This week’s best iPhone games include an eclectic mix that will certainly appeal to casual gamers, although there is enough quality here for any iPhone owner. Most notably, the recently released Solipskier is sure to become a big deal with a look and game mechanics that are perfect for the device.
Budget hawks will love the free NinJump, a lite version of Love Battle Princess and the in-app purchase based Escape from Nom. Let’s get into it.
1. Solipskier
Originally a flash game, Solipskier ($2.99) is a fast paced line-drawing game that seems destined to become a hit. Set on a stylish black and grey background, you draw slopes and guide a skier through gates and tunnels, while well-timed jumps will help you earn plenty of points. It’s simple but unique, and definitely enhanced by the game’s fantastic look and rockin’ soundtrack. The controls work great and the gameplay is smooth, so you can understand why it’s perfect for the device that has so willingly adopted the line-drawing genre. At three bucks it’s a little pricey, but if you have any doubts you can find a free version of the flash game to play online. There’s not much else to say about Solipskier other than you really should try it, as it’s an all-around good time.
2. Love Battle Princess
It’s not that I’m not a fan of scantily clad women, it’s more that Tenshi Noir Entertainment’s Love Battle Princess ($1.99) is not exactly the first place I’d expect to see them. First things first, the game has immediately addictive gameplay; flowers float towards the bottom of the screen, and you goal is to capture them in a chain of bubbles before they get to the bottom all the while avoiding dastardly skulls. There’s more to it than that, as there are vortexes, power ups, ‘Boss Skulls’ and various challenges, though your basic goal is to score points. So where do the women come in? Well, the game’s backgrounds are all buxom beauties with little clothing. Of course plenty will enjoy this aspect of the game, but my sensible side can’t help but wonder why Tenshi Noir would limit the game’s appeal with this non-necessary feature. Anyway, there’s a free lite version that I strongly recommend, more for the gameplay than anything else.
3. NinJump
NinJump from Backflip Studios is a free game that’s not terribly unique, but is plenty of fun and absolutely the right price. In this app you control a ninja who runs up walls, tapping the screen to jump from side to side. The challenge comes in avoiding enemies throwing ninja stars at you as well as angry squirrels and birds zooming across the screen. Your entire goal is to make it as high as possible, exactly the same as a number of other apps. Still, NinJump boasts the kind of addictive gameplay that’s proven to be quite popular on the iPhone, and there’s nothing about the game that’s a huge negative. The game is completely and totally free, though you can pay 99 cents to have the ads removed. It is just the kind of game casual gamers need to pick up – assuming they haven’t picked it up already.
4. Escape from NOM
Glu Games’ Escape from NOM is quite the headscratcher. It’s an undeniably likable game; the main character is a cute blob named Alan that you have to a pool of colored goo, making sure he’s the same color as the goo and avoiding Nom’s (hence the name). You guide Alan to the goo with things such as color bumpers, wheels and paddles, and there’s even an ultra-cool feature that allows you to create your own levels. That’s where things get messy, though, as inexplicably you are required to pay for credits to download other people’s levels – I’ll just be nice and call that an odd decision by Glu games. In-app purchases are here to stay, but having gamers pay for user-generated content is a great way to make a really likeable game entirely unlikeable. Escape from NOM costs $2.99 when released, though it became free earlier this week because of FreeAppADay.com. It’s a worthwhile game with fatal flaws, I’ll let you decide if you can see past them.
5. MapleStory Thief Edition
Admittedly I’d never heard of MapleStory until recently, but then again I’m not the kind of guy who spends too much time with MMORPGs. My ignorance aside, the side-scrolling game has been a hit on the PC and comes to the iPhone in the form of MapleStory Thief Edition ($4.99), though with some important differences. While the game sports a similar look and gameplay to the PC version, Thief Edition is only a single-player game with no multiplayer elements. That’s likely to disappoint fans of the brand, seeing as how that’s a pretty big part of the PC title’s appeal, which is a bummer because it seems like an alright little game. You can play as either a thief or an assassin, and there are more than 70 pieces of equipment for your character. The game also includes mini-games, and it stacks up pretty well to similar single-player RPGs.
