Reviews

It may seem a bit premature to declare Smash Hit the best game released to the Apple App Store this month, but it is hard to believe that something more addictive and entertaining will take its place on my iPhone before March is over. I have to admit that it was a tweet by The Verge, and free price, that led me to download the game in the first place. I hadn't intended to review Smash Hit but after picking it as our "Game of the Week" in our weekly recap, I decided it needed more attention because it is just too fun to ignore.

Smash Hit is an easy to play but challenging game where you must throw balls at glass obstacles that get in your way while flying through different 3D dimensions. You begin the game with 25 balls and can collect more by smashing blue crystals scattered throughout the various levels. The game is over when you run out of balls.

You know Bardbarian is going to be a unique experience from the opening seconds when the main character pops a zit and urinates into a bucket during the intro to the game. The game follows Brad, a barbarian who is tired of defending his town from goblin invaders. Brad decides one day to turn his battle-axe into an"Axe-Loot" and use rock and roll music to inspire the townspeople to fight for themselves.

The official App Store description describes Bardbarian as an unique hybrid of arcade, RPG, tower defense and shoot-em-up games. The game doesn't really feature any RPG elements, unless you count upgrades and a Story mode, but it is a unique tower defense title.

Castle Doombad takes place in Dr. Lord Evilstein's castle after he has kidnapped a princess. Players must act as Evilstein's "minion" and defend his evil lair from the various heroes trying to break in and save her. The game is a fast-paced tower defense title where players must drag and drop various traps, and deploy evil creatures to destroy knights, ninjas and other enemies of Evilstein.

There are 3 chapters in the game and each chapter features 12 levels and 3 master stages. The goal of each level is to stop the multiple waves of heroes from leaving the castle with your princess. You do this by capturing screams from a Scream Generator to buy various cartoon traps and obstacles, like an "Overactive A/C," to defend your evil lair. You also have three special powers and various minions you can use to fight off your enemies. There are 14 Auto Traps, 5 Manual Traps and 4 Minions to unlock and choose from. Money can also be earned to upgrade each trap and minion as you advance in the game.

Fans of Hungry Shark Attack and other fish-eating frenzy games will enjoy Zombie Fish Tank by Chillingo Ltd.. The game features top notch graphics, a fun storyline, plenty of fun characters, boss battles and achievements; it’s pretty much everything you can ask for from a $0.99 iPhone game. I was originally worried that the tilt controls would make the gameplay annoying and difficult, but I was absolutely wrong. I was pleasantly surprised about how easy it is to navigate the crowded zombie infested aquarium by tilting my iPhone. You can even double tap the screen to calibrate the controls in case you set down your device, or change positions.

The game follows a small fish who is set on revenge after he is torn away from his girlfriend and transformed into the undead by mad scientists. Players must survive in harsh environments by eating smaller fish and toxic waste, all while avoiding being devoured by larger laboratory created monstrosities. You eventually work your way through various genetically altered bodies of water, such as the Toilet of Doom, until you reach the final stage.

I've been single for two years and every sloppy attempt I've made to change this sad fact has been just that: sloppy. Maybe what's been missing all along is these biorhythms lubbaa is telling me about, and if I started every conversation I had with appealing men at bars with, "What's your birth date? Give me a second," instead of "Hey papi, want a taste?" I'd be getting somewhere.

The intriguing logo of lubbaa, a chubby, curvy lowercase "a" punctuated by a speckled heart, is quickly belied by the app's look once it is opened. Some sort of natural fall theme in browns and yellows composed of stock photos of nature decorate lubbaa's innards. It could be made to look alright if not for the goofy font, possibly chosen to mimic a relaxed handwriting. Maybe it's supposed to be like the journal of a 14 year-old girl going through a Wiccan phase; she's calculating the biorhythms of all the cute boys in her high school to see if they might be fit to be brought home to daddy. "But, Daddy!" she'll cry, as he stares disdainfully at Trent's arm sleeve of tattoos and lip piercing. "Our sensitivity and emotional biorhythms sync perfectly!"