From: jonke@kong.gsfc.nasa.gov (Stephen Jonke)
Newsgroups: rec.games.video
Subject: Lynx Klax vs. Genesis Klax
Date: 18 Aug 92 23:57:52 GMT
Distribution: na
Organization: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

I love the game Klax and had it for the Genesis for some time.  I'd been
reading rave reviews of the Lynx version of Klax and how much better it was,
so I finally bought it for my Lynx as well.

I'll try to make this comparison review as short as possible.  The presumption
is that you know the rules of and/or have played Klax before.  If you don't/
haven't, get what you can out of this review and then buy the game -- you
don't know what you are missing!

GENESIS KLAX BENEFITS
---------------------
MORE OPTIONS -- some of the options are really only relavent to a console
adaption of the game (like tile set -- needed because different TVs show
colors differently) and some are worthless (like sound test).  The useful
ones that are not console specific are difficulty (Easy, Medium, Hard),
difficulty ramping on/off, dropmeter off on first round (no high score
possible), bg music on/off (on a Genesis game!  WOW!).  Hmm, can't remember,
but I think there is at least one more useful option.  The Lynx version
only has the option of difficultly level (same choices).

POTENTIALLY EASIER -- the "difficulty ramping off" and "drop meter off
first wave" options are really useful for making the game much easier for
beginners (Klax can be very difficult.)  Difficulty ramping on means that
the longer you play, the harder it gets.  Actually, this still seems to
happen even with the option off, but at a much slower pace.  Both versions
are very difficult on their hardest setting.  For most players the Lynx
version is not too hard on Easy setting, but might be for younger (or
older!) players.

CORRECTLY SCORES EXTRA POINTS IN POINTS ROUNDS -- The Lynx version has one
inconsistency with the arcade version that the Genesis version handles
correctly.  At the end of a points round (in which you are required to
achieve a certain number of points) any points beyond the required total
count double.  In the Lynx version, it does not give you double the points.
See below for important scoring counterpoint, however.

LOOK IS MORE LIKE ARCADE GAME -- This goes with a big disclaimer, however.
The Genesis version is a direct copy of the look of the arcade version
including high score lists (though, since there's no battery backup, the
extensive high score list is pretty much useless.)  The disclaimer is
that although the look is more like the arcade, this ends up just looking
like a low pixel and color resolution version of the arcade game.  It really
looks washed out.  If you are insistent on games exactly duplicating the
graphic layout of the arcade games, you may still prefer the Genesis
version (however, I do not -- see comments on the graphics of the Lynx
version below.)

ZERO SLOWDOWN -- or negligable at any rate.  The Lynx version sometimes
suffers from slowdown when a large number of tiles are on the conveyer belt.
This usually happens when you throw a lot of tiles back up onto the conveyer
in desperation!  My personal opinion is that this is no big deal, but some
people are more concerned about such things.

TWO PLAYER CAPABILITY -- the Lynx version does not offer a side by side
two player capability (nor comlynxed) like the Genesis and arcade versions
do.  There is no real interaction between the players in the game rules,
but in practice it is fun to play this way.  You can challenge each other
to finish a round first, leapfrog by warping to the level the other player
is on, etc.  I consider this the best feature of the Genesis version.


LYNX KLAX BENEFITS
------------------
BETTER GRAPHICS -- yes, I said above that the Genesis version attempts to
duplicate the exact layout/look of the arcade, but the fact is that it
really fails in the attempt.  The limited color palette and resolution of
the Genesis (plus the limitations of most TV sets) make it look very weak
in comparison to the arcade.  The end result is that when you see it you
think, "that looks bad."  The Lynx version makes no attempt to exactly
duplicate the layout of the arcade game.  Instead, they took into account
the limits (and advantages) of the Lynx system and tried to reproduce the
"feel" of the graphics, if not the exact layout/color schemes.  The end
result is that the Lynx version is much more colorful and really does a
better job of reproducing the feel of the arcade graphics.  In fact, the
graphics seem much higher resolution then the Genesis version, even though
we know that this is not really the case.  Chalk one up for good color use.

BETTER SOUND -- much better in fact.  The Lynx version DOES attempt to
duplicate the exact sound of the arcade game (as I remember it) and
succeeds.  All the sounds and voices are in this version, whereas the
Genesis version has different sound effects (which are not as good as the
arcade/Lynx version) and "Ooohhh" voice (the only voice the Genesis
version has.)  The Genesis version does not annouce by digitized voice the
type of round coming up next.  The Lynx version does.  The "ooohhh"
sound in the Genesis version does not sound as crisp and clear as the Lynx
version voices.  The Genesis version has bg. music during play (you can
turn it off as I pointed out above AND it defaults to off -- suprising for
a Genesis game), but I'm not a fan of bg music.  Even if you are, there's
nothing to get excited about it's music.  The Lynx version has some
impressive music in the opening sequence -- see below -- and since it only
happens during the opening sequence it is not nearly as annoying.

RARELY/NEVER FORGET WHAT THE GOAL IS -- this is a result of the better
sound of the Lynx version.  You might think that the voice announcing what
type of round you are about to play would just be a frivilous bell & whistle,
but in fact it serves a practical purpose.  I can not count the number of
times I've been playing a round in the Genesis version and after a while
I suddenly realize that I'm going for the wrong goal.  Usually it's too
late to recover by then.  With the voice announcing the type of round coming
up the goal registers in your brain even if you forget to look!  I've
not once failed to be aware of what the round goal is with the Lynx version,
but have many, many times with the Genesis version.

CONSISTENT SCORING -- This is the counterpoint to the scoring point above.
Although the Lynx version does NOT score points rounds entirely correctly
as pointed out above, it is at least consistent about it.  You can always
expect to receive scores properly (with the exception noted) and in the
same way.  The Genesis version has an bug that causes multipliers to
occasionally NOT be increased.  The times I've run into it have always
been at the end of a round where my final score consists of a chain
reaction resulting in 4 way verticals or similar.  Most of the time the
multipliers increase properly, but sometimes you don't get any multiplier.
This is real annoying if you've set up a big score for the end of a points
round and you only get 1x 10000 for a four way vertical instead of 2 or
more times (incidentally, I can't be mistaken, because there is no way to
get a four way vertical without getting at least one other Klax first --
this implies a minimum two times multiplier which you don't always
receive.)  I consider the inconsistency of the Genesis version to be more
of a problem then the Lynx's not entirely correct scoring of points rounds,
because the Lynx's mistake is consistent.  Plus, I still find myself
pushing for big scores at the end of points rounds since that's the smart
thing to do if you want a high score.  Still, I am miffed that Atari
would make this mistake -- it was their game after all!

OPENING SEQUENCE -- the Genesis version duplicates the arcade version
opening sequence, that is to say it has none.  It has a screen that says
Klax and lists the high scores and then it shifts into a demo mode.  The
Lynx version has an original opening animated sequence (not in the arcade
version) with some really suprisingly good music.  The sequence consists
of the Klax hand signing (sign language -- not writing!) the letters KLAX
and then it "pushes" with its index fingers the credits on screen and off.
Not really long, but it is nice with nifty scaling effects of the letters
as they zoom onto screen.  Yeah, this is definitely NOT a big deal, but
production values don't hurt either!  Since it's the opening sequence
(and you can skip it) the music doesn't get too annoying (it would if you
listened to it every time you played, though!)  Unlike most Lynx games,
you can NOT shut off the music, but as I said it's only at the beginning
and can be skipped if you are sick of it/don't like it.


SIMILARITIES
------------
Both versions duplicate the arcades on screen instructions and hints between
rounds.  Both can be just as difficult (or easier if you wish) as the arcade
version (which I think is way too hard!)  Both have excellent game play --
the control feels quite good for both versions -- maybe an ever so slight
advantage to the Lynx version, but no big deal.  Anything else I didn't
mention is probably included in both versions (but I may have forgotten a
few things here and there.)


CONCLUSIONS
-----------
I hope this doesn't sound like a cop out, but I've really come to the
conclusion that BOTH are worth having.  The Lynx version is definitely the
much better one player version, but if you have friends over the Genesis
version has an appealing two player option and people who aren't playing
can spectate (pretty much impossible with the Lynx's LCD screen.)  The Lynx
version obviously has the appeal of being portable and is a lot more
convenient to just pick up and play (those are really benefits of the Lynx
itself, obviously.)  Plus, both are cheap.  I've seen Lynx Klax for as
little as $20 and the Genesis version for around $27 (and sometimes less.)
You can get both versions for less then cost of most Genesis games and in
fact, Klax is better then most Genesis games (IMHO, of course.)

If you can only get one version (and you own both a Genesis and Lynx), I'd
pick the Lynx version over the Genesis version because it is overall a more
enjoyable one player experience and Klax is the perfect game for passing time
which often is a solitary activity and often NOT at home (the next time
I take my car to Jiffy Lube, you can be sure I'll have my Lynx and Klax
with me!)

Klax on the Lynx, incidentally, is one of the few Lynx games that is
vertically oriented (for non-Lynx owners, that means you hold the Lynx on
end while playing it such that the screen is taller then it is wide.)  This
definitely took some getting use to at first, but after you are use to it,
it works fine and really makes sense for the game -- Trying to squish
everything onto the screen when held horizontally would have been a big
mistake.

Please DO comment on this comparison review -- the more input the better!
No system wars, though -- I like both the Genesis and Lynx and if you don't
like one or the other (or both), don't bother to tell us -- we probably
already know.

Steve