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Allen Gall
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Smartphone & Pocket PC magazine
 allen@pocketpcmag.com

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The game I played most this week: Melonchi Minicarts

 

Gem Mining: Melonchi Minicarts

Set in the Arvale world (which is a functional setting for an RPG but really isn't all that interesting in my opinion), Melonchi Minecarts is a unique albeit simple puzzle game featuring three characters well known to players of the Arvale series: Duncan, John DeMenchev, and Grwyth the Dwarf. Looking at the screens, I figured it was going to be another Pipes! type of game, but it's actually much better: the idea is to pick up gems, and the trick is that your mining cart can only go forward and turn. Also, with the added complication of exploding tracks, the levels can get quite tricky. Each character has a unique progression of levels and play style, and the game is wrapped in the same tongue-in-cheek attitude found in the Arvale games (it was produced by the same creative team). 

With support for several different screen modes (which you'll select when installing the game), MM has the usual graphics quality found in most PDAMill games. Those familiar with the Arvale series will feel right at home with MM's visuals, which are neither crude looking nor overly ambitious. Regardless of the display mode, everything fits the screen well, with no distracting anomalies like poorly-drawn/rendered objects or performance drops.   

One of the keys to PDAMill's success is that they don't just slap together the basic concept of a game and then rush it out the door. In addition to the above-average audio output, the game features seperate difficulty levels and two game play modes: story and arcade. Games are automatically saved, allowing you to restart later at any time. Melonchi Minicarts is not a very sophisticated idea, and it's hard to elaborate much on the game itself. You really need to download the demo to see if you'll like it. It's one of those titles where the package is put together well enough to allow the whole thing to shine.
 
Title: Melonchi Minicarts Developer: PDAMill
Genre: Puzzle Demo: Y
Platform: Pocket PC 2003+ Price: $14.95
Discuss this game Rating (of 4): 3.3/4.0

News: Etch a Sketch!

Not much to report this week. Looks like another HP PDA is on the way? Very few details, except for Bluetooth 2, USB 2, and a few other things. The slip case (the only picture we have) makes it look like a standard (albeit smaller) Pocket PC. Could this be the last standalone Pocket PC from HP?  We'll see.

Discuss...


 

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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.

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