Untitled - TRS-80 Color Computer Archive

ReviewsShanghaiErvin BoboRequirements: Apple U-series, Commodore 64 and Amiga, Atari ST, IBMPC/PCjr and compatible, Macintosh, andTandy 1000-series computers.When Activision previewed Shanghai ata private gathering, I was initially notimpressed with what I saw.And when my wife looked over myshoulder as I was trying out the gameon my Commodore 64, she expressedthe same feelings. (Though I must admit she is more easily "underwhelmed"than I.) Before too many minutes hadgone by, she was helping to solve thepuzzle, and we were both hooked.Two days later, I found the Amigaversion and we were both overwhelmed. Then the children were similarly affected. As of this writing, ourShanghai mania is of such proportionsthat I am beginning to fear for ourhealth.For those of you who may knownothing of mah-jongg, from which thiscomputer game is derived, it's an ancient Chinese pastime that is part game,part puzzle, and all challenge. It'splayed with a number of pieces calledtiles, which are stacked in the shape of adragon. As with playing cards, there areseveral suits, and within these suits arenumbers. To play the game, you remove matching tiles, one pair at a time,until all are gone or until no morematches can be made. On the face of it,that sounds rather simple. It is not.Because there are four of each tile,the game holds elements of strategy. If,for instance, you have the East, West,and South Wind tiles free, which twowill you remove on this turn? In a gameof Solitaire, you'd want to remove thetwo that are blocking the most othertiles, while in Challenge play, againstanother opponent, your strategy wouldbe the opposite.An Advantage In PerspectiveIn Shanghai, there are 144 tiles in fivesuits. At the beginning of each game,the computer stacks these tiles in aThe Amiga version of Shanghai fromActivision.random fashion. Because your view isfrom above the stack, it won't look likea dragon, but it will give you an advantage over those who use real tiles inmah-jongg, for you can see all sides ofthe stack at once. Tiles can be removedonly when they are at the sides of thestack. When bordered on both sides byother riles that are on the same level,the tiles are not "free" and thus cannotbe moved.Because you would be viewing astack of small objects from above andbecause your success in the gamewould be dependent upon the status ofthe different stack levels, it was necessary to give the playing screen an illusion of depth. On the Amiga, thisillusion is astounding. Not only do the"ivory" tiles have yellowed edges tohelp in differentiating them; they alsocast transparent shadows.And because it is important toidentify matching tiles, the designs andthe (presumably) Chinese characters aswell as the numbers on each tile aredone to a sharp perfection. You'll especially appreciate the attention to detailwhen you're racing against the clock intournament play.[Ed. Note: The clarity and visualdepth vary from one computer version toanother. For example, the Amiga, ST, andMacintosh versions offer greater claritythan the Commodore 64 and Apple 11versions.]Game ChoicesPull-down menus at the top of thescreen give you choices between gamesof Solitaire, Tournaments, Team Play,and Challenge. Solitaire and Team Playare the same game, the difference beingthat in Team Play turns are passed fromone team to another and a differentstrategy will be involved; in either ofthem, you have an unlimited amount oftime in which to attempt to clear theboard, and the number of tiles remaining is displayed at lower left of thescreen. Should you get hopelesslystuck, one of the pull-down menus allows you a request to See All Moves.Select it and the next matching pair isilluminated—or, alternatively, you aretold that there are no more matches.Tournaments allows you to raceagainst a clock that you set for 5,10, or20 minutes. Scores are on the basis ofthe number of tiles removed during thattime. To keep you apprised of thetime—or the lack of it—a digital clockappears at the lower right of the screen,and when a minute is ticked off you'llhear the sound of a faraway gong. Asmight be expected, no hints are available for the Tournament mode.Your score for this is stored on themaster disk and there are two tournaments that can be played again andagain—giving you the same arrangement of tiles each time—just in caseyou wish to try to beat your best score.Perhaps it should be noted here thatnot all arrangements of the tiles can besolved and, in keeping with the puzzleaspect of the game, you have no cluesas to whether the two tournaments areinsoluble.Should you begin to have doubts,however, it is also possible to play intournaments where each game can be anew and random arrangement. Sincethe possibilities here are endless, scoresare not written to the disk—unless youelect to play the same arrangementagain.In Challenge Play, each player isgiven a timed turn, during which he orshe is to remove a pair of tiles. If noneare found, play reverts to the challengerand the same rules apply. This form ofplay will support the use of two mice,and you may find that easier than passing one mouse back and forth.To remove tiles, place the handshapedcursor on the first of the pairand click once; then move to the secondtile and double-click. If your move is32 COMPUTEI February 1987