Heroes in Time Review
Price: FREE
Version: 1.0
App Reviewed on: iPhone 3GS
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When a king learns he’s the proud father of twin boys, he’s elated. Then the witch/advisor who’s totally not evil and/or up to something convinces him that it’s a bad omen and he must “get rid” of one of them. Naturally there’s someone who doesn’t agree with this plan, snatches the would-be sacrificial lamb and goes, well, on the lam. For about a minute. Then it’s all “dramatic showdown in the rain” and “Ten Years Later.” The thought-to-be-dead prince is found once again by none other than his father and brothers (one twin, another not) in the wilderness on a hunting trip. Turns out he’s been raised by wolves. Then his non-twin brother adopts him as a kind of pet/servant. Flash forward another ten years and things start to get a little Oedipus. It’s nothing if not a unique mash-up of common formulas.
Aside from having a story that manages to be legitimately interesting despite the mixing of archetypes, Heroes in Time also looks very nice. Characters and backgrounds are colorful and actually pretty varied, and the animations are smooth. And if the main campaign ever starts to drag there’s always the option of fighting in one of many arenas that can be unlocked via in-app purchase.
While Heroes in Time can be a bit by-the-numbers in terms of gameplay and underlying systems such as crafting, the controls are the real problem. They function well enough, true, but they won’t react unless they’re hit spot-on. In other words, if a thumb slips, it can result in stopping dead while moving or standing around like a statue instead of attacking whatever’s trying to eat the hero’s face at the time.Heroes in Time might trip up a little bit with the gameplay, but what’s there is decent if nothing else. What’s surprisingly pleasant is the way the story (of all things) starts to take hold, clichés and all.