PsL Monthly 1994 January

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GA-04: Card & Casino Games ------------------------ #27730 PsL Card Game Set ------------------------ Our favorite card games available as a set for $9.95. EGA/VGA required for some of these games. ------------------------------------ #27035/1901 Bridge, Pinochle, Hearts Small Programs Disk ------------------------------------ Baker's Hearts 1.6 (BHEARTS) Baker Technical Software, Inc. $20 is a challenging game of Hearts. We believe this game is a little bit stronger than other Hearts games in the library, but this one requires you to keep both hands on the keyboard, while the other allows one-hand operation with the cursor keys or mouse. An option in Baker's Hearts is to be able to see the cards in the computer opponents' hands. While this would normally spoil the game for you, it made it easier for us to evaluate the program's playing strategy. Bridge Passera, Gerard D. $20 This is a good version of the card game Bridge. You bid and play one hand, the computer bids and plays the other three. It is assumed that you already know how to play the game. Canasta Small Business Software $? is the only computerized version of canasta we have seen. It is a well-designed game with excellent documentation. A bridge game that accompanied this set is unusable because it does not play the cards correctly. For example, it makes declarer play first instead of the hand to the left of declarer. Double-Deck Pinochle (DDPINOC) Daugherty, Ralph $0 lets you play one hand of double-deck Pinochle while the computer plays the other three hands. The documentation explains the scoring and play and the program has a "learner's mode". The nice thing is that if you ever master all of the meld scoring options, you earn a degree in mathematics. Duplicate Bridge Scoring Program (BRIDGDD) Donald, Dick $15 is for setting up and scoring a duplicate bridge game. Intended for home use, it is limited to four tables (8 pairs). It shows board movements, calculates match point or IMP results, prints the results and can save results to disk for later recall. If you give bridge parties, but have never tried duplicate because you didn't know how to do it, try this disk. Hearts 6.6 [10/93 CD] Crouch, R. J. ASP $15-$20 Someone has at last written a nearly perfect game of hearts for the PC. If you have played hearts before, you will be happy to know that this game is colorful, easy to use, and plays a game that is challenging, but still beatable if you're good enough. If you haven't played hearts before, this is a great introduction to a great card game. Mouse support is included. Pinochle (PINOCHL) Nippert, C.R. $15 lets you play against the computer in four-handed Pinochle. User selectable options include auction or on-shot bidding and different playing strengths. On-line help can teach you the rules, and you can elect to let the computer play while you watch. -------------------------------- END OF SMALL PROGRAMS DISK #1901 -------------------------------- ---------------------------- #27035/2404 Gin and Cribbage Small Programs Disk ---------------------------- Championship Cribbage 1.0 (CH-CRIB) Goodwin, Mark D. $5 pits you against the computer in the popular card game of Cribbage. Instructions are available when you run the program. Cribbage (CRIBBAG) is a very good version of Cribbage. BASIC is required. Gin Rummy Challenge 8.1 (GINRUMC) Cody, Jim $0 pits you against the computer in a game of Gin Rummy. Automatic card rearrangement makes the game more efficient to play, but we felt that it took some of the sport out of the game, because it makes it impossible to overlook some types of plays. This is still a good implementation, though. You can optionally play the game with a friend over a modem. A mouse is supported, but not required. GinRummy 4.2 (GINRUM) 09-93 CD David Teach $ any lets you play Gin against the computer. Features include selectable gin, game and knock scores, optional Oklahoma rules, game difficulty, and more. RumTile is an interesting, and very challenging, variation on Gin Rummy, which is why it is classified as a Card Game even though the game uses four different colors of tiles numbered one to 13 instead of card suits. The game is more complex than the card game, but a Hint mode and thorough on-line instructions will help you learn it quickly. A mouse is required. -------------------------------- END OF SMALL PROGRAMS DISK #2404 -------------------------------- -------------------------- #27035/2164 Other Card Games Small Programs Disk -------------------------- Card Master (CARDMAS) Progressive Software $10 is a collection of four different card games, Fantan, OhHell!, Funny Game, and Durok. These are interesting games, and the instructions for each are available when you run the program. Euchre Ryan, James V. $15 The object of this game appears to be to try to get away with cheating as much as possible. The framework for all this cheating is that four players are dealt five cards each and you and your computer-partner attempts to take three tricks, as in bridge. We found the game to be too confusing for us to understand completely in the limited time we had to evaluate it, but perhaps those already familiar with the game of Euchre will get more out of it. Four-Handed Euchre 3.5 (EUCH-DF) 08-93 CD Feltz, David $10 lets you play one hand of four-handed Euchre while the computer plays the other three hands. It can be used for learning to play, sharpening skills, or just playing for fun. HE 1.1 (HE_V11) Bryant, Austin E. $40 is a computerized version of Texas Hold 'Em. It does not have graphics as fancy as some games, but it is an excellent program for training to play in the real world. Pontoon PC Projects $7 is a 70K pop-up card game similar to Blackjack, but with a few differences. This game comes to us from England. UNO 1.1 Geller, Barry $0 is computerized version of the card game Uno: you against the computer. You need to know the rules already, since none are provided. We don't know if the game cheats, but it seems impossible to beat. -------------------------------- END OF SMALL PROGRAMS DISK #2164 -------------------------------- Bridge Pal WR Software ASP $10 #27035/1110 Bridge is a very tough came to write a program to play because, unlike chess for example, you can't really search for the best possible bid or play. Probably the best bridge program available is Bridge Parlor which sells (or "sold" - we can't find it anymore) commercially for something around $100, and even it makes serious errors in bidding and play. It should go without saying, then, that Bridge Pal does too, so we have a tough time recommending it as a good way to learn the game because the novice would learn erroneous bids and plays. We recommend that the beginner learn from a book or special program written just to teach bridge lessons. The expert will probably not want to put up with the errors either, but the casual bridge player should get a lot of enjoyment out of playing the computer. The program itself is well written and a bargain at $10. It lets you play declarer or defender, and also lets you play duplicate against another person. ----------------- 1621 Casino Games Small Programs Disk ----------------- AllSlot is a program with three different types of slot machine simulations. It uses ASCII characters, so it will run on any machine, but that means it isn't as slick as if it used true graphics. BigSix Yurchuk, Michael S. $5 is a casino Big Six game. It's the game with the large vertical wheel with money on it ($1, $2, $5, $10, $20). Keno (KENO-SY) Yim, Stephen $0 is the most popular and easiest game in Las Vegas. This computerized version of it will let you get the feel of it before you go to Vegas. Keno 1.1 (KENO-TG) Ted Gruber Software $1 is a simulation of a casino keno game. Requires EGA/VGA. A mouse is optional. Lucky 8 Lines (LUCKY8) Yeh, Bob $0 is an EGA/VGA slot machine game with excellent graphics. The annoying sounds cannot be turned off, but Silencer (disk #2006) quieted the program. Roulette 1.1 (ROULETT) Dew, Robert $? is another good version of a program that has never been very well done before. In addition to getting the game, you get a good explanation of the rules and strategies of betting. SlotMach (SLOTMAC) is a video slot machine. BASIC source code is included, but BASIC is not required. -------------------------------- END OF SMALL PROGRAMS DISK #1621 -------------------------------- -------------------- 2761 Casino Games #2 Small Programs Disk -------------------- Baccarat (BACCRAT) Buti, Raymond M. $3 is a computerized version of James Bond's favorite card game. This is only for people who are intensely interested in seeing how the game works, or for those who have grown tired of watching paint dry. Baccarat Professional 3.0 (BACCPRO) United Innovations Plus $15 is a computerized version of the popular European card game Baccarat. The program has excellent graphics and a variety of playing options make this game a lot of fun to learn. BigSlot Withington, Dick $0 is a five-coin slot machine game. Line up three triple-bars when you've bet five coins, and you get a chance to try for the big bonus jackpot of up to $5 million. BASIC required. (To get rid of the loud beeping, edit the word BEEP out of lines 3860, 3910, 3960, 4010, 4060.) Keno Khobey Software $5 is based on the Las Vegas games of the same name. You start out with $10,000 and have a maximum $500 bet and minimum of $1 on ten or less spots, $2 on eleven or more spots. The limit of the pot is $50,000. Las Vegas Bingo Club 1.1 (LVBINGO) Harhay, Mitch $13 is the game of bingo as played in Las Vegas. You mark your card as each ball is dropped. The computer is also marking a card, so the object is to beat the computer. Game variations offered are the Classic, T-Bingo, and X-Bingo games. The programs have nice graphics, which require VGA, and a mouse is needed for marking the card. Lucky Seven 2.0 (LUCKY7) Boyett, Will $12 is a slot machine simulation. You can pick 25 cent, 50 cent and 1 dollar slot machines and progressive jackpots. It has a 94% payoff. Features include flashing lights and sirens and ability to play 1 to 3 coins. Requires EGA/VGA. (Not on this disk. Ask for disk #8934.) MicroBucks II 2.0 (MBUCKS) Ted Gruber Software $12 is a five coin Las Vegas style slot machine. It features stunning colors, sound effects, and realistic graphics. Sound Blaster support is included. (Unfortunately, you cannot turn off the constant and somewhat irritating music without also turning off the SB sound effects.) Requires EGA/VGA. SICBO Becklin, Ken $10 is a computer version of the casino game SICBO. It is done with Vegas odds intact and allows 1 to 4 users; complete with on-line help screens. -------------------------------- END OF SMALL PROGRAMS DISK #2761 -------------------------------- ---------------------- 2561 Casino Dice Games Small Programs Disk ---------------------- Contact 1.5 (CNTACT) Leotti, George $5 is a six-die dice game of skill and luck that you can play against the computer or up to three other people. Graphics are very good. EGA/VGA are required. Craps 1.2 is a very good version of the dice game of the same name. We have seen attempts at this over the years which were pretty weak, but this one has a lot of nice touches, such as showing the dice actually flying across the table instead of just popping the numbers up on the screen. Kent Myers & Markus Huoy have gone to a lot of trouble, including a thorough explanation of all the different kinds of bets. Be sure to share some of your winnings with them. Craps also supports a mouse. Dice is has none of the slick touches of CRAPS, above, but it works. It's here for the benefit of those who want the game in uncompiled BASIC. DiceGame 1.2 (DICEGAM) Pelaez, Joseph Paul $5 is a game played with dice against human opponents or the computer. The object is to keep rolling the dice, building your score, for as long as you can without repeating the value of your first roll. Push Your Luck 1.1 (MLPUSH) Lancaster, Bob $0-$5 is based on the old dice game called "Drop Dead". Players try to use a little strategy and a lot of luck in order to run up the highest score. Vegas-Dice (VEGASDI) Coyle, Dennis $0 is a dice game in which you can bet on "pass" or "don't pass". -------------------------------- END OF SMALL PROGRAMS DISK #2561 -------------------------------- ------------------- 1622 Poker Games #1 Small Programs Disk ------------------- Poker Mann, Buck $? is a video poker machine game. BASIC required. Poker 5.7 (DRWPOK) Gellman, Robert $0 lets you play five-card draw poker against the computer. It allows you to open with anything and to check and raise; however, the only weakness we found is that you can normally buy a lot of antes by betting high after the computer has checked; its play is not influenced by the fact that you did the same thing 50 times before. The author has attempted to thwart this strategy after we reported it; however, Robert says: "General pattern recognition in betting is extremely complex and would require a major revision." Nevertheless, we think this is an excellent poker game and recommend it highly. Jackpot2 is five-card draw poker. You play one hand, the computer plays four others. BASIC required. Low-Ball Metlen, Richard $0 is the poker game of low-ball played like a video arcade machine. Lowball is the game of "Lowball" poker in which the person with the low hand wins. You play your hand, the computer plays six others. PokrHrts Small Business Software $10 is a set of two card games, Poker and Hearts. The poker game is five-card draw played against the computer. The hearts game is two-handed against the computer. Two-handed hearts is not nearly as much fun as with three or more hands because you know where all the other cards are. However, this is a slicker implementation than the four-handed hearts game also added this month and it is still fun to play. The documentation for these games is much better than usual for card games. It actually explains the rules and play of the games. -------------------------------- END OF SMALL PROGRAMS DISK #1622 -------------------------------- ------------------- 1617 Poker Games #2 Small Programs disk ------------------- Holdem Perez, Bob $? is a simulation of the world's fastest growing poker game played in the annual World Series of Poker. With this program you can set up many scenarios and deal out thousands of simulated hands, keeping a constant record of how the hands went, which hand won, whether it was ace-high, etc. You can configure the game to include such realistic features as blind bets, 0 to 2 jokers, and can position yourself in any seat at a table of up to 10 players. You can even pick a starting hand and see how it does over the long run. NVPoker Niese, Mike $10 is a video poker machine game. Unlike 2-Bit Poker, NVPoker doesn't use graphics. Unfortunately, it uses a constant beeping and tunes. You'll never convince your spouse that you are working on your taxes in the den. The best feature of this game is that it gives you hints on strategy on each play, making this a good way to prepare for the next Las Vegas Comdex. Texas Holdem Poker 3.1 (TEXHOLD) Martin, George $5 is based on the game Holdem as played in Las Vegas. You play your hand and the computer plays the eight other hands. Vegas Pro Video Poker 1.0 (VPVIDEO) The WorkWare Company $19 is another computerized version of the five-card draw video poker machines in casinos. Graphics, ease of use, and the play of the game are all excellent. VidPoker 1.0 (VIDPOK) Advanced Computer Systems, Inc. $10 plays five card draw poker with the same rules as the video poker games used in Las Vegas. It is currently set up to play like the old video slots. It is user modifiable to play like the newest games and can be set to be a "tight" machine or a "loose" machine in terms of its payout values. Wildcard Poker 1.0 (WILDCRD) Advanced Computer Systems, Inc. $20 is an interesting variation on the usual run-of-the-mill video poker game. Various wild cards are thrown into the game (at a price, though). You have to be on your toes to avoid accidentally pitching a wild card. -------------------------------- END OF SMALL PROGRAMS DISK #1617 -------------------------------- ----------------------- 1618 Solitaire Games #1 Small Programs Disk ----------------------- Block11 is solitaire for masochists. The average win rate is one time in 20. The goal is to play of the stacks any two cards that total 11 until all the cards have been played off. Elevens Solitaire (ELEVENS) Metlen, Richard D. $0 is another version of solitaire. You get nine cards face up and try to pair up any two that total eleven. Face cards don't count, but can be played off by getting a Jack, Queen and King together. After playing off all the cards you can, you press Enter and the empty places are filled in with new cards. If you play off all the cards in the deck, you win. If you get stuck so that you cannot play off any of the nine cards, you lose. Even-out Metlen, Richard D. $0 is an interesting solitaire game in which you try to play off pairs of odd or even cards. Sounds make it unsuitable for office breaks or late-night play. (Utilities for killing sound in programs such as this are in the library.) Kings Columns 1.1 (KC) Larson, Nils $10 is an interesting solitaire card game requiring a little strategy and planning. La Belle Lucie Solitaire 4.0 (LABELLE) Leotti, George and Gellman, Robert $0 is a simple but very interesting game of solitaire. Although the game appears to be easy to win, it requires considerable thought and planning (and some luck) in order to be successful. The game is much more engaging than the more familiar Klondike solitaire. Norm Silliman, Pleasant Hill, CA, says: "Love LaBelle, except I can't keep my wife away from the computer so that I can play." Poker 1.1 (POKESOL) Martins, Eduardo ASP $15 is a poker solitaire game that works like 1POKER except this program is for the EGA/VGA. MS-compatible mouse is optional. Poker Squared (POKR-SQ) Abello, Jing L. $0 is a combination of solitaire and poker. The object of the game is to place 25 cards onto a 5x5 square grid and create the best 12 poker hands possible. The poker hands are scored across, down, and diagonally. The computer will then automatically calculate your total score, and keeps a running total of the highest score. Mouse support is provided. Soli-bas is a solitaire game that is included mainly because some people may be interested in the BASIC source code. Solitair Zemon, Arthur $5 is the easiest to use of these games in terms of keyboard usage. Solitar2 Irvine, Brian $? is played Las Vegas style. Stackem (STACKE) JCC Software $10 is a challenging and unique solitaire game. It will probably take you a game or two to figure it out, and then you'll wish you hadn't - it'll drive you crazy trying to figure the best way to move the cards around. -------------------------------- END OF SMALL PROGRAMS DISK #1618 -------------------------------- ----------------------- 0684 Solitaire Games #2 Small Programs Disk ----------------------- 1Poker Solitaire 1.4 (1POKER) Gellman, Robert $0 is a poker solitaire game by the author of one of the best draw poker games around. 1Poker is easy to play, but calls for plenty of strategy as you attempt to place each card dealt to you within a 5-by-5 grid so that when the grid is full, you get the best five-card hands possible going across, down and diagonally. Calculation Solitaire 1.5 (CALCSOL) Gellman, Robert $0 is a solitaire card game that rewards skill, experience, concentration, and luck. According to "150 Ways to Play Solitaire", Calculation stands at the top of the list of games that give opportunity for skill. The essentials can be understood in two minutes, but it will take a little longer to become a good player. Freecell (FREECEL) Horne, Jim $10 is a new kind of solitaire game. It supports a mouse. Instructions are given when you run the program. Kings Corners (KINGS) Pixel Perfect $0 is a fast moving form of solitaire that is easy to learn. The goal is use up the deck by placing cards on a four-by-four grid. Kings must go in the corners, queens on the sides (between the corners), and jacks on the top and bottom (between the corners. Other cards can be played anywhere, but if you block all the positions for, say, the kings, and then draw a king, you lose. When all the squares have cards on them, you can remove all pairs of cards that sum up to 10, thus making room for more cards. We never came close to winning. Plays faster and easier with a mouse, but one is not required. Montana Solitaire (MONTANA) Donnell, Brian L. $? is a challenging game of solitaire. All 52 cards are dealt in four rows. The aces are removed, and the object is to get each row in ascending rank order from left to right. PDS Solitaire (PDS-SOL) Personal Data Systems $5 is a solitaire game with four game options: Triangle Easy or Difficult or Agnes Easy or Difficult. We are not familiar with the meaning of "Triangle" and "Agnes", but we could not detect any difference in the way they played. This is a very well done, entertaining version of solitaire. Solitaire 1.1 (SOLTAIR) Compusoft $15 is a good implementation of the Klondike solitaire game. It has attractive graphics and mouse support. Options include three-card and one-card turns. Requires EGA/VGA, a mouse, and 483K. T8 Williams, Peter $0 is a rather unusual game of solitaire. It requires a mouse and is not very tolerant of non-MS Mouse drivers. In fact, when we first tested T8 with our old (1983) MS Mouse driver, it blew away our CMOS and had us fearing for our hard disk. After testing it again with a newer Mouse driver, we were impressed enough to add the program to the library with appropriate warnings. (The author can no longer be reached at the address provided in the documentation.) Selma Ness, Plainview, NY: "After typing in my name and Y to a new user the mouse pointer appears and my machine locks up. I have a CGA monitor. Is this for EGA+? Also there is no doc file for this program." PsL: The documentation does not specify EGA/VGA, but it looks like it may need it. It definitely will not run without a mouse installed. The documentation is in the file T8.DOC. VGASol Cox, Doug $5 is a well-done game of Pyramid Solitaire. It requires VGA and a mouse. -------------------------------- END OF SMALL PROGRAMS DISK #0684 -------------------------------- ----------------------- 4923 Solitaire Games #3 Small Programs Disk ----------------------- EGASpiders (EGASPID) (10-93 CD) Card Games John A. Junod; $0-$5 is a different type of solitaire game with an unusual twist you can cheat, but when you do, another spider comes out on the screen to crawl around and annoy you. Kosynka 1.1 Rhyzkov, Sergey $15 is a solitaire game sent to us from Russia. Kosynka is similar to Klondike, except that it uses two decks of Russian face cards which are played in nine or ten columns instead of seven. Requires EGA/VGA. Midnight Oil Rasa, Randy $5 is a solitaire game also known as "La Belle Lucie". The cards are dealt into 17 three-card stacks with the last card alone in the 18th stack. The object is to play all the cards into suit stacks in ascending order. You can temporarily move cards to other stacks in descending order. You can only play the top card from a stack, except that you can get one draw" of any card per game, as well as three re-shuffles per game of the remaining cards. Osmosis Rasa, Randy $5 is a solitaire game in which you move cards into four stacks by suit. The catch is that you cannot play a card into a stack unless a card of the same value is already in the next stack above it, with the exception of the top stack, of course. There are four face-up piles of four cards each from which you can play the top card. The other cards are turned up three at a time. EGA/VGA and mouse required. -------------------------------- END OF SMALL PROGRAMS DISK #4923 [55] -------------------------------- 2-Bit Poker Williston, Mark C. $10 #27669/882 is an addictive copy of the poker-playing arcade game (which is not the same game or strategy as real poker). Double Down Video Poker 2.0 (10-93 CD) Hazan, Sam $10 #27669/3345 is a game of five-card draw poker with beautiful graphics and an added twist. If you win a hand, you get to draw for high card against the computer for double or nothing. If you can beat the face up card you can double your winnings. EGA and 512K are required; a mouse is not required, but makes the game a lot easier to play. Poker Solitaire Martins, Eduardo ASP $15 #27669/1923 is a poker solitaire game that works like 1POKER, except this program is for the EGA/VGA. MS-compatible mouse is optional. Poker Slot Buti, Raymond M. $15 #27669/2629 is a poker slot machine game. We were all set to chunk this program as being "yet another poker machine game", but were impressed by the high quality graphics display and the ease of use. EGA or VGA and 300k RAM are required. The Big Games Package [TEGL1, TEGL2, TEGL3, TEGL4] 09-93 CD TEGL Systems Corporation $35 #27280/2631 [2 disks] is a set of five different games for EGA/VGA: Monopoly, Mahjong Solitaire, Klondike Solitaire, Mille Bornes and Big2. ----------------------------------- 7078/0090 Blackjack and Other Games Small Programs Disk ----------------------------------- 21 is a blackjack game. BlkJack is a blackjack game written in BASIC. Crazy8 is a card game you can play against the computer. You alternate playing a card on top of a face-up card. The card you play must be the same suit or same value. If you cannot play, you must draw. An ``8'' is wild and can be played at any time. The first to play all the cards dealt to you plus those drawn wins. BASIC required. Spades 0.24 (SPADES1) Seyer, Larry $0 is the card game Spades. The computer plays your partner's and two opponent's hands. You can adjust the "intelligence" of the computerized players to a certain extent by specifying how well each one remembers the cards that have been played; however, you can't do anything about the strategic "intelligence". Nevertheless, the play is good enough to be interesting and entertaining. Spades (SPADES2) $0 is the game of spades in which the computer will play the other three hands against you. The computer's play isn't very brilliant, but it's still fun to play and it's one of the few version of Spades for the computer we have seen. TM-Bjack is an excellent blackjack game with lots of options. Yankee-21 1.61 (YANK21) Martin, George $5 is a blackjack program. It allows one to six players, one to eight decks, and displays the true count and the running count from the popular and efficient High/Low count. You can also input your own user count and the computer will keep track of that too. Almost all rule variations are accepted including five card surrender, early and later surrender, or the surrender of any hand including split hands. You can resplit hands up to four hands, set the reshuffle point, double down option, speed of lay, and give yourself any hand you want for practice. The program keeps extensive statistics about the game in progress and can be played from the keyboard or from the numeric keypad. There is also information where a serious player may obtain books or subscribe to newsletters which tell the best and worst casinos to play in. -------------------------------- END OF SMALL PROGRAMS DISK #0090 -------------------------------- BlackJack! 2.40d [BLACKJAC] 09-93 cd Glencoe Computing ASP $30 #27078/1599 is a completely accurate simulation of the game Blackjack or 21. Also included is a thorough discussion of the rules of play, basic strategy, card counting and betting systems. This program can be used for entertainment as well as a tool for the serious player. Features include: user configurable and three predefined casinos, basic strategy drills, card counting drills, multiple players, automatic players, regular or tournament style play, and super high quality graphics. Other features include full true count support in casino play and practice drills, user defined card counting system and user defined betting progression for automated players, customize graphics and text color palettes, focus basic strategy drill on problem areas, double deal and manual deal in counting drill, status box now shows true count and aces played, ability to turn off auto hand totaling, save all configuration settings as defaults, force re-shuffle during play, support for Caribbean style play, and quick exit at any time, the ability to sit out a hand or to drop out of play without quitting a session, and warnings when incorrect plays are made. All 4 casinos can be edited, and millions of fully automated hands can be played. Austrailian style play is also supported. A Realistic Mode accurately simulates the flow of play in an actual casino setting. Player's cards are retrieved, and bets settled in the order of play. Bust and surrendered hands are immediately removed from the table before play progresses to the next player. Requires EGA, VGA or Hercules compatible mono-graphics. BlackJack Mirus, Richard $0 #27078/1664 is a blackjack game for EGA/VGA systems with a hard disk. The hard disk is required to hold the 1.5 meg of picture files used by the program to depict the cards in hi-res, multi-colored graphics. It's worth it for the face cards, which look as much like real cards as you are likely to find on a PC. To get instructions, run the program and press F1 when asked to bet. Video Blakjak Himowitz, Michael J. $30 #27078/2529 is a casino Blackjack game and tutorial. It can be played strictly for fun, but it also includes basic and advanced card counting strategies, auto-play for research, and fully adjustable rules for various casinos. It keeps track of all financial and card stats. Requires 384K. (This program is on a MegaDisk with other blackjack game disks: 090, 1599, and 1664.) Ultimate Blackjack 1.2 [ULTIMABJ] (11-93 CD) Accicental Software $13 #3921 is an intriguing game of blackjack you can play with several comical computerized players. The program features excellent graphics with colorful animated characters. Up to six decks can be used, and many of the rules can be changed to suit your personal tastes. Other features include two card-counting systems, an auto-play option, running game statistics, play suggestions, and much more. Requires 640K, 256K EGA or better, and a hard disk. Craps Complete Buti, Raymond M. $15 #27303/2707 is a realistic computer version of the casino game of craps. The documentation contains lots of information on strategy and wagering. 350K of free RAM, EGA, and a mouse are required. Las Vegas Craps Kent Myers $25-$30 #27303/3300 is an EGA/VGA Las Vegas craps game for one or two people. This is a game for beginners as well as the experienced gambler. It allows every bet permissible in a real casino. It includes complete statistical information, a screen blanker and a host of other features. It works best with a mouse, but it is not required. On-line help screens explain both the play of this game and the game of craps itself. This is a very well done, entertaining game. Bridge Calendar System [BRIDGE] 08-93 CD Progressive Software $15 #3368 allows you to store and play back bridge hands, including bidding and comments for each bid or play, for later review. The single-step playback design along with the comments make this good for setting up tutorials for others. It also keeps track of bridge events, event locations, partners, and bidding system information. A mouse is optional, but makes use of the program much easier. Requires EGA or VGA. (A text version of the program is on the 08-93 CD [BRIDGTXT].) CardMaster And CardMaster 2 [CARDMAS] 08-93 CD Progressive Software $15 #3394 is a collection of eight different card games. CM1 has Fantan, OhHell!, Funny Game, and Durok. CM2 includes Spades, Spite & Malice, German Whist, and Exacta. VGA and a mouse is required. CoffeeBreak Cards 2.1s Duban, Derek $0 #12116 is a pair of card games: Crazy Eights and 52-Pickup. It features a dozen card backs and classical music scores. VGA req. 3D-Cribbage [CRIBBAGE] 09-93 CD Juneau, Mark R. $25 #20233 [2 disks] is the classic card game of cribbage. You play against the computer. It features a self-scoring cribbage board. Requires VGA. Cribbage Partner 3.0 Crowther, James I. Jr. $15 #4621 is an excellent rendition of Cribbage in which you play against the computer. For those wishing to learn the game, the rules of Cribbage are spelled out in the documentation file, and pressing R at your turn will cause the computer to recommend a play for you. Other features include mouse support, customizable playing options, scoring history, easy/hard difficulty levels, and more. Double Deck Action Pinochle 1.0 [DDAPNCL] 08-93 CD Nicholas, Larry W. $20 #12419 matches you and a computer partner against another computer partnership in Pinochle. You will learn how to bid, meld, and win tricks. Great graphics. Requires EGA/VGA, color monitor, and a mouse. (Don't try running the game under Windows or DesqView.) Doubles Pinochle 1.01 Smith, Sean $12 #12040 lets you play double-pack pinochle against the computer. You pick a partner and opponents from nine computer players. Your record versus each computer player is saved. Rules can be modified. Six different cardbacks are included. Requires VGA and 510K of RAM. Friday Night Poker Hyperware Software $10 #27501/3298 [2 disks] is a hilarious animated game of 5- or 7-Card Stud. Choose your opponents from among the shifty gents named Gramps, Achmed, Geno, Nasty, and Tex, or the lovely ladies Linn, Marna, or Luu. If you're feeling really brave, you can read a little biography on each player. The players' thoughts (sometimes off-color) can be displayed during play, and there are many other speed and display options available. The graphics and playability of this game are excellent. 640K, EGA/VGA, a mouse, and 1.5 meg of disk space are required. Golf Solitaire Expert Source Code, Inc. $12 #3733 is an interesting variation of solitaire with excellent VGA graphics. You have to play off seven stacks of face-up cards onto a single stack, going up or down numerically. If you get stuck or play a King, you have to play off a face-down deck. When the deck is used up the game is over and the number of face-up cards left count against you. Clear off all the cards and you get to hear the William Tell Overture. Junod's EGA Games Junod, John A. $5 each #3096 is a set of four EGA/VGA games, all of which are of very high quality, with nicely done graphics and a slick user interface. A mouse is required on all except EGA Solitaire. EGA Four lets you play a challenging game of "connect-four" against the computer. Pyramid Solitaire puts an interesting twist on an old game. The object is to remove pairs of cards from the pyramid-shaped pile whose points total thirteen. EGA Solitaire combines excellent graphics and playability. There are lots of options including screen colors, shuffling and dealing rules, and hints. Spider Solitaire is a challenging version of Solitaire, but with it's own set of rules. Klondike Martins, Eduardo ASP $15 #2160 is a popular solitaire game also known to some as Fascination or China-man. Klondike has excellent colors, graphics and music, and offers optional Las Vegas scoring. EGA/VGA is required and a mouse is strongly recommended. Dan Waddell, Bermuda Dunes, CA: "I get a RUNTIME ERROR when trying to run this program. Send me a replacement." PsL: the program tries to write a file to disk and there is not room for it to do so on our distribution disk. (You should NEVER run a program from our distribution disk anyway.) The program must be copied to a hard disk or a floppy with more capacity than 360k. Once you have tried to write to a full disk, a 0-byte file is created and it must be deleted before the program will run. Las Vegas EGA Casino Ted Gruber Software $15 #3521 contains three casino games including blackjack, video poker, and a slot machine. How authentic are these games? Well, one of the programmers, Diana Gruber, used to deal blackjack in Vegas. Requires EGA/VGA. If you have a Sound Blaster Card, you will hear sound effect and music through it, unless you have had to change the address settings on your card. Lucky-7 Jackpot 2.00a Ravenwood Systems $25 #4797 is an old-time slot machine, circa 1910-1920. Rather than a graphic drawing of a slot machine, this game uses a digitized picture of the actual machine. This type of slot machine is known as a multiplier. Requires 512K, 750K disk space and EGA/VGA. Monster Carlo Soumarokov, Nikolay $0 #3522 lets up to five players compete in games of chance, including various dice games, poker, horse races, roulette, and even Russian Roulette. Each player selects a monster's picture to represent them. You take turns and one of the games of chance is selected and played during each turn. Although no skill is involved and the individual games are simplistic, the complete package is fun to play and the graphics make it interesting. EGA/VGA required. (Comes to PsL from Vienna, Austria.) Moraff's Monster Bridge 2.0 [MBRIDGE] 08-93 CD MoraffWare $? #4647 lets you play a rousing game of cards with creatures from the Moraff's World game series. Your tentacled and clawed opponents have four different playing levels, and a demo level is included to show you how the game works. As with most MoraffWare games, virtually all video modes are supported from Hercules to Super VGA. Keyboard and mouse are supported Pai Gow Poker Buti, Raymond M. $15 #4331 combines the ancient Chinese game Pai Gow and American Poker. It uses a deck of 52 cards and one joker, which can be used as an ace or to complete a straight, flush or straight flush. Each player is dealt seven cards. You make two poker hands, a 5-card hand and a 2-card hand. To win, you must beat the bankers 5-card hand and 2-card hand. Requires EGA/VGA. Patience Abroad 1.0 [ABROAD] 09-93 CD CoCoWare/Cowles, David A. ASP $10 #12438 contains nine foreign Solitaire card games and puzzles. Games include The Great Wall, Monte Carlo, Four Kingdoms, Sir Tommy, Russian Patience, Beleaguered Castle, and more. No graphics required. Pinocle Games 1.2 Bruckner, Michael G. $15 #12264 offers three varieties of the classic game: the standard game ("Basic") in which you play with the cards that are dealt to you, a version in which the highest bidder places the four cards from a kitty into his hand and discards four, and Pass, in which the highest bidder calls trump and then swaps four cards with his partner. Pirada I, II, and III ETS Inc. $? #4558 contains three animated games: blackjack, draw poker, and Keno. In Pirada I, you uncover cards on a grid, trying to get as many columns and rows to sum to 21 as you can. You must have a least one 21 point hand to advance to the next level. If you uncover a grenade, you have to finish before the grenade goes off or you lose one of your lives. Pirada II is a draw poker game played on a grid, with hyperactive munchkins bouncing up and down when you get a high scoring hand. Pirada III is a variation of Keno, with amusing animated eyes. This is a very well done package. VGA and a mouse are required. The Poker Program 2.1 Wilson Software $15 #4616 lets you play Texas Hold'em against up to nine computer opponents. The program features a tutorial on poker in general and on Texas Hold'em in particular. You can select the number of opponents and their playing strength. EGA/VGA required. Texas Hold'em is the big money poker game of choice for pro's. The tutorials are a good introduction for poker beginners. Our only complaint was that to see how you stand in winnings, you have to go through several menu selections. We would like to see the remaining stakes for each hand displayed on the main screen. Otherwise, this is a very good rendition of the pro poker game. PC-Casino Fallen, David L. $10 #27670/1455 includes three casino games, all done in text-graphics that will work on any video system. PC-POKER is a video poker machine game. Since it does not use true graphics, it is not as good looking as 2-Bit Poker (#882), but it works well. PC-SLOT is the best looking text-graphics slot machine game we have seen and the sound effects are above average too. However, it seems to us that it pays off far too often compared to real machines. The last game is PC-KENO, a video Keno machine. The program was modified in response to our opinion that the program PC-Slot paid off too much. Now less money is paid for any 3 Bars, more is paid for other combinations. We think this version is more realistic as it pays 94 cents on the dollar in the long run and the previous version paid 1.10 on the dollar. No sense giving you false hope before a trip to Vegas. Decko 2.0 (10-93 CD) Hazan, Sam $5 #27670/2575 (formerly Decko-mate) is a card game that is similar to Keno but played with cards. It features great graphics, sound, and mouse support. Video Keno Buti, Raymond M. $15 #27670/2879 is the game of Keno for your computer. Requires 320K free RAM, EGA or better monitor, and a mouse. The graphics are well done, and the included documentation makes learning the game easy. Poker Compiler Workware Co. $90 #27671/3233 is a tool for serious poker players. You can use it just for playing poker against the computer, but you can take it to a new level by programming the strategy used by the computer. When "testing" (read: "playing") games at PsL, we have often noted what we considered to be poor strategy on the part of the computer and wished we could fix it. Now we can. The Poker Language may look enough like a real programming language to scare off some non-programmers, but it is not that difficult to pick up on. Requires 640K and a hard disk. Mastery Series: 7 Card Stud 3.97 The WorkWare Company $65 #27671/1839 play 7 Card Stud against 1 to 7 other players (computer "AutoPlayers"). This is a very professional quality game. You can set your opponents' skills from beginner to expert, then play real poker against them. The AutoPlayers bet, raise, fold, and even bluff. You can set the betting limits, antes, maximum raises, players' stakes, etc. You can play to improve your skills or just for fun. ALSO ON THIS DISK: VPJoker ($19) is a Vegas-type video poker machine with Jokers wild. VPJoker has very good graphics and is well designed, making it fun and easy to play. Vegas Johnny's Draw Poker Comeau, John $7 #27671/2278 is a game of the classic draw poker against computerized opponents. This is a fun, fast, and easy game to play using either the keyboard or a mouse. Features include tips for beginners and on-line odds for advanced players. House Rules are user selectable. It took us a while to find how to change the rules - start up the program by entering POKER RULES on the DOS command line. Vegas Pro BlackJack WorkWare $33 #27671/2433 is a blackjack game for serious players. It features on-line help, pop-up Tutor, variable Strategies, etc. The game uses extensively cross-referenced "hypertext" Help so that you can run the program without a manual. Patience 10 4.0 [PATENC40] CoCoWare ASP $10 #27672/1973 is a single program with a choice of ten distinctly different versions of solitaire selectable from a menu. Each game has its own Best Scores table. We found the usage of keys to be about the most awkward of any solitaire game we have tested, causing you to have to stretch your hands across the keyboard and numberpad; however, after a while we got used to it. Graphics are not used, so the program will work on any type of video. Mouse support is included. The large selection of solitaire variations in this game makes it worth a try. Pyramid Martins, Eduardo ASP $15-$20 #27672/2276 is a solitaire game. It features high-resolution EGA graphics and optional mouse support. It includes a Tournament mode in which you can play against a friend. Solmenu1 Meadows, Karl $12 #27672/3098 contains five solitaire games: Canfield, Golf, Grand Duchess, Monte Carlo and Frog. The graphics are attractive and the games are fun to play. Streets and Alleys Conrow, Kenneth $0 #27672/2430 is a solitaire puzzle using cards. It can keep a record of a deal and let you replay it as often as you like until you have explored all the possible paths to a solution and either found one or confirmed that the deal is a bust. It can be used to keep a record of deals which have been solved. Over 200 solvable games have been saved on disk for you to try to solve, in addition to being able to generate new hands. ALSO ON THIS DISK: La Belle Lucie ($0) is a solitaire puzzle using cards. A game is almost never simply rote play. Almost every deal you make can be solved. The effect of moves on the long term progress of the game are more obscure, so it is harder to develop a good overall strategy to winning a deal. But it is still a good solitaire puzzle. Pascal and SPA:WN source code are provided for each of these games. Sic Bo Buti, Raymond M. $15 #2630 is a popular Oriental casino game. It is played with three dice. You guess which of the individual numbers or combinations of numbers will appear on the dice when thrown. EGA and mouse are required. $mart Gambler 1.5 [GAMBLER] PC Information Systems ASP $43-$46 #4702 (12-93 CD) is a casino gambling tutor. Tutorials teach you about odds, money management, improving luck and how to get the best of it in a casino. Games covered include video poker, slot machines, blackjack, craps, roulette, and others. A planning module lets you determine the best bet size for you and the size of bankroll required for your gambling junket. Requires 640K and 720K disk space. TeleCards Cutlass Software $20 #4961 is a set of three card games including Crazy Eights, Cribbage, and Gin Rummy. You can play against the computer or with another person using two PC's that are linked by a modem or a NULL modem serial cable. Features include EGA graphics, dialing system, ability to send messages back and forth to your opponent while playing, a phone book, different card back designs and the ability to create your own, and support for COM 1-4 and baud rates up to 19200. Tommy's Clobby 01.20.93 Tommy's Toys $6 #12182 is a version of the popular card game in Europe known as Klaberjass. This is a two-handed game in which you play the computer. First the players decide on a trump suit, then the cards are played. The player who names the trump suit has to win more points than his opponent or he loses his points. Tommy's Twenty-One Tommy's Toys $0 #1741 is a good version of a wise-cracking, blackjack playing program. Also included are the games known as seven and one-half (Flapjack) and nine (Macao) and the British version of the game known as Pontoon. No graphics required. Tommy's Gin Rummy Tommy's Toys $0 #4480 lets you play gin rummy against the computer in Standard, Oklahoma or Cowboy versions. UnoScore Suzanne Spencer Software $5 #3305 is patterned after the popular card game Uno. Up to four can play, including the computer. The object is to be the first to get rid of all your cards. Ultima 21 Deluxe Falconer, Jay J. $20 #2486 is a blackjack game. Features include decision help, the option to set the casino options\rules, number of decks selection, game statistics, set table betting limits, card count statistics, set game speed, set dealer cards on\off, game save option, and memory statistics. Playing options include hit or take another card, stay or stand, double down, split the pair, surrender the hand, peek at next few cards, and request to shuffle the deck. The cards are drawn with ASCII characters, so the game will work on any video, yet the screens and cards are attractively done. ALSO ON THIS DISK: Video Poker Plus 3.0 ($20) is a nicely done version of the Las Vegas poker machines. Payoff rates can be customized. Features include a files menu, sound toggle, stats, save to disk and more. Ultimate Baccarat 1.0 [BACRAT] (10-93 CD) Accidental Software $13 #12529 is an animated casino Baccarat game. It lets you play with three computer characters and up to six human players. A tutor takes you through the game step by step and the dealer talks you through the game. Requires EGA/VGA, hard disk, 540K RAM. Video BlackJack 1.0 [BJACKV] (10-93 CD) SNR Software $10 #12530 is an exciting casino style video blackjack game. Options include split, double down, insurance, surrender and user defined wagering. Outstanding graphics with 3D effects, icons, buttons and animation. Full mouse and keyboard support, as well as music and sound effects! Video Poker Tutor 1.3 Catlin, Gary M. $25 #4849 teaches you how to improve your chances of winning on a video poker game. You can also just use this as a game to play. ]]]]]