SimCity Societies is a really nice desktop game. While it has no native Windows Mobile (or Symbian) version, the Java (MIDlet) version, compatible with these operating systems, has recently been released. As the now-folded ZIOSoft’s well-known oldie, SimCity 2000 (the only real city simulator for the platform), is no longer available for purchase for Pocket PC’s and SimCity Societies is definitely a very nice upgrade to it, I tested it on my devices right away.
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(176*220 screenshots; taken under Jbed on my HTC Oxygen / s310 Smartphone)
(QVGA screenshot; also under Jbed - looks the same on the N95)
Compatibility
It’s compatible with non-(W)VGA Pocket PC’s and MS Smartphones, both QVGA (Portrait) and 176*220 ones. (On Landscape MS Smartphones, the 176*220 version MIGHT work – but don’t even give a try to the QVGA one because it’s Portrait). It’s also compatible with the Nokia N95.
If you have a QVGA device, make sure you get the as the s60v3 QVGA-compatible advertised version. If, on the other hand, you have a 176*220 MS Smartphone, get the version meant for the Sony-Ericsson W810. These are different because the game engine doesn't use dynamic resizing.
Getting, installing
The main page of the game is HERE. After selecting your country, you’ll be given an SMS number where you can order & download the title from. (Yes, I know this is pretty much a PIA. I wish they offered it as a simple purchasable & downloadable JAR file on their homepage. Well, you have to live with this.)
If you have a Windows Mobile device, make sure you install the Jbed MIDlet manager before downloading the game. To do this, just get and install THIS CAB file. After this, you can safely purchase SimCity Societies - it'll be deployed under the right MIDlet manager and you don't end up having to re-purhchase it when you switch one.
Compatibility
As far as other Windows Mobile MIDlet managers are concerned, it doesn’t run under Jblend (at least the installable version of it; I haven’t tested it on models coming with Jblend as a factory-installed, OEM MIDlet manager) and also incompatible with TAO (not that anyone would want to play a full-screen game in TAO, which doesn't support full screen execution...). It, as has already been pointed out, has no problems with Jbed.
I don’t recommend it for (W)VGA Pocket PC users because even the largest, QVGA version will only occupy the upper left quarter of the screen – if it starts at all (it has frozen on me on the Dell Axim x51v; haven’t tested it on other VGA devices).
Verdict
A MUST for all city simulation fans using a non-(W)VGA device. It’s running REALLY great and fast and, thanks to Jbed, has great in-game music – even on a non-overclocked TI OMAP-based phone.
Incidentally, the speed, music etc. of this game certainly shows Java MIDlets have indeed become a SERIOUS alternative to native games on all mobile platforms.
Additional info
The MIDlet bible
Related
Some of you may have already played BS Hacker Replay Unlimited, a Cyberpunk / “hacker” game. It’s not a bad game (on the desktop Windows); I certainly recommend this review on it for more info. (Note that the linked review also reviews another desktop Windows "cyberpunk" game of the same developer.)
Now that Handango has cut the price of the Pocket PC port of the game in half, I’ve decided to give it a go, particularly when it comes to comparing it to the desktop version. There doesn’t seem a review of the Pocket PC version anywhere; PocketGamer.org hasn’t even mentioned it, let alone other Pocket PC gaming-related sites.
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Availability, price
(Current, tested version: 1.211)
The title is available for the original $9.99 on the homepage of the developer and, as has already been pointed out, at half the price, $4.99, on Handango.
Compatibility
All devices starting with Pocket PC 2002. This means, in addition to my Pocket PC 2002 iPAQ 3660, both my two other “problematic” devices have run the game without problems:
the WM5-upgraded HP iPAQ hx4700
the “slow” HTC Wizard (has for example no music or similar problems, unlike, say, SuperTux)
Differences between the desktop and the Windows Mobile version
First, you don’t need to enter any text on the Windows Mobile – everything is icon-based and, therefore, happens much faster (you don't need to enter commands on the keyboard, just click the given icon). The generic speedup also applies to functionality that was definitely slow in the desktop version: for example, cracking passwords, which is done much faster on Windows Mobile than in the desktop version.
However, a LOT of the desktop functionalities have been removed. For example, there are no files on hosts any more, you can only transfer money from them (and trash / BNC them if you deem it necessary – it’s only in this respect that it’s the same as the desktop version). Which is even worse, a LOT of functionality (still) present in the desktop version (ability to upgrade hacker apps; several missions or, for that matter, almost ANYTHING except just money transfer etc.) are severely missing from the PDA version.
The built-in, one-page (!) help (screenshot of it here) is in no way as good as the built-in, several-page tutorial of the desktop version. Apart from the differences between the desktop and the WM version (NO filelists, NO file transfer etc) for example it doesn’t even explain how the different BNC connections affect the trace speed – in this respect (too), it’s really poor.
Music
The music is exactly the same as in the desktop version (pretty repetitive, mono). Unfortunately, the Pocket PC version severely lacks the rather basic, but sometimes (for example, when you click a server to hack on the map) really cool sound effects.
Graphics
QVGA only (sorry, no high-resolution VGA support). However, the developers have managed to squeeze everything into this; that is, almost everything important is displayed, without the need for scrolling (which is, by the way, impossible in the PPC version, unlike on the desktop).
Verdict
If you loved the desktop version because of the great missions and the flexibility, you’ll be REALLY disappointed. In the conversion, all of this has been removed; this makes the game really shallow and uninteresting. I really disliked the PPC port because it’s just the best parts (the missions and the sophisticated file lists and options) that have been removed. You may want to give it a try to see whether you like it though.
The previous version of PocketSNES, the undoubtedly best Pocket PC Nintendo SNES emulator, released last August, had a big flaw: it didn’t support VGA devices.
Anyone that has ever tried to load games into the SNES emulator on any VGA device knows it won’t load anything (see for example this), regardless of the operating system (WM2003SE or WM5). The situation is only partly remedied by the existence of the OpenGL ES-specific (that is, currently, only Dell Axim x50v/x51v-compatible) build available here (also see this thread): for other VGA Pocket PC’s, up to now, it was impossible to run PocketSNES.
Now, with the new version, VGA Pocket PC’s are also supported. (Available, again, here (see the link at the top); use for example WinZip to extract the contents of the archive.)
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Note that it’s (still) based on the Snes9x 1.39 core, just like the previous one (and the OpenGL-ES version). Its version has also remained the same; that is, 1.12.200 – that is, the only addition it has is VGA-compliance. (Note that the previous version was already WM5-compliant, unlike what the blurb states.)
Compatibility
It runs on all my QVGA and VGA devices without problems. The only problem I had on my test devices was some rendering problem at gamestarts on my WM5 (2.01)-upgraded HP iPAQ hx4700; later in the game, when full-screen animations took place, this problem went away.
Speed?
On VGA devices, the speed is adequate but in no way perfect, particularly if you enable sound emulation. It’s only with OpenGL-ES-enabled devices that the emulator runs pretty well. As the new version doesn’t contain OpenGL-ES support, you’ll want to stick with the earlier, above-linked, OpenGL-ES-specific version for the time being.
On some QVGA devices, the emulator runs much faster than on VGA models, even on some slower / older QVGA models. For example, my 3.5-years-old HP iPAQ 2210 runs games with much better sound emulation (no stuttering, albeit, of course, low-quality sound) than my Pocket Loox 720, hx4700 and the Dell Axim x51v (the latter without the OpenGL-ES version). It should, however, be pointed out that the emulator (as with the previous version) is completely useless on the HTC Wizard – even after overclocking.
Hi-Res support?
The original SNES supports 512×224 and 512×448 video modes. However, very few titles did actually use these modes (partiuclarly the latter); this is why I wasn’t able to test them either. I don’t think they’re supported as there’re so few changes in the core – I don’t think the high resolution capabilities are now supported.
Verdict
If you have a VGA device NOT sporting any kind of 3D accelerator (currently, the Dell Axim x50v/x51v) and want to give SNES games a try, check out the new version. Otherwise, I don’t see much point in upgrading – particularly not from the much faster OpenGL-ES version. That is, if you have a 2700G-based Pocket PC (x50v/x51v), it's in no way worth switching to the new version - the OpenGL-ES version is so much faster.
Lately, I’ve had absolutely no time to test new games because I’ve spent all my time in real-world projects (yeah, I need to do some work to make both ends meet and to be able to purchase all the new gadgets), the Windows Mobile Web Browsing Bible and, of course, the Smartphone & Pocket PC magazine’s Annual Best Software Awards I’ve become the Nominations Manager of. So, let me quickly review two of the titles; first,
A REAL Prince of Persia-clone!
You must have heard of Prince of Persia, which, back in 1990 (in addition to Indianapolis 500 and Legend Entertainment’s Spellcasting 101), was one of my favorite games on the IBM PC.
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So far, there was no real Prince clone of the game on Windows Mobile. Up until now, that is; now, well-known (see the review of their Billiard Master 2 and Bowling Master review & comparison in the Windows Mobile Multiplayer Bible) Russian Windows Mobile & Palm OS games developer Mobirate has just started reimplementing the game on Windows Mobile.
The demo can be downloaded HERE and is WM2003+ compatible.
The project is really at the alpha stage and a lot of stuff doesn’t work. The Options screen is completely messed up (the labels are not visible at all and you can only guess what a particular checkbox does) on both VGA and QVGA devices, there’s no Button 1 (I’ve tested this on all my three Pocket PC’s (Dell Axim x51v A12, HP iPAQ 2210, HTC Wizard with AKU3.3 ROM) I’ve deployed the game on). The on-screen controls seem to be non-existent (albeit, after switching some “Off” checkboxes to “On” in Options, the game started to use them – but not the D-pad any more). Furthermore, there are absolutely no sound effects / music. Finally, the game may be pretty slow on some devices: it was barely playable (17-18 fps) on my iPAQ 2210. The HTC Wizard running at 240 MHz fared better (24 fps); finally, the x51v was the best (about 26 fps).
While the lack of for example button support may render the game completely useless (for example, you won’t be able to even do basic stuff like drinking potions), you may still want to give it a try, particularly because the developer is giving away free copies of the final version to the best, most productive betatesters (see the last sentence in readme.txt).
I really hope a (more) playable version follows very soon.
Note that the developer’s homepage doesn’t contain any real information on the game. For example, the image’s link takes you to their game compilation Brain Master. I’ve tried to supply different URL’s (by increasing the document ID referenced by the URL) to find out whether there is a page dedicated to the game; there (still) isn’t. That is, you won’t get any additional info on the game.
(News source: have run into the news upon routinely checking for a new, Microsoft Bluetooth stack-compliant version of Billiard Master 2 and Bowling Master on the developer’s homepage).
SimCity Societies is a really nice desktop game. While it has no native Windows Mobile (or Symbian) version, the Java (MIDlet) version, compatible with these operating systems, has recently been released. As the now-folded ZIOSoft’s well-known oldie, SimCity 2000 (the only real city simulator for the platform), is no longer available for purchase for Pocket PC’s and SimCity Societies is definitely a very nice upgrade to it, I tested it on my devices right away.
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(176*220 screenshots; taken under Jbed on my HTC Oxygen / s310 Smartphone)
(QVGA screenshot; also under Jbed - looks the same on the N95)
Compatibility
It’s compatible with non-(W)VGA Pocket PC’s and MS Smartphones, both QVGA (Portrait) and 176*220 ones. (On Landscape MS Smartphones, the 176*220 version MIGHT work – but don’t even give a try to the QVGA one because it’s Portrait). It’s also compatible with the Nokia N95.
If you have a QVGA device, make sure you get the as the s60v3 QVGA-compatible advertised version. If, on the other hand, you have a 176*220 MS Smartphone, get the version meant for the Sony-Ericsson W810. These are different because the game engine doesn't use dynamic resizing.
Getting, installing
The main page of the game is HERE. After selecting your country, you’ll be given an SMS number where you can order & download the title from. (Yes, I know this is pretty much a PIA. I wish they offered it as a simple purchasable & downloadable JAR file on their homepage. Well, you have to live with this.)
If you have a Windows Mobile device, make sure you install the Jbed MIDlet manager before downloading the game. To do this, just get and install THIS CAB file. After this, you can safely purchase SimCity Societies - it'll be deployed under the right MIDlet manager and you don't end up having to re-purhchase it when you switch one.
Compatibility
As far as other Windows Mobile MIDlet managers are concerned, it doesn’t run under Jblend (at least the installable version of it; I haven’t tested it on models coming with Jblend as a factory-installed, OEM MIDlet manager) and also incompatible with TAO (not that anyone would want to play a full-screen game in TAO, which doesn't support full screen execution...). It, as has already been pointed out, has no problems with Jbed.
I don’t recommend it for (W)VGA Pocket PC users because even the largest, QVGA version will only occupy the upper left quarter of the screen – if it starts at all (it has frozen on me on the Dell Axim x51v; haven’t tested it on other VGA devices).
Verdict
A MUST for all city simulation fans using a non-(W)VGA device. It’s running REALLY great and fast and, thanks to Jbed, has great in-game music – even on a non-overclocked TI OMAP-based phone.
Incidentally, the speed, music etc. of this game certainly shows Java MIDlets have indeed become a SERIOUS alternative to native games on all mobile platforms.
Additional info
The MIDlet bible
Nicky Boom was a nice platformer game released for the Commodore Amiga and MS DOS back in 1992 (Wiki page HERE). While, now, fortunately, there are several platformer titles for Windows Mobile (see for example THIS, THIS for a list of newer and THIS of somewhat older titles), few of them are compatible with the MS Smartphone platform (Nicky Boom is; note that I don't know whether it's compatible with low-end / old 176*220 MS Smartphone screens in addition to the now-standard QVGA ones). In addition, the game also has a Palm OS 5 version (only compatible with comparatively new models; that is, most models starting with the T3) and a Symbian S60 and UIQ 3 version is being worked on. It even has an in-browser ActiveX version on the homepage of the developer (click the Play button), DotEmu. A pretty decent demo is available; the full version costs $14.90 for all mobile platforms.
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Note that the game’s homepage doesn’t have a trial version for Palm OS. It IS available at ClickGamer.
While, theoretically, it may be possible to run the original game under Amiga or MS-DOS emulators, I wouldn’t think it’s a good idea. The only Amiga emulator existing for all the mobile platforms, PocketUAE, is very slow and, as it’s long been discontinued, it’s highly unlikely it will ever be fixed. Emulating MS-DOS is far better on Windows Mobile (see the dedicated Bible HERE), but I seriously doubt it’s able to run this title without major at least sound problems and/or without quickly chewing through your battery. The original game having no console versions, you can't rely on much more CPU-efficient and established, commercial console emulators like the almighty SmartGear either.
On Windows Mobile (I haven't tested the game on Palm and the Symbian version hasn't been released as yet), the just-released native version behaves far better: it uses little CPU time, which means it’s quite battery-friendly and runs on even the slowest configurations like the ones based on the old TI OMAP 850, the “heart” of many popular models like the HTC Touch, Wizard and so on.
As it’s just a traditional side-scrolling platform game, there isn’t much to talk about, game story- or usage-wise.
I had no problems running / playing it. Make sure you give it a try! I think I'll also nominate it for this year's Smartphone & Pocket PC Magazine Best Software Awards contest.
Cons
* Mono music only
* Some stuttering now and then if autofire is enabled. The latter isn’t a CPU usage issue as it stays pretty low even with autofire enabled
Pros
* Much better and, what is even more important, battery-friendly than running the original game under a MS-DOS or an Amiga emulator
* Very good CPU usage: ~28% on 624 MHz PXA-310-based, VGA HP iPAQ 210 and ~60% on the 195 MHz TI OMAP 850-based QVGA HTC Wizard, even with autofire on
BTW, speaking of other platformers, a bad piece of news: the long-awaited Prehistoric: Road to Hollywood (see THIS) will be never completed / released: Bonanza Interactive has gone out of business in the meantime.