The iHook iPhone game (99 cents) is a difficult game to describe. Although you pilot a ship through the game’s levels in order to collect the required fuel cells to open up portals to get to the next level, you don’t get to shoot anything, so it’s not quite a space shooter. And it’d be a stretch to call this a puzzle game, despite the main gameplay mechanic of two hooks that you shoot out of your ship, which assist in turning you where you need to go.
So what is iHook? A lot of fun, mostly. Your ship’s two hooks, one on each side, are used to grapple onto specific buoys in each level. Once you’ve grappled on, you can slingshot yourself across the level; or more than likely, smash yourself into a wall. There’s a fine line between success and failure in this game, and you’ll hit the failure wall many times before you’re able to slide your ship safely through some very narrow corridors.
The difficulty increases in each level at a reasonable rate, and because you can just keep playing the level you’re on forever, there’s no real risk in trying to be a daredevil with your ship. It can be very frustrating, though, to escape a harrowing portion of a level only to smash into a wall you didn’t expect to see.
Visually, the cell-shaded interlude looks better than the rest of the game, but that’s not to say the levels look shoddy — they’re just not particular lively. Dark metallic textures cover pretty much everything in the game besides the green buoys that you’re trying to hook.
With only 20 levels, you get what you pay for here. This isn’t exactly a game that will last forever, though you could always go back and try to improve your level scores by crashing less or completing levels faster.
iHook is ultimately just a fun space-based adventure. While it’d be a stretch to call it a puzzle game, a racing game, or an action game, it manages to keep hold of your attention even while it doesn’t seem to have a hold on its own genre. It’s worth checking out if you’re looking for something unique set in space.
