Riven for iPad [Cyan Worlds] - $5.99

For those of you familiar with gaming in the 90’s, or if you’re just into old(ish)-school games on the AppStore, Myst is one of the most memorable games from it’s era. It was also the best selling PC game of the 90’s. For those of you who are unfamiliar with it, Myst is a Point & Click/Puzzle Adventure game that puts you in the roll of The Stranger, a person sent to the island of Myst where it’s your job to find various books by traveling to different Ages, or worlds, slowly revealing the back-story of the game. Cyan Worlds has ported Myst as well as the newer realMyst - which is exactly like the original Myst, only played in 3D and opening the world for you to explore every little nook and cranny - to the iOS, and following suit, also released Riven, the sequel to Myst, back in 2010. Cyan Worlds has been hard at work, and has just released an iPad build of Riven, allowing players to experience this touch screen version on the bigger screen. 

Riven, just like the iPhone version, is a perfect port as far as gameplay is concerned, giving gamers the opportunity to pick up right where Myst left off, thrusting them into the slowly decaying Age of Riven. As you might have guessed, Riven for iPad also has quite a few enhancements that, as you might imagine, could not have been an easy task to accomplish. The iPad version of Riven includes high resolution images, improved music and effects and updated movies and animations. It also runs on all iPad devices, including the original iPad 1. 

There are a few options that you can adjust and change at any point in the game. You can change the transition speed from slow to fast, or turn it completely off, allow hints and show or hide the interface buttons. While I do remember Riven’s animations being a bit quicker than they are on the iDevice, you are also able to tap in the upper right corner to skip the longer ones if you so desire. This does help move the game along at a quicker pace, especially if you know what you’re doing. There is also a ‘Help’ section that takes you to Cyanworld’s website to view a quick tutorial. The hint system, like in Myst, is done through an online walkthrough, and can be very helpful if you ever get stuck. 

The puzzles, like in Myst, are usually multi-screen puzzles, requiring you to do something in one area and then another before being able to move on to the next area. One of the most frequent complaints I hear when discussing Myst with friends or online is that the puzzles usually make no sense and ‘how are you really suppose to know how in the world to do that without looking for help somewhere?’. While this may be the case with some, others who are willing to search every area for hints in the form of pictures and experiment with buttons and levers, the game’s unique type of puzzles will grow on you. While this sort of puzzle solving is not for everyone, it has definitely withstood the last 15 or so years (longer for the original Myst), and is considered by many to be one of the top Point & Click Puzzlers even now. 

Control-wise, everything is done with taps and swipes, with the game being made up of thousands upon thousands of still photos, moving forward can be done by tapping in the center of the screen while turning around and looking up or down can be done either by swiping anywhere on the screen in the opposite direction (swipe down to look up, left to turn right, ect), or tapping the edge of the screen in the direction you want to turn. 

The music and sound effects are great, and are encoded at a decent quality, allowing for players to become totally immersed in the world of Riven, especially while using headphones. The graphics and animations are also great, and although the game does show it’s age, the slight pixilation that happens during animations does not take anything away from the game. Given the size that Riven was originally made in (around 640x480), the scaling to fit the iPad screen looks great, but if you were hoping for a full 2048x1536 iPad Retina resolution, chances are you’ll be pretty disappointed. But, some great news is that the text is all very clear, and easy to read, so if you’ve been playing the iPhone version of Riven on your iPad, aside from the clearer graphics, this is probably the biggest thing you’ll notice. 

With the great reception that RealMyst received, having Myst playable in a full 3D world and being able to explore every little nook and cranny of the game, here’s hoping that the same can be done for Riven in the future. But as it is now, very reasonably priced at $5.99 and with all the enhancements it contains, it’s a great buy, especially for fans of the original, the Myst series and Point & Click games in general. If you’ve yet to experience Riven, you’re in for a real treat, and so long as you don’t go in expecting a fully open 3D world and high-resolution retina graphics, you could very well fall in love and knock other P&C titles down a notch on your favorites lists after getting into it. Cyan Worlds has done such a great job porting Riven over to the iDevice, and it’s very clear that a lot of care and passion has gone into the conversion to the touch screen. It’s definitely an easy game to recommend, even after all these years. 

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March On Oz [City State Entertainment] - $3.99

I remember way back in the year 2000 when I encountered the game American McGee's Alice. It was bold and took a fresh point of view at one of literature's most beloved characters/fantasy world. Somehow playing through that game changed the way I look at, or imagine, Wonderland for the rest of my life. Now I feel nostalgic or reminded about those times having to come across March on OZ.

City State Entertainment's first title for the iOS is a game that transports us to their own rendition of the magical land of Oz. Here, you play an unnamed protagonist which you'll create/customize, that is whisked away by a tornado (like Dorothy) into an alternate version of Oz, only to discover that the realm is in dire peril under the invasion of the evil, mechanical looking, gnomes. Being convinced by the good witch Locasta to assemble and lead the Ozian Army of Resistance against the forces of evil, you march on a military campaign through the Yellow Brick Road towards the mystical Emerald city.

This is a strategy game that uses a lane defense system where you place an Ozian unit on a particular lane/area to stop a wave of marching enemies. Pretty much, the gameplay mechanic is quite similar to Plants vs. Zombies but offers more depth and flows at a much faster and exciting pace. In this game you can discover, or learn, battle formations that have a specific function and perk, summon a band of flying monkeys by using a magical golden flute to eliminate opposing units on a lane and have unique/hero like units that you can put on the battlefield once thus setting it apart from PvZ.

Each level of the game has a four star objective system for rating your strategic or gaming skills and 3 different difficulty settings. It also features unlockable content such as mini games, comic strips of the story and an encyclopedia of the different creatures/characters you'll encounter in the world. Giving it a lot of the replayability options which most of us yearn for. Being equipped with an online file saving interface you can also be rest assured that your progression is safe and can be revisited.

The narration of the story is set on a humorous tone with quirky animated characters to discover as you go along the way. With a beautiful BGM/soundtrack and a lush rendered 3D environment, it makes the game feel more alive rather than dull or soulless, thus making me feel engaged and emotionally invested towards the game.

My only critism about March On Oz is the level select section that's not fixed yet as you can only replay the tutorial levels, though the developers already said they are working on a fix that is to be uploaded soon. It's very hard not to love this game as it is very polished and exuberates with much artistry. The game also has a lot of  features we request and yearn for in the mobile gaming world and has no IAP offering what so ever, which is pretty rare nowadays. The developers passion for making the game is felt on every detail or facet you come across as you play on. If you are a fan of Strategy or Tower Defense games be sure to check this title out.

**This review has been contributed to The App Shack by Alister from the Touch Arcade Forums**

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Review Rewind: Robo5

It's not very often that a game comes along and just completely blows us away, so much so that we're driven to stop everything until we 100% complete that game. Last year, Yuguosoft released such a title; Robo5. Not only did we sink an insane amount of time into this one, but we didn't stop until we completed every single level, unlocked every achievement and, at the time, had the #1 spot on each of the leaderboards. Better yet? It can still be found on both my iPod and iPad. For those of you who aren't familiar with Robo5, it's basically the AppStore's Catherine, minus the sexual innuendos and mature story line. Robo5 does contain a story, but it's more along the lines of 'who am I?' and 'what am I doing here?'. If you're looking for a top notch puzzler, Robo5 is definitely one game you NEED to check out.

**Note: This review was written after playing Version 1.0

Puzzle games have gone in all sorts of different directions since the iPod came out. The openness of the AppStore, coupled with the mind blowing amount of talented developers, and the range of possibilities that the touch screen brings to the table makes for some very interesting games. However, it kind of seems like puzzle games have hit a rough patch. Almost everything entering the AppStore these days is a physics based Angry Birds or Tiki Totems type game. So it was a real surprise when I started up Yuguosoft’s new action puzzler, Robo5. 

In the game, you’ll control a robot who’s trying to find out who he is, and why he is here. You’ll solve a series of box moving puzzles in order to move through the worlds. Each of the levels has 3 stars that you can earn, one for completing the level in a set amount of time, one for collecting all of the items, and one for having under a certain amount of box moves. Every time you earn 20 stars, a Diary, or challenge, level is unlocked. These give you more back-story on Robot Number 5, and the world he lives in, and when you complete the Diary levels, even more is revealed.

The controls in Robo5 are simple enough, tap and swipe. You’ll tap to move to a box, and swipe to grab and move boxes. You can also tap on the box you are already standing on to hang off of the side of it, enabling you to move around piles of boxes that might be in the way. You’ll need to move boxes around opening and creating pathways to get to the top of, and the exit, of the levels. In order for a box to stay in the air, or be held up, it needs to be touching another box on one of it’s 4 bottom edges. There are different types of boxes, expanding the puzzle element quite a bit. Along with the regular boxes, some will crumble after standing on them twice, some will start to count down from 5 and then explode after you step on them, some boxes can float in the air, some give off electricity shocks, and there are some which are shown with a big “?” on them, and these can turn into any type of box after you touch them, so you never really know what you’re going to get with them. Put all of these together, and there’s some pretty wild puzzles that you will need to get Robot Number 5 through in order to make it through the game.

The graphics are amazingly detailed, and some of the best I’ve seen in an iOS game. I would put them up to par with Unreal Engine graphics, even though they did not use Unreal to create the game. The atmospheres are very immersive, and along with the animations for movement, and the music within the game, it creates quite an amazing world. 

With Yuguosoft pricing both the iPod and iPad version at only $0.99, it’s an amazing buy. It’s taken me about 10 hours to get to the last level of the game, which I am currently stumped on, but I still need to go back and get 3 stars in about 25 of the 40 levels, not including the 7 out of 8 Diary levels I have yet to complete. GameCenter integration completes the game adding quite a bit of replay value, even for gamers who manage to get 3 stars on every level. 6 leader boards, one for a combined score in each world, and one for your highest world score, along with 32 achievements, some being very hard to snag. For a puzzle game, Robo5 goes above and beyond the expectations of gamers, and gives them an incredibly immersive, amazingly thoughtful and enriching gameplay experience. I really can not recommend Robo5 enough, to any and all gamers. The difficulty in the later levels is pretty high, but once you get to the end of the levels, the feeling you’ll have is more than enough of a reward. Yuguosoft has definitely created a contender for Game Of The Year, and over the last week has easily moved into my top 5 of 2011, and has set a new standard for action puzzle games of the future.

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Wimp: Who Stole My Panties [Flexile Studio] - $0.99/$1.99 [HD]

As many of you know, the platform genre is one of my personal favorites. Has been ever since I first got into gaming. So, it shouldn’t be any surprise that I jump on the opportunity to check out new platformers whenever they hit the AppStore, and a few times, has been completely surprised at how fantastically good some of them are. Well, the newest title to blow me away is easily Flexile Studio’s first foray into the iOS gaming world; Wimp: Who Stole My Panties. Yup, you read that right. Stolen panties. While some might shy away from this one just based on the title, there are some of you out there who still have Miss Claire Garden (which some others shied away from as well, based on it’s cutsey name) on your devices, and know how great a game can be, despite it’s title. 

Welp, let’s start this thing off right; Wimp: WSMP has very nice controls, which are fully customizable, fantastic physics that actually give weight to every moveable object in the game, some killer level designs, great puzzles which, you can sometimes solve more than one way (which I know a lot of you guys love), an interesting story, engaging gameplay mechanics, beautiful graphics, awesome animations for each and every character and a soundtrack that matches the game’s look and feel perfectly. I really can not come up with one bad thing to say about Wimp. Not at all. 

Wimp tells the story of, you guessed it, Wimp. A cute little blob of a character who’s had his underwear stolen. You’ll need to guide him through 50 levels, spread across 3 worlds, collecting all of his underwear, and rolls of toilet paper, and chasing down the thief who committed this atrocity. So, you head down the toilet, and start on your journey. 

Now, with Wimp being a puzzle platformer, there are, obviously, some puzzles in the game. But, unlike a lot of puzzle platformers in the AppStore, Wimp also contains a LOT of platforming. You will be jumping around like mad, trying to hit jumps just right, and time things perfectly, with the puzzles getting more and more elaborate as you progress throughout the game. Starting off, you’ll be able to use your sticky ability, which can be activated and deactivated via a button. With this, you’re able to stick to almost any surface in the world of Wimp. When you make your way to the second world, you’ll be able to toll onto objects that will give you a fire ability. With this, you’ll be able to tap the ‘sticky’ button, and stop Wimp in mid-air, being able to either jump a second time, or use the left and right buttons to shoot to one side or the other. In the third world, you’ll be given a teleport ability, being able to place a bubble wherever you’d like, and then moving around the level, being able to teleport back to where you left the bubble by pressing the ‘sticky’ button. With these 3 basic abilities, the developers at Flexile have done an amazing job designing some very unique, interesting and challenging levels. 

Not only are you able to use these 3 abilities, but there are also numerous objects throughout the game that you’ll be able to interact with, for instance; Buttons that activate other platforms, stop or start enemy movement and open up pathways. Blocks which you can place on buttons, use to stop enemy movement, push down into acid so to use as a platform, move to reach a pair of underwear or roll of toilet paper and also place on top of enemies to push them down into spikes. There are also Blocks and other objects, like Links, that you’ll have to stick to, and wobble back and forth, in order to knock loose. Along with these there are quite a few other objects, like jets that blow you upward, platforms you can destroy with your fire ability, water that you’ll need to learn how to maneuver in, around and through, assembly line type platforms, hanging links you’ll need to stick to and swing from, machines that spit out blocks and tons more. 

All of these objects that you can interact with have their own set of physics, and actually feel like they have some weight to them. Figuring out how to utilize these aspects of the game will be necessary if you’re going after all 150 rolls of toilet paper that can be found in Wimp’s universe, with 3 in each level that you do not need to collect in order to progress through the world, and a pair of underwear that you'll need to collect in order to unlock the exit. You're also able to pause the game, and skip levels via a Fast Forward button, but can only enter new worlds if you've collected a certain number of toilet paper rolls. 

As I’ve said already, there are sometimes more than one way to get through a puzzle, and usually, you’ll only find that out after you’ve already completed the puzzle a harder way, and moved further on into the level. With this ability to have gamers make the game harder depending on what they think or know they can do is fantastic. The puzzles to get harder and more complex as you progress throughout the game, some requiring multiple actions in order to set up even more actions, and with 50 levels (unfortunately, the third world only has 10 of it’s 20 levels completed) and more on the way, including the last 10 levels in World 3, along with 20 more in World 4, there’s quite a bit of content to play through. 

The graphics in Wimp look amazing. It’s easily one of the best looking platformers, on any gaming platform, that I’ve had the pleasure of playing. Each world has it’s own environmental look and feel, with beautiful, vibrant colors and detailed levels along with great, animated backgrounds. The animations for each character are a huge plus, with Wimp having quite a few that he’ll show you while just standing still like rubbing his eyes, looking sadly down at the ground and kicking his foot, banging on his little bubble enclosure and waving at you, with the enemies turning red and clearly getting mad at you if you get too close to them and laughing at you. 

Along with all of this, Wimp has a great scoring system with each levels final score depending on how many rolls of toilet paper you collect, how quickly you complete the stage and how many times you’re injured/killed. With the scores largely dependent on how quickly you can complete each stage, it leaves the possibility of always being able to better your total score, which is shared via GameCenter on Wimp’s single total score leaderboard. There are also 40 achievements, many of which will take multiple tries in order to unlock. To complete the gaming experience, Wimp contains 2 boss battles, both at the end of Worlds 1 and 2, in which you’ll need to figure out how to injure both bosses 3 times each. 

There are two different versions of Wimp: Who Stole My Panties; the Universal version and the HD build, which has some outstanding graphics for the iPad2 and 3. Unfortunately, at the moment the HD build is not Universal. But, the Flexile is going to update the HD build so that gamers with an iPhone 5 or 4S will not have to purchase both versions (unless you’re dying to play the game RIGHT NOW). With the Universal version priced at $0.99, and the HD build $1.99, they’re both fantastic deals. After purchasing the Universal version, and making it through the first 10 levels of World 1, I wound up buying the HD version as well, simply because I felt that $0.99 wasn’t enough for the game. Now, knowing that the HD version will also play on iPhones in the near future, I’m psyched to check out the enhanced graphics on an iPhone 5 when I get one early next year (when my contract is up). For Flexile Studio’s first iOS title, they’ve made a huge splash with Wimp. Flexile is also very responsive on the game’s Touch Arcade thread and on their Twitter and Facebook pages, which is fantastic. I’m having a blast playing through each level and then going back trying to better my scores. It’s definitely a title that all platform fans need to check out, and even gamers who don’t feel that the iDevice is capable of comfortably running platformers should check this one out. Wimp is, in itself, a prime example that the touch screen is very capable of comfortably running a platform game. I can’t wait to see what Flexile adds in World 4, and truly hope that Wimp sells well, and gets all of the attention that it deserves so that we can see more titles come out of the studio. Even though Wimp isn’t complete at this moment, and that’s usually something I have a hard time getting over, it’d be even harder not recommending that every iOS gamer check it out.

**Thanks to Echoseven on TA for pointing out that there are 3 rolls of toilet paper in each stage, and one pair of underwear. Sorry for the mix-up.

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Black Water [Brisk Mobile] - $1.99

With so many first time developers hitting the AppStore lately, it’s always kinda nice seeing a new game from an already established development team. Not that I’ve got anything against new-comers, it’s just that when a new title from a company that’s put out more than a couple games in the past, you pretty much know what to expect when it comes to ‘will this game be updated’, ‘will it drop in price within it’s first week’, and of course, it’s polished and gameplay potential. Well, earlier this week, Brisk Mobile, developers of Battle For Cydonia, D-Star, Lasers, Drake’s Tower and Medieval, among others, just released the iPad exclusive, Line-Drawing Action Adventure game, Black Water. After witnessing the attack on Black Water’s sheriff, and running over to see if he’s still alive, he hands you his badge. It’s up to you to stop the attacks on Black Water and drive the bandits out of town. 

Now, Black Water can get very hectic, especially considering it’s a tap to shoot/draw a line to move type game. Each stage gives you a main objective, like stopping bandits from getting away after robbing a bank, saving the townsfolk who’ve been locked up in a church, drive away Indians from cattle lands, ect. There is also a secondary objective to complete after the initial objective, like clearing out the remaining bandits or Indians, finding a key to unlock the church doors, ect. 

As you make your way throughout the levels, enemies will spawn randomly, and come at you in waves. There are many different ways you can get rid of them, either taking them out one by one as they approach you, killing everyone once they come around objects, at close range, or you can run around a bit, trying to get a bunch of bandits in one spot, and then take them out with a shotgun, or TNT (which is done by drawing a circle on the screen where you want the TNT to land), or you can pick them off from long range using a riffle. This all depends on your style of gameplay, and the weapons the prefer, but it is nice having quite a few different ways to deal with the enemies.

While running around each stage, there are boxes and crates that you’ll be able to shoot which sometimes contain items that you can pick up, and enemies also randomly drop loot. These include health, ammo and currency. The scoring system is done pretty well, giving you score bonuses for taking out large groups of enemies, or one enemy after the other with combo bonuses. 

As stated, Black Water is another line drawing controlled game. However, unlike most of the other titles within the genre, Black Water does not contain virtual control schemes. This is basically a hit-n-miss when it comes to iOS gaming, as there are tons of gamers out there who prefer that the touch screen be utilized, and hate virtual controls, while others prefer to have iOS gaming feel more comfortable, having controls similar to joypads, and hate when games leave out virtual controls. It’s really just a matter of preference, but it could very well be the deciding factor as to whether or not many gamers will or will not enjoy Black Water. Now, you are able to double tap on the screen to constantly move in that general direction, but as this causes you to run into every object imaginable, it’s something that will most likely not be utilized by many players. I have had some issues with the line drawing occasionally not being responsive which, in a game that’s this full of action, can get to be pretty frustrating when it does happen, even though it’s not too often, it is something that could use some tweaking. 

Reloading is done by tapping the bullets at the bottom of the screen. If you choose to manually reload, it takes a lot less time to do so as opposed to having the game automatically reload for you once you empty your gun. This can get kind of frustrating, as a lot of the time, tapping on the bottom of the screen will, instead, have you fire in that direction which can cause you to take more damage by not reloading, and wind up taking away more time in order to do an auto-reload. It’s also pretty uncomfortable holding the iPad so that you are able to constantly tap the bottom of the screen, while tapping on enemies to shoot them, and draw lines to move, but if you’re someone who usually places your iPad down on a table or other flat surface while you play, this shouldn’t really be an issue. 

Starting off, you’re given a 5 shot pistol. As you progress throughout the game, you’ll be able to collect coins which you can use to purchase more guns. Going through the game, you’ll meet townsfolk who can make certain types of weapons for you, and once you do, those types of weapons will be unlocked, and available for purchase in the shop. For anyone wondering, yes, Black Water does have an IAP system, which you can use to purchase coins and stars for guns, and upgrading. 

Upgrading is done with the stars that you’ll earn in each stage. With each stage having a possible 3 star ranking, leveling up is something  you’ll continually need to do if you don’t want to get too overwhelmed as you progress. There are 3 different skill trees, Attack, Defense and Support, with each skill needing a certain number of skill upgrades above it to be purchased before it’ll become available. The Attack Skills upgrade aspects like walking speed, reloading speed, TNT blast radius, critical hit odds and more, while Defense Skills let you take less damage, give you a chance to deflect damage back to enemies, regaining life when you deal damage, and so on. The Support Skills are probably the last skills you’ll really want to focus on, giving you the ability to collect items from a distance, increase the points you earn from kills, increase the number of bullets you pick up, ect. 

The graphics are decent enough, though kind of cartoony, they do provide a well crafted environment, feeling like a more casual version of Gun when it comes to the atmosphere. The comic strip parts are where the game’s graphics shine, with some nice artwork to be found in these segments. The animations are well done, and the game runs very smooth. The soundtrack also helps to create a nice old western feel, though with the control issues, the game isn’t really as immersive as I’d hoped it’d be. 

GameCenter support is included with 26 achievements, but no leaderboards. With the great combo driven scoring system, I was pretty surprised to find this out, as it’s something that would have definitely added some replay value to the game. As it is now, getting 3 stars is not hard at all, so there’s hardly any reason to go back and re-play levels. Hopefully leaderboards for each ‘world’ will be added in the future. 

Originally priced at $1.99, and on sale at the moment for $0.99, if you’re a fan of western or line-drawing action/adventure games, it’s definitely worth picking up, and actually, with the content and gameplay, even with the issues I’ve had with the controls, I’m surprised that Black Water isn’t priced higher. Brisk Mobile has done a very nice job creating one of the best Western Themed iOS games to date, and if the controls do get tweaked, it’ll be a pretty immersive game on top of that. Since they’ve already updated the game, fixing an issue with the first Bank level looping and becoming endless, it’s pretty clear that the developers are listening to feedback, and willing to, very quickly, fix issues. Now I’ve just gotta get my hands on that minigun, and I’ll be set!

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SpaceChem Mobile [Zachtronics Industries] - $5.99

Puzzle games are some of my favorite types of iOS games, but unfortunately, with the crazy amount of them that’s available in the AppStore, like so many other genres, it’s kind of hit & miss when it comes to finding one that’ll keep me interested all the way through. However lately, there’s been a couple that I’ve sunk my teeth into, and just can’t get enough of. Splice, Blast-A-Way, Oh Hi! Octopi!, Linkies, Slydris and one that managed to slip under my radar when it was released because I didn’t have an iPad at the time, SpaceChem. I was introduced to SpaceChem by a fellow Touch Arcade member when praising Splice, and I’m incredibly glad that it was brought up, because the Zachtronics Industries release has definitely gotten it’s hooks into me, and I’ve been loving every minute of it. 

Originally a Windows, MAC and Linux game, SpaceChem has players create and bond specific molecules through an assembly line using waldos. You’ll need to set up when and where molecules are created, picked up, bonded, moved, dropped off and cleared, as well as control how the assembly line is structured, putting twists and turns into it, while making sure that both the red and blue waldos do not collide with each other. It does sound a little confusing, but once you get into the game, and start to understand how everything works, then the core gameplay becomes a lot easier to understand, and you can primarily focus on solving each level. 

SpaceChem contains over 50 levels, and granted, for a puzzle game, that’s about the average, but SpaceChem happens to be one of the most difficult puzzle games you’ll ever play, and there’s a good chance that you won’t be able to complete the game. That’s not to say that the game is frustrating, though it can be at times. More to say that it’ll constantly make you feel inferior, if not humbled, no matter how good you might think you are with puzzlers. But the drive to complete the game is definitely there, if for no other reason than to be able to say that you did it. With no GameCenter, there’s not really any other bragging rights, but you are able to compare your end level solutions with the average of other players via charts showing how well, or poorly, you’ve preformed. 

Starting off each stage, you’re given a compound which you’ll need to try and create with the two waldos. Each waldo is able to create a certain molecule, and you’ll need to figure out how to turn those into the solution, and have the waldos create it a certain number of times (usually between 4 and 8), without any mishaps happening in the assembly line. In the beginning, you’re given icons for creating the molecules, bending the assembly line, grabbing and dropping the molecules, syncing the two waldos, bonding molecules and clearing the line. Syncing is an extremely important part of it all. You’ll be able to stop a waldo from progressing along the assembly line until the other waldo reaches a certain point at all sync spots. This is essential in making sure that the two waldos do not collide, and that molecules are bonded correctly. As you make your way through the game, you’ll be exposed to pipelines, sensors, recyclers and more. It can become overwhelming, but since you’re completing each level one tiny step at a time, each placement of an icon getting you closer and closer to the final solution, it all becomes very manageable. 

The graphics and sounds are fairly minimal, but fitting for the game. It’s nothing you’ll want to show off to your friends who are graphics whores, but rather to your friends studying physics, science, biology, advanced mathmatics (if you have any), or others that might enjoy science related games and crazy puzzlers. In fact, SpaceChem has been introduced in some academic institutions for teaching concepts behind both chemistry and programming. If that’s not an incredible recommendation, I have no idea what is. 

Priced at $5.99 and available for the iPad, SpaceChem Mobile is priced $4 less than the PC/MAC/Linux version, and it contains the full section of player-created ResearchNet puzzles as well as a modified campaign made just for the iPad. Granted, SpaceChem is not for everyone, and is in a sort of niche genre. You can’t deny that there’s not many science/program related games out there, and even fewer created for the iOS. But for those of you who are willing to take a chance on it just might wind up with one more puzzler to add to that favorites list, even if it does make you feel stupid. There’s not another game available in the AppStore that will give you the same kind of gaming experience.  

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Bastion [Supergiant Games + Warner Brothers] - $4.99

So, in our review of Splice: Tree of Life, we said that this week was an incredible week for iOS gaming, bringing up a fantastic Physics-Puzzler, a very unique firefighting game and not to mention the absolutely mind-blowing Splice, we also mentioned the ‘best Action RPG to hit the iDevice’. Now, this could have easily been one of two titles; Square Enix’s The World Ends With You, or Supergiant Game’s Bastion. Granted, I bought TWEWY, however, I have been unable to play it because I bought the iPhone version, have a 4th gen iPod that doesn’t run the game, and an iPad 2, which has a block on installing the game, so I don’t really know exactly how good TWEWY is (though I plan on finding out around X-Mas when I upgrade my phone to either an iPhone 4S or iPhone 5), and was pretty upset about the whole ordeal. That is, until I laid my eyes on Bastion. Originally an XBLA title, ported over to the PC a month later, and then hitting the Chrome Web Store at the end of last year, then ported over to the Mac, hitting the Mac AppStore in late April, has finally come to the iOS. And finally, after a good 9 months at the top of many gamer’s Action RPG lists, CrimsonHeart has been de-throned. 

Bastion is the story of ‘The Kid’, a young man who’s awakened in a world that’s teetering on destruction. The event that caused this is known as the Calamity. It turned people to ash, converted creatures into evil beings and destroyed the floating pathways of the city of Caelondia. With the help of The Narrator, who helps guide you along throughout your adventure, it’s up to you to rebuild the Bastion, a place where the people of Caelondia are supposed to turn to in troubled times. 

For those of you who own another version of the game, Bastion is basically exactly the same. Aside from including the game’s only DLC pack; The Stranger’s Dream, the only real major difference is the controls. Supergiant has rebuilt the control system to fit the touch screen perfectly. To move, you can either tap anywhere on the gameplay area, or tap and hold in the direction you’d like to move. Combat is done automatically, with the game taking care of what enemies and objects are targeted. This might be a bit upsetting to hear, but the game does a great job of auto-targeting either the biggest threat, or the enemy closest to you if there is no major threat close-by. You’re able to dodge/evade by double tapping, and there are two buttons, used for manually firing certain weapons or enabling the shield and to use your equipped special ability. While this control scheme might require a little messing around with before becoming comfortable, it does leave the screen wide open and un-cluttered. However, there is also a second control scheme that includes a virtual joystick for movement, and buttons for attacking, dodging, using your shield, activating your special ability and switching your weapons. You’re also able to manually target your enemies with this control scheme. 

There is quite a bit of depth in what you decide to equip The Kid with. You’re able to carry up to two weapons with you, and with a total of 10 weapons found throughout the game; the Cael Hammer, Dueling Pistols, Breaker’s Bow, War Machete, Scrap Musket, Galleon Mortar, Flame Bellows, Fang Repeater, Brusher’s Pike and the Army Carbine, there’s quite a few different layouts you can choose from, all effecting how you play the game. You’re also able to upgrade each of these weapons with the gems that you’ll collect by breaking boxes, various objects, and defeating enemies. There are also other stores which will let you upgrade The Kid with passive abilities, like increasing your critical attack, or critical shield duration. 

The graphics and animations in Bastion are amazingly well crafted. With all of the different environments spanning from forests and cities to bogs and training areas, each with incredibly vibrant colors matching the environment as well as helping to create an incredible atmosphere. Not only are the graphics remarkably well done, but the animations are fantastic. Right when you start up the game and see how the road is built around you as you move throughout the world, Bastion’s polish becomes very apparent. 

Along with the game’s incredibly polished graphics and animations, but Bastion’s soundtrack and sound effects are also an intense highlight of the game. Helping to complete each area’s atmosphere, Bastion’s BGM is loaded with depth and emotion, not only fitting the game’s environment, but also being a driving force behind the gameplay. It’s actually one of the few video game soundtracks that I listen to while in the car, and have playing during various times throughout the week. Darren Korb was the perfect choice for the artist behind Bastion’s soundtrack, pulling it off perfectly. Supergiant Games has also made the soundtrack available for purchase through iTunes, so make sure and check that out, if you're so inclined.

With Bastion priced at $4.99, and easily being one of the top 3, if not the best, Action RPG available for the iPad, it’s a perfect price-point. I know there are many out there who would have paid more for Bastion, but with so many gamers who haven’t been exposed to the game before now, $4.99 doesn’t shut them out of the ‘take a chance on it’ group. GameCenter integration is also included with a leaderboard for your Total Points, and 21 achievements. There is also a New Game+ option once you complete the 8-12 hour story mode, giving you the option to play through the game again with different weapon loadouts. Carried over to the New Game+ is The Kid’s level and distillery spirits (character upgrades), Fragments, Weapons and their upgrade levels along with their items that are used to upgrade them, Secret Skills and Idols. Supergiant Games has made a huge splash on the AppStore with this release of Bastion. Here’s hoping it sells well, and we get to see more games produced for the platform in the future. 

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