Tower Dream
Encyclopedia
is a Super Famicom
strategy
video game that was released in 1996 to an exclusively Japanese market.
in order to make tower
s that attract revenue from the other players. By doing so, he or she tries to make the other competitors perform as poorly as possible (even if it means bankruptcy). Four different kinds of Monopoly-like cards and a slot machine
are included to make the game more unpredictable (and fun for the players).
Anime
-style animation
is used to show exaggerated emotions from pure joy to pure misery. Statistics for each character are held in the game's battery backup and the game functions almost like a perpetual world.
An included automatic save feature presents the player with an optional ability to resume play at the exact spot where the game was completed halted. That way, he or she can either start a new game or complete a game that was halted by the console system being shut down. Some moves may be cancelled by the game if the player has already used up his or her turn for that round. If the player's first turn hasn't happened yet, then the game would start over new. Therefore, the optimal use of the automatic save feature would be within the player's turn but before he or she performs any action on the board.
The player can choose from many worlds to play from including America, Hong Kong
, Tokyo
, clown
world, prehistoric world, horror film
world, and lunar colony
world. Hong Kong is the only level in the game to have two separate boards so that players can go from the lower board to the upper board and vice versa by using the special airplane
icon. Buildings and towers look completely appropriate to the world that the game takes place in. Stone towers are used for the prehistoric world, which strongly resembles The Flintstones
. The Hong Kong and Tokyo worlds both use Asian-style buildings. Swiss roll
s, gingerbread house
s, and other Japanese dessert items are used in the clown world for landmarks and towers. Unlike the Hong Kong game board, the Tokyo game board has the Tokyo Tower
prominently in the background.
can be started even if the properties belong to different players. However, if a person buys a property that is between two corporations, then the stronger corporation will buy out the weaker corporation. The shares of the weaker corporation becomes shares of the stronger corporation. People who have invested in the weaker corporation will receive monetary rebates. The different corporations in this game include automobile
companies, television station
s, and even coffee shop
s. However, there can only be up to nine corporations on the board. If they are all used up, then a player cannot start another corporation.
Corporations that are even strength can decide the corporation that will cease to exist out of the two corporations that are merging into a single corporation. Since mergers between equal strength corporations don't really give an advantage to any player, the only consideration for who should be bought out should be based on pure strategic value (i.e., which corporation would benefit the most on the playing field). Players should remember that corporations can be resurrected if they are at least two free spaces on the board and there are not many corporations on the board.
, making it so there is only one player left on the board with money. If the bankrupt player is the only human player in the game, the game ends prematurely as it is considered unfair for the other computer opponents to finish the game without the human player giving input. The other alternative way to determine a winner is when the entire board is covered with property from one corporation and players cannot buy any more property.
called . He is always carrying a cannabis
-like object on him. He gives the player stuff that affects him or her on the video game board. Acquiring a pair of shoes force him or her to bounce back a square after finishing his or her move on the board while the rounds the fees to the nearest thousand. Other items include the pouch which deducts cash
from his or her bank account
for every step that he or she takes and the sword. Being stuck with the sword makes the player pay more money when he lands on a square that is owned by another player. Mr. Chance can be put to sleep by using a randomly-placed card to temporarily stop his movement on the board.
because there is no fee involved in using the taxi unlike in real life.
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
strategy
Strategy game
A strategy game or strategic game is a game in which the players' uncoerced, and often autonomous decision-making skills have a high significance in determining the outcome...
video game that was released in 1996 to an exclusively Japanese market.
Summary
In this video game, the player rolls the dice (that has ten sides), places properties in the center of the gaming board, and uses Japanese currencyJapanese yen
The is the official currency of Japan. It is the third most traded currency in the foreign exchange market after the United States dollar and the euro. It is also widely used as a reserve currency after the U.S. dollar, the euro and the pound sterling...
in order to make tower
Tower
A tower is a tall structure, usually taller than it is wide, often by a significant margin. Towers are distinguished from masts by their lack of guy-wires....
s that attract revenue from the other players. By doing so, he or she tries to make the other competitors perform as poorly as possible (even if it means bankruptcy). Four different kinds of Monopoly-like cards and a slot machine
Slot machine
A slot machine , informally fruit machine , the slots , poker machine or "pokies" or simply slot is a casino gambling machine with three or more reels which spin when a button is pushed...
are included to make the game more unpredictable (and fun for the players).
Anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
-style animation
Animation
Animation is the rapid display of a sequence of images of 2-D or 3-D artwork or model positions in order to create an illusion of movement. The effect is an optical illusion of motion due to the phenomenon of persistence of vision, and can be created and demonstrated in several ways...
is used to show exaggerated emotions from pure joy to pure misery. Statistics for each character are held in the game's battery backup and the game functions almost like a perpetual world.
An included automatic save feature presents the player with an optional ability to resume play at the exact spot where the game was completed halted. That way, he or she can either start a new game or complete a game that was halted by the console system being shut down. Some moves may be cancelled by the game if the player has already used up his or her turn for that round. If the player's first turn hasn't happened yet, then the game would start over new. Therefore, the optimal use of the automatic save feature would be within the player's turn but before he or she performs any action on the board.
The player can choose from many worlds to play from including America, Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, clown
Clown
Clowns are comic performers stereotypically characterized by the grotesque image of the circus clown's colored wigs, stylistic makeup, outlandish costumes, unusually large footwear, and red nose, which evolved to project their actions to large audiences. Other less grotesque styles have also...
world, prehistoric world, horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
world, and lunar colony
Colonization of the Moon
The colonization of the Moon is the proposed establishment of permanent human communities on the Moon. Advocates of space exploration have seen settlement of the Moon as a logical step in the expansion of humanity beyond the Earth. Recent indication that water might be present in noteworthy...
world. Hong Kong is the only level in the game to have two separate boards so that players can go from the lower board to the upper board and vice versa by using the special airplane
Fixed-wing aircraft
A fixed-wing aircraft is an aircraft capable of flight using wings that generate lift due to the vehicle's forward airspeed. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotary-wing aircraft in which wings rotate about a fixed mast and ornithopters in which lift is generated by flapping wings.A powered...
icon. Buildings and towers look completely appropriate to the world that the game takes place in. Stone towers are used for the prehistoric world, which strongly resembles The Flintstones
The Flintstones
The Flintstones is an animated, prime-time American television sitcom that screened from September 30, 1960 to April 1, 1966, on ABC. Produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, The Flintstones was about a working class Stone Age man's life with his family and his next-door neighbor and best friend. It...
. The Hong Kong and Tokyo worlds both use Asian-style buildings. Swiss roll
Swiss roll
A Swiss roll or jelly roll is a type of sponge cake roll. The thin cake is made of eggs, flour and sugar and baked in a very shallow rectangular baking tray, called a sheet pan. The cake is removed from the pan and spread with jam or buttercream, rolled up, and served in circular slices.The...
s, gingerbread house
Gingerbread
Gingerbread is a term used to describe a variety of sweet food products, which can range from a soft, moist loaf cake to something close to a ginger biscuit. What they have in common are the predominant flavors of ginger and a tendency to use honey or molasses rather than just sugar...
s, and other Japanese dessert items are used in the clown world for landmarks and towers. Unlike the Hong Kong game board, the Tokyo game board has the Tokyo Tower
Tokyo Tower
is a communications and observation tower located in Shiba Park, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. At , it is the second tallest artificial structure in Japan. The structure is an Eiffel Tower-inspired lattice tower that is painted white and international orange to comply with air safety regulations.Built in...
prominently in the background.
Properties/corporations
Once two properties are purchased side by side, a corporationCorporation
A corporation is created under the laws of a state as a separate legal entity that has privileges and liabilities that are distinct from those of its members. There are many different forms of corporations, most of which are used to conduct business. Early corporations were established by charter...
can be started even if the properties belong to different players. However, if a person buys a property that is between two corporations, then the stronger corporation will buy out the weaker corporation. The shares of the weaker corporation becomes shares of the stronger corporation. People who have invested in the weaker corporation will receive monetary rebates. The different corporations in this game include automobile
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
companies, television station
Television station
A television station is a business, organisation or other such as an amateur television operator that transmits content over terrestrial television. A television transmission can be by analog television signals or, more recently, by digital television. Broadcast television systems standards are...
s, and even coffee shop
Café
A café , also spelled cafe, in most countries refers to an establishment which focuses on serving coffee, like an American coffeehouse. In the United States, it may refer to an informal restaurant, offering a range of hot meals and made-to-order sandwiches...
s. However, there can only be up to nine corporations on the board. If they are all used up, then a player cannot start another corporation.
Corporations that are even strength can decide the corporation that will cease to exist out of the two corporations that are merging into a single corporation. Since mergers between equal strength corporations don't really give an advantage to any player, the only consideration for who should be bought out should be based on pure strategic value (i.e., which corporation would benefit the most on the playing field). Players should remember that corporations can be resurrected if they are at least two free spaces on the board and there are not many corporations on the board.
Methods of victory
The most conventional way to win the game is to have the most amount of cash and the most expensive properties on the board when the number of turns remaining reaches zero. An alternative way to win is also considered when the three other players playing the game lose all their money and go bankruptBankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
, making it so there is only one player left on the board with money. If the bankrupt player is the only human player in the game, the game ends prematurely as it is considered unfair for the other computer opponents to finish the game without the human player giving input. The other alternative way to determine a winner is when the entire board is covered with property from one corporation and players cannot buy any more property.
Item giver
Occasionally, the player bumps into a strange man in dragTransvestism
Transvestism is the practice of cross-dressing, which is wearing clothing traditionally associated with the opposite sex. Transvestite refers to a person who cross-dresses; however, the word often has additional connotations. -History:Although the word transvestism was coined as late as the 1910s,...
called . He is always carrying a cannabis
Cannabis
Cannabis is a genus of flowering plants that includes three putative species, Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and Cannabis ruderalis. These three taxa are indigenous to Central Asia, and South Asia. Cannabis has long been used for fibre , for seed and seed oils, for medicinal purposes, and as a...
-like object on him. He gives the player stuff that affects him or her on the video game board. Acquiring a pair of shoes force him or her to bounce back a square after finishing his or her move on the board while the rounds the fees to the nearest thousand. Other items include the pouch which deducts cash
Cash
In common language cash refers to money in the physical form of currency, such as banknotes and coins.In bookkeeping and finance, cash refers to current assets comprising currency or currency equivalents that can be accessed immediately or near-immediately...
from his or her bank account
Bank account
A Bank account is a financial account recording the financial transactions between the customer and the bank and the resulting financial position of the customer with the bank .-Account types:...
for every step that he or she takes and the sword. Being stuck with the sword makes the player pay more money when he lands on a square that is owned by another player. Mr. Chance can be put to sleep by using a randomly-placed card to temporarily stop his movement on the board.
Taxi
However, there is also a taxi that is found on most boards that acts as a rapid form of transportation. While inside the taxi, rolling a "nine" means moving ahead 18 spaces. Therefore, the number of steps a person takes inside a taxi is double to the number that he or she rolls. Instead of the player stepping into the taxi, the taxi swallows up the player. When the player arrives to his or her destination inside the taxi, the taxi spits him or her up and tries to find another player to be its passenger. It is suggested that the taxi operates on solar powerSolar power
Solar energy, radiant light and heat from the sun, has been harnessed by humans since ancient times using a range of ever-evolving technologies. Solar radiation, along with secondary solar-powered resources such as wind and wave power, hydroelectricity and biomass, account for most of the available...
because there is no fee involved in using the taxi unlike in real life.
See also
- AcquireAcquireAcquire is a board game designed by Sid Sackson.The game was originally published in 1962 by 3M as a part of their bookshelf games series. In most versions, the theme of the game is investing in hotel chains. In the 1990s Hasbro edition, the hotel chains were replaced by generic corporations,...
, one of the board games that inspired this game - MonopolyMonopoly (game)Marvin Gardens, the leading yellow property on the board shown, is actually a misspelling of the original location name, Marven Gardens. The misspelling was said to be introduced by Charles Todd and passed on when his home-made Monopoly board was copied by Charles Darrow and thence to Parker...
, the other board game that helped inspire this game