Definitions

# SameGame

is a puzzle game originally released under the name Chain Shot! in 1985 by Kuniaki Moribe (Morisuke). It has since been ported to numerous computer platforms.

'Same Game' is pronounced as sah-meh-gah-meh in Japanese.

## History

was originally created as Chain Shot! in 1985 by Kuniaki Moribe (Morisuke). It was distributed for the Fujitsu FM-8/7 series in a Japanese monthly personal computer magazine called Gekkan ASCII.

The game was later ported under the name of 'SAME GAME' in 1992 for UNIX platforms by Eiji Fukumoto (Kyoto), followed by the one for the NEC PC-9801 series by Wataru Yoshioka (W. Yossy).

In 1993 it was ported to Windows 3.1 by Ikuo Hirohata. This version was translated into English by Hitoshi Ozawa and is still available from his software archive.

In 1994, Takahiro Sumiya ported it to Macintosh. This version has some gameplay differences (three instead of five colors) and is probably the most widely distributed of the original series. It was the basis for Same Gnome/KSame on Linux.

## Gameplay

### Game mechanics

Same Game is played on a rectangular field initially filled with typically 4 or 5 kinds of blocks placed at random. By selecting one of a group of adjoining blocks of the same color, a player may remove them from the screen. Blocks that are no longer supported by removed blocks will fall down, and a column without any blocks will be trimmed away by other columns always sliding to one side (often the left.) The goal of the game is to remove as many blocks from the playing field as possible.

In most versions, there are no time constraints during the game, however, some implementations gradually push the rows upward or drop blocks from above. The game ends if a timer runs out or if no more blocks can be removed.

### Scoring

Most versions of the game give $\left(n-k\right)^2$ points for removing n tiles at once, where k = 1 or 2 depending on the implementation. For instance, Insane Game for TI calculators uses $\left(n-1\right)^2$. Ikuo Hirohata's implementation uses the formula $n^2-3n+4$. The Bubble Breaker implementation for Windows Mobile uses the $n \left(n - 1\right)$ formula. The 2001 version released by Jeff Reno uses the formula $n \left(n - 2\right)$.

Some versions also offer a large bonus for removing all the blocks on the screen. Yet others reduce the final score based on the number of blocks remaining at the end of the game.

## Versions

• Chain Shot!, the original game by Kuniaki Moribe for the Fujitsu FM 8/7, ported to PC-8801, PC-9800, N5200 (1988), and Macintosh (1992). It had a 20×10 playing field and four colors.
• The original Same Game for Unix by Eiji Fukumoto, 1992. It increased the number of colors to five.
• A version for PC-9801 by Wataru Yoshioka (W. Yossi).
• A Windows 3.1 port by Ikuo Hirohata, 1993, later translated into English by Hitoshi Ozawa. It added an optional large field of 25×15. The large field requires an 800×600 desktop resolution.
• A Macintosh port by Takahiro Sumiya, 1994. It reduced the number of colors to three.
• KSame/Same Gnome, based on Takahiro Sumiya's Macintosh version.
• Clickomania! by Matthias Schüssler, 1998, Windows. Board size and number of colors are configurable. Originally the goal was only to clear the playing field, the number of blocks removed in one turn did not affect the score. This is still the default setting.
• An Amiga port by Ronald van Dijk, 1999. It has a 15×10 playing field and three colors.
• MacStones by Craig Landrum, 1999, based on Same Gnome.
• Aha! by Computer Systems Odessa, 1999. It allows configuration of the board size (between 3×3 and 25×15) and the number of colors (between 2 and 5).
• Jawbreaker, 2003, PocketPC.
• iDrops, 2008, iPhone / iPod Touch. It has a 10x10 playing field and five colors.
• Same Game, 2008, BlackBerry by Norbsoft Sp. z o.o. It has a 10x10 playing field.