Astraware Launches Five New Games for Pocket PC Handhelds; Premier Developer of PDA Games Converts Popular Palm OS Puzzle and Strategy Games for Use On Pocket PCs.Business Editors & High Tech Writers THE MIDLANDS, England--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 17, 2002 Astraware Ltd. today announces five new titles for Pocket PC handhelds -- Nisqually, Alchemy alchemy (ăl`kəmē), ancient art of obscure origin that sought to transform base metals (e.g., lead) into silver and gold; forerunner of the science of chemistry. , Abysma, Elixir elixir /elix·ir/ (e-lik´ser) a clear, sweetened, alcohol-containing, usually hydroalcoholic liquid containing flavoring substances and sometimes active medicinal ingredients. e·lix·ir n. , and Bounce Out Verb 1. bounce out - bounce a ball so that it becomes an out baseball, baseball game - a ball game played with a bat and ball between two teams of nine players; teams take turns at bat trying to score runs; "he played baseball in high school"; "there was a baseball . Each of these games are versions of popular Palm OS titles, and are all optimized to take advantage of the color screens and sound capabilities of Pocket PC devices It may never be fully completed or, depending on its its nature, it may be that it can never be completed. However, new and revised entries in the list are always welcome. This is a list of Pocket PC and Windows CE devices, and companies that make, or have made, them. . Astraware is also announcing an upgrade to the company's popular Diamond Mine game, the Pocket PC version of its top-selling Bejeweled be·jew·eled or be·jew·elled adj. Decorated with or as if with jewels. for Palm OS handhelds. Nisqually is a handheld version of GameHouse's popular online puzzle game by the same title. Nisqually is easy to learn, but increases with complexity to complete each level. Gamers aim to clear a screen full of blocks by sliding them to make groups. The challenge is to arrange the blocks to be left with just the right amount of each type to complete the level. "Nisqually is a deceivingly complex game that is consistently ranked as one of the most popular games on the Web," said Ron Powers Ron Powers (born 1941) is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, novelist, and non-fiction writer. His works include White Town Drowsing: Journeys to Hannibal, Dangerous Water: A Biography of the Boy Who Became Mark Twain, and Mark Twain: A Life. , GameHouse's Director of Business Development. "Astraware's handheld version will rock your world just as our online version has done!" Alchemy is a handheld version of the popular online game by PopCap Games PopCap Games is an casual gaming developer and publisher, based in Seattle, Washington, United States. PopCap Games was founded in 2000 by John Vechey, Brian Fiete and Jason Kapalka. It currently employs just under 100 people. . Players attempt to turn lead into gold. The goal is to become the mythical Alchemical Grand Master. They place runes of magical shapes and colors onto the screen, and turn the board to gold. This official Pocket PC adaptation retains all of the game play of the online version but allows players to take it with them anywhere. In Abysma, players are opposed by both time and a descending "bar of doom." A bar descends downward across a screen of multi-sized blocks. Energy is lost when the bar of doom comes across a blank space Noun 1. blank space - a blank area; "write your name in the space provided" space, place surface area, expanse, area - the extent of a 2-dimensional surface enclosed within a boundary; "the area of a rectangle"; "it was about 500 square feet in area" , causing players to race to fill in the gaps with adjoining blocks before the bar hits the empty spots and saps all of their energy. Elixir pits the player against the clock in a race to, literally, pop as many pills as possible. As iridescent ir·i·des·cent adj. 1. Producing a display of lustrous, rainbowlike colors: an iridescent oil slick; iridescent plumage. 2. capsules descend down the screen, the player must explode as many pills as possible, but only those that are not supporting the capsules above them. Bounce Out is similar to Astraware's popular Bejeweled and Diamond Mine titles, except that players are rushed to swap colorful balls rather than gemstones in order to line up three or more in a row and players may swap vertically as well as horizontally and diagonally. As sets of three or more are formed, the balls "bounce out" and the balls above drop and wiggle into place -- completely reconfiguring the game-board. The colorful balls in Bounce Out make this game an especially attractive game for the high resolution color screens of Pocket PC handhelds. Combined with Rook's Revenge, a raucous "kill-or-be-killed" version of chess released earlier this month, and the upgraded version of Diamond Mine, Astraware now offers a large stable of exciting games for Pocket PC users. "We are very excited to expand our Pocket PC offerings, not only expanding the potential market for Astraware games but expanding our technical capabilities to develop new and exciting handheld games," said Howard Tomlinson, Astraware's CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. . "With the memory, high resolution screens, and quality audio capabilities of Pocket PC handhelds, our games really shine on this platform." Astraware's new games sell for $14.95 each. Links for downloading the games are available on Astraware's Web site, www.astraware.com. About Astraware Ltd. Founded in 1994, Astraware Ltd. (http://www.astraware.com/) develops quality shareware Software on the "honor system." The concept is that users try a product, and if they like it, they voluntarily pay a set registration fee or make a donation to the program's creator. There are tens of thousands of shareware programs; some fantastic, some awful. games and utilities. The company provides a range of products available for Palm OS(TM) and Pocket PC handhelds, including the popular Zap!2000 and Diamond Mine. Handheld enthusiasts have downloaded more than a million copies of Astraware's products, and the company has customers in nearly 100 countries. For more information, contact CEO Howard Tomlinson at howard@astraware.com. |
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