Air Xonix

Air Xonix is the sequel to a very popular PC puzzle game. Released back in 2001 on PC, it might be more well known for the mobile port of the game that popped up a bit more recently. I have always had a soft spot for puzzle games of this type and I feel that this one here is offering a few things that do make it stand out from the million other games of this kind of style that have been released since the 80s. I ended up sinking way more time into this than I thought I would!

What A Qix

Let’s face it, Air Xonix is another version of the classic arcade, NES, and every other gaming platform under the sun game, Qix! The idea is to fill in an area all the while avoiding enemies that want to try and stop you. I think that there is some kind of story about aliens or something running alongside the game here, but you do not play a game like this for its story now do you?

Floating In The Air

What makes Air Xonix different is that we are actually floating above the playfield and the playfield is in 3D not just flat 2D. This means that when we draw a line and connect it to another side, it fills in the area. The twist here is that you are trapping enemies inside this area and once you reach the allocated percentage, that stage is over and you can move on to the next one. Just like Qix. This is the kind of game that sounds and looks easy, but it is far more challenging once you start to play it, especially once you start getting closer to the 50th level that this game has!

Power-Up

One thing that I think makes Air Xonix a bit more fun and takes it from just being a puzzle game to a puzzle action game is the various power ups. This will appear on the field as you play the game and can earn you extra points, make you faster, slow you down, and so on. It can be a risk to go for them, but some of them can make a world of difference, especially the one that lets you speed up which I feel is essential on some of the later levels that are filled with enemies.

Color Me Bad!

One area where I think that they could have done a little bit more with Air Xonix is with the visuals. The game looks decent and is nice, clear, and bright. However, the areas that we are filling in are just one basic color! I think that games like this that tend to have you making an actual picture are more fun if I am being honest and I am not just talking about those naughty ones that let you create a picture of a nude chick!

Pros:

• I liked how bright and colorful the visuals were
• It can be a very addictive game
• There are some neat power ups that you can use
• It is a game that has a risk and reward type style of gameplay that can be fun

Cons:

• It would be way more interesting if we were creating actual images
• There are many other games like this and many of them are more fun