If you’ve been living under a rock for the past couple of weeks then let me introduce you to Bad Piggies for iPhone, the new spin off game from the mega franchise Angry Birds.
If you’ve played any of the Angry Birds games then you will feel perfectly at home in Bad Piggies which especially from a graphical point of view where environments for each level look like they’ve just been lifted off one of the Angry Birds games.
While Bad Piggies is certainly part of the Angry Birds franchise don’t expect to see any of your colorful feathered friends as this is hog territory only. While it’s also a physics puzzler there are no sling-shots in sight, while there are three stars to be collected on each level this time it’s not based on your high score but instead 3 separate achievements.
In Bad Piggies for iPhone your task is to build a vehicle on which to transport your hogs to a finish-line somewhere on the level. You can zoom around the environment to find where your destination is and then view the the three star requirements set for the level.
These stars requirements range from reaching the finish line, not using certain vehicle part, complete the level under a certain time and many others which change from level to level. You’ll also rarely be able to complete all the stars in one go and will have to change your plans within each level just to complete each objective.
Because of this the game is certainly takes more thought and planning than most of the Angry Birds games and because of this younger players may get frustrated with the subtleties required to complete the levels.
Of course help can be brought in if you are struggling with any of the levels by calling on a mechanic to suggest the best approach to take, which of course can be purchased via in-app purchase and if you insist on completing each level with 3 stars that may very well be required.
Instructions for the 90+ levels are provided via a little in game book which give pictorial guidance on what you need to do on each level. The 90 levels are split over 3 worlds and my favorite of the 3 is the 2nd world where you transport your pig on balloons!
While much of Bad Piggies is good, including the Game Centre integration with 33 Achievements it’s still disappointing that it’s that Rovio continue to not release the game as a universal app and have no progress syncing between devices.
It also appears that the release of the iPhone 5 came a little too quickly for them as it’s still currently ‘letterboxed’ on the iPhone 5.
Overall Bad Piggies is a fun and challenging game and takes the challenge of Angry Birds to the next level.
[rating: 4.5/5]
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Frisbee Forever 2 is a nice mashup of Frisbee quidditch and mini-golf. Your objective is to flick your Frisbee to collect stars as you guide your Frisbee through hoops or tunnels or other obstacles along the way.
You can choose to play Frisbee Forever 2 for iPhone and iPad by either pressing on the edges of the screen or by tilting your iOS device. I started with the tilt and then switched to the screen control. I’m not sure which I liked better, but tilting seems like such an instinctive way to play the game, even when I was using the screen controls I was tilting as well.
Each level begins with you flicking your Frisbee as far and as straight as you can. Like Sonic the Hedgehog, you follow the path of stars and pipes and slides and hoops and other obstacles that are on the designated path. But like any Frisbee throw, it eventually runs out of steam and falls back to the ground.
One of the parts of the game I liked the best was a clear list of objectives that needed to be completed. Whether you succeeded or failed, you were shown a screen stating that you needed to fly through more rings, collect more starts, or just fly further. The objectives changed frequently and it really helped to focus your efforts.
The sound effects were cool, but the background music was annoying. It was some sort of acoustical guitar that didn’t really fit a particular style. It was perky enough, but somehow it just didn’t fit the game for me. The graphics were bright and crisp and the in-game baubles were big and clear that they were you’re target.
This is an easy game to understand, just flick the disk and collect the obstacles. But it was challenging to accomplish the various objectives and required some serious concentration. Both the screen and tilt controls will take some practice to master. Frisbee Forever 2, though, is a solid game that will provide lots of reasons to keep coming back for more.
[rating: 5/5]What we like
What to know
[rating: 4/5]
A fun iPad app that will have you bouncing through the countryside as you attempt to make your escape from the farmer’s festive but fiendish plans.
In iHop – Getaway Chicken HD ($1.99) your job is to fly the chicken coop before becoming someone’s idea of dinner. By using the accelerometer, you move the iPad to bounce your chicken off the hay bales and scoop up coins and food along the way. Of course you also need to avoid the bats and birds in your path. And the meat products. You’re a vegetarian, you know.
Using the accelerometer to control your bounces is a really natural way to play this game. It doesn’t take much practice to direct your chicken along a path you choose. But choosing the path is what makes this game difficult. You have to be quick about choosing a landing spot, picking up fruits and vegetables as you bounce along. You can tap the screen on the left to shoot eggs to knock out the bats and birds or you can tap the screen on the right to bounce higher to avoid or connect with objects crossing your path.
This game is part of the GameCenter network, but it’s also part of the WEMO network. On GameCenter you’ll be able to compare yourself to friends and track achievements and rankings. But with WEMO, you’ll be able to see ghosts within the game as you pass your friends’ highest accomplishment.
iHop – Getaway Chicken HD also has in-app purchases available that can make the game easier to play. Skis to allow you land on smaller surfaces and a tri-hop skill are the most popular. But of course, you can also do quite well in the game without these additional items.
The graphics and music give the game a zany feel. The music is carnival-like and spunky, even bouncy. (See what I did there?) It has a fun feel, but could use a bit more variety in the look/feel/play of the game. A different background may not be enough to keep some people’s attention.
Overall, iHop – Getaway Chicken HD is an easy to pick-up game that will have you thinking you’ve got it mastered as it defeats you soundly. The accelerometer control means this probably isn’t a game you can play as you are sitting through a meeting, but it does make for a natural interface. There’s plenty here to keep you coming back to test your skills.
What we like:
What to know:
[rating: 3.5/5]
Fly Fu Pro is a highly detailed weapons based beat-em up game that is accompanied by a unique visual scheme. You play as McFly, a fly that is well versed in the art of Fly Fu. Your mission is to rescue your kidnapped girlfriend, Kate Moth, from evil spiders that are holding her captive. Ebony Overseer is your nemesis and you will spend your time trying to get to her to get your girl back.
Fly Fu Pro’s control system varies greatly due to the number of things you can do and the number of different game types. It is close to what some might call a button masher at times but as the game goes on you will have the opportunity to use other weapons. There are ten weapons that you can use, five melee weapons and five projectiles. Of course the basis of Fly Fu is punching and kicking but the other methods are acceptable.
The four different mini-games also play a huge role in how the control system works. For example, one mini-game consists of navigating a feather up and down avoiding obstacles and gathering objects. The mini-games such as this one help break up the button mashing style game play and change the entire game. The weapons that become available throughout the game also make the game much more diverse and increase the amount of fun you can have. There is a currency system in place so that you can purchase these weapons as they become available which is nice because it gives you enough choice. The game provides plenty of opportunity to play it your way within the confines of the story.
The concept is fairly simple to grasp. You want to beat the crap out of all of the bugs that are aiding in the kidnapping of your girlfriend, Kate Moth. Various methods will ensue but the goal remains the same. Much of the time there is a number of bugs that you must beat up to go on to the next scene. The ability to buy new weapons is pretty cool because it allows you to change up the madness with a new method of kicking butt. There are 24 skills that you can utilize as well such as fire breathing, life leeching and turning McFly into stone. The ability to collect Mana to gain other abilities offers yet another way for you to change the way McFly goes about his business. For example by filling up the Fire mana points McFly’s attacks become much more painful and by filling up the Water mana makes McFly’s endurance greater. These are just a few examples of how the game’s different aspects can make this game more and more complex as you go.
The visual and audio presentation of this game are great. I thoroughly enjoyed the unique environment that is created by Magnus Muhr’s “Deadly Fly Art”. The atmosphere is very cool and the music ties into the theme of the game perfectly. At first the thought of it being a Fly Fu game threw me a bit but it is all tied together quite well. The game sports 20+ species of bugs that also changes the visual aspect quite a bit and keeps the enemies you face fresh and fairly new. My favorite part of this game is the attention to detail and its diversity throughout the entirety of the game.
Overall, Fly Fu Pro is a unique game that has numerous changes in its game play. With four mini-game types and a evolving story mode, you rarely find the situations staying the same. There is a common base to much of the action but it usually comes with a unique twist such as a new weapon or ability. Survival mode gives you a chance to get out of the story mode and see how long you can last. For the price of 99 cents you cannot go wrong here.
Pros
Cons
$0.99 (View in iTunes)
Category: Games
Released: Mar 17, 2011
Version: 1.0
1.0 (iOS 4.0 Tested)
Size: 47.1 MB
Language: English
Seller: Invictus Games Ltd.
© Invictus Games Ltd. All rights reserved. (C) 2011
Rated 9+ for the following:
Infrequent/Mild Profanity or Crude Humor
Infrequent/Mild Cartoon or Fantasy Violence
Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.0 or later
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