Introduction
No, it doesn't come in a box and a pimply teenage mall employee won't tell you to have a nice day,
but BShisen still required quite a bit of effort to produce -- designing, programming, debugging,
and drawing. If you enjoy BShisen, please register. Thank you.
Welcome! BShisen is a wholesome, fun, and addictive strategy game pitting you
against yourself and the clock. It is similar in some aspects to Mah Jongg (Shanghai),
but it can't really be compared to any other game.
Overview
BShisen is played with a variably-sized board and up to 36 different tiles. The object of the game is
to remove all tiles in a minimum amount of time. Matching tiles can be removed if they can be
connected in three (3) or fewer lines.
- Lines may be horizontal or vertical, but not diagonal.
- Lines may pass through any white space (including the space around the board),
but not through other tiles.
The best way to learn how to play is by making use of the "Suggest Move" (Alt-G) menu item,
which will hilite two (2) connectable tiles. Tiles are selected (and removed) by clicking
on them.
Connecting adjacent tiles
| Before | After |
 |  |
Connecting non-adjacent tiles
The game is over when either all tiles are removed or no more moves are possible. Not all games are
winnable. Furthermore, even winnable games can be made unwinnable based on the order in which tiles
are removed. Games are numbered, and there are approximately 4294967294 different tile arrangements
available.
Menu Items
- File
- New Game
Abandons the current game and starts a new game with a random ID.
- Restart Game
Restarts the current game.
- New Game By ID
Closes the current game and prompts for the ID of the game to play.
- About BShisen
Shows information about which version of BShisen you are playing,
et cetera.
- Quit
- Edit
Undo
Undoes the last removal. Every removal is recorded, so you
could undo every previous move, if you wanted to.
- Game
- Suggest Move
Shows a possible move (if one exists) by hilighting the tiles. Although
this is useful when you are stuck or learning how to play, a 30 second
penalty is added to your score every time this option is selected.
- Size
Selects the board size. Current board sizes are:
- 14 x 6
- 18 x 8
- 24 x 12
- 28 x 16
- 32 x 20
18 x 8 or 14 x 6 is the default size, depending on your screen real estate.
A large monitor is recommended for the larger size boards :-) For unregistered
users, only the 14 x 6 and 18 x 8 board sizes are available.
- Hall Of Fame
Shows a list of the 5 best times for each board size, as well as some other
information. High scores are not saved if the game is not registered.
- Sound
Enables or disables sounds. Sound is on by default (BeOS is a media OS,
after all).
- Preferences
Configures various preferences, such as the path of the background picture,
if the background picture is tiled or centered, and the background color. Please note
that the preferred way of setting the background picture is not by typing
it in the Preferences window, but by dragging it from Tracker to the BShisen
window. The Preferences window is the only way to remove a background picture,
though.
- Pause
Pauses a game, stopping the clock and hiding the BShisen window to discourage cheating.
Miscellaneous Tips
- The BShisen window responds to color drops by changing the background color.
- The BShisen window responds to graphic files dragged from Tracker by setting the background
image.
- If the BShisen window is minimized, hidden, or in a different workspace, the timer is paused.
Copyright
BShisen is copyright © 1998, 1999 Kelvin W Sherlock.
All rights reserved.
BShisen is shareware. To legally use it after a 5-day trial period,
please register with either the enclosed KAGI register application or with
NetPositive (or any other browser for that matter...) at the
KAGI BShisen
registration page. Registering over the internet is much faster.
Registration costs $15, and includes a number of benefits:
- You'll be supporting current and future BeOS development.
- High Scores will be saved.
- Annoying dialogs will be removed.
- Ridiculously large board sizes will be supported.
- It will make you feel good.
- You'll be entitled to all future upgrades and bug-fixes free-of-charge.
- If there is enough interest, I will create a site listing the top high scores of registered users.
You can be immortalized and recognized world-wide for having a fast-clicking finger!
Seriously, $15 is not that much money. Please consider registering.
Now, for the lawyerly crap:
The Software is provided on an "AS IS" basis, without warranty of any
kind, including without limitation the warranties of merchantability,
fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement. The entire risk
as to the quality and performance of the Software is borne by you.
SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW EXCLUSIONS OF AN IMPLIED WARRANTY,
SO THIS DISCLAIMER MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU AND YOU MAY HAVE OTHER LEGAL
RIGHTS THAT VARY FROM STATE TO STATE OR BY JURISDICTION.
IN NO EVENT WILL KELVIN SHERLOCK BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL OR
INCIDENTAL DAMAGES ( INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF
BUSINESS PROFITS, LOSS OF INFORMATION, COMPUTER FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION,
OR USE ), EVEN IF KELVIN SHERLOCK HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
DAMAGES. SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
FOR CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION
MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.
Bugs
That said, BShisen has been tested extensively and should be mostly bug-free. If you do find a bug,
though, I will either fix it or ignore it :-). Send all bug reports, complaints, giant cash offers,
marriage proposals, job offers, et cetera to kws@delphi.com.