While the title Official MotoGP 2010 suggests that you are purchasing a motorcycle racing simulation style game that’s not exactly the case, however does that make it a bad thing?
There aren’t a huge quantity of motorcycle racing games for iOS devices compared to the car racing genre and even less when you take into account the number focusing on road/track racing rather than the off road variety. However, many consider MotoGP to be the pinnacle of track racing so it should be the only motorcycling game you ever need, right?
As you would expect with an officially licensed game it includes all 18 riders and more importantly the 17 circuits from the 2010 calender from all over the world. One minute you’ll be at 45 degrees racing in Spain while the next time you find yourself with your knee rubbing across the tarmac at high speed in Holland, the USA or Japan. It’s a multi-cultural sport and the tracks reflect this.
The tracks look good and the bikes and riders look good too especially at high speed.
The game can be played in two modes, Quick Play will launch you into a race in any of the tracks that you’ve unlocked in the other mode which is Championship Mode.
Championship Mode as you would expect allows you to test your skills against the best MotoGP riders in the world. You have the option to qualify initially so that you can start as far up the grip as possible before taking to the race itself.
The game uses the same method as many racing games these days with the bike auto-accelerating and with virtual buttons in the bottom left and right of the screen enabling you to brake and give your acceleration a boost respectively.
This works well allowing you to concentrate on the more precise task of steering use of the accelerometer. The physics of the bike make the steering more difficult than a car however after a few races you’ll soon find yourself leaning into and sweeping around even the tightest of corners.
The three difficulty levels rank up the difficulty and pressure pretty evenly and while you may find yourself easily winning the Championship playing at Rookie level the heat of the battle will intensify as you progress through the Professional and Legend levels putting you into more of a dog fight with your opponents which actually makes the game much more fun.
Trophies and achievements can also be won for completing the Championship as each rider and for some some less standard successes such as overtaking 3 opponents in a row or for crashing three times in a race. However, the one thing that would add the most value for money to the game would be a multi-player option which is unfortunately lacking.
All in all though the Official MotoGP 2010 iPhone game is a great representation of the sport, it doesn’t add many bells and whistles to the genre but if you are looking for a change from the standard car racing games this could certainly be the game for you.
Reviewed on an iPhone 4
Price: $3.99 (App Store)
Category: Games
Released:Aug 12, 2010
Reviewed Version:1.0.0
Size: 59.0 MB
Language:English
Seller: Digital Bridges Limited t/a I-play
© 2010. Published by I-play. All Rights Reserved. I-play is a trademark and trading name of Oberon Media, Inc. and its subsidiaries. © Dorna Sports S.L 2010
Requirements:Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later.
]]>
https://touchreviews.net/motogp-2010-review-iphone/feed/ 0
It seems that the World Cup has inspired a plethora of soccer related titles from full scale soccer games to skill based games where certain aspects of soccer are recreated and that is what we have in Volley Soccer for iPhone where you get to practice scoring goals in one of the most popular and spectacular ways.
In Volley Soccer your task is to score as many impressive goals on the volley as you can to score as many points as you can. Points are awarded for scoring each goal and additional bonus points can be achieved by scoring overhead kicks, chest volleys and hat-tricks.
The graphics are in the style of the Roy of the Rovers comic strip and you can choose to represent 8 of the top nations including England, Brazil, France and Argentina although unfortunately your selection is not remembered so each time you start a new game you have to re-select your team. There are also three levels to play through from Easy, Normal and Hard where the timing of your shooting becomes more and more sensitive and more accuracy is required to score goals.
Playing the game is simple as are the controls, too simple in my opinion and you’ll find yourself scoring goals certainly at the easy and normal levels with relative ease. Your player starts at the edge of the penalty area and the location where you need to strike the ball from is shown somewhere in the penalty box. Once the count down has completed you can move your player to the target area using the d-pad on the left side of the screen, the movement is rather slow but there is plenty of time to get to the target area before the ball is crossed into you.
As you wait the ball will appear for the right, it always appears from the right, and as it approaches you then hit the volley button on the right hand side of the screen to volley the ball into the back of the net. Your player will automatically position and address the ball as appropriate for the particular shot so there is no need for you to worry about whether you are about to to a bicycle kick, overhead kick or normal volley as this is will be handle be the game, your timing simply determines whether the ball flies into the top corner or goes wide.
These limited options minimize the sense of achievement when you do score a goal as it feels that most of the work is being carried out by the game itself rather than any skill on your part. Scoring three goals in a row will also add additional bonus balls enabling you to score additional goals and ultimately score more points.
Each new type of goal also earns you achievements as part of the OpenFeint integration where there are a total of 27 to be unlocked, although many of these are the same achievement just scored on a different difficulty level. Online leader boards are also provided via OpenFeint while there is also a local high score table too.
While other simple games are addictive and have the can’t put down factor that keeps you coming back for more the same cannot be said for Volley Soccer. The lack of control in scoring the volleys ultimately leaves you feeling more World Chump than World Cup.
Price: $0.99 (iTunes Store)
Category: Games
Updated: Jun 30, 2010
Current Version: 1.1
Size: 59.4 MB
Language: English
Seller: White Room Games Limited
© 2010 White Room Games Limited
Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.0 or later.
Last Front: Blob Invasion reminds me of a 1950’s B Movie, I’m not quite sure why it works, but it does and I’m not complaining! Tower Defense games appear to be both popular and successful on the various iDevices and Last Front: Blob Invasion is just going to join the ranks of the succesful TD genre. That’s not to say that there aren’t some missing features but at just 99 cents this is more of an add-on to the already successful earlier release from the makers of Last Front:Europe.
The main thing that stands out between this and other tower defense games is the premise, defending the world against an invasion of jelly bean looking blobs has to be unique but it adds a unique twist and keeps the game entertaining for the short time it lasts.
The game provides four maps for you to defend against the invading blobs, this is not as many as I would have hoped for and perhaps future updates will provide more maps but they are still different and provide a good challenge. Each map contains multiple spawning points and while the initial notification of where the next group of blobs is going to attack from it soon becomes clear and doesn’t stop you from planning your defense and attack appropriately.
You do need to move fast though as the blobs don’t hang around and while the spawning points may repeat the blobs movements aren’t so predictable so no two games are ever the same. The maps are a decent size too and you will need to scroll around the map by dragging your finger across the screen.
Once the invasion is on its way you can start deploying you various units. Your units are split into three varieties, your cheapest options, and the most readily available with the limited amount of money that you initially start with are the defense options where you can place mines, barbed wire and other defense options to help route the enemies in your preferred direction, namely your weapons.
The next set of options are your attack options which just like the other options are placed by simply selecting and then dragging them onto the screen. If you can place your unit it will be highlighted, otherwise it will remain dark and you’ll need choose a different location. The final options are your moveable units, the difference with these units, other than their price, is the fact that once place they can also be moved between waves on invasions.
All units can be sold and upgrade as and when required and with the variety of waves of the bouncing jelly beans you will need to be flexible in your placement but this is easy to do and makes it entertaining and never boring. And just wait until the blobs split instead of die, then things get really crazy!
The game is not easy and if this is your first Tower Defense game it’s going to be a fairly steep learning curve, but a worthwhile one. The lack of maps is disappointing and with only local leader boards for each map the long term enjoyment from Last Front: Blob Invasion may be a little short, but for 99 cents it’s still good value for money.
Price: $0.99 (iTunes Store)
Category: Games
Released: Jun 07, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.0
Size: 15.4 MB
Language: English
Seller: Plow Digital
© (C)2010 Plow Games
Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iPhone OS 2.2.1 or later.
Match 3 games are very popular in the App Store and the latest to be added to the mix is Blicks. Each new version of a match 3 game attempts to add something new and Blicks is no different as it adds a physics element to the game.
The basis of the game is just as you would expect, the screen starts with a variety of colored blicks at the top of the screen and your task is to launch new blicks to touch the others. When three or more matching blicks touch each other they will be cleared from the screen.
Where other similar games use a straight launch style to target the pieces trajectory Blicks float up the screen as you drag them across the bottom of the screen before letting them drift upwards into there final resting place.
This adds an element of luck into the mix as well as an extra challenge as any slight over movement in the launch of the blick will send it in a completely different direction than you may have wanted.
As the game progresses more blicks will be randomly added to the playing area so if you aren’t quick at clearing them the playing area will soon fill up to the limit and it will be game over. You do get a three second warning to clear the offending pieces before it’s game over but by that point it’s usually a foregone conclusion.
The game is OpenFeint enabled which adds an online leader board and achievements which is a good thing as the local leader board seems to have a bug where new high scores get added multiple times.
Over all Blicks is one dimensional and while at only 99 cents it’s not going to break the bank this new match three game is probably going to be for match 3 addicts only!
Pros
Cons
Blicks How to Play
Price: $0.99 (iTunes Store)
Category: Games
Released: May 26, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.0
Size: 7.2 MB
Language: English
Seller: Patryk Zielinski
© 2010 Patryk Zieliński
Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later.
Kill Kill Monster Campaign [rating: 4/5]
Developed by 1up-game Kill Kill Monster Campaign is an addictive catapult game for iPhone. Killing the brainless, gory monsters coming towards you is the only option to survive in this game.
The game play is straight forward, walking towards you are what is described as ‘stupid monsters’ all you have to do is hit them with boulders to stay alive! To do this you use a catapult to fire large rocks. When the rocks land on them they then splatter and die. Everytime you see one appear on your screen you then do the same.
Now watch out if any of the monsters reach your catapult you lose some of your health bar, lose too much of it and the game is over. If you do well your experience level goes up. Every time it fills to the top it adds points to enable you to upgrade your catapult. Obviously the more you upgrade the better you are going to get at killing those pesky monsters. There are 15 levels altogether and lots of different monsters to kill. As well as the chance to upgrade the catapult there are also different kinds that you can use.
The controls are straight forward and the instructions are shown on screen when you first start. To move the map from left to right you just move your finger from left to right. To aim and shoot you drag your finger from the catapult to where ever you want the rock to land, then let go. The rock then launches and goes in that direction.
There are ways to increase your score as well by doing as many combos as you can and also accurate shots will give you extra bonus points. The game is also OpenFeint enabled so you can compete online with all your friends. Completing set acheivements and trying to get on the leader board.
Within the game there are different modes to play, all offering you a different variation to the game. The main one is just to kill the monsters and clear out the village. There is also levels like, Save The Villagers who are trapped and you have to save them before they explode to pieces. All making the gameplay a little bit more interesting and varied.
The sound effects are quite good with lots of splattering and background wind blowing noises. The music is upbeat but annoying after a while but you can change to a song from your iTunes library which I have to admit I much preferred. The graphics are very good, they are bright and colorful with a lot of attention to detail. There is lots of blood splattering on your screen all fitting very well into the game.
Within the app as well the developers give you the option to submit your own map. If you have an idea all you need do is sketch it down, email it to them and if they use your idea you get your name credited in the game. Great for anyone who becomes a fan of the game!
It is an enjoyable game and when the monsters start coming faster and faster at you it does become an addictive game. With the option to use OpenFeint as well it has got the benefit of being a good game that you can pick up often to try compete. With the mention of new levels to follow as well it should definitely keep you going back to play the game.
The Good
The Not So Good
Kill Kill Monster Campaign Official Trailer
Price: $0.99 (iTunes Store)
Released: May 08, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.0.0
Size: 18.3 MB
Language: English
Seller: 1UP GAME STUDIO
© 2010 1UP Studio
Rated 9+ for the following:
Infrequent/Mild Realistic Violence
Frequent/Intense Cartoon or Fantasy Violence
Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later.
Motocross Challenge – 16 Bits [rating: 4/5]
Developed by DHGgames Motocross Challenge is a great racing game. Ride your bike through different scenes amazing the crowd by winning the race and doing super dangerous stunts along the way.
There are four different modes to play. Beat The clock which is where you race around the track trying to beat the time limits as you go from each checkpoint. The World Tour which you race three other players and try to come first. Trick Attack is all about the tricks and jumps you can do on your bike. The final mode is Vs Friends which is where you can challenge your friends via the OpenFeint feature.
Which ever challenge mode you play, as you play each game and win or score well you unlock different levels and scenes. There are 10 tracks you can unlock in 30 different races so there is lots to keep you playing for a while! As well as the different scenes you also unlock new bikes, all offering different features to help you ride better. You just choose the right bike for the right race.
When you first start playing the game there is a tutorial to show you the gameplay and controls. It is a good idea to watch this as it shows you all the stunts you can do within each race and how to do it. The controls are quite easy to pick up after a few attempts. You have arrow buttons on the left to move your bike up or down and on your right you have A and B. B is your gas button and A is your nitro boost button. You also need to tilt your device to guide your bike when doing somersaults. This took me a bit of getting used to but if you follow the tilt guide at the top which looks just like a spirit level it will help you along. That being said I still managed many times to land head first into the ground after doing a great stunt!
To start playing you first decide what mode you are playing, you then choose what bike you want to use. The bikes info pops up on screen telling you all about its features like speed, handling and weight and you then pick one that is suited for the race or stunts you are doing. Initially you won’t have much choice until you have unlocked a few bikes.
You then just work your way through the modes and unlock the new scenes as you go. On the screen it will also tell you what percentage of the game you have completed. There is a mode for everyone if you enjoy the stunts you can just play that or if you really want a challenge you can send an invite to one of your OpenFeint friends and see if you can beat them.
The music and background is the typical upbeat music you find on most racing games and the sound effects are very good. Crowd cheering and gasping when you crash, engines revving, basically the usual noises a bike makes. The graphics are quite good as well, all the different scenes are colourful and detailed in pixel style and the sliding scenes are good. The control buttons do take a lot of the screen up though so the gameplay screen is a lot smaller than your iPhone screen. I think it would have been good if it was full screen size or at least a little bit bigger. At the moment the game is in the middle and then all the buttons are round the outside of it. A bit like how you play a game boy or any similar console.
The different modes will keep you picking up your device to play again and again. I replayed the Trick Attack mode many times to see if I could score any higher. With the option to use OpenFeint as well there is lots of replay value and enough variety to stop you getting bored with the game.
The Good
The Not So Good
Price: $2.99 (iTunes Store)
Updated: May 04, 2010
Current Version: 1.2
Size: 9.2 MB
Language: English
Seller: David Doucet
© DHG Games Inc. 2010
Rated 4+
Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iPhone OS 3.1.2 or later.
Faces iMake is a fun application created by Imaginemachine designed to let you show off your creative side. Have fun making faces with every day objects found around the home.
The theme of Faces iMake is simple, it is aimed at you taking a different look at the objects around you and seeing what you can create with them. Within the app are real pictures of objects most people will have around the house already. With these objects you then make a face of any kind. It could be funny, cute, evil, angry, scary anything really that you could possibly think of. You could even give it a little body!
When you first start out with the app might I suggest you give the lessons a quick look first. These are videos each several minutes long and they show you ideas and give you little tips as you go along. Now I know for most people the idea of watching a tutorial first is quite off putting but this is a tutorial with a diifference. The video is presented by Hanoch Piven who also worked in conjunction with the app and it is his lesson and workshop you watch. The videos had me hooked and I ended up watching them all! The voice over, which I am presuming is Hanoch Piven, was entertaining and a pleasure to listen to. It really was like watching an art lesson, but it had humour in it and his voice and enthusiasm shone through making it great fun to watch.
So once you have had your fun watching the videos and learning the ins and outs it is time to have another giggle and see just how creative you can be. Start out by chosing the background for your work of art, there are lots of shades to choose so there is bound to be the one you want. Then you need to decide if you want to have a face shape already to place your items or whether to create one of your own with the objects. It is up to you there is no right or wrong way to do it. If you decide to go for a base for your face then there is a great choice of 27 different shaped faces to choose from.
When you have decided on your background and base for your objects you are then ready to place them on your piece of art. There are over 100 objects all in different catergories. Objects of food, toys, things from the kitchen, tools, school, buttons and finally letters of the alphabet. All the objects are in different sizes. When you place the objects down you can rotate them if you like. You can’t resize any of the objects but I think this is designed to be as real life like as possible. If you were doing this on an actual piece of paper with the object you wouldn’t be able to resize it. So instead you have to use a different object more to the size you are looking for. There is also the option to layer the objects on top of each other.
Once you have created your master piece you then save it to the gallery within the app. When it is in the gallery you can then assign it to a contact, save it in your iPhones photo album, email it or upload it to facebook for all your friends to see.
When I first started trying out this app I thought it was aimed at just children but when I watched the videos and then tried the app out several times I realised that it is a great app for anyone to show off their creativity. The objects are all photos of the actual items. They are colourful and very clear and a lot of detail as gone into each item and what size they should be. The UI (User Interface) is very good, the menu bar is a sliding bar with buttons and all very easy to use for any age. The app also has great sound effects when you press certain objects and a fun, quirky song playing in the background. There is the option to turn these off should you want to but to be honest they added even more entertainment to the app and are worth keeping on.
There is no limit to the amount of faces you can make. There are so many objects to choose from and face shapes that it is an app with many possibilities and one that there is no chance of getting bored of.
The Good
The Not So Good
Price: $0.99 (iTunes Store)
Updated: Apr 23, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.2
Size: 13.9 MB
Language: English
Seller: iMagine machine LLC
© 2010 iMagine machine llc and Hanoch Piven
Rated 4+
Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later.
Jimmy Pataya [rating: 3/5]
If jumping out of an airplane, falling down and avoiding obstacles sounds like your idea of fun then Jimmy Pataya by PaladinStudios is for you.
Jimmy Pataya is apparently an extreme sports addict who loves to sky dive. His main hobby at the moment his jumping out of an airplane into what is called the Grinder. The Grinder is a huge obstacle course he needs to avoid or else he will die. His aim is to see how far he can go dodging everything in his path.
When you first launch the application you are greeted with the main menu and all you do is press start. There are no instructions to read, you are just shown a picture of your device tilting and that is basically all the controls you need. Jimmy jumps out of his plane and you then guide him with your device from left to right. As he falls the Grinder starts to appear. Its like a huge wooden fan with parts missing, you make sure Jimmy falls where the parts are missing. Each time you do he falls further down to another grinder and you keep doing that through out the game seeing how long you last. The game gets faster then slows down again depending on the pattern of the grinder. Once you hit the object that is it the game is over and on your screen is your score and also the highest score you have gained so far since playing. Each time you achieve a high score it is also displayed on your screen.
The 3D graphics are quite good and full of colour. There are some nice sound effects as well, Jimmy shouts a few comments depending how well you are doing. At one point I was ‘awesome’! The music in the background is incredibly annoying and distracting. You can mute it if you like but if you do, it mutes the sounds that Jimmy makes too. It would be nice if the developers gave an option to keep the sound effects but turn off the music in the background.
You can tweet your high score via Twitter but thats about as competitive as it gets. There is no online leaderboard to achieve high scores and trophies on it. This style of scoring game where there is just one level and you see how high you can score would normally be used with OpenFeint for example giving you a reason to carry on and play over and over beating your friends. At the moment there is nothing like that so I can see people getting bored of it quite easily.
The Good
The Not So Good
Jimmy Pataya Trailer
Price: $0.99 (iTunes Store Preview)
Updated: Apr 09, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.0.1
1.0.1 (iPhone OS 3.0 Tested)
Size: 17.3 MB
Language: English
Seller: Paladin Studios
© 2010 Paladin Studios
Rated 9+ for the following:
Infrequent/Mild Cartoon or Fantasy Violence
Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iPhone OS 2.2.1 or later.
Ever want to re-live famous battles from World War II on your iPhone or iPod Touch? Well now you can with Last Front Europe, a real time strategy game that see’s you take control of any one of four national army’s as you defend yourself against the enemy. You can play as either the British, Americans, Soviets or Germans and each one of them offers their own rewards so playing through the game as each of them is certainly worth while.
There are 3 modes of play, Campaign Mode will see you battle through 16 maps including some famous battles from WWII itself while Battle Mode lets you engage in defending yourself against a massive onslaught of enemies attack you in wave after wave of frenzy and finally online mode which I will come onto later in this review.
The navigation is nicely down and moving through the screens to get to your first battle is simple enough although some of the load times did seem a little lengthy especially between some of the menu pages rather than the when a new game is started. The graphics have a good military theme to them as does the music and they certainly help you get into the fighting mood!
The game is played in a 2D top down mode but the maps extend far and beyond the iPhone/iPod Touch screens allowing you to zoom in and out as well as drag the map around to get a full view of everything that is going on. Your simple mission, should you choose to except it, is to stop all enemy soldiers and their military vehicles from getting behind enemy lines.
Each map has multiple starting points for the enemy soldiers and there sole aim is to get to the other side of the map, both of these goals are signified by flags. As the game starts you get a brief opportunity to survey the area before the first wave begins. You have two options to start with, a machine gun post for offence and a pill box for defence. As you would expect in such games you can simply drag and drop either option to place it on the map and each item will have a varying cost. Be careful on where you place any item though as once it’s placed there’s no turning back, unless you simply want to buy it back for a lot less than you brought it for.
The enemy soldiers will attempt to take the shortest route to their goal, however as there are multiple spawning and ending points you can’t just place all you weapons in one place and watch as you annihilate all the enemy. Instead you must balance your choices and placements and the balance between the cost of the placement of units is and the money you earn from killing the soldiers is ideally balanced.
To complete each level you need to defend yourself against a set number of waves while ensuring that less than 20 enemy soldiers make it through. This starts pretty easy but as you progress the difficulty raises ensuring that things are kept interesting at all times.
To play online you need to register an account first, this not only gives you access to play online however, this also gives you access to track your progress and more importantly it gives you access to a Map Editor that I will come onto shortly. In the online game mode you won’t find yourself battling directly against other players but instead you will all play the same selected level for a given amount of time. At the end of this time you will be ranked based on your success. This is a great addition to the already fun Campaign and Battle modes that already provide so much value for money.
The beauty of Last Front Europe though is the ability for users to create their own maps and share them with other players, this may not be the first time that this feature has been provided on an iPhone/iPod Touch game but it’s certainly the first I’ve heard of and should continue to add value to the game for a long time to come. The map editor is based online and can’t be accessed on your mobile device. Creating maps is very straight forward, you can vary the overall size of the map and then set it in either the desert, forest or snow. From there you can add all the features that you see in the pre-made game itself.
Each map gets a code for you to be able to download it to your device, you can then provide this code to other players or they can find it just by searching. This ingenious addition to what is already a fun game should keep it flying high for quite a time.
For me this is a must have game for any iPhone or iPod Touch owner to add to their collection. It’s easy to learn yet hard to master and with the unlimited maps available from users it will keep you going for as long as World War II was itself.
The Good
The Not So Good
Reviewed By: Craig Willis
Last Front Europe Features PART 1 & PART 2
Price: $3.99 (iTunes Store Preview)
Released: Mar 02, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.02 1.02 (iPhone OS 3.0 Tested)
Size: 12.9 MB
Languages: English
Seller: Plow Digital
© (c) 2010 Plow Games, LLC
Rated 9+ for the following:
Frequent/Intense Cartoon or Fantasy Violence
Requirements: Compatible with iPhone and iPod touch. Requires iPhone OS 2.2.1 or later.
E-Punk – Shooting cars to save the planet! [rating: 3/5]
There are many apps based on an interesting premise that doesn’t quite deliver. Eco-Punk by nitako is an interesting concept that has great potential that doesn’t quite follow through. What could be an entertaining game just seems to fall short in a couple of very key areas.
In E-Punk you play a punk rabbit skateboarder who’s taken on a mission to clean up the streets. The player skateboards in and out of traffic, picking up garbage as you go. Points are awarded for each piece of garbage collected. Traffic must be avoided at all costs while collecting trash, if your rabbit is hit even once by a vehicle the game is over. You can have your revenge against the polluting vehicles though by collecting either a purple or red power up. The purple power up make your skateboarder indestructible so you can destroy vehicles at will. The red power up gives you an automatic gun that allows you to do the same. Use either power up wisely as they are time limited.
Difficulty increases gradually the longer you survive in the game by adding more vehicles and the speed with which they move around the game area. In addition to this,E-Punk provides three modes of play: Classic, Blitz, and Timebend. Classic mode is a traditional progressively harder mode of play. Blitz gives the user to 60 seconds to survive and collect as many points as they can. Timebend is like Classic mode but the traffic will slow down and speed up based on how fast your character does.
Controls are simple and easy to understand. A tap and drag motion moves your character around the map. A tap and fling motion will send your character shooting off independently for a brief period of time.
As I said at the beginning of the review, I feel like E-Punk has a lot of promise but fails in a few key areas. First, game play is very repetitive. The entire game is played in the same small area. The background does not change and you can’t even move outside the small city block. Even repeating the block over and over again would be preferable to just locking the player into one area. This effects gameplay a great deal.
The second area is the damage model. Although it is very realistic, ending the game after getting hit once by a vehicle goes against most video game conventions. Even shooting games have a gradual damage model of some kind. Getting knocked out of a game so quickly and easily is very discouraging to a player and apt to make them want to put the game down then continue. To its credit, Eco-Punk does implement global leaderboards and achievements through OpenFeint.
Eco-punk is a fun little arcade game limited by its shortcomings. Solving these issues would greatly enhance this game and make it a solid pick.
The Good:
The Not So Good:
Reviewed By: Erin Peterson
Price: $0.99 (iTunes Store)
Updated Feb 19, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.0.3
Size: 32.8 MB
Languages: English
Seller: Mashak Eng
© 2010 Nitako
Roo Games have joined the App Store with there debut game Mole – Quest for the Terracore Gem. Mole see’s you take control of Mark the mole as he attempts to dig through the earth to find the fabled Terracore Gem.
You do this by controlling Mark the mole through 6 layers of earth to the Terracotta level deep down below the earths surface. How deep you can dig is all controlled by how much oxygen you have. Find yourself bellow ground with no oxygen and you will have to be rescued and all your progress on that dig will be lost.
To begin with you won’t have enough oxygen to travel much further than the first level of soil but as you dig down you will find gems and metal that you will be able to use to purchase upgrades to your tools and most importantly your oxygen tank. There are 4 main tools that you can upgrade based on the amount of metal that you collect on your digs and each of these will help you dig faster, longer and ultimately deeper.
The graphics are solid and the minimal sound is also effective with sound effects for all of your mole’s actions as he digs down through the earth. As you dig deeper and deeper some of the jewels will be encased in rocks and so your dynamite tool can be used to blow up the rock and access the jewels inside. Also as you reach the deeper levels of the earth such as the Qwort, Oxiton and Meganite levels you will find drills that your mole can climb into to travel back to the surface.
During this time use up no oxygen and travel much faster. Not only that but once you find the drill at each of the levels the drill becomes available on the surface to drill straight back down to the same surface. This is a great way to jump directly to the deeper levels but comes at a price and that price is metal, the same metal that you need to use to upgrade your tools so you need to balance your use of the drill with your need to upgrade your tools.
It is between each of your digs that you get the chance to upgrade your tools using your metal that you’ve dug up while the jewels simply add up your score which you can upload to Twitter so you can easily boast about your score to all your followers.
There is technically only one level but that one level will keep you digging for quite a while as you gradually make your way in the hunt of the Terracore Gem. The game auto saves your progress so even if you only have a few minutes to play you’ll be able to get at least a couple of digs in that will still contribute to your overall game.
Mole – Quest for the Terracore Gem is a single player game but there are also 4 ranks for your mole to move through and 10 medals to earn as you progress through the game. It’s a fun unique challenge and well worth the $2 that the game costs. Check it out in the App Store now and see if you dig it!
The Good
The Not So Good
Reviewed By: Craig Willis
Mole – iPhone/iPod touch Gameplay
Price: $1.99 (iTunes Store)
Updated Feb 05, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.1
Size: 24.5 MB
Languages: English
Seller: Chris Watts
© 2009 Chris Watts and Ben Britten Smith
As a child I was an avid reader. The “choose your adventure” stories were always one genre I enjoyed immensely. Those were the stories that were not meant to be read linearly but that jumped around the book depending on the decisions you made in the story. In many ways, they were the precursor to today’s non-linear video games. Fighting Fantasy: Deathtrap Dungeon from Big Blue Bubble is a translation of this genre to the iPhone. First popularized in the early 1980s, the Fighting Fantasy series of books by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone now finds itself in the digital age.
Deathtrap Dungeon is not a video game in the literal sense of the phrase. There is no actual live action. Instead, it is a direct port of the original format. In it, you follow the adventure of your character by reading the story and making decisions about progress at the end of each section. The adventure jumps around the book until you either end the story successfully or your character meets an untimely fate. The wrinkle in the Fighting Fantasy series of books is this: at the beginning of the story you rolled two six-sided dice (provided by the game) to roll the three character attribute values of Skill, Stamina, and Luck. These attribute are then used throughout the story to help determine the outcome. These attributes are sometimes used like hit points, lost or gained based on encounters and in other instances they’re used as a way to resolve combat and other encounters. Players also carry an inventory of items they can use along the way. Players move through a story by reading a section and making the required selection at the end by pressing the indicated button. The story moves to that section and continues. Along the way, they may have to use their attributes to resolve a situation or select an item from their inventory. Inventory items are selected from the menu accessed by tapping a page.
This game certainly has its merits and was a fun bit of nostalgia for me. It did however become very repetitive for me very quickly. The story was well written and interesting to read but Deathtrap Dungeon certainly isn’t what I’ve come to expect from iPhone games. If I’m going to read a book I’d much rather sit down and read a book from cover to cover then in this format. Similarly, if I’m going to play a video game I’m going to sit down and play a video game. I commend the authors and publishers for bringing this format to the iPhone but it just isn’t for everyone. I can see Deathtrap Dungeon appealing to adolescents and adults looking for a nostalgic trip back to their youth. I would certainly have no qualms about handing this story to an 11 or 12 year old who enjoys reading to entertain them on a trip although I don’t know if it could hold the attention of someone in their teens. For someone my age, it was certainly entertaining but not what I’m looking for in a game.
Fighting Fantasy: Deathtrap Dungeon is an innovative format but ultimately a direct port of an older genre. It doesn’t take advantage of the unique features of the iPhone platform nor do I believe it has the universal appeal of most successful iPhone games. If you need to entertain your tween on a trip, this might be worth picking up. Otherwise, you might want to find your adventure somewhere else.
The Good:
The Not So Good:
Reviewed By: Erin Peterson
Price: $2.99 (iTunes Store)
Released: Feb 10, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.0
Size: 44.9 MB
Languages: English
Seller: Big Blue Bubble
Just in time to cash in on the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver X2 Games have released X2 Snowboarding, which on the back of their success with X2 Soccer, brings a lot on eager anticipation with it. So does it take the gold medal or does it not even make the qualifiers?
I lived through all the variations of the SSX range of snowboarding games which for me really set the bar on high quality snowboarding games and while I’ve been waiting to play an iPhone version of SSX I’ve been waiting for another app to fulfill my snowboarding fix. There are plenty of other snowboarding games in the app store already but none of them have hit the quality and, if I may, “radness” of SSX…..until now!
While graphics in games aren’t everything they do look rather stylish in X2 Snowboarding and very much in keeping with the genre. From the cartoon style cell-shaded graphics to the intense snow effects the game looks wonderful and I often found myself shivering at how cold the whole game looks. The navigation menus are clean and simple and navigating them is easy.
There are 6 mountains in total and 6 characters each with unique skills to choose from and while 4 of the 6 mountains will need to be unlocked by your progression through the it’s nice to find that all the characters are available immediately. While they do all have a variety of skills covering speed, a couple of them are maxed out and you’ll find yourself playing solely as those characters. There are also a variety of boards to unlock although they only change how your board looks and doesn’t add to your speed or skills.
Each of the 6 mountains contain 3 game-play styles, freestyle and race are the standard styles and need no explanation while the third is Trick-Race, a combination of the two of styles where you have to perform tricks to stop your score reaching zero. For me the speed and thrill of the race is as simple and as great as it gets but what is great about X2 Snowboarding is how easy it is to pick up and play and yet still have enough of a challenge to keep you coming back for more, especially in the freestyle and trick-race modes.
The first thing you notice is how slick the steering controls are, moving your character via the accelerometer feels like second nature as is your control of your characters speed via tilting the iPhone forward and back to slow down. There is a virtual button on the left side of the screen is used to make your jumps and anyone who has played similar games will feel perfectly at home with these controls.
Once you have some air tilting the iPhone will generate flips and spins while two snowboards with appear on each side of the screen allowing you to make your grabs. Add in half-pipes and rails and you’ll be performing all the tricks your hero’s are performing in real life, just with the risk of injury!
Each of the events also include an ability to slowdown the action for a short period of time giving you an edge on pulling off that big trick or navigate a tricky route. All is not lost if you do mess up though as there is also a rewind option that will see you whizzing back up the slope a short way to allow you to try again and perfect your move.
Achievements are including in the game but only in the form of pulling of different tricks and so doesn’t offer any specific extra value to the game but it’s not a huge issue esp. considering that as well as the 18 different events there is also a multi-player option where you can strut your stuff against your friends over either Bluetooth or Wifi. There’s no online multi-player at present but it is promised in a future update.
Snowboarding in real life has a huge music connection so it’s great to be able to play your own tunes in this game so you can rock out to your favorite tracks as you speed down each of the mountains.
There is no doubt in my mind that X2 Snowboarding is the best snowboarding game available in the app store right now and if the Olympic Games has got you the slightest bit excited about winter sports then this will fulfill that excitement perfectly. X2 Snowboarding gets our Gold Medal for sure.
The Good
The Not So Good
Reviewed By: Craig Willis
Price: $6.99 (iTunes Store)
Released: Feb 11, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.1
Size: 89.9 MB
Languages: English
Seller: Exient Ltd.
Mention Steampunk and you’ll get one of three responses: fascination, dismissal, or ignorance. The Steampunk genre is not as well known as its cousin Cyberpunk but it has a small and devoted following. If you’re not familiar with the genre, basically it postulates a world where modern technology has taken root in Victorian times. Instead of transistors and electricity, the gadgets of Steampunk are generally large, steam-driven contraptions. Steam Wars by illogika is one of the few Steampunk-based games I’ve encountered in the App Store. Settings and back story aside, Steam Wars is a fun and entertaining game.
In Steam Wars you play either daring British Captain Raynard or his arch-enemy Dr. von Austerlitz. The tools of battle in this universe are large robots which are, of course, steam powered. The battlefield ranges across 3D worlds as the two combatants exchange blows. All movement and weapons use is governed by the steam charge in your robot, indicated in the lower right hand corner of the screen. Since more powerful weapons use more steam than simple weapons, strategy is of the utmost importance. Your steam will recharge some at the beginning of each turn but using a powerful weapon like the orbital platform will leave you using lesser weapons until you can build up your charge again.
Game play across the world isn’t to scale so you can use the multitouch interface to rotate the planet and zoom in and out. Sometimes you are on the opposite side of the planet from your nemesis so it may be necessary to move the planet around to find them. Once you’ve located your enemy you can choose to move closer to him or attack from a distance. I actually found that since all of the weapons at your disposal are meant for ranged combat, it was usually just as easy to locate them and attack from your current position. This saves steam you’d otherwise use on movement for combat. When you do decide to attack, choose a weapon from the selector on the lower left hand side of the screen that corresponds to the amount of steam available. Attacks continue until one robot loses all its hit points.
Steam Wars also has some nice extras you’ll enjoy. It implements OpenFeint so it has a whole range of achievements and global and local high scores. There is also a range of additional planets and robots to be unlocked as you win battles. Both provide incentives to continue returning to Steam Wars.
I found Steam Wars to be a fun and replayable game. The only thing I think it lacks is a two player mode option. I think a WiFi or Bluetooth two player option would add a competitive dimension to the game that would only enhance it.
The Good:
The Not So Good:
Reviewed By: Erin Peterson
Steam Wars for iPhone Teaser Trailer
Price: $2.99 (iTunes Store)
Updated Feb 05, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.3
Size: 26.9 MB
Seller: illogika
My father was an English Grammar teacher so word games and puzzles were a staple in our house. Many a night was spent in front of a Scrabble board or doing crosswords. One of the pleasures I found when I first came to the App Store was the profusion of word games. Woffo by Gold Brothers Entertainment is a fun, easy to understand word game you’ll enjoy.
Although somewhat similar in play to other word games, Woffo has its own unique take. When the user first opens the game, they are presented with an 18 space board divided between two rows of five and two rows of four. The object of Woffo is to use the letter and wild card tiles to spell letters horizontally and vertically. At the start of the game you have 64 letters and 3 wild cards. Players either have the option of discarding a tile in the trash bin or tapping a tile to place the letter being presented in the upper left hand corner of the screen. Any tile can be selected, either empty or occupied. As you build words they are scored based on the total letter values of the tiles involved. Since words can be scored horizontally and vertically, there is a great deal of strategy involved in not only placing your tiles to build one word but to place them to spell words in multiple directions. The game is over when all of the tiles have been used.
I really enjoyed Woffo for a number of reasons. Firstly, it was an interesting deviation from the usual Scrabble or Boggle clones you find in the App Store. Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of fine games, but they do seem to gravitate around two central themes. Although Woffo does borrow some themes, the game play is unique and fun. Secondly, I enjoyed the fact there was no clock. I love WordFu by ngmoco but that timer drives me crazy! Rushing me just makes my mind lock up, not run faster. I appreciate Woffo’s developers didn’t make it a beat the clock kind of game. Lastly, Woffo includes social gaming elements. There is the option to share your score on Facebook and Twitter as well as local and global high score boards.
In conclusion, I really enjoyed Woffo and I’m sure you will as well. Woffo is one word game that won’t leave you puzzled.
The Good:
The Not So Good:
Reviewed By: Erin Peterson
Price: $1.99 (iTunes Store)
Released: Jan 29, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.0
Size: 4.7 MB
Seller: Gold Brothers Entertainment LLC
The iPhone ecosystem has given the opportunity to thrive and succeed to big and small development houses alike. One of the small development houses that has leveraged its success into business dominance is Tapulous. Its long and prosperous flagship line of Tap Tap games has driven Tapulous in two years from unknown Palo Alto, California start up to iPhone game superstar. Building on the success of their trail blazing rhythm application, Tapulous has just released Riddim Ribbon.
Riddim Ribbon both borrows from the Tap Tap franchise and completely deviates from it. Instead of attempting to keep the beat to a song, Riddim Ribbon challenges the player to follow the song through a twisting course; the titular Riddim Ribbon. The player guides a speeding ball along the ribbon as it twists and turns through the level; collecting points, avoiding obstacles and playing through optional parts of the course. While game play in Tap Tap was focused on precisely keeping the beat, game play in Riddim Ribbon is focused on precisely following the ribbon.
The player steers their vehicle using tilt steering and attempts to stay on the track as closely as possible. Each track is divided into a series of checkpoints that the player has to achieve to complete the overall level. If the player deviates from the ribbon, two things happen. First they lose their points runs they’ve accumulated by staying on the ribbon. The second, and most important, outcome is the loss of energy. Energy is maintained by staying on the ribbon and collecting the energy spheres that appear on it. Running off the track and running into obstacles drains your energy. If you lose all your energy before the checkpoint you lose the level. Maintaining your energy levels allow you to achieve checkpoints and completing all checkpoints leads to winning the whole level.
The current version of Riddim Ribbon features the music of the Black Eyed Peas. Their music provides an excellent back drop to the game. Riddim Ribbon comes with the hit Black Eyed Peas songs Meet Me Halfway, I Gotta Feeling, and Boom Boom Pow. Players may also purchase Escape Me Louder Than Boom by Tiesto and Satisfaction by BennyBenassi. As usual, all of the music suits the game very well and the in app purchasing makes acquiring the additional tracks very easy. Although the current version of the game features the Black Eyed Peas, I am sure that future iterations of the game will feature other hit songs and artists if Tapulous follows the Tap Tap model.
In addition to the first rate game play and music, Riddim Ribbon also provides some nice extras. As I’ve stated in other reviews, I think social gaming is a very important aspect of the iPhone gaming experience. Riddim Ribbon delivers by providing local and global high scores. You can also e-mail your scores and progress at the end of each level in game. Challenge your friends directly and compare your progress with other Riddim Ribbon players around the world. Riddim Ribbon also provides good feature customization to change the interface to suit your needs.
Tapulous has another huge hit on their hands here. Riddim Ribbon is an innovative and interesting take on the genre Tapulous defined for themselves. The only addition I would suggest to this complete game is some form of competitive two player mode. Its absence does not detract in any way from this game, just a suggestion for the future. If you liked the Tap Tap series of games you’ll love Riddim Ribbon. Even if you didn’t like the Tap Tap series of games you’ll love Riddim Ribbon. Go out and download this game today, you won’t regret it.
The Good:
The Not So Good:
Reviewed By: Erin Peterson
Riddim Ribbon – I Gotta Feeling Demo
Price: $2.99 (iTunes Store)
Released: Feb 08, 2010
Version: 1.0.2
Size: 45.4 MB
Seller: Gogo Apps, Inc.
© Tapulous, Inc.
With over 140,000 applications in the App Store, it can be easy to overlook even a great one. Most application recommendation is based on popularity or downloads so if a great game is new or hasn’t attracted a lot of attention it can be easily overlooked. Project “Thor” for iPhone by Jury Shortki could easily fall into this trap but I’m here to tell you that I hope it doesn’t. Project “Thor” is a fun game with an original concept and great potential.
Project “Thor” takes place in a dystopian future. Humanity’s robot servants evolved and rebelled against their masters. After fighting a war, the few surviving members of the human race fled to a planet hidden deep in an asteroid field. While the asteroid field provides a certain amount of protection from the robots that hunt the remainder of humanity, it also places the outpost in constant danger. To protect the planet, a huge planetary defense system was put in place to keep the colony safe from the ever-present asteroids and from the robots should they ever find humanity’s hidden sanctuary. The defense system revolves around the planet in conjunction with a planetary shield and resembles Mjolnir, the hammer of Thor from Norse mythology. As commander of the planetary defense system, your job is to keep the colonists safe from asteroid strikes, improve the Thor system’s shields and weaponry, and prepare for the day you need to repel a robotic attack.
Game play is very well organized and presented on an easy to follow surface. At the middle of the screen is the planet equipped with a planetary shield and the Thor device. Two circular controls in the lower right hand corner of the screen are used to move the Thor device and shield. The Thor device moves very quickly and is responsive to inputs. The shield takes much longer to move so its a good idea to upgrade the shield whenever possible. Shields and other aspects of the planetary defense can be upgraded throughout the game as you finish missions and build up experience. At the beginning of the game the shield is very small and moving it is very slow so the Thor device will be your best friend in the early going. As the shield builds up and covers more of the planet you can rely on it a bit more.
I really enjoyed playing Project “Thor” even though it isn’t very well known or come from one of the larger gaming houses. As I said, one of the problems with the profusion of App Store entries is that games like Project “Thor” can be overlooked. Don’t overlook this game, its definitely worth the price. One shortcoming I did find with the game was a lack of social gaming. As I’ve said on many different occassions, social gaming is easy to implement with platforms like OpenFeint. There really is no reason to ignore this important aspect of the iPhone gaming experience.
Overall, Project “Thor” is a great game you should give a try. It is truly a collision with fun!
The Good:
The Not So Good:
Reviewed By: Erin Peterson
Project “Thor” Gameplay
Price: $0.99 (iTunes Store)
Released: Feb 06, 2010
Version: 1.0
Size: 5.7 MB
Seller: Iouri Korotkikh
Detonate! [rating: 2.5/5]
Most people enjoy watching people fall over, that’s why shows like American Funniest Home Video’s, and in a similar way watching a building be destroyed on purpose by explosives always draws a big crowd whether it be in person or on TV. And that’s what the game Detonate! is all about, blowing up the structure of a building so that it falls as required. I thought the premise sounded great and I could not wait to get it started.
The game starts with two options, play the game or play the tutorial. To ensure that I get the best out of the game I started with the tutorial and it was one of the most basic tutorials that I have ever seen, however as a plus point at least the game had a tutorial, something that a lot of games don’t do. The reason that it is so basic though is because the game is too.
The controls are as simple as choosing the length of the detonator, placing the explosive(s) and then setting them off. The aim of the game is just as simple as the controls are. Each building, and I use that word in the loosest sense of the word as they are simply a collection of lines or “walls” piled up on each other, has a blinking “wall” that you have to ensure lands on the green line. Most of the time the blinking “wall” will be at the top of the building and so your task is to blow the walls out from under it allowing it to fall to the green line below.
Each level will have a set number of bombs for you to use and while placing them is as simple as dragging and dropping there is one frustration and that is that if you fail with your first effort the bomb placement gets completely reset so rather than just making simple adjustments to your next attempt you have to restart all over which can be very frustrating especially if you only just failed in your prior effort.
The basic style of the walls is repeated throughout the game, and this is not the games strong point and neither is the audio, although the explosions are effective enough Detonate is not going to be winning any awards based on it’s graphics.
Having said that a game like this doesn’t need strong graphics to succeed and even while there may be 30 different levels the challenge just isn’t strong enough over and long lasting appeal. This is emphasized by the fact that you can access any of the 30 levels at any time preventing any natural progression to the game which diminishes the challenge of the game.
There is no multi-player mode, no leader boards either local or online and no achievements all of which would have added not only extra value to the game but would have ensured that it would have stayed on your iPhone or iPod Touch a little long than it will in it’s current form.
The game has a lot of potential and it’s not going to break the bank at a cent under $2 but it feels like it’s been rushed to market and that lack of sparkle prevents it from becoming the quality game it could have been.
The Good
The Not So Good
Reviewed By: Craig Willis
Detonate! Trailer
Price: $1.99 (iTunes Store)
Released: Feb 01, 2010
Version: 1.0
Size: 4.5 MB
Languages: English
Seller: Vista Film & Media
Apocalyptos [rating: 4/5]
There are some games you’re proud to play and some that are guilty pleasures; like a secret chocolate bar when you’re on a diet. In some ways, Apocalyptos from I-play is just such a guilty pleasure. The theme and elements of the game may initially put you off or make you think twice about it but once you get past that initial hesitancy, you’ll find it to be a fun and engaging game.
At its core, Apocalyptos is a puzzle game that involves guiding a game element to a resting point. This is where things might get a little uncomfortable. Apocalyptos is set during Aztec times and the game element you interact with in the game are the severed heads of sacrificial victims. Now don’t get me wrong, for the most part this has some historical accuracy but it just isn’t what you expect in a puzzle game.
The object of the game is to progress your way through the 40 different levels. Each level has a different challenge, be it capturing the heads bouncing down the temple steps, shooting the heads flying through the air, or keeping the heads from falling into the pit or any of a number of other challenges. Each level is challenging and that challenge progresses evenly through each level.
The game interface is easy to understand. All levels involve using a simple touch and swipe motion to move the capturing element in that level. Heads will either fall through the air or bounce into the play and its the players job to intercept them.
From a gameplay perspective I really enjoyed Apocalyptos. It was fun and challenging and I found the theme original, if not mildly amusing. Apocalyptos includes OpenFeint functionality with a set of original achievements and global high score board. All in all it is a rather complete package at a good price.
My only misgiving however is the theme of the game. Although I found it original and mildly amusing, some people may not be as good humored as I am. I can see some people being put off by the theme of the game. I certainly wouldn’t let my kids play this game. I know that there’s a lot of mature games in the App Store but I just feel like in some circumstances, people may feel the theme is a bit excessive and gratuitous. Otherwise, Apocalyptos is a fun game with challenging levels.
For me, Apocalyptos is a guilty pleasure. You may find it is for you too.
The Good:
The Not So Good:
Reviewed By: Erin Peterson
Price: $.99 (iTunes Store)
Reviewed Version 1.0.1
Size: 7.5 MB
Seller: Digital Bridges Limited t/a I-play
iPirate [rating: 5/5]
It is the great joy of discovery when an app exceeds your expectations. There are a lot of mediocre iPhone games out there and I thought I had run squarely into one with iPirate. To my joy and surprise though, I found iPirate to be a fun and engaging game that’s hard to put down.
iPirate from Go Games is a simulation and resource management game. In it, you play a pirate learning the ropes from Black Beard the pirate. iPirate divides the action between battle and resource management and distribution. During the battle portion of the game, you must attack enemy ships with your cannons. Cannons are loaded by dragging a round from the available ammunition stocks on to the cannon you want to fire. When you’re ready to fire press and hold the cannon, letting go when you’re ready to fire. Holding the cannon for longer increases the distance of the shot; quickly tap for close ships and press and hold for those further away. You can impart a curve in other direction to your shot by tilting your iPhone one way or the other.
Some ships may take multiple shots to sink while others will crumble under the first shot. Sinking a ship will add its gold to your treasury. Unfortunately, ships will defend themselves with cannon fire but this can be blocked by tapping the cannonball in air before it reaches your ship. If your ship is hit you can repair it with points purchased with the gold you win in each battle.
The resource management aspect of the game kicks in after each battle. At Lisa’s shop you can purchase items to further your career as a pirate. In the ammunition shop you can buy and sell various types of ammunition. Improved ammunition costs more but has advanced capabilities. It’s a good idea to keep a good mixture of ammo to accommodate various situations. In the cannon shop you can upgrade the cannons on your ship for increased effectiveness and attack. In the ship shop you can repair and upgrade your ship and buy repair points used during the battle portion of the game.
Play is campaign based as you battle your way through increasingly difficult levels on a map. I found the game play to be varied and increasingly difficult enough to keep me engaged and interested. I would have liked a free play option but that doesn’t really detract from the overall quality of the game. As I admitted at the beginning of this review, I didn’t really know what to expect from this game but what I got was an interesting turn on the simulation genre in a fun package. iPirate also implements the OpenFeint social gaming system with a unique set of achievements and global high score system.
iPirate is a fun and engaging game that you might overlook in the App Store. Don’t. Pick up this game for an exciting adventure full of swashbuckling fun!
The Good:
The Not So Good:
Reviewed By: Erin Peterson
iPirate Gameplay
Price: $1.99 (iTunes Store)
Reviewed Version 1.0.1
Size: 31.9 MB
Seller: DMYTRO LUKASH
Physics based puzzle games have become more and more popular and one of the latest to fall into the App Store is Collider the Game from Dan Russel-Pinson. Collider the Game challenges you to clear over 50 levels of positive and negative elements.
The game is as simple as they come yet sometimes frustratingly difficult, especially in the later levels, it also has the kind of can’t put down addictiveness that can result in sleepless nights and late attendees at work, college or school. All that being said though it’s not without it’s faults.
Each level presents you with a selection of negative and positive particle balls and your challenge is to collide them together to make them disappear. As with most games of this style the early levels present you with pretty straight forward challenges where you task will be as simple as rolling the balls along metallic runways, tubes and platforms. Placing your particle balls where you think they will collide with themselves and or the non-placement particles balls you then hit the play button to set them free and watch how they react in the industrial environment.
As you progress the levels get more and more challenging and you’ll have explosives, gates, non-charged balls and ropes to name but a few additional challenges to overcome and you’ll find yourself replaying some of the levels multiple times while you tweak your placement to complete the level. Replaying the levels is simply enough, hit the rewind button and the level will reverse back to your previous setup. However, while the rewind motion to reset the level is cute, by the time your are on your 20th reset the slow motion rewind can be frustrating and an option to instantly reset the level would be a great addition.
In addition to the rewind option you can also use a fast forward button to speed up the levels to find out whether your particle placement has worked or not. The levels have an industrial feel to them but the styling is a little lacking and has a retro feel that doesn’t feel in keeping with this type of game. You can also choose to play the game both the sound effects and music, just the sound effects or no sound to allow you to listen to your own music.
The game is a single player game and offers no leader boards for either local or online comparison.
Overall Collider the Game just misses the mark, the difficulty level just out balances the addictiveness and while it can be fun it can also be challenging.
The Good
The Not So Good
Reviewed By: Craig Willis
Intro Video
Price: $.99 (iTunes Store)
Reviewed Version: 1.0
Size: 9.7 MB
Seller: Dan Russel-Pinson
Guerrilla Bob [rating: 4/5]
It seems that Chillingo are positively trying to fill the App Store with their own games, (if you include lite versions), and now they’ve just released their 101st title in the form of Guerrilla Bob, a not so much a follow up to Minigore more of an older brother!
Guerrilla Bob is a twin-stick shooter where the d-pad under your left thumb controls direction while the d-pad under right thumb controls your weaponry. Launching Guerrilla Bob sets the scene of the campaign mode for you which see’s you taking revenge on your brother John Gore and his army of men. That is pretty much where the story begins and ends though as after that it’s all about the action.
The cartoon style graphics have been wonderfully implemented, from the menus and cut scenes to the in game play they ooze quality and make the game a pleasure to behold. Guerrilla Bob is a mustached wearing, muscle bound, cigar smoking man and doesn’t take any prisoners. Even from the start he is well armed and he needs to be as the onslaught of enemy troops is strong.
The action is played out 7 locations all with a dessert theme and you’ll make your way thought shanty towns and across sandy terrain as your move Guerrilla Bob up screen killing everything in your path. You have three weapons to use in total, machine gun, rocket launcher and flame thrower each with there own advantages. The flame thrower is great in close up action especially when you are up close and personnel with multiple enemies while the rocket launcher enables you to pick off the bad guys at a distance with one fatal shot. The machine gun however is your all rounder.
You’ll encounter a couple of mini-bosses along each level with a major level boss at the end. None of these prove to be too much of a challenge as once you work out their weak spot you’ll be able to kill them with a few well placed shots. Each boss has there own energy level too so you can see how close you are getting to defeating them while keeping an eye on your cigar which acts as your energy guide.
Killing continual waves of mini enemies is as pleasurable as ever, however rather than rocket launchers blowing them limb from limb they merely collapse into a heap on the ground with a whimper rather than a bang and the sound effects could certainly do with being cranked up a little to provide better feed back especially the explosions.
Also scattered throughout each level are power-ups for your weapons, extra points and health boosters too meaning that investigating every side street can bring it’s own rewards. The action comes thick and fast in the campaign mode but that is nothing compared to Survival Mode which is unlocked when you complete the campaign mode. In survival mode it’s exactly that, just a fight for survival. Survival mode also includes the random arrival of boss characters and while there arrival adds an extra level of difficulty they also bring there rewards as defeating them will reward you with power-ups and health boosts to aid your survival for a little while longer.
The addition of the Survival Mode adds value to the game and will keep you coming back for more even after you’ve beaten the campaign mode. Added value is also boosted by the addition of Crystal, a new social leader-board, achievement interface along the same lines as the Plus+ and OpenFeint networks that allows you to track and compare scores, achievements and challenges with friends who are also signed up to Crystal. It integrates seamlessly and if it can get a good range of games signed up to it should do as well as it competitors if not better.
The end of the campaign mode eludes to future available content and this would be a great addition to what is already a good game but a little short.
The Good
The Not So Good
Reviewed By: Craig Willis
Guerrilla Bob Extended GamePlay Trailer
Price: $2.99 (iTunes Store) as of 27 Jan
Reviewed Version 1.0
Size: 48.1 MB
Seller: Chillingo Ltd.
Dracula: Path of the Dragon – Part 1 [rating: 5/5]
Don’t be spooked by Dracula: Path of the Dragon for iPhone!
One of the great strengths of the iPhone gaming platform is its ability to accept faithful ports of games from other platforms. Porting games between platforms can be a hit and miss endeavor but most games translate very well to the iPhone. This is due in large part to the foresight of the Apple engineers that gave the iPhone computing class power instead of phone class power. One of the nicest ports I’ve seen so far has been Dracula: Path of the Dragon from Chillingo.
Those familiar with the Dracula line of games for the PC will recognize Dracula: Path of the Dragon for iPhone to be a port of the third installment in the series. I don’t have any experience with the original series so I can’t comment on how the two compare. What I do know is that if the PC game is half as good as the iPhone version, I probably should go out and buy it. Path of the Dragon is perhaps one of the most visually stunning games I have seen on the iPhone. Graphics are rich and dark and really set the mood and tone of the game. Honestly, if I had to play this game on a monitor, I wouldn’t know it was running on the iPhone. The soundtrack and effects add to the foreboding atmosphere of the game.
The interface is easy to follow and understand; there are no virtual joysticks cluttering up the interface and no tilt actions to learn. The camera is first person and free floating and moved with a finger around the screen. Character movement is accomplished by tapping the directional arrows that indicate your movement options. When you encounter an object or character to interact with, a gear symbol will appear over them. You click the symbol to initiate the interaction. Since this is mainly a character-driven adventure, there is quite a bit of conversation to move through. When you interact with a person, there will be some initial conversation and then you will be presented with various topics to pursue. Make sure to exhaust all your conversational options since this is the primary way you collect the information require to further the adventure. Any inventory items you collect along the way can be accessed through the container in the lower right hand corner of the game. Double tap an inventory item to make use of it.
I generally don’t have the patience to play through an adventure and puzzle game like Path of the Dragon but I have to say the wonderful environment and excellent interface of the game sucked me in. This is a great game and a must have for any one looking for something in the Adventure genre. Adventure games don’t lend themselves well to multiplayer or social gaming so its understandable why these have been omitted. It is more of a singular experience and the developers have presented it as such.
Dracula: Path of the Dragon deserves some space with your iPhone games. If you’re looking for a deep, dark, immersive environment or are a fan of the vampire genre; this is your game.
The Good:
The Not So Good:
Reviewed by: Erin Peterson
Trailer
Price: $.99 (iTunes Store) as of 26 Jan
Reviewed Version 1.0
Size: 338 MB
Seller: Chillingo Ltd.
Doodle Bomb is a physics-based puzzle game by Bottle Rocket. The goal of the game is to progress through 50 levels by performing a series of tasks using bombs to solve puzzles that ultimately open a door. Although generally speaking I’m more of an explosions and gun play kind of person, I found Doodle Bomb to be fun and challenging.
The interface of the game is easy enough to understand and control. The player must throw bombs at a variety of targets and obstacles. Bombs are thrown by tapping on the screen. Tapping closer or further away from the bomber adjusts the strength of your throw. Once a bomb lands it can be moved by tilting the iPhone. You have until the fuse runs out on the bomb to move it into position.
Levels get progressively harder as you work through the game. The first mission or two will just have you basically throw the bomb directly at the target. After that, missions will vary obstacles and the number of targets to work through. Each level has a target number of bombs to use to complete the mission. If you use less than the alloted number you are awarded a badge towards your quest to be a Bomb Master. You can certainly use the strategy of throwing a whole barrage of bombs but it certainly won’t aid you in your collection of badges. Doodle Bomb requires preciseness and a mastery of physics of the game to defeat it. There are many levels of complexity to this game under its cartoonish surface. Don’t let the simple graphics fool you, this is a rich and complicated game.
This game has some nice extras as well. Game play does not have to be linear. Once you start a new campaign, you can skip to any of the other levels 1 through 35. Although from a complexity point of view you may wish to work your way through the game in a linear fashion, this is a nice option if you get stuck on a level and want to bypass it for later. Levels 35 through 50 are unlocked after collecting enough bomb badges. You can also listen to your music during play if you want.
One drawback to Doodle Bomb is its lack of social gaming. I seem to be harping on this point lately but one of the strengths of the iPhone gaming platform is social gaming. With established platforms like OpenFeint available, social gaming shouldn’t be an afterthought. The inherently competitive and challenging nature of Doodle Bomb would really be enhanced by being able to share accomplishments and high scores with friends. This would be a welcome enhancement to an otherwise great game.
Doodle Bomb is a great physics puzzle game that deserves a place in your repertoire of iPhone games.
The Good:
The Not So Good:
Reviewed by: Erin Peterson
Doodle Bomb iPhone Gameplay Video
Price: $1.99 (iTunes Store) as of 20 Jan
Reviewed Version: 1.0
Size: 9.7 MB
Seller: Bottle Rocket
I think the title pretty much sums up what you are getting when you make this purchase, a pinball table with a jungle theme to it, nothing more, nothing less. Let it be said though that is no bad thing. Jungle Style Pinball keeps things simple. There is only one table, a single menu to scroll through and two buttons to play with so if you are new to pinball then there couldn’t be a better game to start out with.
The game starts with a top-down floating shot of the pinball table and you instantly see that the table is graphically beautiful. The jungle theme is wall to wall, from the trees and vines of the table walls and the flora and fauna covering the table floor to the wooden bridge style ramps & lanes to the app standing tall over the playing area itself. And the jungle theme is also enhanced by the music and animal noises which is all in keeping with the overall theme.
A great looking table doesn’t make a great pinball game on it’s own however, it has to have a good feel to it too which is based on the features and their placement. The objects on the table include multiple spinners, drop targets, bumpers and slingshots to name just a few of the items but even with all these objects and the multiple rails that bend around the table it never feels cluttered and after a few goes you will soon get a feel of the table that will help you to start racking up the big points.
Ultimately the aim of any pinball game is to score as many points as possible and that is no different here, however the in game target appears to revolve around moving a ball through the center of a maze by triggering it to rotate one step at a time and I imagine that this is where you will be rewarded with the really big points. I say I imagine and that’s because I’ve never actually been able to reach the center of the maze before I have run out of balls but as this is an addictive game I will continue to try!
As mentioned previously the controls are very simple. Touching the right side of the screen fires the right flippers while touching the left side of the screen will fire the left hand flippers and because the game doesn’t restrict you to pressing a couple of virtual buttons to do this it means watching a ball slide down into the out hole as you miss the flipper button almost non-existent. You also have the option to play the game viewing the whole table or can zoom for a closer view where the table will then scroll with the ball. Both views work well and it will be a personal preference as to which you use.
Your best scores are recorded locally and if you wish it can be submitted to the global high score board, be warned though, the global high scores are massive and it will take some serious pinball skills and time to reach the top echelons of the global high score board.
Sometimes you don’t need bells and whistles in a game to make it stand out from the crowd, you simply need it to do what it’s supposed to with quality and substance and that’s exactly what you get with Jungle Style Pinball. If you are looking for your first pinball game for your iPhone/iPod touch or are looking to add a new one to your collection you won’t be disappointed with the 99c you spend on Jungle Style Pinball.
The Good
The Not So Good
Reviewed by: Craig Willis
Jungle Style Pinball iPhone
Price: $.99 (iTunes Store) as of 18 Jan
Reviewed Version: 1.0
Size: 16.1 MB
Seller: GameProm
