We’ve got three somewhat unique takes on popular genres with today’s Fresh Games, and all three are definitely worth a look. Bug Heroes is a deep and interesting two-stick shooter that involves more than just shooting; MaXplosion is an explosive platformer; and Flying Hamster is a side-scrolling shooter — with a flying hamster. We’ve got all the information you need below.
Bug Heroes (iPhone) $1.99
Two-stick shooters are notoriously thin on the iPhone — they might include some power-ups and various levels, but for the most part, they feature you killing wave after wave of generic enemies, usually without much brain power on your part. Bug Heroes rethinks all that, adding lots of strategy to a sometimes braindead genre.
In Bug Heroes, you control not one hero, but three. You can switch to each bug on your team dynamically during battle, and each one has different abilities, strengths and weaknesses. You’ll alternate between defending a fixed base position and heading out into the level to search for food, and you can also upgrade your heroes and the defenses around your position. There’s a lot to do in Bug Heroes beyond just killing enemies with different weapons, and it’s certainly worth a couple of bucks.
MaXplosion (iPhone) $0.99
Capcom Mobile just released this side-scrolling platformer, which has a lot of similarities to the Xbox Live Arcade Game, ‘Sploding Man. You control Max, some kind of explosive, experimental devil, who has to fight through different sections of the M.A.D. Science labs in order to escape his captors. One button on the screen triggers your explosive body, which propels you up in the air and on to ledges, or lets you take out scientists trying to wrangle you back into a cage.
MaXplosion features 20 different levels and 44 achievements, as well as Game Center support for leaderboards. The game includes a very cool, cartoony art style to go along with its humor, and is a pretty good source of platforming fun at a low price.
Flying Hamster (iPhone) $5.99
You’d expect the kind of side-scrolling gameplay out of sci-fi shooters like Gradius, but Flying Hamster has a completely different aesthetic — anime visuals in which a helicopter-bound hamster has to pound through all kinds of different animals. You’ll take on cows that fire milk at you, evil penguins and even an octopus.
The game features four different control settings and features 40 achievements and support from both Game Center and Open Feint. There’s a lot of challenge to be had, with seven bosses to fight, 35 kinds of enemies, and an unlockable hard mode. Plus, the art style is rather hilariously cute, if you’re into that kind of thing.
