[rating: 4/5]
Super Sheep Tap Review: The game has you counting sheep, but you certainly won’t be falling asleep while doing so!
Super Sheep Tap [$.99, App Store] is a simple rhythm game in the tradition of Tap Tap Revenge. The premise is to tap the screen when a sheep jumps over the fence. One finger for one sheep. Multiple fingers for multiple sheep. And don’t tap for black sheep. That’s about it. Simple enough, right? Ha!
The challenge in this game comes from the quantity and speed of sheep that need to be “tagged.” What starts out as a manageable number soon turns into a stampede that keeps your eyes focused and your finger(s) dancing.
There are two modes to this game: Classic and Arcade. Classic is the more laid-back of the two and operates by the “three strikes and your out” principle. Arcade gives you a set amount of time to rack up as many points as possible and gets pretty intense pretty quickly.
This game has fun, cartoonish graphics and nursery rhyme style music. It’s certainly simple enough for younger children. It’s got an enjoyable, light-hearted feel to it.
Super Sheep Tap would be a great option for when you wake up in the middle of the night and can’t sleep. But only if you have no intention of falling back asleep any time soon.
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Another Great Grungy Edition to the Tap Tap Revenge Genre!
If success was based on quantity then Tapulous would be one of the most successful developers in the App Store, after all in there Tap Tap Revenge series they now have over half a dozen artist specific titles alone including Coldplay, Kings of Leon, Lady Gaga and Metallica to name but a few.
However, as we know success isn’t based on quantity, it’s based on quality too. For Tapulous that’s not a issue either. From their free version Tap Tap Revenge 3 to the aforementioned artist specific titles they have been getting rave reviews from players and reviewers and now they are releasing their latest artist specific incarnation in the form of Tap Tap Revenge Nirvana which pays homage to the kings of Grunge.
A quick review for those of you that haven’t played any of the Tap Tap Revenge games before. On launching the game you’ll get to choose from four difficulty levels, Easy, Medium, Hard and Extreme and depending on which you choose you will be able to select one of the tracks to play along too.
Once the track has loaded, which only takes a few seconds, you’re ready to play the game. The notes flow down the screen in time with the music, in this Nirvana version of the game the notes flow down a guitar neck, and when the notes hit the bottom of the screen you task is to tap or tap and hold the note in time with the music.
This Nirvana version works just as well as all the previous releases and the dirty beats of Nirvana’s classic tracks work well too. There are 15 tracks in total from all their classic albums including hits such as Smells Like Teen Spirit, Come As You Are, Lithium and In Bloom with a couple of live versions thrown in for good measure too.
The graphics are great looking, sharp and smooth and there are a number of different styles as you play through the different tracks and that’s before you have unlocked the four special levels that are unlocked as you complete all of the tracks across the four difficulty levels.
For the more serious Nirvana fans or for those wanting to learn more about them there is a short history of the band and you can also start each song with a snippet of interviews with the band.
While just like the other artist specific versions there is no online multi-player option but you can play 2-player over Bluetooth. It’s also worth noting that you are unable to import the songs into Tap Tap Revenge 3 so that you can play them online via that application.
All said and done Tap Tap Revenge Nirvana Edition is as good as they come. There are no major new features other than the Nirvana tracks themselves but then again it’s difficult to improve on a winning formula.
The Good
The Not So Good
The game will be available tomorrow. We’ll post the iTunes Store URL and price soon.
TTR Nirvana Screenshots
One of the most successful games on the iPhone/iPod Touch has been Tap Tap Revenge range of games which is now in it’s third incarnation of rhythm based addiction. What has helped make the Tap Tap Revenge games so successful is that the fact that not only is it a really great game but the fact that it is free, something that is always a plus point in any iPhone/iPod Touch game or application.
However, Tap Tap Revenge also has a range of premium versions where you get to play with some of the best tracks of specific artists, from Coldplay and Metallica to Lady Gaga and The Dave Mathews band and now they have released Kings of Leon [Tapulous.com]
For those of you who haven’t played Tap Tap Revenge before in any of it’s forms let me tell you a little bit about it. The game is played by tapping along to the music of a given track and you score points for accuracy and consistency. In this version of the game though your choice of track come from 10 of the Kings of Leon’s best tracks, at first I thought there were only 4 tracks available but I soon found out that the other 6 were available via download for free. I imagine this was to keep the initial download relatively small.
The tracks included are:-
My favorite Kings of Leon track is True Love Way so it was that one that I started with. You choose the track from one of four difficulty levels, Easy, Medium, Hard and Extreme and while from my time playing Tap Tap Revenge 3 I know that Medium is where I am most comfortable. There is an added incentive of playing through all the difficulty levels thanks to 4 ‘Boss’ tracks that takes things up a notch, more of that later though.
The game is played with the iPhone in portrait mode and three tracks flow from the top of the screen to the bottom and it’s these three tracks that the notes that you need to tap along to flow down. It’s not just simple taps though, there are notes to hold, bonus notes that increase your multipliers and then there are also the in game arrows where you have to shake your device in the direction of the arrow instead of tapping the screen.
There is a lot going on especially as you move up to the Hard and Extreme levels but the graphics are so strong and slick that it all falls into place perfectly. The notes and music are perfectly in time with each other you’ll soon find that you don’t need to think about the timing to hit the notes accurately but just tap along to the music.
As mentioned previously there are four levels of difficulty and four boss tracks and there is a direct connection between these two facts. If you manage to complete all of the tracks on a given level you will unlock the boss track for that level. The boss tracks add an extra level of fun/difficulty to the tracks by by flipping the game-play on its side, literally!
The boss tracks are played in landscape mode and this is so an extra track can be added so instead of playing with 3 lines of notes flowing down the screen you are now playing with 4 instead. This definitely makes things trickier but more fun two and the difficulty of the boss tracks is only increased in proportion with the difficulty level that you are playing on.
As well as the career mode you can also battle your friends over Bluetooth providing that they have the game too of course and there is no online multiplayer like there is in TTR3. Even without the online multiplayer option that the free version of TTR3 has it would be nice if it was possible to import the tracks from Tap Tap Revenge Kings of Leon into TTR3 so your could play the tracks online.
If you’ve only ever played one of the free versions of Tap Tap Revenge then you are in for a treat with the graphics in this title as they have been enhanced to a considerable extent. The different environments look great and that’s even before you play the boss tracks where they are improved on yet again to produce a beautiful artistic experience that is a pleasure to play.
If you enjoy the Kings of Leon and want to experience their music in a whole new interactive way you will not be disappointed with this game and even of those of you that don’t like their music… well there is still Tap Tap Revenge Coldplay edition!
The Good
The Not So Good
Price: $4.99 (iTunes Store Preview)
Released: Mar 11, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.0
Size: 17.1 MB
Language: English
Seller: Gogo Apps, Inc.
© Tapulous, Inc.
Rated 12+ for the following:
Infrequent/Mild Profanity or Crude Humor
Infrequent/Mild Alcohol, Tobacco, or Drug Use or References
Requirements: Compatible with iPhone and iPod touch. Requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later.
Rhythm games are all the rage these days on all gaming systems from the cross-over hits of Guitar Hero and Rock Band to the iPhone classic Tap Tap Revenge it seems that everyone these days is more than happy to jam along to their favorite tunes in anyway they can. Thumpies takes a slightly different take on the rhythm genre as it combines both the classic tap along to the beat style with a look that comes from the world of Where the Wild Things Are.
You start with access to three unique songs and it’s up to you to build the songs up by tapping along to the rhythm of the song. You do this by tapping the drums, toad-stools and tree trunks and the Thumpies bounce along them. The Thumpies are balls of monstrous craziness and their grinning faces stare out at you as they bounce along to the beats, hitting them as they bounce will fill up your points meter which you will need to advance. If you’re timing is perfect you will electrify your Thumpie and earn double points allowing you to complete each set even quicker.
This is not it though as you can also unlock additional Thumpies to jam along with by collecting butterflies that will randomly flutter across the screen for you to capture. Don’t capture them quickly enough though and you will find that the Thumpies enjoy the taste of butterfly and will snatch them out of mid-air before you can grab them. With enough butterflies caught can unlock them and they will join you in your future tracks.
There are 15 songs in total and while they may not be the hits form famous artists they have have an infectious beat to them that will have you finger and toe tapping along to them within seconds. Each song starts with a simple beat and as you complete each of the levels the new rhythm will be added to the track building into a crescendo of crazy beats. While you may start with just one Thumpie to keep the beat with as you progress through the levels you’ll find yourself needing to keep multiple Thumpies in time and this is where the challenge comes in and adds a nice level of difficulty to the game.
As mentioned earlier the style looks like it was inspired by the monsters from Where The Wild Things Are and the whole game looks great with the juxtaposition of the monsters and the butterflies being pulled off perfectly to create a musical game that will be loved by young and old a like. There are 3 difficulty levels to choose from too making it even more accessible to all skill levels.
There’s no multi-player options in Thumpies and no online scoreboards to track your progression against your peers but while that would be great to see in a future update it shouldn’t prevent you from investing in this little monster of a game. If you are quick you could still pick up Thumpies for a mere 99 cents which would prove a great bargain.
The Good
The Not So Good
Reviewed By: Craig Willis
Thumpies Trailer
Price: $0.99
Released: Feb 17, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.0
Size: 132 MB
Languages: English, French, German, Italian, Spanish
Seller: Big Blue Bubble
© 2010 Big Blue Bubble Inc.
There are a number of iPhone games that use music as a backdrop for game play. Tapulous’ popular Tap Tap Revenge series immediately comes to mind. The thing about games like Tap Tap Revenge is that they require you to buy content to play with which, on an iPhone full of music, might seem like a needless expense. The upcoming game Tune Runner from Appy Entertainment takes a more revolutionary path, using your existing music library as the in-game content.
In Tune Runner, the player must make their way through various environments by drawing the shapes that move from right to left on the screen. Successfully draw the shape through touch on the screen and your robot Grov-ee continues on his journey, unsuccessfully draw the shape and your robot loses a little bit of his life. If you miss enough shapes your life meter drains and your mission is over. As I alluded to in the beginning though, Tune Runner’s revolutionary aspect is in the creation of the game environment. Tune Runner scans the music on your iPhone and for each level played you select a song. The game then generates the level dynamically based on that song. Every level is different, no two plays are ever the same. Even two plays on the same song are different.
Tune Runner for iPhone also implements some nice extras in addition to the solid game play. Tune Runner implements full OpenFeint support with global high scores and achievements. Additionally, after you complete a song, your score is submitted against all other scores for that song. This is an interesting twist on social gaming since usually overall global high score is usually king.
The other interesting extra is how game play and game price are connected. Instead of pasting banner ads to every empty space in the application or charging more for the game, Tune Runner takes another approach. Each new game is allotted a certain number of plays of the game. To earn more plays of the game the user can either purchase them or earn them the Recharge mini-game. Purchasing them is a straightforward proposition. The Recharge mini-game is a little bit more interesting. Play is the same as the main game but instead of Grov-ee, a battery is displayed. Each shape that is successfully drawn places a bit more energy in the battery. When the battery reaches full charge an additional play is earned. To subsidize this, banner ads are displayed during the Recharge mini-game which is a small price to pay for this fun little mini-game and additional plays of the game.
I look forward to playing the final version of Tune Runner. It looks to be an innovative game with a fun and interesting interface. I think Appy has a winner on its hands.
Previewed By: Erin Peterson
Early Screenshots
One of the first things things that was shown off during the razzle and dazzle of the Apple iPad launch (all you need to know) were the games. Many of the successful developers of the the App Store were there showing off how their games looked and played on the iPhone’s big brother. The fact that the iPad will be able to run the vast majority of the existing App Store games is a huge boost to potential iPad purchasers because as soon as the un-box their sparkling new iPad they’ll be able to fill their new toy with their favorite apps and games from the App Store, and more importantly for free!
But while many of the existing games will continue to be a success on the iPad it will be the games that are built specifically for the larger interface of the iPad that will push handheld gaming forward. But will these games just be re-workings of the same old games or can we expect a plethora of new and unique titles?
One of the major challenges for the iPhone games running on the iPad will be the controls especially the titles that utilize virtual controls in the form of a d-pad and virtual buttons. Even with the game blown up to full screen reaching the buttons in the bottom corners with your thumbs on a bigger screen is not going to feel as comfortable and as natural as it does on an iPhone or iPod Touch. The other option would be to place the iPad on your lap or a table top while playing and that won’t feel as ergonomic and will certainly remove the option to play using the accelerometer.
I know that the existing range of games will still be fun to play on an iPad but for me, I’m excited about the titles that are built specifically for the iPad, utilizing it’s major unique selling point the size of it’s touch screen. So what titles and types of game will sell for the iPad?
Some of the existing genre’s that the iPhone has brought life to will thrive on the iPad and one of these will be the line drawing style games. Games like Flight Control, Harbor Master and Fare City could be huge on the iPad, both literally and metaphorically. Just think of the size of the airport and the number of planes you’d could be in control of in Flight Control and the same could be said for Harbor Master. Even multiple airports and harbors to look after at the same time. And as for Fare City, playing that in a city that could fill the whole of an iPad screen would be a real challenge and a lot of fun.
Games like Rock Band and Tap Tap Revenge 3 could also be big winners on the iPad. With the added real estate that the iPad offers all sorts of information, instruments and options could be added. Both titles would certainly benefit in the two player mode on a single device as would any other game offering that option.
Personally I’m excited to see what game developers can do with sports sims and sports management games. Madded or and American Football game could provide a unique game style on the iPad, control individual players may not be so easy but having more detailed control of all of your players routes by drawing them directly on the screen would be great or how about having a split screen or picture in picture option so you can see the game from multiple angles.
For any sports management game where the premise is more on stats, options and preparing your team before sending them out could benefit massively from the amount of space that all these options could be placed in and being able to change the options by directly touching the screen could provide a deep management simulation with great functionality. And talking of sims, what about a title along the lines of the classic Microsoft Flight Simulator. On the iPad it could still provide the depth of options, the great looking environments but also benefit from the accelerometer too.
The final type of game that I think could benefit from the iPad’s interface are RPG’s and MMORPG’s, again games like this could look even better on the iPad’s large screen and yet also benefit from being able to provide easy and direct access to all of the multitude of options that these types of games need too have. In fact perhaps the biggest tittle on an iPad could be a version of World of Warcraft. Technically that maybe a lot to ask but a MMORPG like that could be the must have application on the new Apple iPad.
The iPhone and iPod Touch have pushed mobile gaming to a whole new level and I’m now very excited to see how far developers can push the limits of the iPad, I for one am looking forward to the ride.
By: Craig Willis
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