|
|
What is Groupie?
Groupie is a shareware game that combines Minesweeper with a bit of Tetris.
The Board
The Groupie board consists of randomly distributed tiles. Each tile is one of five different types. The types are differentiated by color and the symbol displayed on the face. There are two different board sizes, small and large. Here is a screen shot of the small board.
Removing Tiles
Tiles are removed from the board in groups (hence the name ;-). A group consists of two or more tiles of the same type that are touching on either the top, bottom, left, or right. These adjacent tiles can be selected by clicking on them once with the mouse. The score for a selected group is displayed in the lower-right portion of the main window. The larger the block, the more points will be awarded for removing that block. Once the block has been selected, you can remove it by clicking on it again. Clicking any other part of the board will deselect the block. Here is a screen shot of a highlighted block using the large board.
Once the tiles in the block have been removed, the appropriate points will be added to your score, and the board will be adjusted. Any tiles above the removed tiles will drop down. Any empty columns will cause the board to shift to the left to fill the space. This droping and shifting will cause some new blocks to be formed, and cause some old blocks to be split apart. Groupie allows you to "Undo" one move, but only the last one, so be careful!
Object of the Game
Groupie can be played in several ways, depending on your taste. One objective is to get the most points as you can before there are no more blocks. This is the most common objective for playing Groupie. If your score is in the top ten, you will be asked to enter your name for the "Best Scores" table.
A second way of playing is to build the largest block. This usually leads to the most points. Again, if you end up with one of the top ten largest blocks, your name will be added to the "Best Scores" table.
Finally, you can also play Groupie with the objective of having the fewest tiles remaining when there are no more blocks left. This requires strategic planning so that the tiles match up just right. Some find this the most challenging way to play.
Supported Computer Platforms
Groupie is a written using Tcl/Tk. The Windoze version does not require you to have Tcl/Tk installed on your system. It is a stand-alone executable, so all you need to do is download it, unzip it, and double-click on "groupie.exe". You can download a copy of pkzip or winzip if you don't already have one. (Some people have reported problems downloading the Windoze version using Internot Explorer. If you have problems, try using Netscape or lynx instead.)
The Unix version is just a simple Tcl/Tk script. In order for it to run, you will need to download Tcl/Tk for your platform. Groupie requires Tcl/Tk version 8.0 or later.
Please send mail to Groupie at lindeman.com with any comments.
Shareware
Groupie is being distributed as shareware. This means that if you like it, and wish to support further efforts like Groupie, please send a $10.00 check or money order to:
Lindeman Systems International, Ltd.
241 Elsinore Street
Concord, MA 01742
USA
If you are having problems running Groupie, please email us with your questions.
