Air Hockey

Air Hockey isn't exactly the cleverest name for a game that I've seen, but I guess it makes it easy to figure out what this game is. It's air hockey on your Android and features one or two player action and not much more. Loading Air Hockey brings you to a screen... 'one player', 'bonus two player', or 'visit our web site'.

First I tried the one player mode. The way this works is that you start off with a basic ranking and as you play against the AI opponent you'll either gain or lose ranking until you reach a point where the AI is challenging. The graphics are basic and the audio sounds like a real air hockey table does (but don't think the music in the video below is actually in the real game). You hold down on your paddle with a finger and drag it around the screen swatting and blocking the puck. Early advancement is pretty easy and one nice thing about computer Air Hockey is that it enforces the rule that says you can't move your paddle over the middle line.

Next, my youngster was bored in a restaurant the other night so I broke out Air Hockey to play. The controls were horrible on her side. Her paddle would frequently stick around the middle line and it would take many seconds for it to become free again. I have to think this has something to do with the game or my Droid not handling multi-touch very well, but, interestingly enough, my paddle had no issues... it was just hers. Needless to say the thrill wore off all too quickly and she was soon playing Care Bears Memory Match by herself.

My bigger problem with Air Hockey isn't even Air Hockey's fault. It's the simple fact that playing this with two players is a pain on such a tiny screen. Even with one player it's less than thrilling. This is a game born for the upcoming Android tablets.

Conclusion? This review feels short because there's not much to Air Hockey. It's only a buck so it won't break the bank, but at the same time I just don't see coming back to it. There are many other Air Hockey games in the Android Market and I'd love to hear feedback if you've found one you think stands out. As for this one, I'd give it a 3/5.