----------------------------In Brief----------------------------

Name:       Colorominoes

Version:    0.6d

Type:       Application

Requires:   A Mac running System 7 or better. Has been tested on

            a PowerMac 8500 and PowerComputing PowerWave. It was

            written on a PowerBook G3 Series running Mac OS 8.1.

            It is PPC native.

Purpose:    A new game that's a cross between dominoes and solitaire
            card games

Cost:       Free

Author:     Marc Zeedar

Company:    Stone Table Software

Website:    http://www.stonetablesoftware.com

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Description


Colorominoes is a deceptively simple game of logic. The game is played on a 10 by 10 grid. The game begins with a number of pieces in place on the board. Each square piece is divided into four colored triangles. The triangles are colored at random from as many as seven different colors. The object of the game is to remove all pieces from the board.

Rules


You are only allowed to select and remove pieces that are open on at least two sides. That means a piece surround by other pieces cannot be touched until the surrounding pieces are removed.

When you remove a piece, it is placed in the Outbox, a vertical stack showing the last eight pieces removed. The trick is that for a piece to be removed, the bottom triangle of the piece must match the color of the top triangle of the piece in the Outbox.

If the colors don't match, you are not allowed to remove the piece. However, you are allowed to rotate pieces in 90¡ increments, so perhaps that can help you find matching sides.

If none of your pieces (even with rotation), match the piece in the Outbox, the game is over.

Once you clear the board, you advance to the next level. Each level has a different layout of increasing difficulty.

That's pretty much it. I said it was a simple game, didn't I?

Stoplight Graphic


Since a full board can get quite colorful, making it difficult to figure out if there's even a legal move left, there's a Stoplight graphic in the lower left corner of the main window. In most situations the Stoplight is green, indicating there's more than one move available to you. When you get into tight situations, however, the Stoplight will show yellow, meaning that there's only one move left. If you paint yourself into a corner, the Stoplight shows red. That means it's time to pack up and go home -- the game's over.

Scoring


You earn one point for each piece you remove. If you use the Undo command, you are penalized 10 points. Each time you complete a level, your score is doubled. This can lead to some impressive scores, if you limit your undos. (You can undo all the way back to the beginning of the game, but there's no redo, you it's up you to remember your path back.)

Strategies


It's a given that when you run out of a color, you can't play on a piece of that color. So a good strategy is to see which colors you have the least of and make sure you use them up in the early stages of the game.

Technical Specs (ugh!)


I've had the idea of doing some kind of game with colored blocks for a long time, but I wasn't sure of the rules. The other day I was playing Pyramid (the solitaire card game) on my Palm III and I thought, "Why not something similar but use color matching instead of numbers?"

I put down my addictive Palm III and Colorominoes was born. It was written over a weekend in March 1999. I think that shows the incredible power of the REALbasic development system.

Program History

Version 0.7d - April 3, 1999

Version 0.6d - April 1, 1999

Version 0.5d - March 30, 1999

Version 0.4d - March 28, 1999

Version 0.3d - March 29, 1999

Licensing


This software is distributed as Freeware. That means that you may not sell this software. It is free for you to use, however, and you may distribute the complete, unmodified package in any way you see fit (disk, CD-ROM, BBS, Internet, etc.) You may charge a minimal fee for media and/or handling, on-line access, etc. If this software is included in a collection I would appreciate a quick e-mail note or snail-mail postcard to tell me know what you are doing. (That way I can inform you when there are bug fixes and new versions.)

All users are encouraged to offer suggestions, comments, and bugs reports.

This program is not public domain and is fully protected under international copyright law. It may not be modified in any manor without the express written permission of Stone Table Software. This program is provided with no warranties, expressed or implied, and STS is not liable for damage or loss of work caused by this program. Use this program at your own risk.

ThinkWare
Colorominoes is being distributed as ThinkWare. That means you have to at least think something positive each time you use it (negative thinking isn't good for anybody). Example: "Wow! This is really cool! I should send this guy a $1000!"

Support
Because I am not charging for Colorominoes, support will be minimal. I don't anticipate many problems because the program is so simple.

If you do, God forbid, discover any bugs or problems, please contact me and I'll see what I can do. Feel free to contact me with comments or suggestions, too.

Disclaimer (double ugh!)
This product is being distributed as is with no warranty whatsoever. The author, DesignWrite, and Stone Table Software are not liable or responsible for any failure of this product to perform to your expectations or for any data or performance loss you experience as a consequence to your using this product. Use of this product is at your own risk!