I finished the game last night - it was sooo sweet - to bad it had not more levels - I could have going on for days ;-)

I LOVED THE GAME BUT WHEN I DOWNLOADED IT AND PLAYED IT , THE NEXT DAY I COULD NOT OPEN IT TO PLAY AGAIN. SO I DELEATED IT.

Salut à tous; comme promis, voici le patch du jeu en français :
Trio – the great settlement
Il se trouve par ici :
http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?agxejiubfdt5db2
Il s’agit d’un fichier d’installation du patch : vous n’avez qu’à confirmer l’installation du patch en français.
N’oubliez par que cela est utilisable seulement si vous avez déjà installé ce jeu.
Bon amusement. Frédéric.

Hi for all. As i have promised, you can find the french patch for this game there :
http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?agxejiubfdt5db2
Just install it but do not forget : no use if the game isn't installed. Have fun. Frédéric.

I thoroughly enjoyed this game. i wish it had more levels!! Great job!

I downloaded this game on my PIII - 900 MHz machine and it played fine with no issues at all. This game is challenging and it is a great game to have...

Since the post for UnTrio hasn't come back yet, I might as well post it here.

Download: http://www.mediafire.com/file/e23apyyynh767yd/UnTrio.zip

If you're going to use the extracted files, you'll also need a blank data.pak or else the game will crash: http://www.mediafire.com/file/c1qxxh1nsdrmzxj/data.pak


.............................Moderator comment......................................

Hi GMMan, sorry, I was snowed under all yesterday and most of the early part of this morning installing and registering my massive collection of Reflexive games beofre the deadline for registration ended. I then had to write up a quickly scribbled review for this mornings game , which I didn't finish till 5am. So totlly forgot about your request.

Did anyone eolse think that the BROWN ORBIC (appears in later levels) seemed rather racist?? (Afro, Big Lips, 70s Blaxploitation-era Moustache)?? IS this why it is free?? No American market for it without starting a race incident?

nice little game. Although it has a rather annoying 'bug' - on those levels, where new blocks come from a pipe on the right side of the screen, those new blocks oftentimes fail to drop quickly enough and thus they cause the game to end as they stay over the red line for too long. That is really frustrating.

OK, I was pretty excited about this game, and enjoyed playing it at first. But I noticed some problems. Eventually, these make it impossible to play the game, at least on the timed mode.
When you join three orbs together, all three do not always go away. This makes it especially hard when you get into the gold and silver bound boxes.
The second thing I noticed, and this is a real game killer, on later levels (6 and 7 so far) the boxes coming down the conveyor belt, or chute, are above the red line, and trigger the red line, causing your game to end in a manner that is no fault of your own.
If it wasn't for these two items, which sadly are pretty integral to game play and enjoyment, I would give this game multiple thumbs up!

Great game, thx thx

Anyone else have trouble passing level 26-27?

My game keeps sitting there after level 27 is cleared of blocks. The thermometer is full, the game seems to think the level is over, but it won't pop up with the score summary, it just sits there till I quit the game myself using Esc to pull up the menu.

It's a gamebreaking bug, so someone should fix it, pronto!

Win 7 64 bit.

My brother has Win XP SP3, and his will fade to show the fireworks show, but then it just fades black and he's stuck too. Same stage as above.

..................................Moderator Comment...............

I've not got that far yet. If there is a bug it will be a shame. Please post your problems in the thread over in the game discussion forums:

http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/forums/topic/7854

Sweet game, nice graphics. Fine on Win 7 x32 Ultimate. Interesting
twist on usual match 3 mode. Has more variations & the physics are
more clever than is typical of this genre. So if like match 3 but
are blown out on them give it roll and it'll raise the fun.
Thanks guys for all the positive comments. High % is a good tip off.

Hello. Sachez que je prépare un patch en français pour vous permettre d'y jouer en français. N'hésitez donc pas à visiter la page de ce jeu.

Hi; just for french people, think about visiting this web page because i'm working on a french translation for this game.

I'm having the 'Mouse Pointer Missing' issue as well. I'm running Win7 x64, with an nVidia 9650M on my laptop, and the game is extremely frustrating without seeing the pointer. Too bad, it looks like it would be an interesting game.

Thank you. The game looks interesting.

Whiterabbit: Looks like your inbox is full again.

If you're moderating, you'll notice that my link above is broken. That's because graylox deleted it. I have no idea why. So if you chance by the forum's deleted bin, have a check at my post, and if it does not violate any rules, please restore it.


.......................Moderator Comment..........................

Will do. :) Been busy with my Reflexive games all day. Today was the last day I could register all my Reflexive games (all 800+). I've not managed to register more than 700 of them so am rather disappointed. There are alternatie that i may try to get them registered but can't say on these forums. Definitely going to use my sandbox to find the solution though. ;)

its a very different match 3 game.
I liked it and am up to level 16 .

Oh apparently pre tags don't work well on the comments section. Umm... just cut the rest of my post out.

Fun game but you have to get past the tutorial and the lower levels before there is any challange to it.

Well, it works.

It is a VERY frustrating game for someone with excellent eye/hand coordination used to playing games with more skill involved. I'm not saying this game is not hard by any means, quite the opposite is true in fact. However, that said, there is too much randomness involved for my taste to make it any lasting fun. When I match three, I expect them to disappear. (Don't you?) Good luck with that here.
The graphics are about standard for the genre, not bad, not great. But the storyline I found to be way too childish, and long, for the game itself.
Play-ability-wise, I will probably give it another go to beat the third level before uninstalling this game, but in my view, it's not a great match three game in any category. The $4.99 price tag is a smart choice by the developer.


Pent. Quad Core 2.66
Vista Buisness x64 O.S.
8gb ram, 8800 gt graphics

here are further comments on my mouse problem. If I play the game in windowed mode the problem disappears. My video driver is onboard Intel and the driver is current. And this is also the case with both the giveaway version and the myplay city version. Since there is no real advantage to full screen, I wont worry about the problem anymore

...........................Moderator comment.............................

Thanks for the feedback DocSid, much appreciated. Sorry to hear about the problem with the mouse. I've had similar problems with some games, but they have always resolved themselves. Have you tried changing screen resolution? Another possibility is changing the mouse cursor to the custom one. Probably wont work, but you never know. :)

Re: my previous post...
On my Vista64 PC with nVidia graphics, the game is broken, and becomes unplayable as levels progress. Plungers activate before pieces drop, sometimes actually getting the falling piece stuck on it. Water turns into spikes that extend past the screen edge.

On my Win7 system, everything is fine.


...................................Moderator comment............................

Try updating your graphics drivers. Just go to the NVidia home page to select the correct drivers. The process is self explanatory once you click on the driver link. You could also try playing the Gametop/MyPlayCity version that I've linked to above. :) I hope this helps.

I don't usually comment, but I just played through the 1st island in Normal Mode and had so much fun with it.
It feels like a mix of Cradle of Rome, World of Goo and Virtual Villagers.

I wonder how much replayability there's to it; if you replay the levels, do you get exactly the same lay out?

Thanx

Thank you Lopens Games and GGOTD for today's game. The download/setup took under two Minutes to complete with dsl connection on an XP. I didn't have any errors or issues with the install or activation. While I've only played five levels, read that there's over 70 in all! Poor little Orbics are trapped in a crate and need to be released. A match-3 type game with a challenges, levels do get harder as you play. The crates move when other crates are placed on top, sometimes a rock-type ledge is in the way. Also, don't let crates stack too high or the machine arm has problems. Nice option to earn gold coins to buy houses on the island. * Great you can skip dialog/story or just speed it up. Overall, this game would be hours of fun for older kids whom understand the goals and entertaining for adults. Thanks.

Thanks for bringing the games back again! While I don't try every one available, I get more games from here than regular programs from the main GOTD site. White Rabbit has kept me going during the current drought. Good review on today's game too! Thanks again!

Nice free game today! It Downloaded without incident into my games folder and is running fine on my Windows7 64 bit laptop. Since I've a widescreen I'm not playing it in Full Screen mode.

Thank you WR for the great informative review and instructions, they're much appreciated as always. :) And Thanks to GGOTD & Lopens for the fun game.

Win XP SP2:

No go for me. I try to install/activate, PC won't connect to verify availability. Tried to reboot modem/router, restart, nothing. Tried to DL/install from GameHouse and GameTop, get an Exception Access Violation when I run it. It's a shame 'cuz it runs great on my wife's laptop running Vista...

Not a bad game. A little on the simple side but still entertaining. It's more of a marble shooter where you have to drop the colored "Orbics" to match the other colors. And I actually found the mini game a little annoying but maybe that's just me. :|

Thanks GGOTD and Lopens Games :!:

Great game! I'm enjoying it!

@ #6 Colin Wilson: This works fine on a netbook. I just ran it at 1024x600. It is not needed for this, but as mentioned by PR0XIDIAN there is a way to run programs that require a higher resolution (like 1024x768) on a 1024x600 screen with Intel embedded video like most netbooks. I also use Powerstrip (http://entechtaiwan.com/util/ps.shtm). It used to be freeware, but it now appears that they want $30 for it. If I need this again, I may look for an alternative as $30 is pretty steep, but it does work well.

Very professionally-made, fun game suitable for all family members, IMHO. It installed perfectly, and made very few system changes -- only those needed to keep scores and settings.

The bouncing and grabbing spice up the mechanical play, and the level layouts add strategy and puzzle aspects that keep it interesting.

This one is definitely a keeper for me!

Is the plunger on the side of level 7 really supposed to be catching and slowing the pieces, or this a bug of some sort? I have to spend so much time piling pieces up to pull the new ones in before they force a "game over" that I'm often out of time before I make any progress at all.

I picked this one up from Gamehouse a while back, so I don't need today's download. But the game is a great variation on match three that requires some aim and plotting to get through the levels. Great for kids or for adults who don't mind pretending to be a kid.

Downloaded fine, installed fine on P4, XP SP3, with directx9 (latest version). When I try to open it, it gives the message Windows exception access violation. I just did a registry scan and repair. What can I do?? I have the latest driver for the video chip - SIS
Thanks for those great programs.

can someone confirm this website legal and virus free
http://www.myplaycity.com

thanks

..........................Moderator Comment................................

MyPlayCity is a legal site (as is Gametop and FreeGamePick, which are similar sites to MyPlayCity) and the only problem you'll find with the games is when you close the games down. Your browser will be opened to their site; however this is innocuous. I've never had problems with MyPlayCity games. (apart from when they used to install tool bars, but they seem to have stopped doing that. The games are free from virii as far as I can see from my own AV software. You should check them yourself to be sure. :)

I'm having a major problem in that my mouse cursor does not appear and in order to do anything I have to make random mouse moves and hope that something highlights. Win 7 x64 if that makes any difference. But it does look interesting from what little I've been able to play it.


.................................Moderator Comment...........................

Try downloading and installing the gametop version of the game and see if it does the same. You may need to update your graphics drivers. It's more than likely your graphics chip is going to be NVidia or ATI.

You can find out by typing dxdiag into the run command then clicking on the display ta when the direct x diagnostics window opens up. When you discover which manufacturer created your chip google their name. you can access the latest downloadable drivers for your card via the front page of either of the main manufacturers.

I could not download this game. It kept telling me that the file was invalid. I went to the other site listed to get it free and it downloaded from there without any problem. I was disappointed because I prefer to download games from GOTD. Anyone have any idea why I could not download it from here?


.....................................Moderator comment.............................

The cookie associated with the giveaway site may have become corrupted. Clear out your internet cache then try again. If that doesn't work try rebooting your modem and/or router.

Sorry if this is a dumb question - is this game really only valid for 40 days? I got such a warning when I started installing the game. I thought that with Game Giveaway of the Day you get to keep the game permanently, but then a previous game I downloaded - Dr. Pills - expired after 40 days. I was very disappointed as I really liked that game. I don't know whether I installed it incorrectly, or whether these games are only available for 40 days. Thanks for any responses.


...................................................Moderator comment...................................

No there isn't a 40 day limit on the games given away. They should be full version 'registered' games that you can play so long as you don't change the operating ystem. Once you do that you lose the regisrty entry and the game reverts to a demo.Not all game given away write the reg code to the registry, but I think this one does. The good news is that you can download the same game from Gametop. the only difference between the two games is that the Gametop game opens up your browser when you close the game down. It's entirely benign, so shouldn't be a worry. Gametop do send out pop ups so be sure to have a pop up blocker active.

I can't explain why the game isn't registering because the file is a dual setup and activation module so it should automatically register the game.

Fun game. I like the way the critters bounce around, so you don't always know if they're going to make contact for a match or not. Interacting with them and building their settlement is a good change of pace. And the option of Relaxed Mode is always a plus. I saw this game on one of the sites mentioned above, but it didn't sound all that interesting until I saw Whiterabbit's review here. So thanks to GOTD and Whiterabbit and Lopen's.

Hi whiterabbit - only pop into this site every now and then and I've checked out your free games project, but can't figure out how to check out all of the different weeks - can you post how or email please? Thanks, Jester


.............................................Moderator comment...............................................


At the moment the only way to check the free games project is to work through the games discussion forums. We haven't referenced the weeks to the games in the synopsis. Though you can browse the games alphabetically. The synopsis will be update sometime in the future and will be divided into genre categories, however I think a list of each weeks games would also be a cool addition. There is quite a lot of work involved though so it will take some time to finish. My intention is also to replace all of the Caiman links as these are now dead. Apparenty the Caiman site is being ported to a new site, but none of the old links will be valid.

@ colin Wilson there is a program called " powerstrip " it will let you force your monitor/graphics card to display custom resolutions allowing you to play games on your computer that have unsupported resolution! =D HAPPY GAMING!

Would it be possible to include details on giveaways whether it'll work on non-standard display resolutions ?

Many netbooks have a "shorter" vertical resolution that means many tools or applications (even those provided with the OS) are virtually impossible to use due to missing buttons off the bottom of the screen.

........................................moderator comment.................................

Unfortunately I only have PC and laptop computers so don't have the ability to test such configurations.

Thanks game giveawayoftheday! This is a cute little game. Great for those wanting to download and install a game for their children.
Keep up the good work.

this game is free at gametop, i downloaded it last month.


..............................................moderator comment..................................

:!: That information has already been disclosed. lol The advantage of downloading today's game is you don't get the annoying browser opening when you close the game down. :D

I love Trio! I'm looking forward to playing it, to see if it has more levels than the version that I have now. Thanks for the good game.

Nice surprise tonight, downloaded and tried it. It's a drop-down Tetris-style system with a simple match-three anyway you want (not just lines), but with a surprising amount of flexibility and physics involved similar in feel to World of Goo. There's bouncing and jiggling, but the pieces will stick nicely when landing, and seemingly electromagnetically fusing when matched.

The overworld is ok, but I think I'll skip most of the storyline, which it fortunately has the option to do.

Conclusion: Great game with a meh title and a very refreshing take on a very old genre.

Trio: The Great Settlement

Todays game downloads to a 29.6Mb zip file that unpacks to two files a read me and a dual set up and activation module. Installation is easy. Jusy click on the wrapped set up file. Te default location for installation is C:\Program folder\Trio, but you can change that to suit your own file setup. (I put mine on a different hard disc to the root disc and place it in a games folder. The game intalls a shortcut to the desktop by ensuring the checkbox is ticked. A shortcut to the start menu is installed by default; you'll find an uninstaller in the start menu folder or the actual uninstaller within the games main folder. The installed game is 33.8Mb in size.

Introduction:

TriO: The Great Settlement is a casual game with unique physics that bring a new twist on the usual match-3 game play. The storyline will take you on an adventure of magic, light, and the hope of freedom.

The entire Orbics race has been imprisoned and you must free them using the “miraculous power of the three” by combining three Orbics of the same color together. Beware, however, because there is a dark and ancient power that looms in the shadows and wishes ill on you and the Orbics.

Every level is different with a combination of challenges. For example, some levels are flooded with water, meaning you will have to compensate for buoyancy in order to place your Orbics where you want them to go. In some levels you must use your Orbics to dig deep and retrieve valuable treasure chests full of ancient gold.
After you have saved a number of Orbics from their dark prisons you can use the gold you acquired to build them new homes in your own thriving settlement on the floating islands. The little Orbics respond and change mood when you build necessary structures for them, like markets, schools, etc.

Unexpected turns of the story, ancient treasures, magic artifacts, hordes of intricate enemies, powerful bosses will not let you feel bored!

Features:

• 70 challenging levels (each level in two stages)

• Defeat Bosses

• Discover and build up floating islands

• Solve the secrets of ancient race of orbics

• Use bonuses to defeat Dark Orbics

• Trophies and magic artefacts


The Game:


The game comprises of 70 levels, each level having two stages, (effectively giving you 140 levels), and there are three game modes called Normal, Relaxed and Open, though the open mode isn’t available until at least one of the first two has been completed. You can then choose any level you wish or click on the random button which chooses levels at random. The difference between Normal and Relaxed is that the former mode (Normal) is timed.

There is an introductory story board comprising of several screens, then a little animated sequence showing you one of the islands that you can develop as the game progresses.. Both can be skipped by clicking on the X.

A stage is completed when the flask to the right of the playing area has been filled by red fluid, or in the case of the timed mode you run out of time or the boxes (orbis’s) reach the red laser marker.

Options menu

Options include the usual slider for music, which I found very repetitive and nondescript, plus the sound volume for in game effects. Thankfully this is easily remidied by changing the music files, details of which I've included below. There is also a slider for mouse sensitivity and two toggles; one for fullscreen/ windowed modes and the other one for setting a custom cursor, as well as a button that takes you to the credits.

There is a simple tutorial that appears whenever a new element to the game appears. It can be turned off at any time

Game modes

The game is fully controlled by the mouse. You move the blocks to be dropped to the left or right and when lined up click the left mouse button to release the block from the crane that holds the block in place. You can change this block by using the right mouse button. Blocks automatically link together when a match of three or more is made.

You earn gold by completing levels and this can then be spent on improving the islands. When the island screen opens you click on the build button which brings up a selection panel. Initially only one house is available (for a price of 500 gold pieces), but as the game progresses another six buildings are unlocked. From the island screen you can also gain access to the trophy room, which displays the various awards that you earn during the game.

As well as the main menu or how to play section that shows you pictorially and in words how to play the game. The concept is simple, make a match of three or more to destroy the bricks. The bigger the combo the more points you score.

As you progress through the game the levels become progressively harder as new game elements such as multi hit boxes and new level designs are introduced. If you fail to complete a level in time you can either restart the level or skip to the next level; however you are only allowed three skips during the game so use them wisely.

Images:

You can see a slideshow of about 35 images of the game by following the link below. You can also view them all on one page and enlarge then using the zoom provided by clicking on the Grid button to the bottom right of the slideshow:

http://s571.photobucket.com/albums/ss160/Whiterabbit04/Trio%20-%20The%20Great%20Settlement/?albumview=slideshow


Reviews by other players:


Andrew Williams from Bytten.com says:

"I had a fun time playing TriO, which to my mind really should have been called "Orbics: The Great Settlement", and my efforts to research minor points for this review tended to take up much more time than intended - always a good sign of an addictive game! Hold on, the telephone's ringing... hello? Redrice? Yes, they're just reading this now... oh, the prophecy? I'll tell them. Bye! ... As I was saying, TriO is a fun and addictive game, and according to an ancient Orbic legend, you're the one supposed to go and save them all. What are you waiting here for? Get cracking!"

Mike Gnade from The Indie Game Magazine says:

"Let me just say right now, Orbics are really freaky looking creatures. They are living, breathing emoticons full of magical energy. They aren’t the cutest of creatures, but somehow I was compelled to save them and play through each increasingly difficult level. While the game takes few risks, the gameplay is rewarding and is, at most, deserving of a free, one hour download."

System Requirements:

Windows XP/Vista
Processor 1 Ghz or better
256 Mb RAM
40 Mb of hard drive space
32 Mb of video memory
DirectX 7.0





Conclusion:


Overall ‘Trio: The Great Settlement’ is an excellent and fun family game that has loads of replayability (Each time you play a level the blocks will be in a different configuration). The kids will love The comic style graphics. The addition of a sim like mini game where you have to develope a series of islands as the game progresses adds a little extra to the usual match three game play. The game play is different to the usual fare that you'd expect from this branch of the match three genre, with interesting puzzles incorporated into the game in a subtle way. Don't let the cheerful graphic and the well worn match three concept put you off thinking that this isn't a serious puzzle game because it's not. The levels get progressively harder and harder, and I challenge even the hardiest of puzzle lovers not to say that they had a hard time reaching the end of this interesting game. Mini games have become the norm over the last few years and have helped to regenerate a tired genre. This sim like add-on is no exception. it's simple in design will give added pleasure to playing this excellent game.

If you don't like the in game music you can change it by exchanging the ogg files. see below in the additional information section for more information.

In my opinion this is worth a good 7.5 out of 10. I’d give it more, but there are hundreds of match three style games around these days, so can’t say it’s exceptional; I’ll certainly be keeping this one for a rainy day. :)

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Other Information:



If you miss today’s giveaway you can download it for free 24/7 from MyPlayCity via the following link:

http://www.myplaycity.com/trio/

The free games project has seen several free games posted over the last few weeks that include an excellent RPG called Battle for Wesnoth (which I’ve posted previously outside of the project, but the game has had a big update so decided to include it), there is also a space shooter with great retro graphics called Hydorah, and a point and click adventure on the lines of Myst called Amertis. Plus a few others such as Bubblestorm, a remake of Donkey Kong and a WWII scrolling shooter called Blue Dragon, and I nearly forgot, a great game available via Steam called Moonbase Alpha (actually there are two new free games via Steam, because Alien Swarm was released last week). The last two games do require you to install the Steam client which is free. you'll then be able to download several other free games that I've detailed elsewhere in the games discussion forums. If you go back further there are some excellent physics based games such as Truck Dismount and a great snow boarding game called Virtual Resort (plus ORF Skiing)

Last week was the 100th week since starting the free games project. As a celebration TNIP and myself posted several more games which include some excellent platform games such as Coldgearz, Blackthorne, and Dizzy, then there's an excellent shooter with an original theme called Dan Da! Dan!; a point and click adventure called Biwa Of Blood; A great driving game with superb graphics (for a freebie at least) called Driving Speed 2, and another very professionally made game called Handball Challenge Training Camp, plus a few others that you’ll find under week 100. The following link will take you to the game discussion forums where you can find all of the above games posted within the last few weeks. just look for weeks 96 to 100 (there are several other not mentioned as well).

:)

http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/forums/forum/17

If you have problems with the game following todays giveaway then please post your comments over in the forums via the following link:

http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/forums/topic/7854?replies=1#post-81116


Music:

If you find the music irritating you can exchange the music for anything you fancy. The only prerequisites are to convert your music to the ogg format and rename the files to the same as the ones found in the games folder (game01, game02, island01 and island02). You can find the music files by following the path below (assuming you've allowed the game to be installed to the default location:

C:\Program files\Trio The Great Settlement\data\music

If you don't have an audio converter you can find several via the freeware section of the giveaway project:

http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/freeware/cat/Audio_Video/