Showing posts with label Brain / Puzzle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Brain / Puzzle. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
0
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Ric RAT
Robotek Review
★★★★☆
[Begin Transmission] Maple Node access granted. Perimeter defense grid disabled. Deploying robot invasion forces in T-minus 5... 4... 3... (garbled text) WARNING! Bot-hacking in progress. Preparing forces for significant resistance.
Title: Robotek | Developer: Hexage | Genre: Action/Arcade |
Players: 1-2 | Version: 1.0 | Size: 8.6MB | Price: Free
Click QRC image (from phone) or scan with a barcode reader.
Squid-shaped alien robots have taken over the world, and it's up to you to win it back! Node-by-node, you'll be sending your robot forces to demolish the invaders using varied weaponry and tactics. Fortunately for you, controlling such an army requires no more technical expertise than playing slots at a casino! Technology has certainly come a long way...
Hexage is known for their quality titles, neon-graphics, and innovative games, and Robotek is no exception. Using a bank of credits (charges), you'll "buy" access to a particular node and attempt to liberate it from the enemy. There are over 200 nodes, with varied levels of difficulty. Each side has a "big guy" (you), and can summon three bot-variants for added offense/defense - drones, tanks, and droids. The goal of the game is to penetrate your opponent's forces and cut his main bot's health down to zero using a combination of calling reinforcements (moar bots), espionage (hacking, energy-drain, force field), and assault (shock, microwave, laser) tactics. Each side chooses their actions for the turn, then combat resolves... hopefully with the gigantic brilliant explosion happening on the other side of the screen.
Whereas a similar game like Risk uses dice to resolve battles, Robotek uses an interesting "slot machine" mechanic. On your turn, you'll choose a general strategy - reinforce, espionage, or assault - and each strategy has three possible actions. For example, the espionage strategy involves hacking, energy-drain, and force field. Like a slot machine, there are three columns which randomly cycle through these actions until you hit stop, ideally synchronizing all three on your desired action. The more columns that match, the stronger the matching action is, and you'll score an extra turn if you match all three! Sometimes though, you may want to split your actions for a one-two punch combo. Either way, you'll get a chance to trigger each unique action that comes up. If you roll x2 lasers and a shock, you'll blast a big-time laser followed by a normal shock. If you land all three lasers, you blast a big-ass laser and get another turn. Confused about which action does what? A quick tap pulls-up a nice little on-screen summary.
As you exchange blows with your enemy, your units will gain experience and become more powerful. In addition to unit xp, every turn that passes gives you one more credit toward using a special ability. Special abilities include things like Rapid Fire (firing a second volley) and Emergency Repairs (+30 health to your units). Finally, as you sweep the map conquering nodes, you'll gain experience of your own which converts into tokens to be spent on unique squadron upgrades. These particular upgrades enhance the general effectiveness of your bots and their actions during combat.
The Good
Robotek is a great looking game with a pulsing techno soundtrack, reminiscent of EVAC HD. You'll find a decent amount of strategy and upgrade options to keep you busy over the game's 200+ nodes, and it's casual enough to pick up for a quickie. While it may be somewhat lacking in depth for us die-hard strategy fans, the upgrade and combo-options offer a solid intro to strategy for casual gamers. Should you ever find yourself on the losing-end of the war, you can always wire Hexage a few dollars for more charges.
The Bad
Aside from upgrading your bot skills and praying for the best 3-action combo every round, there's relatively little variety as you progress. I would've liked to see some new bots unlocked as you level. The computer chooses your targets for you, and I would've liked to be able to manually-target enemies in certain scenarios. The most annoying aspect of this game is that I spent $3 for the "duel" mode, only to find that it still... just me vs the AI. You can still play vs a friend by taking turns on the same phone, but who actually does this? This game would be solid with a random online match-up feature.
The Verdict
Robotek is a solid title, especially for free, and strikes a smooth balance between casual and strategy gaming. The graphics shine, the music is great, but anyone who spends a decent amount of time playing will wonder if she's still playing the same level. Assuming you don't get suckered into paying $3 for the "duel the CPU" mode, downloading this game is a no-brainer. Add online duels with live players, and this would win a 5-star rating.
read more
Title: Robotek | Developer: Hexage | Genre: Action/Arcade |
Players: 1-2 | Version: 1.0 | Size: 8.6MB | Price: Free
Squid-shaped alien robots have taken over the world, and it's up to you to win it back! Node-by-node, you'll be sending your robot forces to demolish the invaders using varied weaponry and tactics. Fortunately for you, controlling such an army requires no more technical expertise than playing slots at a casino! Technology has certainly come a long way...
Hexage is known for their quality titles, neon-graphics, and innovative games, and Robotek is no exception. Using a bank of credits (charges), you'll "buy" access to a particular node and attempt to liberate it from the enemy. There are over 200 nodes, with varied levels of difficulty. Each side has a "big guy" (you), and can summon three bot-variants for added offense/defense - drones, tanks, and droids. The goal of the game is to penetrate your opponent's forces and cut his main bot's health down to zero using a combination of calling reinforcements (moar bots), espionage (hacking, energy-drain, force field), and assault (shock, microwave, laser) tactics. Each side chooses their actions for the turn, then combat resolves... hopefully with the gigantic brilliant explosion happening on the other side of the screen.
Whereas a similar game like Risk uses dice to resolve battles, Robotek uses an interesting "slot machine" mechanic. On your turn, you'll choose a general strategy - reinforce, espionage, or assault - and each strategy has three possible actions. For example, the espionage strategy involves hacking, energy-drain, and force field. Like a slot machine, there are three columns which randomly cycle through these actions until you hit stop, ideally synchronizing all three on your desired action. The more columns that match, the stronger the matching action is, and you'll score an extra turn if you match all three! Sometimes though, you may want to split your actions for a one-two punch combo. Either way, you'll get a chance to trigger each unique action that comes up. If you roll x2 lasers and a shock, you'll blast a big-time laser followed by a normal shock. If you land all three lasers, you blast a big-ass laser and get another turn. Confused about which action does what? A quick tap pulls-up a nice little on-screen summary.
As you exchange blows with your enemy, your units will gain experience and become more powerful. In addition to unit xp, every turn that passes gives you one more credit toward using a special ability. Special abilities include things like Rapid Fire (firing a second volley) and Emergency Repairs (+30 health to your units). Finally, as you sweep the map conquering nodes, you'll gain experience of your own which converts into tokens to be spent on unique squadron upgrades. These particular upgrades enhance the general effectiveness of your bots and their actions during combat.
The Good
Robotek is a great looking game with a pulsing techno soundtrack, reminiscent of EVAC HD. You'll find a decent amount of strategy and upgrade options to keep you busy over the game's 200+ nodes, and it's casual enough to pick up for a quickie. While it may be somewhat lacking in depth for us die-hard strategy fans, the upgrade and combo-options offer a solid intro to strategy for casual gamers. Should you ever find yourself on the losing-end of the war, you can always wire Hexage a few dollars for more charges.
The Bad
Aside from upgrading your bot skills and praying for the best 3-action combo every round, there's relatively little variety as you progress. I would've liked to see some new bots unlocked as you level. The computer chooses your targets for you, and I would've liked to be able to manually-target enemies in certain scenarios. The most annoying aspect of this game is that I spent $3 for the "duel" mode, only to find that it still... just me vs the AI. You can still play vs a friend by taking turns on the same phone, but who actually does this? This game would be solid with a random online match-up feature.
The Verdict
Robotek is a solid title, especially for free, and strikes a smooth balance between casual and strategy gaming. The graphics shine, the music is great, but anyone who spends a decent amount of time playing will wonder if she's still playing the same level. Assuming you don't get suckered into paying $3 for the "duel the CPU" mode, downloading this game is a no-brainer. Add online duels with live players, and this would win a 5-star rating.
Friday, December 31, 2010
0
Friday, December 31, 2010
Ric RAT
Ancient Frog Review
★★★★☆
Enjoy the serene rainforest-ambiance of Ancient Frog as you struggle to maneuver starving amphibians into place for a tasty snack. Eating a fly has never been such hard work.
Title: Ancient Frog | Developer: Ancient Workshop | Genre: Puzzle |
Players: 1 | Version: 1.0 | Size: 14.15MB | Price: $2.69
Click QRC image (from phone) or scan with a barcode reader.
For the most part, I've always viewed frogs with general indifference - except, of course, for those awesome poison-dart ones. They multiply like crazy, move en-masse over roads, croak obnoxiously, keep mosquito populations in-check, and provide treats for many residents of the South. But when you watch one simply enjoying itself, sitting on a mossy branch in the middle of a lush rainforest, it's almost zen. And it'd better be zen, since that's exactly what you'll be doing in this puzzler. Well, almost.
In Ancient Frog, you'll help over 100 positionally-challenged frogs rotate this way and that, with the sole objective of sticking their face in front of a fly. You can see this game as a training course for amphibian dining. As the saying goes, "You can lead a frog to a fly, but you can't force it to eat." Lucky for you, all your frogs are apparently starving.
Using your finger, you'll tap one of the frog's four feet to lift it up, drag, and place it over any of the available footprints. By dragging and dropping your frog's appendages, you'll effectively (and slowly) be moving him into position to snap-up the fly. It sounds simple, but it gets really hard rather quickly. You see, there's a specific "dance" each frog will have to do in order to properly align itself, and each level joyously reminds you just how many placements it takes "normal" people to accomplish the task (par). If you align the frog under or within par, good for you. If you're like me, this won't happen very often. Should you make a mistake, you can always undo by swiping the screen, and should you get stuck, you can always ask for a hint.
Controls
To move a frog-leg, tap and drag the foot to another placement-pad. Controls work fine, for the most part, aside from a minor "fat finger" annoyance - it's tricky to see beneath your finger on some moves. Often-times, you really won't understand why a foot isn't allowed at a certain spot, but you just have to roll with it.
Graphics
Serene and atmospheric are two words that come to mind. The graphics are really quite pretty, and use realistic renderings of actual frogs, lily pads, and branches to add to the "natural" feel of the game. While you're pondering which move to make next, shadows gently dance over the background giving you a nice sense of depth and realism. The frogs themselves are quite well done.
Sound
Aside from a distinctive "pop"-effect that happens when you stick a frog-foot to a new location, Ancient Frog is pure relaxing ambiance. The din of the rainforest - complete with birds, monkeys, and crickets - provides the background music in this game.
Options
Ancient Frog strikes a fine balance between insanely frustrating and environmentally soothing. The graphics are beautiful, and there are more than enough levels to keep you busy. I found myself growing weary of doing the same dance over and over and over again, but according to the Market comments and other game-review sites, y'all don't seem to mind much at all. Should you find yourself getting hopelessly frustrated, leave the game on, set the phone down, turn off the lights, and pretend you're in the rainforest. Awmmm.
read more
Enjoy the serene rainforest-ambiance of Ancient Frog as you struggle to maneuver starving amphibians into place for a tasty snack. Eating a fly has never been such hard work.Title: Ancient Frog | Developer: Ancient Workshop | Genre: Puzzle |
Players: 1 | Version: 1.0 | Size: 14.15MB | Price: $2.69
Click QRC image (from phone) or scan with a barcode reader.For the most part, I've always viewed frogs with general indifference - except, of course, for those awesome poison-dart ones. They multiply like crazy, move en-masse over roads, croak obnoxiously, keep mosquito populations in-check, and provide treats for many residents of the South. But when you watch one simply enjoying itself, sitting on a mossy branch in the middle of a lush rainforest, it's almost zen. And it'd better be zen, since that's exactly what you'll be doing in this puzzler. Well, almost.
In Ancient Frog, you'll help over 100 positionally-challenged frogs rotate this way and that, with the sole objective of sticking their face in front of a fly. You can see this game as a training course for amphibian dining. As the saying goes, "You can lead a frog to a fly, but you can't force it to eat." Lucky for you, all your frogs are apparently starving.
Using your finger, you'll tap one of the frog's four feet to lift it up, drag, and place it over any of the available footprints. By dragging and dropping your frog's appendages, you'll effectively (and slowly) be moving him into position to snap-up the fly. It sounds simple, but it gets really hard rather quickly. You see, there's a specific "dance" each frog will have to do in order to properly align itself, and each level joyously reminds you just how many placements it takes "normal" people to accomplish the task (par). If you align the frog under or within par, good for you. If you're like me, this won't happen very often. Should you make a mistake, you can always undo by swiping the screen, and should you get stuck, you can always ask for a hint.
Controls
To move a frog-leg, tap and drag the foot to another placement-pad. Controls work fine, for the most part, aside from a minor "fat finger" annoyance - it's tricky to see beneath your finger on some moves. Often-times, you really won't understand why a foot isn't allowed at a certain spot, but you just have to roll with it.
Graphics
Serene and atmospheric are two words that come to mind. The graphics are really quite pretty, and use realistic renderings of actual frogs, lily pads, and branches to add to the "natural" feel of the game. While you're pondering which move to make next, shadows gently dance over the background giving you a nice sense of depth and realism. The frogs themselves are quite well done.
Sound
Aside from a distinctive "pop"-effect that happens when you stick a frog-foot to a new location, Ancient Frog is pure relaxing ambiance. The din of the rainforest - complete with birds, monkeys, and crickets - provides the background music in this game.
Options
Not much in the way of options, I'm afraid. You can toggle sound on and off, and that's about it.
VerdictAncient Frog strikes a fine balance between insanely frustrating and environmentally soothing. The graphics are beautiful, and there are more than enough levels to keep you busy. I found myself growing weary of doing the same dance over and over and over again, but according to the Market comments and other game-review sites, y'all don't seem to mind much at all. Should you find yourself getting hopelessly frustrated, leave the game on, set the phone down, turn off the lights, and pretend you're in the rainforest. Awmmm.
Saturday, November 6, 2010
0
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Ric RAT
Terminal 5 Review
★★★☆☆
A little blue robot wakes up in an underground maze full of spikes, lasers, and locked doors. You job is to upload a sequence of commands, cross your fingers, and hope he makes it to the exit in one piece!
Title: Terminal5 | Developer: +1 Labs | Genre: Brain & Puzzle |
Players: 1 | Version: 1.0.3 | Size: 2.7MB | Price: €1.99
Click QRC image (from phone) or scan with a barcode reader.
Terminal 5 is the name of an obscure dungeon-like maze, most likely nestled somewhere in the mountains of Colorado, where the US army tests robot AI using tax-payer dollars. I kid. But it really is the name of the maze your little blue robot has found himself stuck inside, and (unlike AI) he cannot escape on his own. Send the 'bot a sequence of up to eight move-commands, and hit "play" to see if he makes it... or more likely, runs repeatedly into a wall.
Your goal in this interesting little puzzler is to navigate your robot successfully to a little green plus-sign (the exit) while avoiding things that might bring him to an early demise, such as spikes and lasers. Each level in the set of twenty-four brings increasingly more difficult and complex maps (and headaches). In my time playing, I uncovered the secrets of various tiles as well as traps. The most common floor-feature are tiles called "conveyors". When stepped on-to, a conveyor will spit you out the other side. Certain conveyors will also rotate your 'bot 90 degrees, either left or right. You'll need to learn how these conveyors work in order to master this game! I'll give you a hint: you don't need to face the direction of the conveyor in order to move the way it points, and you will stop at the next conveyor if moved there from a previous one. In other words, if a straight-line conveyor dumps you on another straight-line conveyor tile, you won't continue to auto-move. Tricky. In addition to conveyor tiles, doors will bar your path. Doors can be toggled open and closed via switches located on the map, and all work in unison.
You begin each map with a fixed number of move-orders (straight, left, right, and turn-around), action sets (number of times you can submit a sequence of moves), and lives. A life will be lost by stepping on a spike tile, including turning-around on the same tile if you're already there, as well as being blasted by the laser. Sometimes, however, taking a hit is inevitable in order to make it out of the level.
Take a bit of time at the beginning of each level to plan-out your route, and submit the max number of move-orders in a sequence so as to minimize the number of action sets you use. If you play your cards right and get your 'bot to the exit in the least amount of time, using the least amount of actions, you'll get a nifty medal! Schwing.
Controls
The controls in Terminal 5, in my opinion, are what seriously ding its rating. Tapping to select move-orders works fine, unless you tap slightly too-fast; then your orders won't make it into the queue. Try not to make any mistakes in the eight-order string as well, because there's no way to undo your last order, or any other single order in the sequence. If you mess-up, your only option is to wipe the whole sequence out and start over! Hopefully, you remembered everything you'd just planned. The "go" button is a tiny little arrow located at the top of the sequence bar - I think it should be a bit bigger, if not more obvious as well. The map can be dragged-around for positioning, but strangely you can drag the map even if tap-hold-dragging over the command area of the screen. You can rotate the map using another tiny, un-obvious rotate button, and (on my Evo) you can double-tap to zoom in and out. Unfortunately, there's no pinch-support for scaling. I would love to see a scaling-zoom function. Finally, there's no option within a level to restart it; you have to instead back-out to the menu, and then restart the level. Annoying.
Graphics
Terminal5 sports rendered polygon graphics, something you don't usually see in Android games. The map spins-around at the beginning of a new level, and looks all nifty and 3D'ish. Sadly, the textures are rather bland. For example, the walls are a solid grey. The game could definitely use a little polish in the visual department.
Sound
This game has no background music, so don't freak-out and try to raise your phone's volume over and over again. The sound effects during the game are good enough for government work. You'll hear the "bzzt" sound of your 'bot milling about, switches being toggled, etc. but it's a fairly quiet game. Again, a little polish could be used in the sound department as well to give this game a bit more atmospheric depth.
Options
You can switch the language to German, if you'd like - an interesting feature - as well as toggle sound-effects, change the game speed, and reset your campaign. There is also a very helpful tutorial that does a great job of explaining most of the game mechanics, so be sure to check that out.
Verdict
For all you right-brained, over-analyzers out there who love to plan and strategize, this game may just tickle your fancy. At first, I found it rather challenging and it repeatedly lost my interest - you are, after all, just moving a robot around - but once I got the hang of the conveyors, I started to enjoy myself more. All of the control/interface quirks, lack of background music, and general lack of polish, kept it from getting a 4-star rating; all of these things could easily be fixed in an update. Is it worth $2.80? Not yet, but definitely will be once these annoyances are patched. Still, the mechanics and gameplay are solid for this type of game.
Get Terminal 5 on AppBrain!
read more
Title: Terminal5 | Developer: +1 Labs | Genre: Brain & Puzzle |
Players: 1 | Version: 1.0.3 | Size: 2.7MB | Price: €1.99
Terminal 5 is the name of an obscure dungeon-like maze, most likely nestled somewhere in the mountains of Colorado, where the US army tests robot AI using tax-payer dollars. I kid. But it really is the name of the maze your little blue robot has found himself stuck inside, and (unlike AI) he cannot escape on his own. Send the 'bot a sequence of up to eight move-commands, and hit "play" to see if he makes it... or more likely, runs repeatedly into a wall.
Your goal in this interesting little puzzler is to navigate your robot successfully to a little green plus-sign (the exit) while avoiding things that might bring him to an early demise, such as spikes and lasers. Each level in the set of twenty-four brings increasingly more difficult and complex maps (and headaches). In my time playing, I uncovered the secrets of various tiles as well as traps. The most common floor-feature are tiles called "conveyors". When stepped on-to, a conveyor will spit you out the other side. Certain conveyors will also rotate your 'bot 90 degrees, either left or right. You'll need to learn how these conveyors work in order to master this game! I'll give you a hint: you don't need to face the direction of the conveyor in order to move the way it points, and you will stop at the next conveyor if moved there from a previous one. In other words, if a straight-line conveyor dumps you on another straight-line conveyor tile, you won't continue to auto-move. Tricky. In addition to conveyor tiles, doors will bar your path. Doors can be toggled open and closed via switches located on the map, and all work in unison.
You begin each map with a fixed number of move-orders (straight, left, right, and turn-around), action sets (number of times you can submit a sequence of moves), and lives. A life will be lost by stepping on a spike tile, including turning-around on the same tile if you're already there, as well as being blasted by the laser. Sometimes, however, taking a hit is inevitable in order to make it out of the level.
Take a bit of time at the beginning of each level to plan-out your route, and submit the max number of move-orders in a sequence so as to minimize the number of action sets you use. If you play your cards right and get your 'bot to the exit in the least amount of time, using the least amount of actions, you'll get a nifty medal! Schwing.
Controls
The controls in Terminal 5, in my opinion, are what seriously ding its rating. Tapping to select move-orders works fine, unless you tap slightly too-fast; then your orders won't make it into the queue. Try not to make any mistakes in the eight-order string as well, because there's no way to undo your last order, or any other single order in the sequence. If you mess-up, your only option is to wipe the whole sequence out and start over! Hopefully, you remembered everything you'd just planned. The "go" button is a tiny little arrow located at the top of the sequence bar - I think it should be a bit bigger, if not more obvious as well. The map can be dragged-around for positioning, but strangely you can drag the map even if tap-hold-dragging over the command area of the screen. You can rotate the map using another tiny, un-obvious rotate button, and (on my Evo) you can double-tap to zoom in and out. Unfortunately, there's no pinch-support for scaling. I would love to see a scaling-zoom function. Finally, there's no option within a level to restart it; you have to instead back-out to the menu, and then restart the level. Annoying.
Graphics
Terminal5 sports rendered polygon graphics, something you don't usually see in Android games. The map spins-around at the beginning of a new level, and looks all nifty and 3D'ish. Sadly, the textures are rather bland. For example, the walls are a solid grey. The game could definitely use a little polish in the visual department.
Sound
This game has no background music, so don't freak-out and try to raise your phone's volume over and over again. The sound effects during the game are good enough for government work. You'll hear the "bzzt" sound of your 'bot milling about, switches being toggled, etc. but it's a fairly quiet game. Again, a little polish could be used in the sound department as well to give this game a bit more atmospheric depth.
Options
You can switch the language to German, if you'd like - an interesting feature - as well as toggle sound-effects, change the game speed, and reset your campaign. There is also a very helpful tutorial that does a great job of explaining most of the game mechanics, so be sure to check that out.
Verdict
For all you right-brained, over-analyzers out there who love to plan and strategize, this game may just tickle your fancy. At first, I found it rather challenging and it repeatedly lost my interest - you are, after all, just moving a robot around - but once I got the hang of the conveyors, I started to enjoy myself more. All of the control/interface quirks, lack of background music, and general lack of polish, kept it from getting a 4-star rating; all of these things could easily be fixed in an update. Is it worth $2.80? Not yet, but definitely will be once these annoyances are patched. Still, the mechanics and gameplay are solid for this type of game.
Get Terminal 5 on AppBrain!
Monday, October 25, 2010
0
Monday, October 25, 2010
Ric RAT
Colorix HD Review
★★★★☆
It's raining crystalline marbles! Colorix HD is your hi-res twist on the tried-and-true, "stuff falls from the sky" Tetris-type games, featuring gorgeous visuals and plenty of high-scoring combo options.
Title: Colorix HD | Developer: Awesome Software S.A. | Genre: Puzzle, Action |
Players: 1 | Version: 1.7.2 | Size: 8.2MB | Price: €1.99
Click QRC image (from phone) or scan with a barcode reader.
If you're fortunate enough to own a newfangled XVGA Android phone, Colorix HD will mesmerize you in short-order. You have an older phone, you say? No problem. Search the Market for the standard-def version instead; both are beautiful, solid games worthy of purchase. I highly recommend for any Tetris and Bejewled lovers.
Similar to Tetris, in Colorix you'll find triads of shiny, alluring marbles descending from the clouds with an increasingly faster clip. Each group of marbles is vertical (alas, no strange shapes) in orientation, but with a swipe of your finger, you re-arrange the ordering of the column. You only have a short amount of time to order the set of marbles to your liking, then double-tap to speed-up the descent (earns extra points). Every combination of three or more like-colored marbles, be they horizontal, vertical, or diagonal, nets you points and clears the marbles from the stack. To add to your frustration, not only do you need to plan the current drop, but the next stack is shown as a preview in the upper-right side of the screen. Can you multitask? Let's hope so... because it only gets faster and more crowded, the longer you survive.
In addition to the standard set of pretty little green, blue, red, yellow, and pink marbles, you're given two special ones: timers and wilds. Timers are black with a white number, indicating the number of turns it takes to get rid of the annoying thing. Even more depressing is when you land a group of three timers... and no, you can't match them for points. The wild marbles count as any color, and provide the opportunity for some crazy combos!
As the handy little tutorial will explain, there are a dozen-or-so different combos, ranging from a 90 degree "L" shaped group of matching colors to a high-scoring "ladder". These combos are what you'll want to aim for, and will be the bread-winners of your game.
Like most games of its type, your Colorix session ends when your stack of unused marbles gets so high that you can't possibly stack any more.
Controls
The controls in Colorix are simple: swipe vertically to rearrange the marbles in a column, swipe horizontally to move the stack left and right, and double-tap to send it flying to the ground. It was somewhat disappointing to discover that you cannot rotate a column horizontally, but you can't have it all... The game is very responsive to touch, almost too much so. I've found myself, time and again, accidentally double-tapping the screen and sending an errant column of mis-matched marbles to its doom. Frustrating. May your tappage be precise and succinct.
Graphics
The graphics in the standard-edition Colorix were beautiful, and are more so in the HD version (as would be expected). On my Evo 4G, the game lights-up the screen with its vibrant colors and shimmering, glass-like animations. The marbles are very pretty - something Gollum would covet - but the backgrounds, even though nicely rendered, tend to be a little too static. I would have liked to see more variety in the backgrounds; but that's just being nit-picky.
Sound
The soundtrack to Colorix is pan-flute meets synth. It's quite uplifting in a neo-Lion King sort of way, and fits the airy, glassy theme nicely. Strangely, the sweeping score ends abruptly once the game starts, leaving you with only a smattering of "tink" and some nice, glass-shattering sound effects - perhaps a testament to how much concentration is actually required to play.
Options
The Colorix menu allows you to toggle sound effects, music, vibration, and start-up tips. There's also a high-score board just in case you're into mocking yourself after a good beating.
Verdict
In my very-humble opinion, Colorix, much like Tetris and Bejewled, is one of those standard time-wasters that should be on every capable phone. It's quick to pick-up, a game lasts as long as you can, and the graphics are beautiful. With a little more variety - maybe some shapes, column rotation, and some varied backgrounds, this could easily hit the 5-star mark.
Get Colorix HD on AppBrain!
read more
It's raining crystalline marbles! Colorix HD is your hi-res twist on the tried-and-true, "stuff falls from the sky" Tetris-type games, featuring gorgeous visuals and plenty of high-scoring combo options.Title: Colorix HD | Developer: Awesome Software S.A. | Genre: Puzzle, Action |
Players: 1 | Version: 1.7.2 | Size: 8.2MB | Price: €1.99
Click QRC image (from phone) or scan with a barcode reader.If you're fortunate enough to own a newfangled XVGA Android phone, Colorix HD will mesmerize you in short-order. You have an older phone, you say? No problem. Search the Market for the standard-def version instead; both are beautiful, solid games worthy of purchase. I highly recommend for any Tetris and Bejewled lovers.
Similar to Tetris, in Colorix you'll find triads of shiny, alluring marbles descending from the clouds with an increasingly faster clip. Each group of marbles is vertical (alas, no strange shapes) in orientation, but with a swipe of your finger, you re-arrange the ordering of the column. You only have a short amount of time to order the set of marbles to your liking, then double-tap to speed-up the descent (earns extra points). Every combination of three or more like-colored marbles, be they horizontal, vertical, or diagonal, nets you points and clears the marbles from the stack. To add to your frustration, not only do you need to plan the current drop, but the next stack is shown as a preview in the upper-right side of the screen. Can you multitask? Let's hope so... because it only gets faster and more crowded, the longer you survive.
In addition to the standard set of pretty little green, blue, red, yellow, and pink marbles, you're given two special ones: timers and wilds. Timers are black with a white number, indicating the number of turns it takes to get rid of the annoying thing. Even more depressing is when you land a group of three timers... and no, you can't match them for points. The wild marbles count as any color, and provide the opportunity for some crazy combos!
As the handy little tutorial will explain, there are a dozen-or-so different combos, ranging from a 90 degree "L" shaped group of matching colors to a high-scoring "ladder". These combos are what you'll want to aim for, and will be the bread-winners of your game.
Like most games of its type, your Colorix session ends when your stack of unused marbles gets so high that you can't possibly stack any more.
Controls
The controls in Colorix are simple: swipe vertically to rearrange the marbles in a column, swipe horizontally to move the stack left and right, and double-tap to send it flying to the ground. It was somewhat disappointing to discover that you cannot rotate a column horizontally, but you can't have it all... The game is very responsive to touch, almost too much so. I've found myself, time and again, accidentally double-tapping the screen and sending an errant column of mis-matched marbles to its doom. Frustrating. May your tappage be precise and succinct.
Graphics
The graphics in the standard-edition Colorix were beautiful, and are more so in the HD version (as would be expected). On my Evo 4G, the game lights-up the screen with its vibrant colors and shimmering, glass-like animations. The marbles are very pretty - something Gollum would covet - but the backgrounds, even though nicely rendered, tend to be a little too static. I would have liked to see more variety in the backgrounds; but that's just being nit-picky.
Sound
The soundtrack to Colorix is pan-flute meets synth. It's quite uplifting in a neo-Lion King sort of way, and fits the airy, glassy theme nicely. Strangely, the sweeping score ends abruptly once the game starts, leaving you with only a smattering of "tink" and some nice, glass-shattering sound effects - perhaps a testament to how much concentration is actually required to play.
Options
The Colorix menu allows you to toggle sound effects, music, vibration, and start-up tips. There's also a high-score board just in case you're into mocking yourself after a good beating.
Verdict
In my very-humble opinion, Colorix, much like Tetris and Bejewled, is one of those standard time-wasters that should be on every capable phone. It's quick to pick-up, a game lasts as long as you can, and the graphics are beautiful. With a little more variety - maybe some shapes, column rotation, and some varied backgrounds, this could easily hit the 5-star mark.
Get Colorix HD on AppBrain!
Sunday, October 24, 2010
0
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Ric RAT
Totemo Review
★★★☆☆
Follow a strange little bug-eyed, shamanic, Stargate-speaking totem through 100 stages of Buka-elimination in this pretty puzzler by Hexage. Beware the eyes, oh the insecure eyes!
Title: Totemo | Developer: Hexage, Ltd. | Genre: Brain & Puzzle |
Players: 1 | Version: 1.31 | Size: 3.7MB | Price: £1.50
Click QRC image (from phone) or scan with a barcode reader.
In Totemo, yet another fabulous offering from Hexage, you'll puzzle your way through 100 stages of icon-elimination. Mr Totem himself, in all his garbled-glory, will provide you a meaningless prelude to each level, leaving you to the mercy of your own skills at mathematics and deductive reasoning. Each stage is full of little faces, some call "Bukas" (hint: see Hexage website), which you must link together in groups of three to appease the totem-gods. As you tap each set of 3 - in either horizontal or vertical adjacent groupings - they will pop out of existence, thus making the totems happy! Your goal, with every stage, is to clear everything on the map. The grand problem is, how do you clear everything in groups of 3 so that no stragglers are left behind?
Soon, you will also be introduced to happy-stars. In the beginning, a star simply self-destructs. Later in the game, each star counts as a double-Buka - one more grants you a triad! So, linking a star with a Buka counts as a triad. Yes, it sounds odd and abstract (and it is), but the game really boils-down to this concept: clear everything off the map. You'll quickly find yourself using your amazing powers of deductive reasoning, analyzing the map for the perfect set of combos the clear the way. Or, if you're like me, you'll just keep trying different combinations until you find the right sequence.
Controls
You'll tap, tap, boom! your way to success using your favorite finger. In the case of stars, it's more a tap-boom. Never-the-less, that's the extent of the controls.
Graphics
Every set of ten stages is grouped-together with a new, pretty, atmospheric background and color-scheme. The Buka faces look around anxiously awaiting your next tap, as leaves float past the screen. This is a very pretty puzzler. Even the stage-select screens sport a nice dreary lightening storm, complete with lighting-effects.
Sound
The background music is very... background. It's soothing, surreal, and makes you want to smoke a hookah. All sounds are well-produced and work nicely together.
Options
Your only settings-options are music, sound, and vibration control. As far as game-options are concerned, this is a single-player romp... but, you are offered a stressful Survival mode, in which you try to beat the clock in eliminating Bukas over successive stages of difficulty. Yea right.
Verdict
Totemo is a well-made puzzler - another in the Hexage line. Graphics, sound, and game play are great, though I do find it lacking in options and variety. Based on the 20-some stages I passed, you continue to do the same thing - eliminate groups of Bukas - albeit, with different backgrounds. Is it worth $1.99? You bet. Especially if you're into this type of game format. The ramblings of your totem-guide are enough to keep you ambling forward.
Get Totemo on AppBrain!
read more
Title: Totemo | Developer: Hexage, Ltd. | Genre: Brain & Puzzle |
Players: 1 | Version: 1.31 | Size: 3.7MB | Price: £1.50
In Totemo, yet another fabulous offering from Hexage, you'll puzzle your way through 100 stages of icon-elimination. Mr Totem himself, in all his garbled-glory, will provide you a meaningless prelude to each level, leaving you to the mercy of your own skills at mathematics and deductive reasoning. Each stage is full of little faces, some call "Bukas" (hint: see Hexage website), which you must link together in groups of three to appease the totem-gods. As you tap each set of 3 - in either horizontal or vertical adjacent groupings - they will pop out of existence, thus making the totems happy! Your goal, with every stage, is to clear everything on the map. The grand problem is, how do you clear everything in groups of 3 so that no stragglers are left behind?
Soon, you will also be introduced to happy-stars. In the beginning, a star simply self-destructs. Later in the game, each star counts as a double-Buka - one more grants you a triad! So, linking a star with a Buka counts as a triad. Yes, it sounds odd and abstract (and it is), but the game really boils-down to this concept: clear everything off the map. You'll quickly find yourself using your amazing powers of deductive reasoning, analyzing the map for the perfect set of combos the clear the way. Or, if you're like me, you'll just keep trying different combinations until you find the right sequence.
Controls
You'll tap, tap, boom! your way to success using your favorite finger. In the case of stars, it's more a tap-boom. Never-the-less, that's the extent of the controls.
Graphics
Every set of ten stages is grouped-together with a new, pretty, atmospheric background and color-scheme. The Buka faces look around anxiously awaiting your next tap, as leaves float past the screen. This is a very pretty puzzler. Even the stage-select screens sport a nice dreary lightening storm, complete with lighting-effects.
Sound
The background music is very... background. It's soothing, surreal, and makes you want to smoke a hookah. All sounds are well-produced and work nicely together.
Options
Your only settings-options are music, sound, and vibration control. As far as game-options are concerned, this is a single-player romp... but, you are offered a stressful Survival mode, in which you try to beat the clock in eliminating Bukas over successive stages of difficulty. Yea right.
Verdict
Totemo is a well-made puzzler - another in the Hexage line. Graphics, sound, and game play are great, though I do find it lacking in options and variety. Based on the 20-some stages I passed, you continue to do the same thing - eliminate groups of Bukas - albeit, with different backgrounds. Is it worth $1.99? You bet. Especially if you're into this type of game format. The ramblings of your totem-guide are enough to keep you ambling forward.
Get Totemo on AppBrain!
0
Ric RAT
Nitaii Review
★★☆☆☆
In pre-school, the goal of this game was to shove a square peg through the square hole. Nintaii makes your quest easier by providing only one peg, but makes the journey to the hole a royal pain in the...
Title: Nintaii | Developer: Concrete Software, Inc. | Genre: Brain & Puzzle |
Players: 1 | Version: 1.0.12 | Size: 3.4MB | Price: $2.99
Click QRC image (from phone) or scan with a barcode reader.
The intro text, when beginning a new game of Nintaii, sums it up quite nicely: "The goal is to get the block to fall into the exit hole." In all 100 Japanese-named stages, you are provided with a 1x2 block and a map full of twists, turns, triggers, and pads. In order to complete the stage, you swipe the screen to roll your block on its side or flip it on its "foot", moving it ever-so-slowly toward the goal-hole. If you play your blocks right, a flip on its side followed by a final flip on its foot will dump it down the chute. Of course, this is much, much, much easier said than done.
That's basically it for Nintaii - flipping a block around a map, and positioning it over the hole. As previously stated, there are 100 levels of increasing difficulty in this puzzler. Unfortunately, the levels are all quite similar in features and differ only in the variety of irritating twists and turns to navigate. There are three basic variants to the maps - triggers, arrows, and obstructions. If you flip your block on to a trigger - whose icon resembles a small, grey gear - you'll raise/lower a corresponding obstruction-block on the map. If you flip your block on to an arrow, you're immediately transported in the corresponding direction. And obstructions... well, are obstructing blocks and barriers; you'll have to go around these.
Controls
The controls work as-expected for such a basic game: swipe the screen left-to-right and top-to-bottom to move the block around the screen. There's no option to scroll the map, which is a little frustrating as most maps stretch past the screen-edges.
Graphics
Nintaii certainly isn't a revolutionary game in the realm of visual appeal. The over-all design is pretty simple, and the color-palette tends toward the drab and unassuming. It's clear that the majority of development in this game went toward level-design.
Sound
There's a single, somewhat melodious and atmospheric background jingle that will keep you company through all one-hundred stages - enjoy. In addition, there's a particularly obnoxious and poor-quality "error" sound that triggers whenever you try to move your block to an invalid location.
Options
You're given the option of two background-themes - retro (daisies and stars) and modern (circuit-design). I'd recommend the latter in order to save you the headache of paisley. You can also toggle the sound effects, vibration, and music. A tutorial is available, but not really needed. If you're feeling adventurous, you can stray from the beaten-path and pick any 'ol level you want to play, via the Select Level option.
Verdict
Nintaii is a fairly basic, yet frustratingly complex puzzle-game, which suffers from a lack of variety and appealing visuals. Still, the game functions as-expected, and provides a good time-sink if you can't find anything better to do with your Android. Is it worth your hard-earned cash? Probably not, especially given the sheer number of other competitively-priced games out on the Market today.
Get Nintaii on AppBrain!
read more
In pre-school, the goal of this game was to shove a square peg through the square hole. Nintaii makes your quest easier by providing only one peg, but makes the journey to the hole a royal pain in the...Title: Nintaii | Developer: Concrete Software, Inc. | Genre: Brain & Puzzle |
Players: 1 | Version: 1.0.12 | Size: 3.4MB | Price: $2.99
Click QRC image (from phone) or scan with a barcode reader.The intro text, when beginning a new game of Nintaii, sums it up quite nicely: "The goal is to get the block to fall into the exit hole." In all 100 Japanese-named stages, you are provided with a 1x2 block and a map full of twists, turns, triggers, and pads. In order to complete the stage, you swipe the screen to roll your block on its side or flip it on its "foot", moving it ever-so-slowly toward the goal-hole. If you play your blocks right, a flip on its side followed by a final flip on its foot will dump it down the chute. Of course, this is much, much, much easier said than done.
That's basically it for Nintaii - flipping a block around a map, and positioning it over the hole. As previously stated, there are 100 levels of increasing difficulty in this puzzler. Unfortunately, the levels are all quite similar in features and differ only in the variety of irritating twists and turns to navigate. There are three basic variants to the maps - triggers, arrows, and obstructions. If you flip your block on to a trigger - whose icon resembles a small, grey gear - you'll raise/lower a corresponding obstruction-block on the map. If you flip your block on to an arrow, you're immediately transported in the corresponding direction. And obstructions... well, are obstructing blocks and barriers; you'll have to go around these.
Controls
The controls work as-expected for such a basic game: swipe the screen left-to-right and top-to-bottom to move the block around the screen. There's no option to scroll the map, which is a little frustrating as most maps stretch past the screen-edges.
Graphics
Nintaii certainly isn't a revolutionary game in the realm of visual appeal. The over-all design is pretty simple, and the color-palette tends toward the drab and unassuming. It's clear that the majority of development in this game went toward level-design.
Sound
There's a single, somewhat melodious and atmospheric background jingle that will keep you company through all one-hundred stages - enjoy. In addition, there's a particularly obnoxious and poor-quality "error" sound that triggers whenever you try to move your block to an invalid location.
Options
You're given the option of two background-themes - retro (daisies and stars) and modern (circuit-design). I'd recommend the latter in order to save you the headache of paisley. You can also toggle the sound effects, vibration, and music. A tutorial is available, but not really needed. If you're feeling adventurous, you can stray from the beaten-path and pick any 'ol level you want to play, via the Select Level option.
Verdict
Nintaii is a fairly basic, yet frustratingly complex puzzle-game, which suffers from a lack of variety and appealing visuals. Still, the game functions as-expected, and provides a good time-sink if you can't find anything better to do with your Android. Is it worth your hard-earned cash? Probably not, especially given the sheer number of other competitively-priced games out on the Market today.
Get Nintaii on AppBrain!
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
0
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Ric RAT
Everlands Review
★★★★☆
A great contagion of purpleness has overtaken the animal kingdom in this challenging, turn-based strategy, and it's your job to fix it. Pick the right furries for the job, and you'll restore order in no time.
Title: Everlands | Developer: Hexage, Ltd. | Genre: Brain & Puzzle, Strategy |
Players: 1, 2 (local) | Version: 1.4 | Size: 7.4MB | Price: £1.50
Click QRC image (from phone) or scan with a barcode reader.
Everlands is a relatively deep, turn-based strategy game in which you are tasked with fighting the great purple legions of corrupted forest animals. As you wind your merry-way through a forested trail, you'll encounter new scenarios, each triggering a cute little story before you jump into the fray. Once the action begins, defeating a purple baddie will switch its color from purple (sick) to green (healthy) again. Of course, the AI can place a purple right next-door to your newly-captured tile and switch it back again! At the end of each level, victory goes to whichever side has the most animals of their color.
With every new stage, you're given a couple new animals to add to your armada, each with its own attack strength, hit points, edges of attack, and special abilities. This game is played on a hex-grid, so placement of your animals based on all of the above factors is key to winning. The built-in tutorial does a relatively good job in explaining all of this, so be sure to do that before diving-in to the game. In all, there are 20 levels to Everlands which, according to the Market community, isn't enough to keep their digits busy. I, however, still find myself stuck on the 6th stage. The AI is pretty damned good.
Controls
The controls are fairly straightforward and easy to learn, and basically involve a whole lot of tapping. You scroll-through your animals, double-tap to see their abilities or single-tap to select and then place on the grid. The only minor confusion comes when using special creatures like bees, which deploy two bees in-sequence, or kiwis, who allow you to place an egg after you place the animal itself. Read the descriptions carefully and you won't get thrown-off.
Graphics
Everlands has a very Flash-style cartoony feel, which works well for the game. The art is clean and the lines are sharp, including the hex-grid and floating damage text that appears during attacks. All of the colors, especially in the map portion of the game, are vibrant and really stand-out.
Sound
The background music is a soothing, crystalline ditty that just might knock you out if you're not careful. It's pleasant, and certainly takes a back-row seat in this game. The sound quality is well-produced, however, and doesn't sound amateurish or tinny.
Options
This is a linear, solo adventure with the option of a Challenge mode. In the Challenge mode, you can play a 2-player game by taking your turn, then manually turning the phone around and letting your opponent play, etc. It's a hassle, and I doubt many people actually will use this option. In terms of settings, your only options are music and sound volume.
Verdict
Everlands is a great, colorful, and challenging turn-based strategy game. Hexage develops some quality content, so it's no surprise that this is another solid title. My only wish is that there was some randomized "challenge vs. AI" option in addition to the main campaign, and (of course) an option to play online.
Get Everlands on AppBrain!
read more
A great contagion of purpleness has overtaken the animal kingdom in this challenging, turn-based strategy, and it's your job to fix it. Pick the right furries for the job, and you'll restore order in no time.Title: Everlands | Developer: Hexage, Ltd. | Genre: Brain & Puzzle, Strategy |
Players: 1, 2 (local) | Version: 1.4 | Size: 7.4MB | Price: £1.50
Click QRC image (from phone) or scan with a barcode reader.Everlands is a relatively deep, turn-based strategy game in which you are tasked with fighting the great purple legions of corrupted forest animals. As you wind your merry-way through a forested trail, you'll encounter new scenarios, each triggering a cute little story before you jump into the fray. Once the action begins, defeating a purple baddie will switch its color from purple (sick) to green (healthy) again. Of course, the AI can place a purple right next-door to your newly-captured tile and switch it back again! At the end of each level, victory goes to whichever side has the most animals of their color.
With every new stage, you're given a couple new animals to add to your armada, each with its own attack strength, hit points, edges of attack, and special abilities. This game is played on a hex-grid, so placement of your animals based on all of the above factors is key to winning. The built-in tutorial does a relatively good job in explaining all of this, so be sure to do that before diving-in to the game. In all, there are 20 levels to Everlands which, according to the Market community, isn't enough to keep their digits busy. I, however, still find myself stuck on the 6th stage. The AI is pretty damned good.
Controls
The controls are fairly straightforward and easy to learn, and basically involve a whole lot of tapping. You scroll-through your animals, double-tap to see their abilities or single-tap to select and then place on the grid. The only minor confusion comes when using special creatures like bees, which deploy two bees in-sequence, or kiwis, who allow you to place an egg after you place the animal itself. Read the descriptions carefully and you won't get thrown-off.
Graphics
Everlands has a very Flash-style cartoony feel, which works well for the game. The art is clean and the lines are sharp, including the hex-grid and floating damage text that appears during attacks. All of the colors, especially in the map portion of the game, are vibrant and really stand-out.
Sound
The background music is a soothing, crystalline ditty that just might knock you out if you're not careful. It's pleasant, and certainly takes a back-row seat in this game. The sound quality is well-produced, however, and doesn't sound amateurish or tinny.
Options
This is a linear, solo adventure with the option of a Challenge mode. In the Challenge mode, you can play a 2-player game by taking your turn, then manually turning the phone around and letting your opponent play, etc. It's a hassle, and I doubt many people actually will use this option. In terms of settings, your only options are music and sound volume.
Verdict
Everlands is a great, colorful, and challenging turn-based strategy game. Hexage develops some quality content, so it's no surprise that this is another solid title. My only wish is that there was some randomized "challenge vs. AI" option in addition to the main campaign, and (of course) an option to play online.
Get Everlands on AppBrain!
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