This game is released to the public as a shareware application with a $5 shareware fee. Read below for more details.
History
DoubleVision is a "Concentration" type game with a little bit of a twist. I started writing it because a friend loved to play an old concentration game (does "Concentrate" sound familiar?), but after upgrading his system he found that it wouldn't run anymore.
Version 1.0 was never released to the public. It was basically a two square matching game. It used simple beeps to indicate successful or unsuccessful matches and completion of a game. It had two advantages over Concentrate -- 1) it worked! 2) it used color icons instead of black and white font characters. Although the game was fully functional, I got the idea to add sounds to the game (instead of simple tones) and to allow two, three or four square matching. I also implemented several interface changes suggested by friends who used the program.
Version 1.1 is the first version released to the public. Being able to choose between two, three, or four squares is what makes this game distinct from any "concentration" game that I've seen played, whether on a Mac or on TV. Trying to match three or four squares is really tough. The sounds also add to the enjoyment of the game. The game is fun for people of all ages (I know a four year old who's an ace at this game!).
I just finished adding and polishing all of the changes and feel very good about the compatibility of this program on most (if not all) existing Macs. It has actually been tested on a Mac Plus, SE, Classic, Color Classic, II, IIcx, SE/30, LC, LC II, IIci, IIfx, IIvx, Quadra 700, Powerbook 145 and 170, and a Performa 600.
How to Play
The game is played by clicking on squares to "turn them over" and trying to memorize the location of matching icons. You can choose to match 2, 3, or 4 squares, and can play with up to 196 squares on the game board at one time. The program will only allow as many squares on the screen as will fit. If you find all the matching icons, you get another turn.
When you start the program, you are presented with a dialog that lets you set up your first game. You select how many squares you want on the game board (24, 36, 60, 96, 144, and 196); the default is 24 (I expect that kids are more likely to play this game than adults and this is a good starting point for smaller kids). If you pick a game board that would be too big for your desktop, you are notified and asked to pick a smaller game. On 12 and 13 inch monitors, the largest game you can play is 96 squares (if that's not challenging enough for you, you can try to match 3 or 4 squares!).
You then choose how many players are playing (1, 2, 3, or 4); the default is two players. Now you can set the volume (soft, medium, loud and off); the default is medium. These buttons correspond to volumes 1, 4, 7, and 0 of the Sound Control Panel.
Now you can choose how many squares you need to match to score a point; the default is two. If you feel brave enough to try and match three or four squares, the Level buttons will be enabled. The easy level means that you can flip over the indicated number of squares, regardless of whether they match. For example, if you are playing a three match game and have the easy level selected you will be allowed to flip over a third square even if the first two you flipped over didn't match. The hard level means that you can only flip over another square if all the previous squares match. For example, if you are playing a three match game with the hard level selected, you lose your turn if the first two squares you flip over don't match.
The score for each player is displayed in the game window. The player that is displayed in bold is the current player. In addition to your score, you see how you are doing as a percentage (if you get 100%, you're obviously cheating! 60% would be an outstanding score for a two match game!). If you want to, you can show all the icons on the game board by pressing command+A or by choosing Show All from the Game menu. Pressing any key or clicking in the game window will hide all the icons that haven't already been played.
The volume is set when you start a game, but if you want to change it during a game, you can press the numbers 1, 2, 3, or 0 (soft, medium, loud, and off, respectively) from the keyboard (not from the number pad).
You can start a new game by choosing New Game from the Game menu or pressing command+G. If you've finished a game, another game board will be generated with the exact same options as the current game. If you haven't finished the current game, you will be asked if you want to end the current game or not. If you choose "Yes", a new game board will be generated using the same options of the previous game.
If you want to change the options (number of squares, number of players, number of matches, easy or hard), choose Options... from the Game menu or press command-I. If you have completed the current game, you will see the options dialog and you can change any of the settings. If you are in the middle of a game, you will be asked if you want to end the current game (there are several options that would require generating a new game board). If you choose "Yes", the options dialog will be displayed and you can change any of the current settings.
Customizing
If you know how to add resources, you can add your own icons and sound resources to the program. If you don't have a clue about what I'm talking about, you're best off not trying to change anything. The program will recognize up to 512 icons and allow you to have up to 25 different sounds for each of the sound categories (successful match, unsuccessful match, end of game). As always, it is suggested that you make your modifications to a backup copy of the program.
ICON #128 and cicn #128 are used to "hide" unflipped squares. If you replace these icons, you must make sure that their purgeable bit is NOT set, i.e., these two resources must NOT be purgeable resources.
If you want to add your own matching icons, add them at the end of the existing icons or replace icons numbered 129 and forward. These icons should be purgeable as there are so many of them that they will eat up memory if they are not purgeable. They should be numbered consecutively, starting with #129. The program will not recognize any ICON or cicn resources numbered higher than 640. It's up to you to make sure that any icons you add are unique and distinguishable from any icons already installed. The ICONs are used on black and white machines or on machines where gray scale is being used. Your monitor must be set up for at least 16 colors for the program to use the cicns instead.
The snd resources are categorized by how they are used in the program (successful match, unsuccessful match, end of game). You can have 25 snd resources in each category. snd resources #9000 - 9024 are for successful matches, #10000-10024 are for unsuccessful matches, and #11000-11024 are played when a game is completed. Any snd resources you add must be purgeable as it is a waste of memory to keep them all in memory. When you add or change the sound resources, you may need to increase the size of the application by doing a Get Info on the application and increasing the current size.
The suggested application size of 350k is good for all of the sounds that I included in the program and will allow you to use snd resources as big as 250k. If the program can't load a particular sound resource into the available memory, it will display an error and quit. Increasing the application size should take care of this problem.
Support
Unfortunately, I have to work full time and I cannot provide phone support. What I can offer is to provide support by mail to those who send in their shareware fee. Send a letter with a return address describing the problem and I will see what I can do to resolve it. If you include your phone number and you are close enough, I may choose to call you instead but I can't promise that I will call.
Plea for Money!
This game is shareware, which means that if you like it and keep it on your computer, you should send the requested amount to the developer of the program (me!). I have ideas for other games and if I get a good response to this one I will take the time to write these programs. If you send me the requested $5 shareware fee, I will put your name on a list and notify you when improvements are made to this game or new games become available. Please make sure your payment is sent in an envelope with your return address on it. Also, if you think about it, make a note of where you downloaded the game from, how you like the game, and any suggestions for improvements. If you distribute this program, you must distribute it in its original form with the original documentation, sounds, and icons.
Disclaimers
Although I have tested the game at length and on many different systems, there is no guarantee that it will run on all existing or future systems or under all existing or future operating systems. As with all software, the developer is not responsible for any damage to your computer directly or indirectly related to the use of this program.
Most of the icons are trademarks or proprietary artwork from a variety of existing applications. I am not making money from the distribution of these icons nor am I using them to identify my program but rather just used them for convenience and to add some familiarity to the game. Alterations were made to some icons to add to the difficulty of the game and not to steal or deface anyone's trademark or artwork. Some of the sounds also came from a variety of sources and I am not making money from their distribution either. If I am infringing on anyone's copyright, please inform me and I will take steps to correct the situation. As released, the game does not contain any offensive sounds or icons and is suitable for children of all ages.
