Ishido: The Way of Stones

Ishido: The Way of Stonesis apuzzlevideo gamereleasedin 1990byAccoladeand developed by Publishing International. It was designed by Michael Feinberg and programmed by Ian Gilman and Michael Sandige. The game's producer was Brad Fregger, and Brodie Lockard (the designer of theShanghaicomputer game) contributed with graphics.
Ishidois a puzzle board game consisting of a set of 72 stones and a game board of 96 squares.
Every stone has two attributes: a color and a symbol. There are six colors and six symbols in each stone set, thus creating 36 unique stones. Since each stone comes in a pair, there are therefore 72 stones in each stone set.
The primary objective ofIshidois to place all 72 stones onto the board of 96 squares. The challenge arises because stones must be placed adjacent to others that they match, either by color or symbol. When the board begins to fill up, this objective is not so easily accomplished.
A valuable move is the4-way, in which a stone is placed in the midst of four others, two of which are matched by color, and two which are matched by symbol.
Ishidocomes with six differently themed stone sets, five different game boards, and a variety of Oriental chimes and sound effects.
AfterEpyxfailed to publish it for Christmas '89,the originalIshidogame was published by Publishing International in a limited edition in a hand-made walnut slip box with disks for Mac and Mac II.The limited edition retailed for $495. Then the following year, 1990, Accolade published the first mass-market version for theMacintosh,with ports toDOS,Amiga,Game Boy, andSega Genesisin the same year. TheFamicom Disk SystemandAtari Lynxversions were published in 1990 & 1991 respectively. TheMicrosoft Entertainment Packcontains an adaptation of Ishido calledStones.
The Genesis port of the game was involved in the copyright trial,Sega v. Accolade.
A physical board game version ofIshidowas published in Japan byASCIIin 1992.
Compute!called the Macintosh version ofIshido"addictive ... a peaceful encounter with an Oriental flavor".The New York Timeswrote that it "is one of those deceptively simple games, likeGo, that gradually reveal their subtleties ... most engrossing".Computer Gaming Worldcalled the game "a remarkably complex entertainment resource, with some pleasant surprises". The magazine likedIshido'sVGA graphics, and concluded that it would please both novice and experienced strategy game players.TheAtari Lynxversion of the game was reviewed in 1992 inDragon#181 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 5 out of 5 stars.Entertainment Weeklygave the game a B+.
Ishidowas rated 'Five Mice' byMacUser, which called it a "flawless" strategy game "in the 'a minute to learn, a lifetime to master' tradition" but criticized the limited edition release's price.PC Magazinesaid the game was simple enough to be almost immediately accessible and enjoyable, yet complex enough to provide hours and hours of challenging play.ReviewingIshido's re-release in 1995,MacUsergave it 4 out of 5 mice.Macworldnamed the Macintosh version ofIshido: The Way of Stonesthe Best Brain Teaser game of 1990, complimenting its need for strategy and "entrancing" graphics, alongside the feature of being able to create custom gamepieces;MacworldputIshidointo their Macintosh Game Hall of Fame.
Integrated intoIshidois an oracle, a way to ask questions of the ancient Chinese Book of Changes, theI Ching.
First the user poses a question. Then they meditate upon it while playing the game. When they attain a '4-way' match,Ishido, utilizing the same algorithm as the authentic yarrow stalk method of consulting the oracle, obtains an answer.
An original translation of theI Ching, which used the Wilhelm/Baynes and Anthony translations as primary sources, was written for the game by Michael Feinberg.
Ishidocame with a 20-page booklet, "The Legend of Ishido". It began:
The story was fictional and written by Michael Feinberg. Nevertheless, many believed thatIshidoactually was an ancient game, recently re-discovered.