Challenge your friends and others to a peaceful strategy battle, either face to face or over the net!
Challenge! is a board game for two players, based on the classic strategy game Agon. Agon is known for its simple rules and complex strategy, and is completely free from random elements. Each player has a queen and six guards, and move a single piece in turn. The aim of the game is to bring the queen on the throne, i.e. the cell at the center of the board, surrounded by all six guards, before your opponent does.
Challenge! offers four main functions:
* Over the net is for playing against someone over the net. Challenge! is Game Center based, and you can start a game against either known game friends or opponents that Game Center chooses for you. Meanwhile, at any time, you may receive game invitations from both friends and others, and either accept or reject these. You can have one or more games going at all times, and can choose freely when to make a move in these.
* Leaderboard allows you to compare your performance with other Challenge! players. The player who currently has the most victories will remain at the top of the leaderboard in Game Center, followed by the one who has the second most, etc.
* Over the table is for playing locally against someone you are sitting together with. The result of the game does not end up on the leaderboard.
* Demo shows a possible course of a complete game, moving the pieces automatically. The rate at which the pieces are moved is adjustable, from standstill via slow to quick pace. Thus, you can study the details of the game at certain stages, or get a quick understanding of the rules and how the game progresses, according to your own wishes and needs.
If you are not already logged into Game Center when you start up Challenge!, you will be presented with a login page. You can use existing or new Apple Id and password to log in, if necessary by first creating a new Game Center user. If you proceed without logging in, Challenge! only provide access to functions Over the table and Demo. But you will still be able to log in later, either via the Game Center app or via Challenge! next time you start up.
Via the Game Center app, which is a standard part of iOS, you can also invite others to become game friends, start playing against them directly, and more.
Challenge! also offers information pages for rules and user tips:
* Simple rules provide complete information about the games rules, on pages titled Overview, Moves and Captures. See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agon_(game), standard rules. All rules are enforced by Challenge!; it is not possible to make illegal moves.
* Simple use provides tips on how Challenge! is used most effectively, on pages titled Moving a piece and Undoing a move:
- Legal cells for a piece can be displayed in the board by tapping the cell, and hidden by tapping again.
- A piece can be moved by dragging it to the desired cell, if desired by first touching and holding the piece for approximately half a second or until a "loupe" appears. Alternatively, one can first press the piece to show legal cells, and then tap - or drag the piece to - the desired cell.
The loupe shows a slightly enlarged view of the area located under the finger, in a similar way as during text editing in iOS. The loupe, at all times centered around the piece being moved, makes it easier to see this and move it to the correct cell.
- The game board can be zoomed and panned with ordinary finger movements.
- If desired, a move can be undone within a certain time period after it has been executed. The undo function must first be activated through Settings for Challenge!, by selecting the desired undo period. A rotating undo button will appear for the relevant period, and the ongoing move is undone by pressing it before it disappears. Alternatively, the move can be undone by shaking the phone.