with its superior definition, 1:1 aspect ratio and color range.
The entire PLAY screen is used without resort to fancy borders,
confirmation( or otherwise ) messages or score tallies, all of
which tend to distract and prejudice the overall clarity.
The game of Pairs is given new dimensions; it is extremely easy
to use with keypresses, if you elect to use cursor/space keys,
brought to a minimum. Space key presses, which bring up the
individual icons, or color spots if you wish, automatically
present the player with the next available choice as the
cursor jumps to it. A 72 icon library is on call instantly;
scale drawing instructions are coded so loading from disk is
avoided.
The range of difficulty is designed to be as accessible to all
as possible. The player begins with only 9 pairs, moving on
through 12 and 18 to 36. With various difficulties involved
this covers 11 separate stages. If these are conquered with
or without the “cheat” function, which is conditionally
available, then triplets have to be matched up. The Last 11 of
a total 31 stages involve recalling the position of 4 clones.
Hence the name, Deux, Trois, Quatre.
Some, possibly unique, options present the player with a
variety of strategies; from the simple “Who goes first ?”,
to “Invisible computer moves” – if you get swamped with
visual intake, to concentrate on your own “memory bank”;
also, one can elect to play turns ie alternate, whether
successful matches are made or not, or use the traditional
“matchmaker” mode ie you give up your turn only when you
fail to do so.
This game is especially playable for Touch Typists, or
useful in the development of a secure technique. Up to
72 characters, the alphabet(U & L case), numbers and
10 common punctuation marks may be deployed as an
alternative to the cursor keys.
Scoring is automatic as is resumption of the game at
a later session. A tiny, 60 or so bytes, file keeps
a tally at the end of each stage; if you prefer to
reset instead of the 2 Esc keypresses required to
leave the program, your position in DTQ is intact.
Other features include, icon-view, single level practice,
to 5 difficulties, 72 shades of color( which may
present quite a challenge to your ability in this
respect, and/or monitor ?) and complete game restart.
Another thing that really makes Deux Trois Quatre (DTQ) enjoyable for me is how it manages to stay interesting even after playing it multiple times. Many games feel repetitive after a while, but here, the experience still feels fresh because of the small details and different ways you can approach the gameplay. As you continue playing, you naturally start improving and understanding the mechanics better, which makes everything feel more rewarding. I also appreciate the balance the game maintains—it’s not too difficult, but it’s not too easy either. You can play it casually for a short break or spend longer sessions without getting bored. That flexibility is one of the biggest reasons why I keep coming back to Deux Trois Quatre (DTQ). Overall, it’s the kind of game that doesn’t just entertain you for a moment, but actually gives you a consistently enjoyable experience every time you play.
