App of My Eye » Platformer

iCircus Robot

Art — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 09:38:59 +0000

Don’t be misled by the title: there are no clowns in this game. Well, at least not the type of clowns that you remember as a kid. You know what I’m talking about: those velvet paintings your mom and dad used to buy from the mall, which all had clowns that looked like demonic versions of Red Skelton’s famous alter ego stolen from Rod Serling’s Night Gallery. Their effect on you was so severe that each time you did go to a real circus you had the same feeling come over you as you do now watching Dateline NBC: To Catch a Predator. No amount of cotton candy and snow cones could ever calm you down. Not that it should since they contain more sugar than sugar. Anyway, so what can you expect from iCircus Robot if not scary clowns? How about a smooth highly-stylized 2D side-scrolling game the likes of which is rarely seen in the App Store? Very much paying tribute to arcade games of old, you play as a robot that needs to jump through or over obstacles. Using the accelerometer, tilt to one side or the other to move, while timing finger taps on the screen to perform the jumps. Kinda reminiscent of Nintendo’s Donkey Kong in some ways, my only criticism of this game is that it currently only has four missions. But considering the quick increase in difficulty as you do progress, it lasts a lot longer than you think. Plus, there is the promise of more to come. Price: 99¢.

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Little Runner

Art — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 07:32:49 +0000

If you remember awhile back, I was looking for a Lode Runner clone and I was so obsessed about finding one that I even used Bing.com. Damn Microsoft and their media blitz! Unfortunately, I didn’t find one, but instead, I got hooked by this cute and simple game recently released by Red Rocket Games. Little Runner is an exceptional concept that just works perfectly on the iPhone and iPod Touch. Play as an alien from a “strange race of Runners”, whose sole desire is to run. To those ends, you gotta help him out by moving slabs of stone up and down using the touchscreen. Ensure his pace is uninterrupted by any hazards caused by uneven ground, such as high steps and deep pits. Get scored based on travel distance and attempt to improve your high score each time. This should tide me over until I get a fairly loyal Lode Runner clone or at least until I get my hands on a iPhone 3G S. Highly recommended for its creativity, easy controls, and addictive nature. Price: 99¢.

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Trace

Art — Thu, 28 May 2009 07:11:14 +0000

As I continued to rummage through the App Store, I realized there are a lot of apps that use very unspectacular graphics. It’s like some devs decided to use clip art or Wingdings rather than deal with artists, which is understandable with those fragile egos. Just kidding! Of course, on occasion, you run into a game like Trace, which basically says to you “Look, this may look like a child’s fingerpainting, but at least, you will never forget me.” It’s true: I never will, but it is also because of it’s creative gameplay of drawing paths using the touch screen to avoid obstacles in the fastest time possible. The game is a puzzler and a platformer all in one. With 6 unique worlds and 120 levels, you really can’t ask for anything more, including a break on the price… because it’s free. Price: Free.

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