Klax
1989 · Puzzle · Arcade
Overview
Klax is a 1990 puzzle video game developed and published by Atari Games for arcades; in Japan, it was distributed by Namco. The game was designed and animated by Mark Stephen Pierce, with software engineering by Dave Akers. The object of the game is to catch colored tiles moving down a conveyor belt, and arrange them in matching rows and patterns to make them disappear.
Deep Dive
Klax is a 1990 puzzle video game developed and published by Atari Games for arcades; in Japan, it was distributed by Namco. The game was designed and animated by Mark Stephen Pierce, with software engineering by Dave Akers. The object of the game is to catch colored tiles moving down a conveyor belt, and arrange them in matching rows and patterns to make them disappear.
Developer Story
Klax was designed by Mark Stephen Pierce and Dave Akers at Atari Games in 1989. Coloured tiles fell down a ramp and had to be caught in a paddle, then arranged into matching columns or diagonals to clear them. The game had a sequence of 100 waves with different objectives — specific numbers of Klaxes to complete, or tiles to prevent from spilling. Klax was one of the most thoughtfully structured puzzle games of its era.
Did You Know?
- Klax's 100 waves each had distinct objectives — sometimes clear X tiles, sometimes make Y Klaxes, sometimes survive without spilling — creating sustained variety.
- Tiles could be thrown back up the ramp, but only five at a time — managing the discard pile was a secondary resource challenge.
- The game's advertising tagline "It is the nineties, and there is time for Klax" became one of gaming's more baffling marketing slogans.
- Klax was designed to be immediately learnable but deeply masterable — a 30-second tutorial was possible, but mastery took hours.
