Boolball 0.6 review

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Boolball is a game where you have to drop balls in a field of obstacles to score points. Two players each have a row of balls loc

License: GPL (GNU General Public License)
File size: 348K
Developer: Theo van Klaveren
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Boolball is a game where you have to drop balls in a field of obstacles to score points.

Two players each have a row of balls located at the top of the screen, which can be dropped into a field of obstacles. Players take turns dropping one of their balls. The lower the balls fall, the higher the score. Get to the bottom of the field for maximum points. Outsmart your opponent by blocking their balls.

Features easy, medium and difficult computer players to play against, or play head to head with your friends.

Objective

The objective, as with many games, is to score more points than your opponent. Each player has a row of balls, located at the top of the screen, which can be dropped into a field of obstacles. Players take turns dropping one of their balls. The lower the balls fall, the higher the score (2 points per row). The bottom of the field is worth even more: 60 points.

Obstacles

There are various obstacles in the playing field:

Arrows - Left or right arrows make your balls move one square in the way the arrow is pointed The arrow flips the other way as soon as your ball has passed it.
Gray blocks - These babies block any ball instantly. Rest assured though, the gray blocks are removed at the end of the round for instant bonus points.
Teleporters - For that added element of surprise, teleporters randomly teleport your ball to another teleporter.
Bonus blocks - 10 points. Free. It's only there for one player, so grab it before your opponent does.

Strategy and tips

Keep balls that will reach the bottom no matter what for last. They are not very interesting for strategic purposes, see below.

Try to drop those balls which will have a negative effect on your opponent's score first, and those balls which will perhaps score better after your opponent's balls last.

Go for the bonus blocks, of course, but don't worship them. Balls that hit the bottom of the field are worth far more than a bonus block.

End of the game

The game is over when neither player can drop any more balls; either because they are out of balls or because all the balls are blocked by the opponent. The gray blocks are removed and all balls than can fall do so, scoring more points for their owners in the process. The scores are counted, and the player with the highest score wins!

Requirements:
Boolball requires at least version 2.2 of the GTK+, libGlade, GConf, libGnome and libGnomeUI libraries to be installed.

What's New in This Release:
Scalable graphics. Remembers window size.
Model-view code reorganisation (not yet finished).

Boolball 0.6 keywords