Read New Windows Mobile Content Every Weekday
at PocketPCmag.com
|
|
Read New Windows Mobile Content Every Weekday at PocketPCmag.com |
 |
Par 72 Golf :: Glyph :: News |
|
Sponsored Item:
MobiLearn
English-French-German-Italian-Spanish Provides just the help you need, just when you need it. In a flash, you can choose a phrase in English, French, German, Italian, or Spanish, then see and hear its translation in any of the other languages. The audio for each language is presented in a model native voice recorded with high fidelity. Simply echo what you hear to express yourself with confidence, even if you haven't spoken these languages before.
Developer: MobiLearn, Inc. Use with: Windows Mobile 5.0 and all prior versions |
|
The game I played most this week: Raging Thunder
Par 72 is….. you guessed it, another golf game. The best way to sum up the game is that it’s a very straightforward and fast playing single-course golf simulator, but it doesn’t necessarily skimp on a lot of features. In these times when it’s quite common for developers often bite off a bit more than they can chew, this is probably a good thing. Par 72’s graphics, while not exceptional, are very good. To start with, the player is rendered in 3D and is easy to see against the backdrop of the course (a female player is also available for those with that preference). The landscape is also very good and looks like it might be rendered in voxelspace (the quick draw speeds especially make me think this is the case, but I’m not really sure). The lighting and shading are also particularly good, although like most Pocket PC golf games, it’s hard to get a perspective when you’re trying to get your bearing on a faraway hole. Fortunately, Par 72 has an overhead 3D map which makes this task a little easier. In keeping with the simple nature of the game, Par 72’s interface isn’t too fussy and gives you just what you need to get the job done. At the top left of the screen you’ll find information such as wind speed and direction, distance to the hole, your club (clubs are selected automatically), and other pertinent information. Aiming the ball is a simple matter of rotating the aim indicator (in the form of an animated ball that shows the direction) and then hitting using a revolving stroke meter. The stroke meter is pretty straightforward: hit once to strike, and once the indicator gets to the level of strength, tap the button again. This setup doesn’t really allow you to put much of a spin on the pall, but it’s simplicity is well worth the cost to those who’d rather not bother with the more difficult to learn input methods such as that found in Links. Controls are refreshingly simple as well: everything can be done with the game pad, which gives the game an arcade-like feel, although you can use the stylus also if you prefer. In a category like golf games, it gets increasingly hard to compare the different titles to each other. I’m not sure where to stick Par 72 Golf. I wouldn’t say it’s the best, but it certainly isn’t the worst. It’s above-average in terms of graphics and doesn’t have the realism of the more sophisticated golf titles like Links. However, the game play is pretty good and plays like some of the fantasy golf/minigolf type games, although it doesn’t quite have their fun factor.
My preview copy of Glyph (this is a late press copy and is not quite final; the final should be out by the time you read this) shows the game to be a highly graphical and original variation on the color-matching concept. Based loosely on the tired idea of clicking on similar-colored shapes to remove them from the screen while consolidating other pieces into larger chunks, Glyph throws a few wrenches into the mix. The story behind the game involves collecting pieces of curved, shimmering shapes (“glyph fragments”) so that they can be combined into glyphs. The glyphs are part of the larger back story, which involves saving the world by rebuilding the scattered glyphs in order to recover elements. At each level, a fragment is buried beneath a layer of game pieces. Belong some of the game pieces are blocks, some of which consist of several levels. The idea is to uncover the blocks and pieces on top of the fragment by clicking on matches of three or more. As you remove pieces, new ones fall from the top except the ones covering the fragment. Power-ups are also included, some of which allow you to convert a number of pieces to the same color, change the order of pieces on the game board, and some power-ups are the only way to remove otherwise immovable game pieces which appear in the more advanced levels. Glyph looks and plays very well if you can get past the fact that it’s a simple color-matching game. The story line is enough to keep things moving along, and bonus levels will have you matching the fragments together by tapping on them in a certain order (ala the old game of Simon Says). Glyph is a very graphical effort and will likely appeal to those who are more into eye candy than they are into sophisticated puzzles or strategy games.Although Glyph is otherworldly and ethereal, it isn’t particularly revolutionary. However, it’s constructed well enough to make it a compelling alternative to what’s already out there in the casual gaming category.
News – Syd Barrett Auction (way off-topic) Many of you probably heard about the passing of Syd Barrett, back toward the middle of the year, of pancreatic cancer at the age of 60. Fewer know (it wasn’t publicized much) of his estate auction a week or two ago in his hometown of Cambridge, England. (The auction was concurrently held on eBay as a live auction.) In keeping with Barrett’s simple lifestyle in his 30+ years of retirement from music, the items were scarce and consisted mostly of simple furniture, often homemade and painted in garish alternating colors. Since Barrett was in the somewhat ironic position of being a reclusive celebrity and the subject of myth, prices tended to be rather high. While the few art items were interesting (if a bit crude), the closing prices on some of the items were a bit overblown. I present this item as evidence, which went for nearly $2000 U.S., after the auction house premium, taxes, etc. |
|
Sponsored Item: VIP Site
|
| Allen
Gall's The Week in Games is a free service of Smartphone & Pocket
PC magazine and Smartphone
& Pocket PC magazine ONLINE: in-depth articles, tips, an
Encyclopedia of
Software and Accessories, and links to the best Windows Mobile PDA
and Smartphone Web sites. It is edited by
Michelle Talley. This Newsletter is published by Thaddeus Computing, Inc., 110 North Court Street, Fairfield, IA 52556. Allen Gall's The Week in Games Copyright ) 2006 by Thaddeus Computing Inc. |
