Cant Stop the Riot for Pocket PC Review

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Product Requirements:
Device:
Pocket PC OS Device, uses 164K

If you are a fan of  bubble-blaster type games, then you know that
there are a plethora available on the market. I would almost have to question
the wisdom of any company for bringing out yet another one…unless that game
was either free, or had something very special to offer. Well, 
Can’t
Stop the Riot
by
Pocket Innovations, isn’t free
– but it does add a couple of unique enough twists to the game that you won’t
mind its modest price tag.

cant s1

 

Like the many bubble games before it, you have a grid that is filled
with balls that can be "popped" by sliding or tapping
neighboring balls into a position where you have three or more of the same
type next to each other.

 

What makes Riot so special? There are a couple of features that impressed
me. 

cant s2 
cant s3
First, there was the ability to choose from a variety of
pre-loaded themes.

The default theme "Riot", was the previously pictured screen
with all the little balls wearing faces. 

This theme is named "Food Fight".

 

 

cant s4  
cant s5
Another great feature is that there is no end to the
personalization that you can accomplish with Can’t Stop the Riot. 

You can choose background effects and various  other play options
from the menu bar under the game screen.

You can adjust the Speed of the game, and even Pause it if you need to!

There is also a Quit option under the Game portion of the menu – great
for people that aren’t using Wisbar!

The fact that you can skin this game to use whatever bitmap graphics you
would like is another great element to Riot. The only requirements are that the
pictures are no larger than 28 x 28 and that they should be at least 16 bit
color. 

cant s16 Here is an example of the size bitmap I am talking about.
cant s7 
cant s8
By using the included "Theme Factory" software,
you can skin ‘Can’t Stop the Riot’ with an infinite variety of images.

I decided to try a nostalgic "Sesame Street" theme. 

For those of you that might be wondering where you can get images to
use, a quick search for Clipart
on Google should satisfy your needs.

Once you’ve saved the newly created theme; it is a simple matter of
transferring the new .rtm file to the Riot Themes folder on
your Pocket PC, via Active Sync.

You are then ready to play your personalized game.

cant s9 Here is my new "Sesame Street" skinned game that I
created especially for this review. I am not a proficient
"skinner", so I experienced a huge sense of accomplishment after
doing this. 

That just goes to show you, though…if I can do this – you can, too!

Obviously the themes are a unique feature of this game, but by now you may be
wondering about the actual game itself. Well – I thought it was a lot of fun,
too!

Before we go any further, there is something you should consider – and if you
don’t, you can’t say I didn’t warn you – use a screen protector when you play
this game
!! Between all the tapping and sliding that occurs when you really
get into playing
; you could easily damage your Pocket PC’s screen. I use and
recommend PDA Screen Protectors.
Enough said.

There are three levels to Can’t Stop the Riot: Easy, Normal, and
Expert. 

cant s10 In the Easy mode, you can only slide one piece at a time,
and the game is un-timed. 

If you try to make an "illegal" move, the game will
automatically slide your piece back to the starting position with no
penalty.

As long as there is a move left, you can make it. If you get stumped,
the game will give you a hint after a couple seconds of inactivity. 

When there are no moves left, the game is automatically over. 

cant s11 In Normal mode the game play is essentially the same as
Easy, except now you are being timed. As with the Easy mode, when
you run out of moves, your game is over. If you are stumped, you will
still receive clues.

There is also an extra feature, telling you how many points you have
earned per turn.

cant s12 Expert mode is a whole new game. Not only are you timed, but
you also have a lot more options for movement!

After you have acquired a certain number of points, you can make more
complex movements – at the cost of 50 points per move. This is great when
you are stuck with no available moves, or when you can see a way to get
five pieces in a row: if you could "just move that one piece from
several positions over…
"

As with Normal mode, this level will also tell you how many points you
have earned per turn, it will also suggest moves to you when you have been
inactive for a couple seconds.

This is my favorite mode – I really like "earning" the right
to move pieces all over.

Now I can tell you about one of the coolest features of this game…the high
score keeper. Not only can you play against yourself – and beat your own high
scores, but you can also play against other’s high scores, too. 

cant s13   How? Easy. 

Every time you achieve a high score, you will see this screen. Yes
folks…I did achieve a score of 26,320 in the expert level…and it took
me almost an hour this morning to do it, too. 

A quick check at Pocket Innovations High
Scores
page told me that I am now #1. I don’t know why it dropped my last
zero from the score, but here is a screen-shot proving that for now at
least, I am the champion. :0P

cant s14  
cant s15
If you would like to play directly against me, here’s how
you can. 

Go to Game/High Scores and click the Add Score button on
the upper right. 

You will then see this screen, prompting you to enter my name and my
score. Just enter the info as I have it filled out; and we will be playing
against each other in no time.

So there you have it. Yes, Can’t Stop the Riot is yet another bubble
game – but this one offers enough of a twist that it has now replaced all
the others on my Pocket PC. I suggest you to give it a try – there is even a
trial version that you can get your feet wet with. 

By the way, if you get a score higher
than mine – be sure to post it (and your code) in the comments section so that I can play against
you!

Price:  $9.95

Pros:

Addictive bubble-popping fun!
Fully skinnable and customizable
Can play against other’s high scores

Cons:
None

 

Product Information

Price:
Manufacturer:Pocket Innovations

2 thoughts on “Cant Stop the Riot for Pocket PC Review”




  1. Gadgeteer Comment Policy - Please read before commenting
  2. Palm Infocenter

    Thread at Slashdot

    I’m torn, both the Sharp Zaurus SL-C760 and this are so close to letting me lose my laptop for most mobile work. I would love to see your review of this and the SL-C760 soon.

    Thanks,
    P.

  3. Paulg:

    I feel the same way. Both of these devices look great! The Zaurus however needs to be available here in the US with an english OS before I would actually buy one. I know that Dynamism will ‘convert’ one, but I’d rather not deal with any issues that might dredge up.

    I definitely want to get my hands on the new Sony!

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