It’s not a bad puzzle game actually. There’s several environments, each with several levels. You are given a number of special moves per level, such as teleportation, building bridges, moving blocks, freezing bad guys, and no doubt more I’ve yet to discover. In some ways it reminds me of Lemmings. Oh how I loved Lemmings..

It’s currently only £1.19, which seems a bargain for a game that’s polished this well. It’s a small sum considering  this game has given me a good few hours of gameplay so far, and I’m only about half way through.

IGN gave this 8.5, and an editors’ choice award. I’d have to roughly agree with that; it’s definitely one of the better games I’ve played on the iPhone, but it’s just a little bit too cutesy for me.

However, I’m really really bad at it, and regardless of how many times I play it, I just can’t seem to stop getting blown to smithereens by enemies missiles. God alone knows how you’re ever meant to get close enough to fire the cannon.

Ah well, it does seem like a good game, if only I could get past the 3rd level. I’d say this is mainly due to my incompetence, rather than bad game design or controls

It’s currently on the appstore for only £1.19 – definitely worth it if you like this genre.

TechCrunch reports it’s earned $1,000,000 in the first 6 weeks. Impressive going, SGN!

Anyway, this post isn’t about Xenon 2, it’s about the absurdly named “Space Deadbeef“, a side-scrolling shooter by Yuri Yashuhara of IDP. It’s a great looking game, and the gameplay is reasonably satisfying. Where it fails is the control of the player ship. I like the idea behind the mechanism, but it doesn’t quite work. Movement is dictated by the vertical position of your finger on the screen; you can only move vertically, which is rather odd. Firing depends where you touch the screen – if your finger is over your ship, you can build up a powerful blast (similar to R-Type), or if you swipe your finger over enemies, it locks on a number of missiles that are then fired when you release your finger.  It kind of works – but doesn’t feel 100% right.  The game is also too short, it’s just one stage which you can play over and over again, with it getting tougher each time.

Despite the negative comments about the control of the ship, it’s definitely worth downloading, as it’s absolutely free, and a good taste of what’s to come on the iPhone.

On a final note, I honestly think the iPhone would really benefit from an additonal controller for gaming, as some types of games just don’t work well on the iPhone.  I hope we’ll see an official one soon – perhaps it could include an extra battery too..

There’s several levels, with achievements for each one. I’ve played a good few hours of it, and it’s definitely worth a paltry £1.19.

Blurring the line between console and browser

Currently there’s just one level, which is split into multiple areas. It’s a fairly simple 3D platformer – run around, collect gems, jump onto platforms, attack enemies. It won’t win any awards for originality, but graphically it’s very impressive. Try playing full-screen. 

Unity can also support USB 360 controllers. I tried playing this fullscreen with a 360 controller just now, and yes; it’s almost indistinguishable from a console game from a few years ago. Really impressive work Three Melons and LEGO!

LEGO have announced they’ll be releasing a full version in August 2009, with 15 levels and 4 selectable characters. 

Thanks for finding this Ed

[update] Three Melons have more on their blog.

Great news!

Blurst have released another great Unity game called ‘Paper Moon’. It’s a 2D platformer with a slight 3D twist to the gameplay: Pressing Space ‘pops’ bits of the scenery either in front or behind the plane of the character. If you or an enemy is in the way, then you die. It creates some interesting puzzles. 

I haven’t tried it, but apparently you can plug in a (wired) 360 controller. Nice touch.

It’s a beautiful Unity game where you play a jellyfish that collects eggs. There’s a number of enemies you need to lash with your tentacles, with some great effects when they die. Check out the sea dragon for a good example.

Blurst also have a number of other good games. I quite like Minotaur China Shop.

I’m really impressed with what Unity can do. I’ve got to get a copy soon!