VS. Racing for iPhone is the first game from Maciek Drejak Labs and is a top down racer which reminds me of the old school classic Super Sprint.
The game gives you a top down view of the racing track with you and your opponents taking up just a handful of pixels as you race around a variety of tracks that twist and turn around the screen.
The tracks are to scale with the miniature cars but despite their size they provide lots of detail, tricky corners, fast straights and various surfaces that affect the handling of the cars.
The game has a narrative in the single player mode where you play the role of Ryan, a rookie racing driver who you have to bring up through the ranks of five championships on your way to the World Championship Finals.
While the narrative is fun it’s pretty irrelevant to the racing and luckily it doesn’t get in the way of it either. In fact you can move from race to race pretty quickly which means the action keeps coming thick and fast.
You have a choice of controls for your car which includes both touch and accelerometer controls. My weapon of choice was the touch controls which I found very responsive. You only need to worry about steering as acceleration is automatic.
Included with the auto-acceleration is a speed boost which helps you catch up if you are running behind the leader, however this is a double edge sword as this speed boost also applies to your opponents so large leads can be eaten into pretty quickly.
This is no bad thing though as it keeps all of the races exciting right up until the last corner and while this may be a little frustration the speed in which you can replay the race means that you can get your revenge very quickly.
The multi-player options are local bluetooth & wifi and Facebook leaderboards which includes a Ghost Mode so that you can races against your friends ghost cars. These are fun alternatives to the single player mode but GameCenter integration and online multi-player would be nice additions.
If you enjoy racing games of all descriptions you won’t be disappointed with VS. Racing especially if you can grab it while it’s still free. With future free updates also promised this could be a real bargain.
[rating: 4/5]What we like
What to know
I love my racing games and Mini Motor Racing came as a great addition to my iPhone. A top down racer with you a 5 opponents racing around beautiful looking and designed tracks makes for a lot of fun, frantic action.
There’s a great career mode, local multi-player and the ability to upgrade you car to challenge with the most fast and aggressive of opponents. Additional value is add by the GameCenter integration which consists of 16 achievements and leader-boards for all 22 tracks.
Mini Motor Racing can be grabbed from the App Store for just $1.99.
Tiny Tower by NimbleBit is the ultimate in addictive simulation game where you become the owner, manager and contractor of a tiny tower where you aim is to make it huge. Huge that is in the sense of the number of floors as it’s your task to build level after level of residential, commercial and retail stores.
The game uses a freemium model where the initial purchase is free and you can speed up your progress via in game purchase. That being said though in all the time I played it I never ended up spending an additional dime.
If you haven’t given Tiny Tower a try yet I urge you to do so although be prepared to not see your family and friends for a while as your addiction takes hold!
Another racing game makes it to my top 10 and this time with a whole new control system ideally suited to the touch screen of the iDevice. DrawRace 2 is another top down racer but this time instead of controlling your vehicle with an accelerator and a steering wheel you draw the path you wish your vehicle to take. It takes a bit to get used to but the satisfaction of getting around a sharp hairpin at full speed and in first place never gets tiring.
There are a range of vehicles all with differently handling and skills that can be unlocked as you progress and the tracks look wonderful too. If you are looking for a racing game with something a little different look no further than DrawRace 2, available in the App Store for just 99c for a limited time.
This one finds it’s way into the Top 10 mainly thanks to my daughter who is addicted to the fun game aimed at the younger age market.
The 9 Moogies are a variety of brightly colored farmyard animals that live in a barn. Each one can be clicked on and you will enter their weird and wonderful world. From a horse on a treadmill, a vacuuming cow and an experimenting mouse the animals are all kept pretty busy. The animals and their surroundings can also all be interacted with and along with the great sounds and music the game can keep a child entertained for as long as you’ll let them play with it.
The great thing about it for us adults is the fact that it’s not annoying, in fact I will quite happily find myself humming along to the music all day long at times! The Moogies is a universal app which is available in the App Store now for just 99 cents.
This audio and visual delight of a game takes you on a mysterious adventure where you are to solve a range of puzzles to to uncover the truth about your characters life.
You unravel the dark mystery as you wander around the rural location that is beautifully rendered on both the iPhone and iPad. The controls are intuitive and as you play the game you’ll find yourself engrossed in the excellent story telling.
While a little short in length it’s an experience not to be missed. dream:scape is available in the App Store for $2.99 and is a universal app.
There have been plenty of new and worthy word games released for iDevices this year and for many people W.E.L.D.E.R. possibly flew under the radar, it most certainly shouldn’t though.
W.E.L.D.E.R. is played on a 8 x 8 grid of letters and the aim is to make as many words as possible while swapping as few tiles as you can. While swapping adjacent tiles is the main way to move them you can unlock the ability to jump, reverse and group tiles. These additional options are limited though and are earned by scoring points.
I thought I would miss the fact that there is no mulit-player option but the challenge to clear each level by completing the required number of words with the given number of moves makes you want to not socialize anyway!
W.E.L.D.E.R. is another universal app and is available in the App Store for $1.99.
More racing in my top 10 games of 2011 only this time it of the two wheel variety and instead of racing around a track against other opponents this time you are racing against yourself along a crazy motorcycle assault course.
The controls are simple yet effective and your success is measured on each track on three conditions consisting mainly of beating a set time, collecting all the coins and completing the course.
There are 70 different tracks to complete, either riding as the Bike Baron or as a gorilla! But in addition to these pre-built tracks Bike Baron comes with a track editor that not only allows you to build tracks to race yourself but allows you to share them with your friends and the Bike Baron community.
At just 99c Bike Baron is available in the App Store now as a universal application.
The Angry Birds juggernaut continued in 2011 not only with the original Angry Birds and it’s follow up in Angry Birds Seasons but also with the release of it’s movie tie-in 3rd game Angy Birds Rio.
The saying goes that “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” and Rovio have certainly achieved that with Angry Birds Rio and with 6 episodes, 180 levels and 90 pieces of fruit to find there is plenty to keep you busy including a new bird that appears occasionally and which is not available in the other Angry Birds games.
If you are looking for a game to while away the hours then Angry Birds Rio will certainly achieve that with the even more charm, fun and entertainment as the two previous incarnations.
Purchasing Angry Birds Rio for just 99c from the App Store could be one of the best dollars you’ve ever spent.
When this game fell into my lap to review I was completely taken by surprise. All you need is one finger and fast reactions to enjoy this game as you power your jetpack wearing character along the never-ending level.
As you attempt to travel as far as you can you must avoid death by navigating around a variety of both static and moving lasers as well as rockets which aim to stop your progress. While the ultimate purpose of the game is to get as far as you can before you crash and burn the mini-objectives that you care challenged to complete on each and every turn keep things interesting as you always have something to achieve.
As you play you will also earn coins that you can then spend on power-ups, new cloths and a range of different jetpacks.
The balance of this game is in that sweet spot that just keeps you coming back for more and as a universal app it’s which is currently FREE in the App Store Jetpack Joyride is a must for every iPhone/iPad owner.
The irony of a game that was originally released in 2001 making the number 1 spot for 2011 is not lost on me, however the release of Grand Theft Auto 3 in it’s full form onto an iPhone is an amazing feat in itself.
The fact that it’s been done so well providing a huge open world environment of gorgeous sprawling city streets and a storyline which takes murder, revenge, violence and criminality to a whole new level Grand Theft Auto 3 has not been off of my device since it was downloaded and installed.
It loads fast, plays fast and is quick to jump in and out off which considering its a huge game is a great achievement.
While this may be the most expensive game in my top 10 it easily provides the best value for money and will provide hours and hours violent enjoyment! Get is from the App Store today and you won’t be disappointed.
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[rating: 4.5/5]
Mini Motor Racing Review: I’ve always been a fan of racing games, especially on iPhone and iPad, the realism of Real Racing 2, the frantic action of Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing and the top down rocket-fest that is Death Rally, I’ve liked them all but also always looking forward to seeing the latest thing. In this case it’s Mini Motor Racing from The Binary Mill.
Mini Motor Racing (MMR) is another top down racer where it’s all about speed, speed and more speed and small but detailed tracks in a variety of surfaces and weather conditions.
Obviously I wanted to dive straight in and after a visually impressive intro sequence I jumped into a quick race. There are a couple of control mechanisms and the first I was introduced to was a virtual steering wheel that I didn’t get on with and sadly came last in my first race. After that though I changed to the second control option and the wins started coming.
Moving into the Career Mode I choose my first car, gave it a paint job and headed out onto the track again. This time each race rewards you with a cash prize and extra money can be picked up along the way along with additional nitro’s that can help give you the edge over your 5 virtual opponents.
The tracks look great, they are full of detail and the light reflects off of the track and cars beautifully, not that you will have to much time to look at it as your speed around the track fighting for first place. The range of weather and day/night affects add extra quality to the overall look of the game too.
Each cup consists of 4 tracks, with the game containing 20 different tracks in total, and completing the cup will move you onto the next one. While I was able to progress though many of the cups without having to spend my hard earned winnings on upgrades I soon found that I was unable to keep up and had to splash the cash on both better cars and upgrades.
Each car handles differently and so a couple of races may be required to pick up the feel of the new car. Add the car upgrades and the paint jumps and you get a car the looks and handles just as you like.
As you progress through your career you’ll unlock tracks and cars inspired by Fruit Ninja and the holiday season, the Fruit Ninja tracks especially are awesome and it’s great to see game cross-overs.
While the huge career mode will keep you going for quite a while as will the local wifi and bluetooth multi-player modes which will enable you to race your dream machines against your friends for Mini Motor Racing bragging rights.
Those bragging rights can also be fought over via the Game Center integration which provides leaderboards for all 22 tracks and 16 achievements, all of which means you should find yourself playing Mini Motor Racing for quite a while.
One news new feature for those of you playing MMR on iOS 5 is the ability to synchronise your data to the iCloud so that you can play between multiple devices and not lose any progress. Unfortunately however as this is not a universal application you won’t be able to sync your data between your iPhone and iPad and with no obvious differences between the two versions that is a little frustrating.
At $1.99 Mini Motor Racing will provide a fun, challenging and entertaining addition to your iPhone collection of games and comes highly recommended.
What we like:
What to know:
EA a renowned name for producing quality titles across all devices and no more so than the range of games they’ve produced for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Most of these games however are big named games ported from other game systems, Reckless Racing however breaks that mold as it debuts onto Apple’s handheld device.
There have been top down racers before but none on a held device that matches the quality of Reckless Racing especially in the graphics department. The tracks may be small but they are beautifully formed and as you race around them it’s difficult not to notice the attention to detail that has been put into this game.
From the dust and dirt being spun up by the spinning tires, the water bubbling over rocks in the stream that you have to drive through at times and the detail in the buildings that crowd the track the game just sparkles, especially on the iPhone 4’s Retina Display. The beauty doesn’t deminish either when playing online or suffer from slow down which is good to see.
The sound, the music at least, could be pretty decisive, with a banjo laden track being repeatidly played throughout the game. This can be turned off however so if it does get on your nerves it can be easily switched of. The sound effects are effective too with the cars sounding suitably throaty as they charge around the off tracks.
The single player game is split into three modes, Dirt Rally, Hot Lap and Delivery. The first two pretty much speak for themselves, in Dirty Lap you race against either 4 or 6 AI controlled cars to win a race over a set number of laps while in Hot Lap it’s just you against the clock, and your ghost, as you race around the 5 tracks on your own.
One of the down sides to Reckless Racing is the number of tracks especially considering how small they are. Individually the size of the tracks is just perfect for the racing but overall having only five tracks, 10 if you count the reverse of them, is rather limiting and I certainly hope that more tracks become avialable in a future update.
The final game type is Delivery, a unique addition which tasks you with collecting trailers of goods and delivery them as quickly as possible. This mode is played on a new unique track and can be played over 3, 5 or 8 minutes at a time. Deliver the goods fast and you will be rewarded with more money. I liked this addition to the game and if more tracks are added to this mode too and it gets added to the multi-player option then it will make a great game even better.
So that brings me on to the multi-player option. Playing certain games against your friends and other real people online an make or break a game and so it is great to see online multi-player added to Reckless Racing from the word go. As mentioned previously the two modes available to play online are Dirt Rally and Hot Lap and the host of the game gets to choose which type of race you’ll be playing.
When playing online you are taken into a Lobby where all the hosted games are listed. Considering this game has only just launched I was pleased to see the amount of games available to join. Listed in the Lobby is the name of the race, entered by the host, and the current number of players. What’s not included is the type of race being played or whether the race is in progress or not. It would be nice to see these options available in the Lobby before entering the race.
There’s also no overall ranking or leagues to compete in so while racing online is smooth and has little or no lag in my experience the fact that there is no lasting reward to it other than race itself left it feeling a little lacking. That being said the online racing is fun and adds extra value to the overall gaming experience.
All of this however would amount to nothing if the controls weren’t up to the task. No worries there though either as there are five, yes five, sets of controls to choose from as well as the ability to choose auto accelerate and the sensitivity of your steering. Standard steering mode was my favorite, utilizing four separate buttons for left, right, accelerate and reverse seemed to offer the maximum level of control and dexterity, having id that though having tank, tilt, half wheel and whole wheel options will enable everyone the opportunity to find the right solution for them.
For some people used to paying no more than 99 cents for a game may see the $2.99 price tag two high, for me however it’s worth every cent and should further updates add more tracks and online rankings it while make this game easily my #1 game on the iPhone 4.
$2.99 (View in iTunes)
Category: Games
Released:Oct 21, 2010
Version:1.1.5
1.1.5
39.3 MB
Languages:English, French, German, Italian, Spanish
Seller:Electronic Arts
Reckless Racing (TM) © 2010 Pixelbite AB. All Rights Reserved.
Rated 4+
Requirements:Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.0 or later
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