Pocket Tanks Deluxe © 2001-2010 Blitwise Productions, LLC: Proof That Old Games Are More Awesome Than Your Grandmother (4.99)

Fighting is good.  Tanks are good.  Big artillery weapons that go ‘boom’ are good.  Therefore, Pocket Tanks Deluxe by Blitwise Productions epitomizes all of the good things in life.  In this magnificent port of a retro pc game, one controls a tank and fires multiple types of ridiculous weapons at your opponent, similar to the popular Worms titles.  Unlike worms, Pocket Tanks Deluxe comes with 105 weapons, each one slightly more ridiculous than the next.  Mud pies?  Pillow fights?  Popcorn?  Utilize these strange yet powerful weapons to rain justice upon your foes.  They probably deserved it.  Maybe they hijacked your toaster.

Graphics: Very retro.  The maps are different each time, yet the same.  The neon green colour of the ground never changes, and yet the map designed to be different each time a new game is started.  Also, each of the many weapons in the game comes with brilliant and beautiful graphical effects, which makes for more interesting gameplay.  It was great to see the different effects of the weapons, and how the developer designed them to look.

Controls: Classic, for a tanks game.  The premise is the same; change the angle of your cannon, select the amount of power, and then HOLD ON TO YOUR KNICKERS (not the candy).  Unfortunately, for amateur players this can be difficult, and the AI is a bit too harsh on the player to give room for improvement.  It would be nice if the developers could tone down the difficulty of the AI; even on easy difficulty levels, it can be a nuisance.  The controls, for the most part, work fine; it is simply a matter of knowing the weapons, and setting the angle and power just right for that particular weapon.

Gameplay: Spot on.  Pocket Tanks Deluxe is the perfect example of a game that will last forever (if not forever, than at least for a long time).  The sheer amount of content, plus local multiplayer on the same device and single player against AI opponents can keep gamers entertained for many an hour.  Unfortunately, the experience is so much better with a friend, and, frankly, Pocket Tanks Deluxe does not really support friend-making.  There is no online multiplayer, and not even Bluetooth multiplayer with local devices.  We would like to see the developers implementing this in the future.  Otherwise, the game is extremely enjoyable.

Recap: Pocket Tanks Deluxe combines retro graphics with classic controls and great gameplay.  There is a lot of content; unfortunately, the AI difficulty is too steep, and there is no online multiplayer to back it up.  Overall, this game is worth your dollar, if you’re willing to have your friends huddle around one screen.

Graphics:  8/10  Gameplay:  9/10   Controls: 9/10   Overall: 8.5/10

Sincerely,

The Saber-Toothed Haggis

Death Worm © PlayCreek LLC: Killing Things Is Fun And Only 99 Cents… Again!

A follow-up to Super Mega Worm a few months ago, PlayCreek has finally released their official game of the movie, ‘Death Worm’.  I found the style to be a little less enjoyable; the pixilated design of Super Mega Worm was a bit more interesting.  Apart from that, however, this game seems to be superior in many ways, including amount of content and control style.  With a graphics style similar to the Effing Worms flash game, this particular title may attract more fans in the future.  

Graphics: It looks nice, but it’s nothing new.  Super Mega Worm managed to bring a new graphical design to the table, which added to the gameplay and the fun factor.  Death Worm, unfortunately, sticks to common, rather unattractive backgrounds; although nice, they do not stand out or interest the gamer.  There are several graphical themes to choose from, from a desert theme to a city theme, but, overall, we think that Super Mega Worm excelled in this category.

Controls: Fabulous.  When Super Mega Worm was first released, the worm could only be controlled with a simple slider, hindering the gameplay and frustrating the players.  Thankfully, Death Worm brings a joystick into the game, which makes the worm very easy to control from the outset.  Power-ups can be activated with buttons conveniently located on the screen; also, the controls can be switched to a left-handed mode in the options menu, for handicapped players such as myself I AM NO DIFFERENT THAN ANY ONE OF YOU.

Gameplay: This game plays very similar to Super Mega Worm, but fortunately brings more gameplay styles and content to the genre.  Each level has a certain objective; for example, one might be asked to kill 60 humans and/or animals, without getting any damage done to your worm.  These tasks range from easy to impossibly hard, and add variety to the gameplay.  The game is split into 45 levels across 3 graphical themes, with more on the way.  Already, this provides much more content than Super Mega Worm, which contained only 25 levels.  The game also contains a minigame similar to the Cave games of old; one must press down on the screen to make the worm rise, and let go to have the worm fall, the objective being to travel as far as possible.  The developers promise more minigames in the future, so gamers have much to look forward to.

Recap: While the graphics are slightly less than what we had hoped, the added content and easy control style make this game easy to recommend.  Gamers should definitely pick this one up.

Graphics:  8/10   Controls:  10/10   Gameplay: 9/10   Overall:  8.5/10

 Sincerely,

The Saber-Toothed Haggis

Downloads – Browse, Download, View and Share Files © Hian Zin Jong ($1.99) One word: AWESOME!

I love this app. For someone who downloads a lot, and likes to view things later, I have enjoyed this app. It works. Compared to the other junk out there, (*cough cough* iDownloader) this rises above the rest as the downloading app king. (Or Queen if you are one of those annoying feminists). I personally enjoy downloading on my computer and now that it has been transferred to my mobile device, I feel an intense happiness that can only be matched by winning the lottery, or ecstasy.

Overall Design: Gorgeous. Just wonderful. The style of the app is quite similar to the App Store itself. There is a bottom bar in which you can switch between the browser, the download, the files and the settings. The browser itself is just Safari smushed into this app, but that also means that you have the same tools as Safari such as bookmarks, tabs, history, etc… One problem is that the Browser and Safari do not correspond and therefore, bookmarks do not transfer back and forth which could prove to be a bit of a pain in the @$$. The downloads just shows the list of downloads with the basic blue bar showing the progress. You can edit the downloads to delete them or add new ones. The files is really cool because you can place your downloaded files into folders which gives the whole app a nice organized look. And the settings are pretty much the same as the rest of Apple’s mobile devices.

Usability: This app is very easy to use and one can learn how to use it in under a minute. The app itself provides a great way to browse for downloads, monitor the speed, watch/listen to your files and change your settings. The settings are awesome. In fact, I would marry this app for its settings. (It gets pretty lonely in space). You can share your files through the Wi-Fi, just like Voice Memos, you can put a passcode if you want to keep your files private (No one’s judging you pervert). And you can also customize a few more things about the browser window.

Usefulness: Now if you are like me and have an iTouch (we aren’t pretentious like the iPhone 4 users), then this app is one that is very good for you. If you want to view a video on your favourite site, listen to a song that you haven’t had time to put on your iPod, then this app can help you save it all by downloading. And hey, who doesn’t download? So definitely, something that should be on your iPod.

Recap: In summary, I would like to use an analogy. Buying this app is like making a baby. (Not the actual action but the process). It is something that nearly everyone does in one way or another, and so, why not make it easier by choosing the right partner. One you know you won’t have any complications with. Definitely, check it out.

Overall Design: 9.5/10 Usability: 9/10 Usefulness: 10/10 

Overall: 9/10

Sincerely,

The Artistic Autistic Astronaut (DOORS)

Zombeat © 3G Studios, Inc: Kill Zombies With Your Guitar! (2.99)

This is one of the few games in the zombie music category.  In fact, it is the only game in the zombie music category.  Picture Guitar Hero, except with a change in premise; you must defend yourself from hordes of zombies hungry for your brains.  One must tap the beats to the music, just like Guitar Hero; however, your character fires a bullet every single time you get a note right.  This does not mean you should continuously press the note buttons; each wrong note pressed brings the zombies closer.  Essentially, it is a simple music game inspired by Rock Band and Guitar Hero, with a zombie theme that, unfortunately, does not really add to the gameplay.

Graphics: Errrhmm.  From what I can see from the game, the graphics are lacking in areas, while are a bit extreme in other areas.  For example, the character and zombie details are lacking; there are only a few zombie types to shoot with your trusty pistol.  There is an overload of blood however; it seems impossible that so much blood can come from these decaying humans.  The style kind of reminded me of Pro Zombie Soccer, but unfortunately it was not as crisp or smooth as that particular zombie game.  

Controls: Simple enough; press the note buttons that correspond with the colours that run from the top of the screen.  The zombies attacking you above the screen are sometimes disconcerting, which may distract you from the music.  Also, some of the button combinations are impossible for two thumbs.  Three notes at the same time, guys?  Seriously?

Gameplay: Enjoyable, yet certainly not very original.  While the zombies are an enjoyable distraction for a while, the gameplay remains the same as other guitar games, although other games usually supply more songs than this game comes with on purchase.  There are only a few themes to change from, such as a Christmas theme.  The themes look pretty similar, and do not satisfy for very long.  I would like to see the developers add more songs and/or themes to the game; thankfully, there is an in-game store in case the developers decide to release new song packs.  

Recap: Satisfying yet rather boring graphics, simple controls, and enjoyable yet repetitive gameplay.  The zombie theme is an interesting idea, but the game did not quite follow up on the idea with any interesting gameplay additions.  All in all, it is a simple music game with the zombie label tacked on to it in order to receive appeal.  

Graphics: 6/10   Controls: 6/10   Gameplay: 6/10   Overall: 6/10

 Sincerely,

The Saber-Toothed Haggis

Samurai II Vengeance © MADFINGER Games: Violence Is Good For Your Cholesterol (2.99)

Today I stumbled upon an application entitled Samurai II for my idevice.  I have spent the past six or seven hours locked in a dark room, desperately attempting to slash a bunch of ninja samurais into little bits with my trusty katana.  This gore-splattered hack and slash game has crisp, 3D visuals, detailed character design and movement, and blood.  So much blood.  The game is centered around killing; in fact, the storyline is typical of a game in the genre: man meets woman, man and woman fall in love, other man kills woman, other man sells his soul to the devil to become a demon, man vows to avenge woman’s death, man kills other man.  

Graphics: Beautiful.  Everything about the game seems perfect, from the background visuals such as ships swaying in their harbours to the pathways and bridges and even the spike traps and swinging axe blades.  It’s hard to believe that such a console-quality game can be fitted into such a small screen, for such a low price.

Controls: Much improved over the original Samurai game, which we found tiresome.  Instead of swiping your finger desperately across the screen, Madfinger has conveniently placed O and X attack buttons, similar to controls found in arcade games.  I find that I can now execute my combos with ease, and appreciate the gruesome decapitations that my character performs, like some sort of evil surgeon.  

Gameplay: Similar to other hack and slash games, the premise is simple; kill everyone else.  However, this simple idea is further developed by an intricate story set in feudal Japan, following the story of a samurai chasing a demon through lush, beautiful landscapes packed with other evil samurais.  The game only has seven levels plus a survival dojo to play, but each of these levels are quite lengthy and are packed with multiple types of enemies and bosses.  Unfortunately, the game is quite repetitive, with a simple formula; travel from point A to point B, kill people at point B, and then travel to point C.  Repeat.  However, the button-mashing is so enjoyable that I find myself able to play the game for long periods of time without losing any enjoyment.  In my humble opinion, Samurai II has perfected the art of the hack and slash genre.

Recap: Beautiful visuals set in beautiful Japanese settings, convenient button controls, and violent yet enjoyable gameplay.  For 2.99, this game is an absolute must-buy.

Graphics: 10/10  Controls: 10/10  Gameplay: 9/10  Overall: 9.5/10

Sincerely,

The Saber-Toothed Haggis