''The Kristal'' is an

action game An action game is a video game genre that emphasizes physical challenges, including hand–eye coordination and reaction-time. The genre includes a large variety of sub-genres, such as fighting games, beat 'em ups, shooter games, and platform gam ...

adventure game An adventure game is a video game genre in which the player assumes the role of a protagonist in an interactive story driven by exploration and/or Puzzle video game, puzzle-solving. The Video game genres, genre's focus on story allows it to draw ...

first released in 1989 for the

Amiga Amiga is a family of personal computers introduced by Commodore in 1985. The original model is one of a number of mid-1980s computers with 16- or 32-bit processors, 256 KB or more of RAM, mouse-based GUIs, and significantly improved graphi ...

computer. It was later released for the

Atari ST The Atari ST is a line of personal computers from Atari Corporation and the successor to the Atari 8-bit family. The initial model, the Atari 520ST, had limited release in April–June 1985 and was widely available in July. It was the first pers ...

and

MS-DOS MS-DOS ( ; acronym for Microsoft Disk Operating System, also known as Microsoft DOS) is an operating system for x86-based personal computers mostly developed by Microsoft. Collectively, MS-DOS, its rebranding as IBM PC DOS, and a few ope ...

. It was developed by the UK-based company Fissionchip Software, and published in Europe by

Addictive Games Addictive Games was a UK video game publisher in the 1980s and early 1990s. It is best known for the ''Football Manager'' series of games created by company founder Kevin Toms. The company was originally based in Milton Keynes, England and lat ...

and in the US by

Cinemaware Cinemaware was a video game developer and publisher that released several titles in the 1980s based on various film themes. The company was resurrected in 2000, before being acquired by eGames in 2005. Cinemaware Corp. (1986–1991) The comp ...

. Unusually for a video game, the game is based on a

play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * Pla ...

, '' The Kristal of Konos'', written in 1976; the authors of the play worked together with the game developers and the play was never shown in theatres or on film before the game's release. A dialog introducing the setting recorded by

Patrick Moore Sir Patrick Alfred Caldwell-Moore (; 4 March 1923 – 9 December 2012) was an English amateur astronomer who attained prominence in that field as a writer, researcher, radio commentator and television presenter. Moore was president of the Brit ...

, who introduced both the game and play. The player takes the role of a pirate named Dancis Frake, on a mission to recover the "Kristal" on behalf of the Kring of Meltoca. The game features a number of different classic game genres merged:

fighting Combat ( French for ''fight'') is a purposeful violent conflict meant to physically harm or kill the opposition. Combat may be armed (using weapons) or unarmed ( not using weapons). Combat is sometimes resorted to as a method of self-defense, or ...

, space flight/combat, and (to a limited extent)

LucasArts Lucasfilm Games (known as LucasArts between 1990 and 2021) is an American video game brand licensing, licensor that is part of Lucasfilm. It was founded in May 1982 by George Lucas as a video game development group alongside his film company; as ...

-style point-and-click adventuring.

Reception

The game was reviewed in 1989 in ''

Dragon A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

'' #152 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 4 out of 5 stars. ''

Computer Gaming World ''Computer Gaming World'' (CGW) was an American computer game magazine published between 1981 and 2006. One of the few magazines of the era to survive the video game crash of 1983, it was sold to Ziff Davis in 1993. It expanded greatly through ...

'' gave the game a very negative review, citing the poor controls for the action sequences and the repetitive interrogation of other characters. The review summed up the game saying, "The Kristal is virtually unplayable except to the master arcade gamers that might have the time and patience for the "challenge"."

Reviews

*''

Info Info is shorthand for "information". It may also refer to: Computing * .info, a generic top-level domain * info:, a URI scheme for information assets with identifiers in public namespaces * info (Unix), a command used to view documentation produc ...

'' (Nov, 1989) *''

The Games Machine ''The Games Machine'' is a video game magazine that was published from 1987 until 1990 in the United Kingdom by Newsfield, which also published ''CRASH'', ''Zzap!64'', ''Amtix!'' and other magazines. History The magazine ran head to head with ...

'' (Jun, 1989) *''

Atari ST User ''Atari ST User'' was a British computer magazine aimed at users of the Atari ST range. It started life as a pull-out section in ''Atari User'' magazine. From March 1986 onwards it became a magazine in its own right, outliving its parent by a numb ...

'' (Jun, 1990) *''

'' (Apr, 1990) *''

The One The ONE is a shopping centre in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong. It is built on the site of the former Tung Ying Building at 100 Nathan Road. It was developed by Chinese Estates Holdings and opened in 2010. Owner Joseph Lau Luen-hung g ...

'' (Apr, 1989) *''

Commodore User ''Commodore User'', known to the readers as the abbreviated ''CU'', was one of the oldest British Commodore magazines. With a publishing history spanning over 15 years, it mixed content with technical and video game features. Incorporating ''Vic ...

'' (Mar, 1989) *''

'' (Jul, 1990) *''

Computer and Video Games ''Computer and Video Games'' (also known as ''CVG'', ''Computer & Video Games'', ''C&VG'', ''Computer + Video Games'', or ''C+VG'') was a UK-based video game magazine, published in its original form between 1981 and 2004. Its offshoot website ...

'' (Jun, 1989) *''

ASM (Aktueller Software Markt) ''Aktueller Software Markt'' (literally ''Current Software Market''), commonly known by its acronym, ''ASM'', was a German multi-platform video game magazine that was published by Tronic-Verlag from 1986 until 1995. It was one of the first magazine ...

'' (Feb, 1989) *''

ACE (Advanced Computer Entertainment) ''ACE'' (Advanced Computer Entertainment) was a multi-format computer and video game magazine first published in the United Kingdom by Future Publishing and later acquired by EMAP. History ACE launched in October 1987, roughly the same time as ...

'' (Jul, 1989) *''Power Play'' (Apr, 1989)

References

External links

*
''The Kristal''
at the Hall of Light 1989 video games Addictive Games games Amiga games Atari ST games Cinemaware games DOS games Science fantasy video games Single-player video games Video games about pirates Video games developed in the United Kingdom {{videogame-stub