ou hear it said sometimes, in newsgroups and other places, that OS/2 users are generally of a higher quality than Windows users. OS/2 users supposedly demand more from their operating system of choice, and generally are more technically knowledgeable.

I can't vouch for the veracity of the above statements, but in light of its hypothesis it seems like poetic justice that 3D Logic Minesweeper by Paul Reid of Isar Software GmbH, has been released as an OS/2 program.

I'm sure most everybody is familiar with the classic Minesweeper game which was bundled with Windows 3.1. Probably many people besides myself became addicted to the simple deductive puzzle:

It is played on a two dimensional grid where you uncover squares which, if they are not a mine, reveal a number which reports how many of the adjacent squares do contain mines.

3D Logic Minesweeper, like some say OS/2 did for operating systems, takes the concept to a whole new level of sophistication.

To keep with the metaphor, there are some other common comparisons between OS/2 and Windows which seem to apply to this new "3D Logic" version of Minesweeper vs. "Classic" Minesweeper.

• Many people say that the "learning curve" of OS/2 is steeper than that of windows, but is well worth the effort. The same could be said of 3D Logic Minesweeper. It's a whole new perspective.
  
• Many (but not all) admit that OS/2 is a bit plain, or even ugly, in the interface department. 3D Logic Minesweeper is not going to win any interface beauty pageants. (But it is solid). Users with monitors in 640x480 resolution will find the fonts in the game too small to read at first, but maximizing the window will solve this.
  
• The OS/2 interface (as plain as it may or may not be) is generally considered far more practical, flexible and powerful than its Windows counterpart. 3D Logic Minesweeper has some very helpful interface enhancements over traditional Minesweeper.
  
• Some say that Windows is inconsistent and illogical in places. Windows' version of Minesweeper is also often illogical in that it creates games randomly in which you are almost always eventually left with having to make lucky guesses. Those that maintain OS/2 is more consistent and logical will appreciate 3D Logic Minesweeper's intelligent multi-threaded game generation; it churns out grids which are tested, rated for difficulty, and fully solvable by deduction.
  
• The object in 3D Logic Minesweeper is to find and identify the mines, if you can. In Windows' Minesweeper, the goal is to attempt to find safe squares and work around the bombs. This is a subtle difference, perhaps, but an important one.

This is quite challenging to get used to at first. However, 3D Logic Minesweeper includes several very helpful toggles and visual aids. There is a "Learn Mode" which warns you when you have made a mistake, instead of blowing you up. There is a "Hint" function which will analyze your game and show you where the first free cell(s) or bomb(s) are that the program can deduce -- you can then blindly accept the information or actually try to figure out the logic required make those identifications. In addition to these, there are also several other functions available on the "assistance" menu.

One very nice interface feature which helps one's three dimensional visualization quite a bit is the big box outlines (GIF, 12.8k) 3D Logic Minesweeper can draw which shows you all of the cells, on all levels, adjacent to a current safe cell. The box feature can be toggled to happen automatically or only with the right mouse button. The program can also tally up for you how many of the juxtaposed hidden cells contain mines or are free. Very handy, very helpful.

I find myself fascinated and obsessed by these puzzles. It is all the more frustrating knowing that they are all logical and solvable -- I have yet to solve more than half of one, and usually I mess up most games long before I even get that far! However, over the course of many games, the astute player will slowly discover various strategies to be used to eliminate cells and deduce their contents.

When I first saw the game I was completely overwhelmed by the magnitude of complication in the puzzle. But, liking a good challenge for the old gray cells, I stuck with it a while and found myself soon learning new methods of logic to apply to patterns and situations, and making some very satisfying progress.

3D Logic Minesweeper is released as fully functional shareware. The author requests a registration fee of, "DM 25.00, $15.00, or some approximate equivalent."

If you like tricky logic problems, and brain twisting challenge, you can pick up 3D Logic Minesweeper v1.0 from ftp.hobbes.edu in the os2/games/ subdirectory under the filename "mine3d.zip".

3D Logic Minesweeper v1.0