{{short description|Former British video game developer}} {{Infobox company |name = Crystal Computing / Design Design |logo = Design_Design_logo.png |founded = {{start date and age|df=yes|1982}} |location = Manchester, England |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">{{cite magazine|title=Rebirth of the Things: Design Design|magazine=CRASH|issue=8|page=88|publisher=Newsfield Publications|date=September 1984|url=https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/page.php?issue_id=975&page=88}}</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 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.<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> 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''<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''<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>

==Softography== '''Crystal Computing''' *''ZX81 Games Pack'', ZX81, 1982. Includes versions of ''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> *''Merchant of Venus'', ZX81, 1982. A space trading/investment game.<ref name="sinc15"/> *''Monitor and Disassembler'', ZX81, ZX Spectrum, 1982. An assembly language utility.<ref>Monitor and Disassembler press ad, ''Your Computer'' January 1983 issue (p.131), IPC Business Press Ltd.</ref> *''Cosmic Guerilla'', ZX Spectrum, 1983 *''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'' clone.<ref>''Bug Blaster'' review, CRASH, issue 3 (p.83), Newsfield Publications 1984</ref> *''Cyber Zone'', ZX Spectrum, 1984 *''The Island'', ZX Spectrum, 1984 *''The Warlock of Firetop Mountain'', ZX Spectrum, 1984 *''It's the Wooluf!'', ZX Spectrum, 1984. *''Tube Way Army'', Dragon 32 and Tandy 32K, 1984 '''Design Design''' *''Dark Star'', ZX Spectrum and Amstrad CPC, 1984 *''Spectacle'', ZX Spectrum, 1984 (Additional program supplied with ''Dark Star'' - simulated a Teletext environment) *''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'', 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'', 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