Monorail! - Lite Edition

The "Lite" version of Monorail contains most of the features of Monorail, and is a fully functional game, except for the following:

- Limited to 8 levels. Please note that these 8 levels were designed specifically for Monorail Lite, and do not exist in the regular version of Monorail. The regular version of Monorail contains 100 levels.

- There is no ability to share your achievements on Facebook in Monorail Lite.

- Logs and bricks are not available as construction materials in Monorail Lite.

- Multi-tier levels, and advanced features like heavy train cars are not available in Monorail Lite.

Monorail is the successor to the very popular Link! bridge-building game. In Monorail, your resources usage is limited only by your budget, which varies from task to task. Each project has different resources available, too. By combining them in creative ways, you must build a stable, low-stress bridge.

Your score is determined by how much money you have left in your budget, as well as by how well your bridge reduces stress. Your construction materials may weaken or break during crossing, and in later crossings heavy trains may create additional challenges to creating a stable bridge.

Monorail uses some of the principles of civil engineering to create stable structures. Creating bridges using randomly-connected girders, cables, brick, and stone will probably not turn out well. Instead, you'll need to think like an engineer

* Will a rectangular or triangular girder structure provide less strain on the girder joints?

* Does it make more sense to attach rope near the beginning and end, or near the middle?

* How can you use logs, which are similar to wood girders but fixed-length, to best support your girders and track?

* If you stack too many stone or brick, will they begin to crumble under the weight?

You should also consider the physical properties of the construction materials, and how the sheer and tension caused by the weight of your rail cars affects your construction. On some crossings, rope (which is cheap) may provide additional support from above, but if there are limited number of connection points it may be better to use steel cables (which is stronger than rope, but more expensive).

Several user controls are available, including zoom in/zoom out, grid overlay toggle, show/hide bottom controls, reset the entire level, undo, and delete (the "X" icon). This should be fairly obvious based on the icon. At the far right, bottom corner is an up/down arrow to toggle the bottom control bar display. A similar control is available at the top right corner.

Many of us have built bridges with toothpicks in school projects, or created a sturdy structure with a limited number of tools and materials. We all know how challenging - and rewarding - this can be.

If you believe that you have achieved an optimal bridge for the level, please take a screenshot of your bridge (or just a normal camera picture!), and post it to the Gold Rush Facebook wall at:

https://www.facebook.com/monorailgame

A quick demo video of Monorail (showing the regular version, not the Lite version), can be viewed here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATBu-H5vEKo

If you're having difficulty finding a good solution for a particular level, check our Facebook page for ideas and comments from other Monorail users. Also checkout "Link!" and "Gold Rush", which are Monorail's sister games.

Get ready... let's build!

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Developers! I'm now making 100% of the source code for the PAID version of this app (Monorail - Expanded) available at the following URL:

http://www.sellfy.com/digitalmeme

This app was created using the Corona SDK.

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