| P i l o t L in e s |

In flash: Board game, replaced Tetris in Russia, shareware, $10, free updates.
Introduction
Rules
Registration
Revision history
Contact Information
See also: BDicty - the ultimate PalmPilot dictionary.

> Introduction

> PilotLines is a board game. As long as we know, it was developed in Russia by Gamos Software, or at least the first version (called Color Lines) was released by them. That happened long enough after the Tetris-mania, and the Russians (who in general play lots of logic and strategy games) quickly became addicted to it. And for a good reason - although less dynamic than Tetris, Lines is somehow more challenging and at least as much fascinating.

> Beiks Ltd. is proud to present a Pilot clone of the game. There are some extensions, though, that (we hope) will pleasantly surprise these, who already know it. Hopefully, we will update the game, so it is a good idea to check PilotLines page our site from time to time.

> Rules

> The aim of the game is the score. The more you get the better you are.

> It goes in turns. Each turn 3 balls of (possibly) different kind appear on random places on the board. Then you can move one ball from one place to another, but only if there is a way for it to roll to the destination by only moving by horizontal or vertical. When you manage to get 5 or more balls of a same kind in a row (horizontal, vertical or diagonal) they disappear and your score increases. Plus, you can make another move (the turn hadn't ended). Sounds simple....but it isn't.

> There are two modes - Classic and Advanced.

> > The Classic mode is restricted to the original rules, described above.

> > The Advanced mode adds some extra features to the players that need to explore more. The rules are generally the same, but some additional balls may appear and change the playing tactics. Here are these additional balls:

> > Item | Description
> > | This is The Rock. It blocks the way through the cell it resides on. There is a limit for the number of the rocks on the field...no more than 81 for sure ;-) You can not move it, of course.
> > | The Bomb can blow up the rocks. It also blows up everyting on the neighbour fields. You can move the bomb the same way you move any ball and it will explode on the destination field. If the bomb can not move (being surrounded by all sides) it will explode in its current field when you select it.
> > | The Surprice: there is only one thing you should know about it: while in this form (i.e. before you tap on it) it can be trespassed, i.e. serves like an empty field.

> Registration

> The game distributed as shareware. After 50th or something move you will be notified about it again and the game will restart.

> You can register for only $10 on our website, PilotGear H.Q. or PalmCentral. We will need your Pilot User Name (sometimes referred as HotsyncID) in order to give you the key to unlock your game.

> Support shareware!

> Revision history

> 7/11/99 - v1.0: Initial version. Misses two important features we want to present...you'll understand which soon.
> 7/20/99 - v1.5: Classic, Optimist and Master modes introduced. Only one set of balls is now available, the other two were removed to reduce size. Registration goes in 2 phases. Playing without previewing the next turn gives more points. Online help added.
> 7/27/99 - v1.6: Several bugs fixed, Hall Of Fame cam be invoked by taping on the score while playing, the same goes for the mode
> 7/29/99 - v1.7: "Surprice ball" introduced. Surprices still to be enchanced.
> 8/10/99 - v.1.8: Redesign: now only "Classic" and "Advanced" modes are left, rules for "Advanced" get more clear. Additional information added on the screen for the number of items on the board. This file also updated with new graphics.

> Contact Information

> Come and visit our webpage or mail us!

ColorLines is (c) Gamos Software.
PalmLines and BDicty are (c) 1999 Beiks Ltd.
Palm Pilot and Palm are registered trademarks of 3Com Corp.
All other trademarks in the document belong to their owner.