Mastersoft has released Brain School, the mind-trainer which has been in public beta for the past few weeks. Described as a “brain trainer with a difference ….. 20 amazingly addictive and FUN puzzles, each at 5 increasing levels of difficulty. Not only fun, but it will train your brain across a wide range of differing aptitudes such as; Verbal, Spatial, Numerical, and Musical… challenge your brain and make sure it’s functioning at it’s optimum potential!”…

Digital Smoke has released a new version of Solitaire City, adding “new games, sparkling particle effects and support for devices with high resolution VGA displays. A new version of Solitaire Setty, the cardset design tool has also been released that allows aspiring pixel pushers to design their own cardsets and upload them directly to their handhelds.”…

My university final exams are over - I have a degree (of some description), and my life is mine again, which means I can use the internet again too……

As spotted at Aximsite, Menniesyys notes that SmartGear has been updated to version 0.24, adding a series of improvements to this excellent emulator. Further details are available in the original forum post….

If you have one of the newer Smartphones which run in QVGA landscape mode, you might be interested in this snippet of news which John kindly sent in. It concerns Z-Infinity’s Cell Doom, which at present is stretched back to 176×220 on these devices….

Elements Interactive, developers of the EDGE Library has announced the somewhat mysterious Flurkies, which is tentatively “coming soon.”…

Larry Bank wrote in to point out HanaHo Games’s Space Invaders Trilogy, where you can “relive all the excitement of the arcade originals on your very own Pocket PC. Shoot down waves of alien Invaders before they land and destroy your base. Space Invaders Trilogy includes the original 1978 mega-hit Space Invaders, the 1980 sequel Space Invaders Part II, and the 1985 follow-up, Return of the Invaders.”…

Many thanks to Craig Buck for getting in touch to point out SpiderUI, a “radical UI navigation interface that allows you to define graphical nodes with audio effects. In version 3.0, the new ‘Side View’ display mode was created with game development in mind! It takes only 1/2 of the Form and allows you to create cool UI interfaces for your games.”…

If you cast your mind back several weeks, you might remember a competition run by eSoft Interactive where they handed out a flurry of Clickgamer gift certificates. The results are now in, and if your name is on the list you’ve got two weeks to reply to their email before your prize is handed straight to me- uh, drawn again. …

I’d like to wish a massive “Happy Birthday!” to Jason “Jaybot” Surguine, a talented musician and a massive influence and driving force behind the Pocket PC gaming scene. He’s the wit behind Snails and the Arvale series, along with many other games, and chances are you’ll have heard one of his catchy soundtracks even if you’ve just grazed the surface of Windows Mobile gaming….

I’m installing the latest round of patches on our Windows Server 2003 installation this afternoon, so please don’t be surprised if the site goes down for a few minutes at various points. If it’s still down tomorrow morning, well, you’ll know why… ;-)…

Matt Myers got in touch to let me know about his company 2EastMusic.com, which specialises in composing and transducing MIDI soundtracks for video games. Samples of Matt’s work are available on his website, and if you like the style and would like something similar in your game, you can reach him in the same place….

Also seen at FreewarePPC is AsobiSimon, a variant on the classic Simon Says game with four colours. It’s completely free and available to download here….

As spotted on FreewarePPC (set pop-up blockers to stun) is Pakii Squares, a free game with the simple goal of connecting the numbered squares in sequence - sounds easy, but not when the squares are bouncing all over the screen……

Astraware is currently running promotions on a number of game packs, lopping off between a third and half of the usual price. Further details are available on the offer page. In related news, the press release hinted at a number of new games due soon from the company, so keep your eyes peeled!…

A few days ago we posted on the public beta of Brain School. Well, not only is a new version available now but Mastersoft is running a competition with some incredible prizes for the tester who makes the biggest contribution to the game….

Thanks to Jason Surguine for letting me know that PDAmill has released their hotly anticipated platform gamer Rats!!, which features “wonderful cartoon graphics, amazing audio, innovative controls and a hilarious story all painstakingly tailored for the best possible experience on a Windows Mobile device.” You take control of “Morty the Rat as he runs, jumps, climbs, and does a lot of damage in the down-town sewer districts, across thick jungles, through evil Cat Villages, many more locales, and help him get back his Cheese.”…

It’s been a while but diehard DOS gaming fans take heed - a new version of PocketDOS is now available, although it still only emulates the 80286 and below architectures….

As spotted on PocketGear is Stones, a Pocket PC variant of Arkanoid, where you’re encouraged to just “Forget about scores - just have fun!”…

They’re here! If you’re a Glofiish X500 or M700 owner, head over to E-TEN’s web site and grab your free Windows Mobile 6 upgrade in English, French, Russian, German, or Chinese. You’ll need to register your device, if you haven’t done so already. Upon registration, you’ll receive an action key, which is needed to successfully install the upgrade.

If you get around to upgrading this weekend, keep us posted on your positive and negative experiences. Shots of Windows Mobile 6 on the X500 and M700 can be found above and after the break. … [more]