Experience the Great Gold Rush

[Darius Wey]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.4pockets.com/game_info.php?par=The+Great+Gold+Rush&pro=X&pid=56' target='_blank'>http://www.4pockets.com/game_info.p...sh&pro=X&pid=56</a><br /><br /></div><i>"Gold Rush is a fast and furious multiplayer game which requires quick thinking and a devious mind. The objective of the game is simply to collect more gold and precious stones than your opponent in the allotted time. The one that collects and banks the stash with the biggest value wins. Some treasures are worth more than others so the trick is to seek out those that are most valuable. These stones are heavy, and you can only carry so many at any one time. Once your backpack is full you must return to your bank to deposit your stash before heading out for more..."</i><br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/wey-20060228-TGGR.jpg" /><br /><br />Here's a new Pocket PC game that appears to be very similar to Bomberman, except with the added support for multiplayer gaming via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. A demo is available, and if you like it, you can purchase it for $14.95.

[Menneisyys]

OK, here's a review:

Author of the great (single-player) golf game, Harry Putter's Crazy Golf (http://www.4pockets.com/game_info.php?par=Harry+Putters+Crazy+Golf&pro=A&pid=50), 4Pockets (http://www.4pockets.com/), has just released a new, multiplayer game, The Great Gold Rush. The official homepage of the game is here (http://www.4pockets.com/game_info.php?par=The+Great+Gold+Rush&pro=X&pid=56) - it's there that you can download the demo from too.

It's a Bomberman clone; see for example this Flash implementation of Bomberman (http://www.cyberiapc.com/flashgames/bomberman.htm) to see what the main idea of the game is.

A review of the game, compared to the other multiplayer titles (please see The Definitive Multiplayer PPC Game Roundup – over 60 games tested (http://www.pocketpcmag.com/blogs/menneisyys/102005MPPPCGames.asp) for more information on them):

The single player mode is definitely less spectacular than that of, for example, the Infinite Dreams titles. The movement of the sprites is blocky and there are very few animation phases (compare the game in this respect to, say, Infinite Dreams' Super Miners 1.07 and Explode Arena 1.2! The latter are, visually, far more appealing - at least in my opinon). Also, the in-game music isn't anything to write home about – it's really repetitive. All in all, the game, at least in my opinion, not as enjoyable in the single player mode as, say, the two above-mentioned titles.

And here would come the review of the multiplayer part – if there were something to review. Unfortunately, the demo version has an entirely disabled multiplayer mode. That is, I can't elaborate on the quality of the multiplayer, the Bluetooth stack compliance (which is of extreme importance in today's abundance of different bluetooth stacks, different Bluetooth versions, vast compatibility issues), the lag (which is a considerable problem with really a lot of multiplayer games) – nothing.

I just can't understand game developers that either disable key functionalities in their demo/trial games or don't release a demo of their games at all. This concerns not only this game, but also Bingo 2.0 (http://www.handango.com/PlatformProductDetail.jsp?siteId=510&pc=list%5B7%5D_title&platformId=2&N=96806&productId=56443&R=56443), Pocket-Jongg 4.2.net for Pocket PC 4.2.1 (http://www.handango.com/PlatformProductDetail.jsp?siteId=510&pc=list%5B1%5D_title&platformId=2&N=96806&productId=145665&R=145665), PopperZ 1.0 (http://www.handango.com/PlatformProductDetail.jsp?siteId=510&pc=list%5B1%5D_title&platformId=2&N=96806&productId=173006&R=173006) (this game seems to be pretty good and this is why I find the lack of the multiplayer game support in the demo version really painful), MicroQuad 1.1 (http://www.handango.com/ampp/store/PlatformProductDetail.jsp?siteId=311&productId=162529&productType=2), Pocket Bar Billiards 1.21 (http://www.parystec.demon.co.uk/Bar.html), iGolf 1.04 (http://www.cecraft.com/product/igolf/default.asp) by CECRAFT and Touch Poker 1.0.1 (http://www.pocketgear.com/software_detail.asp?id=18603) by Touchdev Limited.

Developers that don't bother releasing a time-, but not a functionality-restricted demo/trial version (take a look at, for example, the demos of the two excellent multiplayer iDreams titles! Those demos offer full functionality and full multiplayer gameplay – for one or two minutes a round. This is how a demo version should work!) automatically lose a lot of potentional customers because noone can actually try their games on his on her PDA('s) before buying.

A quick installation-time tip

This game is one of the very few titles that put their CAB files in c:\Documents and Settings\&lt;Windows username>\Local Settings\Temp (as opposed to \Program Files[\Microsoft ActiveSync]). If you run into this error dialog (http://www.winmobiletech.com/kuvat/GoldRushDemoASErrorMessage.png) (I haven't ever managed to install the game using ActiveSync 4.1; on another desktop PC with AS 3.8, installation worked OK) upon trying to run the installer, GoldRushDemo.exe, then, just go to the above-mentioned directory, manually copy the file setup.arm.cab to your PDA and execute it there.

Recommended reading

The Definitive Multiplayer PPC Game Roundup – over 60 games tested (http://www.pocketpcmag.com/blogs/menneisyys/102005MPPPCGames.asp)