Sound of the Pipa

Sound of the Pipa
Sound of the Pipa image
Publisher	Gowin (Taiwan)
Developer	AMind (?)
Cart ID(s)	GS01
Console	Gameboy (DMG)
Date	1993 (?)
Retail price	390 NTD
Alternate names/hacks	Song of the Pipa

Sound of the Pipa (琵琶行) is a game for the original Gameboy made by Gowin. It credits a company called AMind on both its title screen and box art. Little is known about this company. The year it was created is unknown, however it is featured in advertisements included in older releases of the game Magic Ball by Gowin, which feature a copyright date of 1993. This year is also stamped on its circuit board.

Overview

The game is a puzzle game similar to Tetris. An outline of a shape is seen atop a platform at the bottom of the screen. The objective of the game is to fill that outline with blocks which fall randomly from the top of the screen. Those blocks may be rotated as they fall, and the player has a preview of upcoming blocks that will fall after the current one lands. The previewed blocks may be cycled out. If the play believes the falling block to be unfavorable, they may choose to drop it off the side of the platform to get rid of it. The player is also given a choice of a few bomb type items that delete blocks. The stage is completed when the outline is filled and no blocks appear outside of it.

Trivia

• This is game is known to feature the "Official Gowin Seal of Quantity" (a modification of the Nintendo Seal of Quality) on its box art.
• This game has the ID number GS-01, making it the earliest title released by Gowin. Other titles released by Gowin, such as Top Secret, had releases by companies other than Gowin that may predate this.
• Being created in the early 1990s, this is one of the oldest unlicensed titles made for the Gameboy.
• Gowin would re-release many of their monochrome titles, however no re-release of Sound of the Pipa is known to exist, and the game is not mentioned on Gowin's website or in the manuals and boxes of the newer Gowin releases.
• The price tag on pictures of this game show a retail price of 390 New Taiwan Dollars.
• Other early Gowin titles are believed to have been developed by companies other than Gowin. An example of this is Top Secret, which was developed by Songtly. This would suggest that AMind was the developer of this game.

Gallery

The front and bottom of the box.

The cart, manual, box, and sticker insert.

The right side of the box.

The left side of the box.

The back of the box.

The top of the box.

A picture of Magic Ball featuring an advertisement for Sound of the Pipa.