Watch out - its Simplicity is Addictive

Luxor Amun Arising is a very simple concept. You launch colored balls from a launching platform called a scarab at the bottom of the screen to add chain of similar balls. The chain moves on a predetermined channel or path that varies from level to level. For almost all the screens the path is clear but there are a couple of levels that may take a moment before the routes become clear. The point of launching the balls is to either create chain of 3 of the same color or add to larger chain of the same color. When you do this the balls vaporize and shorten the chain. If you misjudge or the adjacent ball is a single, the chain expands to allow room for the new ball and the chain grows. If you miss the chain entirely, then the ball just disappears off screen. When you make a chain of 3 or more and the balls vaporize, the remaining balls will come together closing the gap. If once the gap closes a chain of 3 or more is created they too will vaporize. If you don’t shrink the chain(s) fast enough the game ends when the front of the lead chain meets the end of the path and goes into hole covered by a pyramid. You have a little leeway in that if a ball goes into the pyramid you might be able to rescue as the chain will pull in when a gap is created. If you cannot recover the ball the remaining chain(s) will rapidly drop into the pyramid and you will not be able to launch any more balls. A life will be used and the level will begin again.

The scarab moves from left to right and is controlled by the mouse. A right click on the mouse launches the ball. A left click allows you to switch the ball with the next ball and if you choose to use the second ball, the original one automatically becomes the next offered. As mentioned above the point of the game is to create chains of three or more to shrink the main chain. When sub-chains are vaporized then you may be rewarded with a gold coin which must be caught by the scarab. The frequency of the coins depends on the number of balls vaporized. The coins are important as the chains keep coming until the requisite number of coins is collected (I’ll be honest here in that I am not sure how many this is). Once you have collected the coins a red bar at the bottom of the screen turns yellow and no new chains are added. Once all the chains are vaporized, the level is complete and you are rewarded with a gem. To get the points from the gem you must “catch” it with the scarab.

If you manage to burst many chains in succession you are rewarded with bonuses which can help you reach your goal. The more chains in a row you complete the more bonuses you get. Some of the bonuses delete a color, some stop the chain from moving, some reverse the chain, some act as bombs or lightening and delete sections and some delete the end closest to the end of the path. Like the gem and gold coins, to get the bonuses, you must catch them with the scarab.

To make it harder the number or colors increases as does the speed of the chain as you move through the levels. To help you meet your goal, for each 30 coins you collect you get an extra life. When you need to take a break you can stop at anytime and the game will resume were you left off, when you start it again.

When you start the game you are greeted with an instruction page. You can turn this page off if you like. You are then on the start page. Here you can sign in, go to the options page to change your options (adjust background music and sound effects volume, go full screen or part screen and view credits) From this screen you can also go to the hall of fame and quit. If you choose to start game and you have played before here you can chose to continue the old game or start a new game. If you have not played before you are asked to choose between 3 skill levels, beginner, intermediate or experienced. Both returning and new players are then taken to the map page showing your progress. From here you can start or go back to the main menu. Choosing to play takes you right to the game. The map page is used as a step between levels as you move through the stages and their levels; your route is shown on this screen. Each time you complete a level you return to this screen before going to the next level. There are 88 levels in all. While playing the game, if you lose a life you start the level again but if you lose all your lives you will return to the beginning of that stage not the level. If you had managed to complete 9 levels in a stage but then lost all your lives, you would return to the start of the stage, rather than the start of the 9th level. This can be frustrating when you hit the higher stages and find yourself repeating the same levels over and over again before you can get past a particular stage

The graphics are nice and colorful, although the actual pathways are repetitive. The background music is pleasant and can be turned up, down or off depending on what you prefer. The action noises fit with the game and make playing the game fun.

It did not say on the box that it was compatible with Vista but I have loaded on a notebook that runs on Vista and have had no problems with it. I have had other games that do not work with Vista and they have either crashed while being played or simply cannot load. This game works fine.

My only problem with the game is that it is addictive and hard to step away from.

I bought mine in a discount store for less than $5. You can buy it online by downloading it, but I would look for cheaper alternatives if you like saving a buck or two as the download price seems to be $19.99. Although I have paid much more for computer games and not had the fun I am having with this one.