One of the easiest ways for casinos to make money, I'm sure, is through their slot machines. Low maintenance and easy to set up, I always see rows of these in casinos; at least in the movies. Slot machines have almost developed a cult phenomenon with people like James Coburn teaching you how to win at slots. According to him, certain slot machines exhibit certain traits and the game is much more complex than pulling the lever constantly. It is, at least, easy enough for my grandfather to pick up, who has been beckoning lately for his passport so that he may travel to Atlantic City, brave anthrax, increased border security and the 'new' world of air travel, in order for a chance at fifty complimentary dollars at slots.

Rupp Technology's Fruit Machine aims to do just this except you can do it from your Pocket PC rather than making such extensive travel plans. Not long ago, I looked at a title called Pocket Gambler, which is a comprehensive treatment of gambling. It gets back to the core of the casino functions, without the artificial personae and role-playing often associated with PC recreation titles, most notably Hoyle's cadre. Here, the developers focus solely on one title only: slots.

Indeed, they bring a certain depth to the slots arena. The display is colorful and well presented on the handheld screen. Control is intuitively manipulated with large buttons. One of the shortcomings of the Pocket Gambler collection was the overemphasis on realistic casino portrayal. Often, the art got in the way of usability. Small controls and diminished viewing ability without a constant backlight were some of the complaints I had in that review. Here, the slot machine is more sensible. You can easily hold what is dealt to you and nudge when possible. Fruit Machine also has a separate screen to show what constitutes as winning lines, so whenever you are in doubt, you can always check.

There are few but good sound effects included in the game. I only wish there were more; perhaps a different chime for all the different types of wins or even sounds for near misses or some audience applause. The trial version is time-limited and registering costs $14.99. Suffice to say, Fruit Machine is good at what it does. It is definitely a no-thrills albeit polished game. Its presentation is superb and unlike most PDA games, it does not try to fit everything on one screen, either for the sake of development simplicity or in some economical mentality. If slots are your life, you may want to use this as a way to detach yourself from your gambling habits, but I can't keep out of my mind that for five dollars more, you can get the more comprehensive Pocket Gambler suite. That suite also supports all major Pocket PC platforms and unless you are like my grandfather, who only wants to play slots, perhaps this is not as good a bet as it seems.

Ratings:
[06/10] Addictiveness
[11/20] Gameplay
[10/15] Graphics
[08/10] Interface/controls
[06/10] Program Size
[02/05] Sound
[03/05] Discreetness
[12/15] Learning Curve
[ N/A ] Multiplayer