A&B Computing


Reversi

Publisher: Silverlind
Machine: BBC Model B

 
Published in A&B Computing 1.06

This is a version of the board game Reversi, also known as Othello. It is played on an 8x8 board, and the object is to trap your opponent's pieces at both ends on a horizontal, vertical or diagonal line. As a result of this, the trapped pieces are turned into the opponent's pieces. The player with the highest number of counters when the board is full is the winner. A move cannot be made if it does not capture any pieces.

The graphics are Mode 7; crude but effective; your pieces are displayed as crosses, the computer's as squares. Moves are entered using simple X-Y co-ordinates. Sound is used well; illegal moves are responded to with a loud discordant tone; each time a piece changes sides a quiet beep is emitted.

A great number of options are available. The computer will display, if requested, the time it takes to search for its move, the number of board positions it has looked at, and the number of moves it has looked ahead. This certainly brings home the computer's processing speed! Autoplay can be selected at any time; this means that the computer will play your moves as well as its own. However, once selected, this option is not reversible. The moves can also be listed out, and the Randomizer will avoid repetition of moves in the early stages of games.

The program is crashproof, and the computer responds quickly; the maximum response time on the highest skill level (level 57) is two and a half minutes.

Overall, I think that this game is excellent value: the many options and varying strengths of play should keep everyone, from novice to expert, happy.