Descpription:
Klax is a 1989 computer puzzle game designed by Dave Akers and Mark
Stephen Pierce. The object is to line up colored blocks into rows of
similar colors to make them disappear, similar to Columns.
Klax features a conveyor belt at the top of the screen. It constantly
rolls toward the well-like playing area, delivering a steady supply of
colored blocks. The player controls a small device which sits at the
interface between the conveyor belt and the playing area.
By moving this left and right, the player can catch the blocks
and deposit them in the playing area.
Failure to catch any block results in it falling down the gap
between the conveyor belt and playing area and one drop being
used. Once all of the drops are used, the player is given a chance
to continue. Otherwise, the game ends.
In the original coin-op, the game ends when all drops are used.
At the beginning of the game, the player can choose to start at
level 1 and get 3 drops; level 6 with a bonus of 100,000 points and
4 drops; or at level 11 with a bonus of 200,000 points and 5 drops.
At the end of every five-level section, the player gets the same choice,
except that the no bonus choice is the next level, the 100,000 bonus
is five levels ahead and the 200,000 bonus 10 levels ahead.
The block-catching device can hold up to five blocks at any time, in
the form of a stack. It can also eject the uppermost block a short distance
back up the conveyor belt; this can, however, be a risky move if not judged
correctly, for a block might land directly beside another coming down,
making it difficult or impossible to catch both at the same time.
