Replica Island

With 250,000+ downloads I must be the only Android gamer to have missed the release of Replica Island. If not then please allow me tell you about my recent find.

Replica Island is a free 40 level game in the same genre as games like Super Mario Bros. In it you control Android (and yes, he looks like the Android logo) and your goal is to find 'The Source'. For free this is a stunning game. At $5 it would still be impressive. Did I mention this game is free?

The game starts off with a nice tutorial which other games should take notice of. In the tutorial you learn the basics of how to move and fly. You also learn about the different things to pick up, how to take control of other objects such as enemy robots, and how to do 'drop and smash' attacks. The game has depth. The game also supports different controls across the various available Android devices (and in my case supports my Droid's DPad so I'm in heaven). The game also has some cutesy dialog with the professor that engineered you as he teaches you how to play.

The game play is smooth and the controls are responsive. I haven't had any issues with stutter and the graphics are good for this style of game. Replica Island is also among the first platform style games... I admit that I haven't really missed them as that's not my genre of choice, but after playing this it hit me square in the face that this category is not represented well. Is this game perfect? Well, one time while playing the first tutorial mission I fell through the floor (it happened right before collecting my first red gem) and couldn't get out. But I couldn't reproduce it and have played for about an hour without a hitch since. So no, the game isn't perfect.

I don't know what else to say... the game would be a 'get it' in my book for most gamers at $3 or less and maybe $5, but at free... what are you waiting for? Go download it now! Or take a look at the sample video below if you're skeptical. Oh, and I see on their website (among the best Android game websites out there) that the game isn't even two months old so I guess I'm not that late to the party... but still... 250,000+ downloads!! I think people with Android's do indeed play games and use the Market. I wonder what kind of Android Market action they would have seen at $1 a copy? 5/5 stars... no question about it.

Backbreaker Football

Awesome! Backbreaker Football is in the house Android Market. I had this game on the iPhone and enjoyed it quite a bit. I will have a full review of the Android version soon. In a nutshell, it's a 3D simulation of the punt return portion of a football game and as you progress you'll have more defenders to beat and different zones (on the field) that you must stay inside of. The game uses tilt for controls and is to football what Homerun Derby 3D is to baseball. I'm glad to see it's only $2.99 at well. If you're a sports afficinado, as I am, then you'll definitely want to take a look at this one. I'm having a hard time tracking down a good video of it, though, as the company is hard at work on a full featured console football game from what I can tell and doesn't seem to dedicate anything to coverage of their mobile game.

Edit: Holy moly... this game is the biggest yet at over 30 MB. I'm going to have to delete half of the stuff off of my phone just to try it.

Super Tumble

Camel Games has released their sixth game in the Android Market and not surprisingly it's another physics puzzler. This time you're given a structure with a star precariously balanced at the top and you have to gradually eliminate supports allowing it to fall gracefully onto a supporting platform below. The picture probably illustrates this better than does my description. Camel, as usual, does a great job with the physics and they are apparently so into that aspect of their games that even the menu utilizes it this time around. Camel's Space Physics was among my first Android game reviews and their games have only gotten better. They're also the first developer to load game data onto the SD card while other professional developers still haven't gotten that memo.

The game itself offers over 65 levels (looks to me like 71) in groups of 12 that have to be unlocked (which means that if you're like me you can solve level 12 and have access to the next group and skip to level 24 and so on...). The first twelve are easy... I'm currently working on the second group and am having trouble with level 18. The first group just offers the basics of different shaped blocks and balloons (which cause things to fall more slowly). The second group adds things like pits which means instead of just getting the star straight down you have to 'steer' it left or right onto a platform. It should also be noted that you can't just tap on everything and have all objects disappear... if you've eliminated one object there is a delay before another can be eliminated (although you can immediately select it which will cause it to flash indicating it'll be the next to go away).

A couple puzzles for me are a) why Camel doesn't have a website for all of their games yet and b) why they offer "no ads" in the description of the full/paid version of the game... at $3 I'd hope not (cut and paste error?).

This game's graphics and UI are excellent and there isn't much audio to critique or praise aside from the sounds of clicking on stuff, starting a level, ...etc. I'd classify this game as a variant on Blow Up (or iDemolish). How many physics games should you own? At this point in time if I was starting out I'd buy two of theirs: ShootU! and Super Tumble (and wow... ShootU! has sold over 10,000 copies while my beloved Panzer Panic struggles at under 500). Super Tumble sells for $2.99 in the Market and is a winner. Hopefully they'll support the game (as they plan to) with additional levels. And Camel has been around for long enough I'm sure they will. 4.5/5 stars.

Edit: This game just gets better... made it into the third set of levels and a few new things have been introduced. The most interesting find is an object that doubles in size when you click it before 'blowing up'. The game also has a really good feel when I hold my Droid like a Playstation Portable and use my thumb to tap on objects. Not many games seem to have that kind of feel.

Finger Runner

Here's a freebie to get the week started...

Having very young children and living near a Chuck E Cheeses means we go there frequently. Pizza, games, and prizes at the end... everyone's a winner! Ok, well the pizza sucks and while they know it they also know they don't have to do a thing about it... heck, they could just order some DiGiorno's and I might start eating there. As it is I stay away from the food. The games... kids love 'em. They just got this horse racing game that features an almost life size horse to ride that controls the game and while she seem content just sitting on it and letting him ride into a wall it's pretty neat... a little girl's dream come true. And my kid's love the helicopter ride. Ok, who am I kidding... I love going there for the games, too. Finally, once the hour visit is over, it's time to get prizes and winning a penny lollipop is quite the thrill for a kid.

My location has this finger race game... it draws a maze using LEDs and I have to race my finger through the maze before time expires. Success = tickets = more and better prizes! That's what Finger Runner is (without the heavy pressure of penny lollipops hanging in the balance). Currently it just offers a handful of mazes with a promise of more. It also has an option (on by default) that shows crosshairs where your finger is... good diagnostic info if nothing else. Yet this kind of game is fun and a great game for a mobile platform that relies on touch screen input. Plus, it's a simple game that you can play quickly and be done with.

The cool thing about Finger Runner, though, is some of the additions over the amusement version. First, they've added multi-level mazes and second, they've added secret doors that open when you reach a given target. At free this is a nice, little diversion... currently advertised as being in alpha... I'm looking forward to seeing the final version. Give it a try!

Android Gaming

I've delayed my review of Hockey Nation 2010 for a couple of reasons. First, the publisher has indicated DPad control is coming soon and I think the game will be much better with that feature. Second, I see they just released an update for the iPhone version so I have to hope our update isn't far behind.

Over the weekend I tried Caligo Chaser from Com2Us (get it... "come to us"?). Com2Us made the excellent Homerun Derby 3D. Unfortunately they haven't quite clicked that Android owners have limited storage for game resources in main memory and while I gather the plan is for that to be fixed in a future OS update we're still waiting. Meanwhile, Caligo Chaser weighs in at 22 MB of storage which is massive.

Caligo Chaser is an Action RPG and that's among the many genres I really like. But I'm apparently too inept to get past the first battle. Any hints? I get my weapons and training and head off on the confidence builder mission to the south. I thought I had the ebb and flow of combat down, but can't seem to kill anything and eventually die. The game looks awesome and I'd love to be able to dig deeper and give it an accurate review. Oh, and it does support the Droid's DPad in the current release which is also nice.

And speaking of DPads has everyone seen the GameGripper? It's for the Motorola Droid only and slides over the keyboard to provide a more traditional gamepad experience. At $15 it's not like it's expensive, but having purchased a phone with a DPad I have a hard time buying a DPad add-on... still the reviews are generally good. I already have a BGP100 bluetooth gamepad from my Windows Mobile days and there's an Android driver for it now... something else I need to try.

Finally, I've been pretty pleased with gaming on the Android, but a friend asked what I think I'm missing versus the iPhone. Good question as there isn't much... Madden 2010 (or a good football game) would be welcome, as would some of the strategy games like Money! and Ingenious. And then there are a few other misc titles like Sniper vs Sniper (also from Com2Us) and Ace Combat from Namco. But on the whole I've got plenty of games on my Droid that I haven't been able to give proper attention to which is positive news.