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MDM Gaming Expansion Card Roundup

October 17, 2003

Game Essentials is an expansion card for Palm OS handhelds that includes twelve different games. SimCity is the best in the lot, of course— remarkably deep gameplay can reel you in and keep you addicted for hours as you create the perfect handheld city. Next up is 9-Ball, a fast and furious pinball game that has a twist— score big bonuses by “pocketing” the pinball in various numbered holes on the table, as in billiards. It’s fast moving and very fun. Shanghai is a mahjongg clone with tons of different table options and very nice graphics. And Vegas VIP casino is actually three games in one— blackjack, video poker, and slots. The high rolling action on the video poker side of things kept me various busy for quite a while, but unfortunately I lost my “virtual shirt” to the infernal machine. That’s a whole lot better than losing real money though, so I certainly can’t complain.

Billiards was one game in the pack that I honestly thought I wouldn’t like at all, since I didn’t figure that there was any comparison to the real game. I was pleasantly surprised though at the fine control that was possible with the stylus, as well as the deep challenge. While I still prefer the original, Billiards is a game that I will certainly play again. Ricochet is an updated Breakout clone from Astraware that’s really fun, though I find it just a tad on the slow side. (If you want to play the original, by the way, be sure to check out the Atari Retro expansion card that I reviewed yesterday). Atum, the next to last game on the list, was a bit too tricky for me to really enjoy, but that doesn’t mean that others won’t enjoy it. And the last game on the card is another three in one: ChromaGames features Chess, Checkers and Backgammon. These games might not bowl you over with incredible graphics and sound, but they are classics for a reason. Great gameplay in the palm of your hand, and never having to worry about lost pieces or trying to find someone to play with makes ChromaGames a very nice addition to this card.

Sega Classics is another home run of an expansion card for Palm OS 5 handhelds such as the Tungsten series and the Zire 71. Sonic the Hedgehog is the sort of game that appeals to lots of folks— fast arcade action and great sound are all included with this perfect port of the original game. Shining Force II is an engrossing RPG with turn-based combat and an engrossing story. I found myself playing for far longer than I should have, especially considering how many other games I have to review… but I digress. Shinobi is another well-known action game, though I found that the graphics were a bit too dark to be easily playable on a small handheld screen. My favorite of the bunch is Super Columns, a deceptively simple puzzle game where you have to create blocks of like-colored gems and explode them before your playing area fills up to the top and the game ends. Of course that would be too easy, which is why a challenge mode is included— fight against a virtual opponent who can send “junk” gems into your play area and do the same to the enemy when you get large combo scores and send “junk” into his playing area. Hard to describe, simple to learn, and forever to master! Shining Columns is almost worth the price of admission alone.

The last card in this roundup is the Age of Empires expansion card for Pocket PC 2002 or higher devices. This one is really incredible, since it includes the complete Age of Empires desktop strategy game, as well as the Age of Empires Rise of Rome PC expansion. I can’t imagine just how they crammed all of that into an expansion card the size of a postage stamp, but they did it somehow. I was completely blown away by the attention to detail and the great gameplay. They even included the cutscene movies (which are played with Media Player). It was really hard to tear myself away from my tribe, the Sumerians, when I had to write this review. Right now I have my villagers hard at work chopping down trees, exploring the map, and getting ready to start building an army. It’s hard work, but someone has to do it! I think that anyone who enjoys strategy games will want to pick up this card, assuming that they hadn’t already played the PC version to death. It’s fun, challenging, and actually something of a learning experience. You have to budget your resources carefully to ensure that you can meet all of your goals and defeat your enemies.

Each one of these cards is available for $29.95. That comes out to as little as $2.25 per game on the Game Essentials card, which is quite a bargain. And even though the Age of Empires card has only the one game, this strategy classic certainly cost more than $30 when it first came out for desktop PCs, and this one also includes the first expansion pack. You can get them now in retail stores, or from the Palm web store.

PocketGoddess Rating for the MDM Game Essentials Expansion Card: