App review: Super stickman golf

Noodlecake Studios Inc presents: Super Stickman Golf. 

Super Stickman Golf is a platform game where, surprisingly, you play golf. I am not a fan of sport in any shape or form, nor do I usually like talking about it but this is a little different. You see, I like playing games with stickmen in. Stickmen produce a nice and simple, basic approach to gaming. None of this high tech gadgetry. I mean sure, it's nice to experience all the latest graphics and game engines but only in moderation. I like my games simple and straightforward.

SSG immediately struck out at me because of its appealing app icon. Not many developers think about this aspect I don't believe. In my opinion, the look of the app icon is one of the most important factors - if the icon doesn't look nice then it isn't touching my iPhone or iPad's HD.

The game has many different features, including a multiplayer function. I can't review or comment on this because I haven't played a multiplayer game however it is a nice addition.

You can start the game off on the "Classic Courses" and then, as your skill improves and you becomes more comfortably with the game, you can move on to the other various courses available within the game.

The game is fully Game Center enabled, which means you can rack up a nice high score and compare it with other players across the world.

The graphics are detailed but still manage to retain the game's overall theme of simplicity. I absolutely love the blend of cartoon-style text and layouts, mixed with the modern, industrial style buttons used to control the game.

The game also provides you with different power ups, that you can earn by playing through the various courses on offer. These power ups are well balanced which means, whilst they do help if used correctly, they can't be used as a means to skip your way through courses with relative ease.

Super Stickman Golf is a must have for everyone who enjoys a little golf themselves, especially playing it. Some people don't like stickmen but I think it's a perfect little game that deserves a place on your iPhone. With it only being a tiny 48.9MB, it's hardly going to exhaust your HD space.

You can download Super Stickman Golf, as you would expect, from the App Store. Right now there is nothing at all to pay. Yes, the app is completely FREE. I know, bonkers right?! You might want to hurry though, I think it's only free for the rest of the day. Info HERE.

App review: Pokemon TV

The latest app I have come across whilst surfing through the app store was this, Pokemon TV. It's an app that allows you to watch episodes from each series that was ever broadcast on television. 

The interface is easy to understand and navigate, with each series getting it's own little header. Episodes can be selected by scrolling across the screen underneath each header until the desired episode has been found.

One slight problem with the episodes at the moment, not all of them are included. In fact, a large portion of some series' are missing. I'm not sure if this is intentional or whether there are certain copyright laws protecting the absent episodes.

Perhaps this is something the developer is looking at fixing. I for one sure hope so, because full series' of my favourite childhood anime would be amazing. Granted, I have far too much television to catch up on as it is, but I think Pokemon would make an exception.

This app provides great nostalgia for all of you old school Pokemon lovers.

Me personally? I used to love Pokemon as a child so this deserves a place on my iPhone. Whether I actually get round to watching an episode is a different story.

You can pick up Pokemon TV from the app store. It's completely free and only just over 6MB in size which is tiny in comparison to other video apps. More information about Pokemon TV can be found HERE.

App review: Impossible Pixel

Impossible Pixel is a strategic platform game by 99 Up Games. The goal is simple - reach the end of each level, all whilst avoiding death. Your death can be brought about by many different elements, primarily spikes and razor blades.

The game has recently been upgraded to introduce iPad support so you can play it on that bigger screen. Honestly, it works just fine on the smaller iPhone screen.

Unfortunately, I am going to start off on a negative. The initial loading screen, before the menu is shown, takes far too long for my liking. The game itself isn't a large file, in fact it's rather tiny compared to some out there, yet it takes a good few minutes for the game to load all of it's core components before initialising the menu screen.

Game play is really quite fluid, although does have some hiccups. The game can sometimes fail to register your finger pressing on the jump button, meaning certain death.

Also, each level is ranked at the end dependent on your performance - the maximum amount of stars for each level is 3. Each level I have played has resulted in low stars regardless of how well I perform. I really am unsure as to what is exactly expected in order to take home those 3 golden shiners.

The app store description states that an update is being worked on, so perhaps the minor issues I have covered will be resolved. If so, the game will be a perfect little time killer and great alternative to the 3D powerhouse games of modern times. As mentioned in an earlier app review I love retro themes and basic designs. I just feel that more time spent on the game mechanics, rather than insisting on perfect graphics, is a sure fire way to rank highly among the gaming community.

Impossible Pixel is definitely worth a try. Thanks to AppGratis you can get hold of a copy right now, completely free of charge. Great game play that doesn't pinch your pennies, how can you ask for any more.

App review: Save The Cubes

Save The Cubes is a new puzzle game that sees you in the midst of a zombie apocalypse. Your goal is to entice the infected, using brains as bait, to their demise. This could be falling to their deaths, flying off the screen or landing on spikes - either will count as a kill and allow you to progress.

So far, there are 4 different areas each with 12 levels to take on. The difficulty increases as you progress, like most puzzle and strategy games. The initial levels are there to teach you the ropes and ease you in - Save The Cubes does a decent job of doing this. 

The game play is, for the most part, responsive but can at times be a little slow, bordering buggy. For example, on more than one occasion I have had to restart a level because the infected will simply not follow the smell of brains. This can be quite frustrating in the later rounds when there is a lot more thinking involved, and thus further work. Having to restart a level under these circumstances is not ideal.

The graphics are very simple, using basic back drops and cubes instead of advanced character models. I personally like this, it keeps the overall file size smaller and gives it a nice retro feel.

There seems to be a lot of criticism in the undead area of the market. A lot of apps follow the same ideologies - a group of survivors, or maybe just the one, completing missions and killing mass amounts of zombies in the process. I like the different approach of Save The Cubes. It's a simple game with low quality graphics, but it's a puzzle game that really makes you put some thought into your game play.

I thoroughly enjoyed playing this one. It got my brain into gear and kept me occupied during a slow period in the day.

Put simply it's a game that you really should give some consideration, especially if you are into the puzzle and/or zombie genre.



Save The Cubes is available right now, completely free of charge. It is compatible with both the iPhone and iPad. Find more information HERE.

App review: iMajiCam Pro

iMajiCam Pro is, as you might have guessed, a camera app. It allows you to import a photo from your album to be edited, or you can take a brand new photo right from the app. One of the coolest features of iMajiCam Pro is the "Live Mode". This allows you to add all the effects before you take a photo, thus giving you a preview of how it is going to look.

Not enough effects for you? well, get yourself over to the iMaji-Mart. Here you can purchase additional packs of effects for 69p each. There is also the option to purchase all 3 in bulk for £1.49, saving you 58p in the process.

There is also a handy little 'restore' button. In the event that you need to restore you iPhone and you lose the app, hitting this button will deliver all effects packs that you previously purchased, negating the need to pay once more.

To the right, you can see one of the photos I have recently taken with iMajiCam Pro. I am no photographer, or a professional, so it's not the greatest look but I was just experimenting with different effects to see what they looked like in print. I will include a couple more photos showcasing different effects.

Unfortunately, iMajiCam Pro does have a couple of downsides. 

For starters, although the "Live Mode" is a fantastic idea, things can get a tad fiddly. It is sometimes better to take a photo and then edit it later on, you can always delete a photo if you are not satisfied with it once taken.

Another flaw is the frequent crashing of the app. When attempting to save the above photo of my cat to my photo album it froze and did not respond. The app then crashed and saved a dozen copies of the photo to my album, rather than just the one I was hoping for. I am sure that with updates the crashing issues can be resolved.

iMajiCam Pro also comes with social integration. You can, should you wish to, share your creations with the likes of Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. I like the fact that they have integrated Instagram into the sharing options, something that your standard iPhone photo album doesn't provide.

iMajiCam Pro can be downloaded from the App Store for FREE. I don't know how long they are keeping it free though, so if you want to give it a try now is the best time to get hold of a copy. Link HERE.

App review: Twang the fox

Twang the fox, as bizarre as it may look, is rather quite addicting. It is a physics based game that sees you catapulting determined Twang towards the portal at the end of each level, all whilst collecting the little trinkets along the way. Join Twang in the race to save his family from the rival ringmaster, before it's too late....

There is a maximum 3 star ranking for each level which is scored based on your performance on that particular level. If you collect all the trinkets you receive 3 stars, for example.

As expected, each level gets harder as you progress (nobody said it would be easy). You must navigate past mines, avoid the pinball bouncers, not get stuck on the islands, all whilst ensuring you do not fall into the rising water below.

What I like most about the app is you have complete freedom over Twang's movements. You can decide which direction he bounces in, how fast he bounces (length of the band) and whether you will collect all the trinkets or just go for the fastest game completion you possibly can.

According to the app store description, there are over 60 different levels to go through which makes this packed full of enjoyable game play. Also, with 6 different scenes, you are sure to not get bored - a change of scenery always helps.

The richness, and amount, of levels shows that the developer, PikPok, has really taken time and effort to bring together a masterpiece in time killing and they do it to perfection.

If there is one bug bear I have with the app, it's the fact that you can only play in portrait mode. Whilst I believe it is easier to play in this orientation due to the upward motion of the levels, I still feel it would have been nice to give the user a choice.

You can download Twang the fox from iTunes today. If I were you though, I would pick up a copy whilst it is still free because there is no telling just when PikPok will start introducing a charge for it. Link to the app HERE.

Sonic Jump for iOS: A short review

Today's free gift on Apple's 12 day of Christmas app was the game "Sonic Jump". If you've ever heard of, or played, Doodle Jump then the prospect is very similar.

The aim of the game is to jump upwards from platform to platform, collecting coins and power ups along the way. Of course, you must avoid running into bad guys or they'll knock you off and you'll need to restart the level. Yes, unlike Doodle Jump, it is level based rather than one continuous run.

Whilst ascending each level, platforms get trickier to land on and the bad guys get more dangerous and frequent.

Whilst I love Doodle Jump, I'm not really feeling any love towards Sonic Jump. It's another nail in the coffin of the dying SEGA franchise and I can't see it impressing loyal fans of Sonic, or generating potential new followers. Still, for free I suppose you can't complain.

The gameplay is rather monotonous and each level, whilst increasing in difficulty, doesn't really bring anything else to the table. The character movement is very slow and, for some platforms, moves too slowly for you to reach the next one up.

All in all, whilst not bad for free I wouldn't be quick to download the app if and when it returns to the paid for version.