, doing almost everything that could be done, where as Galactrix so far doesn't seem as fun as PQ.

On the other hand it might be just me and/or the fact that I can't save a character on the demo.

PQ is an example of a series with an immortality death system. If don't win you just pick up and try again. There's no way to lose.

I really enjoyed the original Puzzle Quest — a great example of taking a solid core game mechanic and using it for everything. I haven't played the downloadable demo for Galactrix, but the flash version was a lot of fun once I figured out how the direction of the falls was determined. First-payday-buy for me.

Originally Posted by Polyester
I can't really put my finger on it, yet, besides the demo doesn't allow me to save a character. But I spend literally days on the PQ demo, doing almost everything that could be done, where as Galactrix so far doesn't seem as fun as PQ.

On the other hand it might be just me and/or the fact that I can't save a character on the demo.

I think there was a lot less to do in this demo as opposed to the PQ one; you aren't seeing very much of the game world at all and it stops just at the point the game starts to get interesting.

I think it's too short to get a feeling for the game as a whole, and I also got the feeling it was a bit easier overall, but I did like what I played very much—even the timed puzzles, which I usually don't. Looking forward to the full game.

I had already planned on the DS version, looks like I'll be getting a PC copy as well. Sounds cool to me - I still play PW - this week I played on DS, cell phone, PC & Mac in bits.