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Line 1: {{short description\|Former British video game developer}} Crystal Computing were one of the smaller software companies which produced games for home computers in the early 1980's. They had some reasonable hits in the early days of the Spectrum home computer but never became a major force. {{Infobox company \|name = Crystal Computing / Design Design \|logo = \|foundation = {{start date and age\|df=yes\|1982}} \|___location = [[Manchester]], [[England]] \|industry = [[Video game industry\|Video games]] \|products = ''[[Halls of the Things]]''<br>''[[Invasion of the Body Snatchas!]]'' }} '''Crystal Computing''', later renamed '''Design Design''', was a British [[video game developer]] founded in 1982 by Chris Clarke and Ian Stamp while students at the [[University of Manchester]]. Graham Stafford, Neil Mottershead, [[Simon Brattel]] and Martin Horsley, joined the company as it expanded.<ref name="pcw">''[[Popular Computing Weekly]]'', 26 January-1 February 1984 (p.26), Sunshine Publications Ltd.</ref><ref name="crash">Rebirth of the Things: Design Design, ''[[CRASH (magazine)\|CRASH]]'', issue 8 (p.88), [[Newsfield Publications]], 1984</ref> The company's first software release was a compilation of games for the Sinclair [[ZX81]], though it was with the [[ZX Spectrum]] that Crystal found its greatest success. A deal with the machine's manufacturer [[Sinclair Research\|Sinclair]] to distribute Crystal's ''[[Zeus Assembler]]'' gave the company sufficient funds for a major marketing campaign for their next product,<ref>"As Clear as Crystal", Popular Computing Weekly, 26 January-1 February 1984 (p.26), Sunshine Publications Ltd</ref> ''[[Halls of the Things]]'', an [[arcade adventure]] game that became their most successful title. Clarke left in 1984 to join [[Artic Software]], where he worked on the "business side", before collaborating with [[Jon Ritman]] on the [[Match Day (series)\|''Match Day'' series]].<ref>[http://www.crashonline.org.uk/33/ritman.htm "From Namtir Raiders, to a bit of a bovver with bears then on to Batman... and beyond"], CRASH, issue 33 (p.84), Newsfield Publications, October 1986</ref> ~~Their address was :- 2, Ashton Way, East Herrington, Sunderland, England. SR3 3RX.~~ With Clarke's departure the company was reorganised as Design Design,<ref name="crash"/> a trading name that had been used by Brattel since 1976 for his electronic audio designs.<ref>[http://www.desdes.com/ Design Design official site]</ref> Design Design's core consisted of Stafford working mainly on titles for the [[Commodore 64]], Brattel and Mottershead working on the [[ZX Spectrum]] and [[Amstrad CPC]], and David Lewellyn, the company's administrator.<ref name="crash"/> According to Stafford the new name was part of a wider re-branding, as they wanted a more professional image, along with a better relationship with the press and the public.<ref name="crash"/> Stafford went on to form developer Walking Circles producing titles including ''[[The Living Daylights (video game)\|The Living Daylights]]''<ref name='crashlivingdaylights'>{{cite magazine \|title=The Living Daylights\|magazine=Crash\|issue=43\|publisher=Newsfield\|date=August 1987\|page=94\|url=https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/page.php?issue_id=1010&page=94\|access-date=13 July 2021}}</ref> and ''[[Spitting Image (video game)\|Spitting Image]]''<ref name='acespitting'>{{cite magazine \|title=Snippets... Spitting Image\|magazine=ACE\|issue=15\|publisher=Future Publishing\|date=December 1988\|page=10\|url=https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/page.php?issue_id=1741&page=10\|access-date=13 July 2021}}</ref> for [[Domark]] and the PC version of ''[[Bloodwych]]'' for [[Image Works]].<ref>"The Making of: Bloodwych", ''[[Retro Gamer]]'', issue 23 (p.55), [[Imagine Publishing]]</ref> ~~==Notable Releases==~~ * ''Halls of the Things'' - 1983. ==Softography== * ''Rommels Revenge'' - 1983. '''Crystal Computing''' * ''The Dungeon Master'' - 1983. ''ZX81 Games Pack'', [[ZX81]], 1982. Includes versions of ''[[Asteroids (video game)\|Asteroids]]'' and ''[[Space Invaders]]'', as well as a ''[[Dungeons & Dragons]]'' style adventure game and a [[slalom skiing]] game, all designed to run on an unexpanded machine with 1K RAM.<ref name="sinc15">[http://www.sincuser.f9.co.uk/015/softwre.htm Trading With Crystal] {{webarchive\|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120825161521/http://www.sincuser.f9.co.uk/015/softwre.htm \|date=2012-08-25 }}, [[Sinclair User]], issue 15 (p.27), ECC Publications Ltd., June 1983</ref> ''It's the Wooluf!'' - 1984.▼ ''Merchant of Venus'', ZX81, 1982. A space trading/investment game.<ref name="sinc15"/> ''Invasion of the Body Snatchas !'' - 1984. Reviewed in Crash issue 1 - 69.5%. Version of the arcade game Defender. ''[[Zeus Assembler#Monitor and disassembler\|Monitor and Disassembler]]'', ZX81, ZX Spectrum, 1982. An [[assembly language]] utility.<ref>Monitor and Disassembler press ad, ''[[Your Computer (British magazine)\|Your Computer]]'' January 1983 issue (p.131), IPC Business Press Ltd.</ref> ''Bug Blaster'' - 1984. Reviewed in Crash issue 3 - 68% ''[[Cosmic Guerilla]]'', ZX Spectrum, 1983 ''Cyber Zone'' - 1984. Reviewed in Crash issue 3 - 85% ''[[The Dungeon Master (video game)\|The Dungeon Master]]'', ZX Spectrum, 1983 ''[[Halls of the Things]]'', ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC and Commodore 64, 1983 ''[[Invasion of the Body Snatchas!]]'', ZX Spectrum, 1983 ''[[Zeus Assembler]]'', ZX Spectrum, 1983 ''[[Rommel's Revenge]]'', ZX Spectrum, 1984 ''Bug Blaster'', ZX Spectrum, 1984. A ''[[Centipede (video game)\|Centipede]]'' clone.<ref>''Bug Blaster'' review, CRASH, issue 3 (p.83), Newsfield Publications 1984</ref> ''Cyber Zone'', ZX Spectrum, 1984 ''[[The Island (video game)\|The Island]]'', ZX Spectrum, 1984 ''[[The Warlock of Firetop Mountain (video game)\|The Warlock of Firetop Mountain]]'', ZX Spectrum, 1984 ▲ ''It's the Wooluf!'', ZX -Spectrum, 1984. ''Tube Way Army'', [[Dragon 32]] and [[TRS-80 Color Computer\|Tandy 32K]], 1984 '''Design Design''' ''[[Dark Star (1984 video game)\|Dark Star]]'', ZX Spectrum and [[Amstrad CPC]], 1984 ''Spectacle'', ZX Spectrum, 1984 (Additional program supplied with ''Dark Star'' - simulated a [[Teletext]] environment) ''[[Halls of the Things#Return of the Things\|Return of the Things]]'', ZX Spectrum, 1984 ''2112 AD'', ZX Spectrum and Amstrad CPC, 1985 ''On the Run'', ZX Spectrum and Amstrad CPC, 1985 ''Forbidden Planet'', ZX Spectrum and Amstrad CPC, 1986 ''[[Halls of the Things#Remix\|Halls of the Things Remix]]'', ZX Spectrum, 1986 ''Invaders'', ZX Spectrum, 1986. A ''[[Space Invaders]]'' clone published as part of the ''Action Replay'' compilation of Crystal and Design Design games. ''N.E.X.O.R.'', ZX Spectrum and Amstrad CPC, 1986 ''[[Nosferatu the Vampyre (video game)\|Nosferatu the Vampyre]]'', ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC and [[Commodore 64]], 1986 ''Rogue Trooper'', ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC and Commodore 64, 1986 *''Kat Trap'', ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC and Commodore 64, 1987 ==References== {{reflist}} {{Crystal Computing series}} [[Category:Defunct companies based in Manchester]] [[Category:Defunct video game companies of the United Kingdom]] [[Category:Video game companies established in 1982]] [[Category:Video game development companies]] [[Category:Video game publishers]]