My biggest weakness (I say as if I were in a job interview) is that I get hooked on things and forget to go to sleep. Most often that's because I'm reading a book or playing a game of some sort — particularly on my iPad, if I'm not keeping an eye on the clock. Lately, I'll admit that the most time has been spent playing DrawSomething (see Core Dump: Draw the Line) but there are a few other apps that have kept me up past my bedtime. It's a mixed bunch: some RPG-type adventure games, some puzzle games, and a few other odds and ends. Here then, some apps to while away those hours you don't actually have to spare.
(Note: click on the screenshots below to view them at full size.)
Crow - $4.99 (universal app)
Crow is a fairly new one from Sunside Games, who developed their own 3D game engine that they're planning to open source now that the game is available. They'd sent me a link to the – video trailer and a gameplay video, and it looked gorgeous — so I agreed to check it out despite that little voice telling me I had way too many things to be doing anyway.
It's not flawless, but I have enjoyed the game and have started going through it a second time. In the game you're a crow, but not an ordinary crow. There is a voice calling you to action, sending you first against a few guardians to attain magical abilities, and then against the first real enemy: the scarecrow. After that, you'll face off against a few other big bosses. But aside from the fight scenes, there's also a large portion of the game that's flying around over some terrain, looking for trinkets (which appear when you fly over the right areas) that award you skill points. You'll also get more pieces of the story, and discover that there are two conflicting voices that you hear: one that urges you to curse the enemies in order to gain more powers, and one that wants you to spare them. As with Fable, the path you take determines what happens later in the game (though perhaps on a smaller scale).
There are also challenge levels which have you zooming along a path, collecting energy and trinkets and avoiding obstacles — these are pretty fun to play, and you can replay these to beat your own score. As you collect trinkets and skill points, you can spend them to increase various abilities that will aid you in the battles.
The main part about the game I didn't like was that there didn't seem to be any real indication of where you should look for the trinkets — you just lazily fly over large swaths of land, criss-crossing in the hopes of having something pop up on the screen. There aren't hard borders marked, either: when you fly too far, you just get more and more clouds blowing over the screen until it's whited-out, and then you're pushed back onto the map. The graphics aren't quite at Infinity Blade levels — when you get close up you can start to see the polygons — but the overall tone and atmosphere are very cool. There are scenes in the setting sun, and scenes in the rain at night. The blowing clouds and various environmental elements are impressive.
The game itself isn't too long — I played through the entire thing in a few hours — but now I'm wondering what happens when I change what I curse or spare, so I'm going to gradually go through it again.
Galactic Alliance 2 - $1.99 (iPad only)
I played a version of Galactic Alliance by Vectorform a couple years ago at PAX on the Microsoft Surface Table. It's a space-based tower defense game that handles up to four players simultaneously, working together to prevent various aliens from reaching Earth (or entering various gates). It was a lot of fun, and I played several rounds of it with random strangers. I hadn't realized there was a version for the iPad for free (some are complaining that the latest update isn't working), but now there's Galactic Alliance 2.
The game has two modes: campaign or endless. Campaign has you work through a series of five levels: the first simply has two gates, and you have to survive twenty waves of aliens. Later levels include floating asteroids that block where you can place your defenses (and where the aliens can travel), or multiple entry/exit points for the aliens. Also, you get a different set of defenses on the various levels.
There's a set of controls on each edge of the screen, and a player can jump in (or leave) at any time by pushing the little fingerprint "scanner" on their edge. Everything is color coded and oriented toward the correct player, so when you tap on an item you'll see the "upgrade/sell" menu facing you. It doesn't mean you can't tap on somebody else's item and sell it, but you should be working together. I did find that the hard difficulty setting even on the first level can be incredibly difficult with only one player, but with many players working in concert it's a lot of fun.
I've played this a bit with my kids, who have gotten the hang of tower defense (though not necessarily the idea of setting up a maze that forces the enemies to weave back and forth for maximum damage). This past weekend I broke out the iPad briefly at a retreat and roped in two kids and a teenager to try out a four-player game, and it was a blast. The teen (who was pretty familiar with tower defense games) said he could just sit and play it for hours, and the two younger boys kept asking me later if I was going to get the iPad out again. (I refrained, though, because I was trying to limit screen time for the weekend.) Suffice to say it was a hit, and I think it's well worth the $1.99 price tag.
Hero Academy - Free (universal app) with in-app add-ons
Hero Academy has been likened to Wizard Chess (the imaginary chess game from the Harry Potter universe) and Summoner Wars, a real card-based battle game (look for a review of that on GeekDad later on), though it's not really either one exactly. It's a two-player turn-based combat game, set on a 5 x 9 grid. Each player brings in their troops from opposite edges of the board, and attempts to destroy their opponent's crystals or eliminate all their troops.
The free version includes the Council team, a balanced team that features your traditional fantasy characters (knight archer, wizard, cleric) as well as a ninja, who's the heavy muscle. You get three of each regular troop and one ninja, as well as various tools that can increase defense or attack, healing potions, and two spells that just inflict damage on any spot of the board you choose. When you play the game, however, you can only choose from six of these things at a time, selected at random. Additional teams can be purchased for $1.99 each: the Dark Elves leech life from the opponent, Dwarves have a lot of area-effect attacks, and The Tribe (orcs) have combo attacks.
There are a couple different boards (also randomly-selected when you start a game), and they have different features on them: one to three crystals, spaces where your units will spawn on the board, and squares that give bonuses like extra defense, extra attack, or extra damage to crystals when your unit is standing on them. On each turn, you get five actions, which can be used to spawn units, equip items, cast spells, move units, or attack. One really nice feature is that you can play out a turn, see the effect, and then undo moves and try something else. Nothing is final until you hit the "submit turn" button — I wish more multiplayer games had this feature!
The base game (with the Council only) is free, though ad-supported. I was given a code to try out the Dwarves, and apparently after you've purchased things the ads are shut off, but I've been told by some of my friends that there are a lot of ads. You can also spend money to purchase more avatars and colors, but that seems like an expensive splurge for something that doesn't really affect gameplay. You can also spend money on "taunts." After you play a move, you can submit your moves with a taunt, which has your various units making faces and sticking out their tongues — your opponent will see that when they watch your moves.
I am curious about the Dark Elves and the new Tribe, which I haven't tried yet. I will say that the Dwarves, while they have some interesting powers, seem to have a steeper learning curve: I usually lose when I play the Dwarves against the Council.
I like the fact that there's a chat option (this should be required for nearly all multiplayer games, too) and the interface is fairly easy to use once you figure out what you're doing. However, the game is lacking a single player mode and a local multiplayer mode, which means the only way to play the game is to find somebody online, and that's not necessarily the easiest way to learn the game.
Overall, I've really enjoyed playing Hero Academy. The graphics and animations are a lot of fun. If you don't mind a lot of ads I think the Council is a great team to use overall; it can get pretty pricey if you want all the teams and colors and lots of taunts. Occasionally there have been reductions in prices on the teams, but it might be worth buying at least one extra team to get rid of the ads.
Peakour - $.99 (iPhone version or HD iPad version), plus free Lite version (iPhone or iPad)
Ok, this one's an odd one. It's a little puzzle game in which a pea (with arms and legs) runs around doing parkour inside a fridge, an oven, and other large appliances. You set up various objects throughout the level so the pea can back-flip, tic-tac, spring jump, grind, and vault to the goal. The levels usually have a few static objects and obstacles already, and you get a limited number of parts that can be added. Once you're done, you hit the "play" button and the pea will start running, automatically performing various moves according to what it encounters. Your primary objective is to get him to the target, but there are also three bottle caps on each level which you can collect, and you also get bonus points for finishing a level quickly or when you don't use up all the available parts.
Peakour is the first iOS title from a company called Gotta Pea?, and their website (and app) is full of "pea"-related puns. But whether you're looking for pea humor or not, Peakour can offer some interesting challenges for puzzle fans. It's a little different from some physics-based puzzlers like Crayon Physics, where a ball just rolls down the path of least resistance. The pea will actually jump when it gets to the edge of a platform, and various moves allow it to change direction or go over certain obstacles. It takes some trial and error to get where you're going.
There's also a level creator available, which can be purchased outright or unlocked after you've collected enough bottle caps, and the "List of Sick Skills" shows you the various moves and which objects they correspond to. There's a whole bunch of levels to keep you busy, particularly if you're going after all the bottle caps.
Where's My Water? - $.99 (universal app) with in-app add-on, or Free version
Where's My Water? isn't brand-new, but it's recently gotten some updated levels and I finally gave it a shot to see what all the fuss was about. Swampy is a cute little alligator who just wants to take a shower — but his shower is broken. So your job is to get the water to his shower, but that's easier said than done. You use your finger to dig away dirt, allowing water to flow through. As you progress through the game, things get trickier: there is moss which will absorb the water and grow bigger; poison which kills the moss but will also turn the water into poison; green goo which eats through dirt and explodes if it encounters poison. There are gates and spigots and sprays that can be triggered and moved.
There are currently 140 over 200 levels available, which is a bargain for a dollar, and they keep adding new levels periodically. One of the later levels adds steam: when water or poison hits coals, it turns to steam and flows upward — and then when it encounters icicles it condenses and drips down as water. You can even purify poison this way to turn it into useable water. Another set of levels has water balloons, which let you transport water across tricky areas (like moss) before popping it and releasing the water where it needs to go.
Each level has three rubber ducks on it — get enough water onto a rubber duck and you claim it, and you get achievements (and unlock new levels) by collecting ducks. There are also objects on some levels hidden in the dirt, which you reveal by digging them out. Collect these to unlock bonus levels.
Finally, the one in-app purchase is for Cranky's Story. There are a few included as a sample, but Cranky is a mean alligator who isn't interested in a bath. However, his food has moss growing on it, and he needs it to be rinsed off with poison before he can eat. So in Cranky's levels, you're trying to get poison to the shower and not water. Purchasing the Cranky's Story expansion also gives you additional Cranky goals on the regular levels — like killing all the ducks, or blowing up all the bombs on the screen while completing the level.
The fluid dynamics remind me a bit of Sprinkle and Sprinkle Jr., but with a whole lot more levels to play with. Where's My Water? is a fantastic app — kid-friendly and challenging for adults. At the very least, try out the free version — but the full version is definitely worth it.
Sir Benfro's Brilliant Balloon - $.99 (universal app)
Sir Benfro is a wacky little adventurer, and he travels by balloon. But not just any sort of balloon — his brilliant balloon is powered by fireflies. Sir Benfro's Brilliant Balloon is a single-finger-tap sort of game: touch the screen to go up, let go to drop down. Also, quick taps will slow him down and slower taps make him travel faster. You'll travel through various tunnels and past creatures, collecting fireflies and trying not to crash. The balloon loses fireflies over time, but loses a lot of them if you hit an obstacle.
The game isn't just another Canabalt or Jetpack Joyride, though. What sets Sir Benfro's Brilliant Balloon apart is the graphics, which are gorgeous and look like old woodcut illustrations or a little like Terry Gilliam's cut-paper animations from Monty Python. Also, the levels have a definite beginning and end, so it's not an endless run. The bizarre creatures you encounter will show up in the Spotter's Guide so you can read about the "Light Emitting Daves" and other weird animals that populate Sir Benfro's world.
This one won't take you forever to finish, but if you appreciate beautiful graphics you should give it a whirl. There's a gameplay video on the website to give you an idea of what it looks like in action.
The Bard's Tale - $5.99 (universal app) with in-app purchases
Back in the 1980s, there was a series of role-playing adventure games for the PC called The Bard's Tale: they were a traditional dungeon crawl but with the addition of a bard who could cast spells by playing various tunes. Then, in 2004, another (unrelated) game by the same name was released, an action-adventure game featuring a snarky Bard who is more interested in "coin and cleavage" than saving the world. It was a parody of many RPG tropes, with a narrator who mocks the Bard as he tells the tale.
Well, the old and the new(ish) have met in this app, which includes not only the 2004 adventure game but also the first two incarnations of the PC game (with more on the way). I've only fiddled around briefly with the old '80s versions, which might be fun for hardcore fans but I never was as interested in RPGs, particularly one which has a fairly hefty manual.
The 2004 version though, has kept me up quite a while. My save game says I'm about seven hours into the game so far, but that doesn't count all the times I've died and had to re-load the game. The game is largely a top-down view, and you control the Bard, walking around and encountering various villagers and enemies. When you talk to people, you get a "snarky/nice" interface at certain points of the conversation: tap one of the faces and the Bard will respond in that manner. Snarky is funnier, but some people will give you tokens and items if you choose the right tone to take.
Fighting is more like an arcade game: you can choose ranged weapons or melee weapons, and as you level up you can increase your abilities in various characteristics, learning to use two-handed weapons or releasing a volley of arrows in one shot. You'll get small quests to accomplish which gradually spell out the story: some mysterious princess named Caleigh needs rescuing (though the Bard is mostly interested in her for financial reasons and less so in her plight). You'll also learn new tunes as you go, which allow you to invoke magical warriors and archers that support you in battle.
The Bard is voiced by Cary Elwes, and the narrator is Tony Jay, and the banter between the two of them is hilarious and one of the best parts of the game. I should note that the game is probably PG-13: on top of the expected battle violence there's a lot of innuendo and some mild swearing, but nothing explicit.
I've still got a long ways to go before I'll finish the game, but it's been a lot of fun so far, and I'm going to try to complete the game without staying up past my bedtime again...
Disclosure: GeekDad received review codes for the apps in this column.
