For all its charms, Puzzle Quest is not a game that ends well. Once you've completed every mindless fetch mission and julienned the anticlimactic final boss, you're dropped back into the worldmap with hardly any ceremony save some brief epilogue text. The landscape appears just as you left it, unaffected by your victory or valor.

The New Gamer laments in its review, "I keep hoping that, finally, my character will have some complete and utter impact on the lands, that all those I've interacted in will pronounce the lands free of evil, free of conflict and that they can finally live their lives in peace." But your deeds are quickly forgotten by the townspeople you've saved, and there's little to indicate that you've had an impact on the kingdom of Etheria. In short, it never feels like the Challenge of the Warlords has actually been completed.

Though this lack of finality isn't exclusive to Puzzle Quest, we really expected more from an otherwise fantastic game. Hopefully, Infinite Interactive will take pains to address the issue before putting out its next puzzle/RPG hybrid, Galactrix. Until then, we'll be haunting Etheria's dusty roads, matching gems against any soul that stumbles across our path, sighing no matter what the outcome.

If Final Fantasy can reach the double digits, why can't an RPG puzzler also have sequels? In a recent interview with the creators of Puzzle Quest, IGN learned that not only were the creators surprised by how quickly the title has sold, but that they are also working on a sequel. Infinite Interactive's CEO Steve Fawkner said: "We have enjoyed creating (and playing) Puzzle Quest so much that I think we wanted to start on a sequel the day the game was released. The right thing to do, though, is to spend some time gathering ideas, discussing new features, and listening to our customers before we dive right in and start work on a sequel. But I can almost guarantee that, barring the most unfortunate Act of God, you haven't seen the last Puzzle/RPG hybrid to come out of Infinite Interactive."

If that still doesn't convince you that a sequel is in the works, Puzzle Quest's publisher D3 also chimed in about a sequel possibility: "Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords is considered one of D3's key franchises. Absolutely do not count out the possibility of an amazing sequel to this remarkable game."

So what changes would you like to see in this inevitable sequel?

Puzzle Quest is trying to do something different by combining the puzzle and RPG genres. The dangers of trying something new is that it has a high chance of failure. Luckily for those interested in Puzzle Quest, there is a PC demo online now so you can try before you buy. Much like that drug dealer that gives you your first taste free, Infinite Interactive wants you to get hooked on the demo so you rush out to purchase Puzzle Quest. Is this unique game worth your time? After trying the demo, I think this game will be a cult hit for sure. Giving purpose and story to a puzzle game definitely adds to the experience and the art is well done. But luckily for you, the demo will allow you to make up your own mind. What do you think of Puzzle Quest?

[Via Joystiq]

[Update 2: Provided direct link to demo.]
[Update 1: Corrected formatting.]

Infinite Interactive is working on Galactrix a sci-fi set game that blends RPG and strategy and is described as a match-3 puzzle game, played against an opponent. Each puzzle is played against an enemy whether it be AI-controlled or human. There are claims of potentially hundreds of hours of play, though it is unsure how many of those hours are multiplayer. Speaking of multiplayer, it will allow 2-4 possible players with support for downloadable content. Galactrix also features the ability for you to create a persistent pilot that can gain skills and ships as you complete more battles. You can also gain a crew and each battle is only supposed to require 5-10 minutes, which would be ideal for a portable.

Currently Galactrix is being developed on the PC, but a PSP port is planned.

[Via DCEmu]