iPhone App Reviews

Bridges Puzzle

Chris J. | Jan 16, 2009 Games

User rating: (1 votes, average: 1.00 out of 5)

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The developers (Peerium, Inc.) have definitely gone for the bare minimum with this app. The object is simple: connect the numbered “islands” with the correct number of “bridges”. You can add a bridge by dragging your finger from one island to the next. Do it again to create two bridges, and one more time to erase them.

Graphically, this app is about as interesting to look at as the local bus route map. Islands are numbered circles, and bridges are yellow lines. There are no backgrounds for this game, which would at least make it a bit more interesting.

Playing Bridges brings to mind the classic puzzle game Minesweeper. I imagine Peerium, Inc. staff reading off a checklist of features when developing Bridges.

Timer… Check.

Random Configurations… Check.

Numbers… Check.

Unfortunately, Bridges does fall short of the pure addictiveness that is Minesweeper. I mastered the concept of the game after a couple of tries, and then grew bored. The levels never got any harder, more complex, or more varied.

Those who never tire of trying to beat their best time by another second will probably find this game more entertaining.

Tags: $0.99, Bridges, Chris J., puzzle

Sneezies – Bubble Popping Fun

Swain Valasek | Jan 15, 2009 Games

User rating: (4 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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While some developers try to wring as much complexity as possible from their games, Antair Corp took the extreme opposite approach.  How about a game where every level consists of exactly 2 touches to the screen and all the rest of your time is spent idly watching and listening?  Before you write off such simplicity, read on because Sneezies is pure iPhone crack.

The gameplay premise is familiar but presented in a wonderful and whimsy graphical style that sets it apart from the crowd.  Little critters called Sneezies float around in seemingly random fashion, each surrounded by a delicate bubble that keeps them from, well, sneezing.  Your goal then is of course to (mercilessly) make them sneeze because when they do, they burst and take others nearby down with them, causing what you hope is a massive chain reaction.  You do this with a single strategic touch to the screen which releases a small burst of sneezing powder.  This is high-grade stuff as it goes right through the protective bubbles and up the noses of any Sneezies in its range.  What follows is the pure magic of the game; a fireworks-like display that will have you in a Zen-like mesmerized state.  The excellent sound effects and smooth, relaxing original soundtrack complete the hypnosis.  The game has a professional polish throughout and Antair Corp has captured that almost intangible addictive quality that will have you playing this game over and over whether you’re 5 years old or 50.

The game supports 2 modes of play:
Classic mode - you get infinite retries to reach a target value before moving to the next level (45 total).  Relaxing and therapeutic.
Challenge mode - you get a set number of turns to reach a target value and get bonuses or a multiplier based on how many sneezies you can pop per level (15 total).  Worthy mode, fun!

• Need wayyy more fanfare for a perfect 100% popped level beyond a little chip tune!
• Changing the music every so often per level would make the zillion tries it takes to beat levels 25+ more enjoyable.
• Even more colors of Sneezies to enhance the fireworks-y Zen-effect!
• Would love the ability to replay the last level as many times as desired.

Version reviewed – 1.1
iTunes music supported – yes
Global scoreboard – yes

Tags: $0.99, casual, chain reaction, Games, Swain Valasek

Arcade Bowling

Michael (Admin) | Jan 15, 2009 Games

User rating: (3 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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I’m guessing the name “Skee Ball” is a trademark that could get Skyworks sued right out of the iTunes App Store, so that’s probably why this slick little game is called Arcade Bowling (also a pretty clever name in it’s own right).

Just about everyone in the industrialized world has played Arcade Bowling for real at some point, and if you haven’t then this is your big chance! It’s a game where you roll a baseball-sized ball up a ramp and score points based on what hole the ball lands in.

Arcade Bowling is a nicely polished and very faithful reproduction of this 100-year old game, and it throws in bonus opportunities where you can earn 5x the points if you get your ball into a hole that’s marked with a flashing color highlight. Skyworks also built in some accelerometer action so you can tilt your iPhone to affect the direction of your ball while it’s in the air! Nice. This feature really comes in handy when you’re trying to hit the 100 point hole fox a 5x bonus.

There are two game modes, Classic and Progressive. Classic is just like the real thing… you get eight balls which you roll with a flick of the thumb, and when you’re out you’re out. Progressive is where you’ll find the bonus scoring, and you keep playing until you fail to reach your ever-increasing point quota.

One real-world game component that Arcade Bowling seems to be missing is a slot that spits out tickets to be redeemed for prizes from a fat guy sitting behind a glass display case. This may seem like a huge stretch, but I would LOVE to see this feature built in! I could do without the fat carnie guarding the loot, but I think it would be awesome to be able to buy virtual prizes and show them off to other Arcade Bowlers.

Generally speaking this is a really high-quality app with nice sound effects and awesome graphics, but other features that I feel are must-haves in nearly all iPhone games are a global high score board and the ability to play while listening to iPod music. Right now Arcade Bowling lacks both of these functions which I hope will be remedied in a future update.

If you loved playing Skee Ball as a kid or just need something fun to pass the time on your daily commute, get this app. $1.99 is a fair asking price, and if Skyworks can fit in a global score board and virtual prizes it’ll be even more addicting than it already is.

Tags: $1.99, arcade, classic

Q&F: Chicago CTA Bus Tracker

Michael (Admin) | Jan 14, 2009 Quick & Free, Travel, Web Apps

User rating: (4 votes, average: 3.00 out of 5)

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I generally don’t review web apps, but this one is too good not to share with others who are currently freezing their asses off in Chicago!

Chicago CTA Bus Tracker is a web app that delivers real-time bus location info that comes straight from the Chicago Transit Authority’s very own bus tracking system. Choose your bus line, choose your direction, choose your stop, and before you know it you’re looking at a map of the nearest bus’s location and ETA. Just point your iPhone’s Safari browser to cta.growinglogic.com and you’re all set.

I don’t really ride the bus very much so I haven’t tried to confirm the tracker’s accuracy… plus I’m worried that I might literally drop dead if I step outside in this weather… but Chicago CTA Bus Tracker is free and the info is coming straight from the source so you’re really not gonna do any better than this. Tomorrow’s HIGH temperature in Chicago is expected to hit -3°F… yeah, -3 frakkin’ degrees (that’s -19°C to the rest of the world)… so not only will Michael Simmons’ iPhone web app save you some aggravation, there’s a chance it may save you from dying of hypothermia as well.

Thanks to our friends at Nerdy by Nature.org for finding this web app gem.

If you use a similar (and hopefully free) app that provides real-time public transit tracking in a different city, please feel free to post it in the comments! I know there are some in the iTunes App Store but web apps are harder to locate.

Sweet, in just 2 more minutes I'll be able to feel my face again

Tags: free

7 Cities TD

Michael (Admin) | Jan 14, 2009 Games

User rating: (9 votes, average: 4.22 out of 5)

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I don’t know why, but I’ve always had a boner for Tower Defense games… that’s what the “TD” is for in 7 Cities TD. In the Tower Defense format your sole objective is to stop the enemy from moving across your turf. They don’t try to kill you, you just kill them before they reach their destination. A while back I had some fun with another “TD” game called Galactic Invasion, and 7 Cities TD is right up there even though it’s waaaaay different in both looks and gameplay.

7 Cities has seven different maps, hence the name, and they all seem to involve winding rivers where you can strategically place your towers of death as critters and pirate ships parade by. Neptune Entertainment not only lets you upgrade your weapons (as do all pretty much all TD games) but you can also earn other powerups and weapon abilities that make this a pretty fun time waster.

I could go into a whole thing about Blue Gems and Red Gems and the Skill Unlocker, but (a) I’m drinking right now and I’d probably explain it wrong because beer makes me stupid, and (b) all you really need to know is that there’s more to this game than just upgrading your firepower.

One thing that strikes me as a little weird in this game is that each map is treated as an individual game, so the high scores are also tallied as such. In other words, if you conquer the first map, you’ll be asked to put your name on the high score board before advancing to the next map. Now that I’m thinking about it I guess it isn’t that strange, but part of me was expecting each map to be treated as a level, and my high score wouldn’t be tallied until after getting a thorough ass-whipping by those damn pirates. Eh, whatever. At least Neptune put up a global 7 Cities scoreboard so you can flaunt your gaudy scores in front of the world. Good move! I hate when developers forget to do that, but I do wish I could put in a longer name (ie: iphoneappreviews).

As complaints go, I don’t have much. The graphics are high quality, but visually it’s all pretty blah because the towers you’re placing on the map kind of blend in with the scenery. Outside of that small detail it’s a very solid game that’s easy to learn and apparently hard to master since I haven’t gotten past the third map yet on Normal difficulty.

It looks like a lot of effort went into 7 Cities TD and there’s lots of playing time to be had, so I don’t think $4.99 is asking too much. It’s a quality game and if you, too, have a boner for Tower Defense it should provide plenty of entertainment.

Tags: $4.99, strategy

AirFight

Michael (Admin) | Jan 13, 2009 Games

User rating: (35 votes, average: 2.97 out of 5)

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Do you force everyone you know to address you as “Maverick”? Is “Highway to the Danger Zone” your favorite song of all time? Do you frequently find yourself hopelessly lost in homoerotic volleyball fantasies?

If so, AirFight was MADE for you!

Ok ok, even if you’ve never seen Top Gun it’s still a pretty decent, albeit difficult, game.

AirFight puts you in the cockpit of a badass fighter jet and your mission is to cruise around and shoot down the bad guys. Your view of the unfriendly skies is decorated with an altimeter on the right side of the iPhone screen, an orientation-thing in the center that tells you how much you’re tilting, and sliding your thumb along the left edge controls your speed. The two circles near your right thumb are for launching missiles at a reasonable pace and firing an unlimited supply of machine gun ammo. Also included in the package is the handiest tool of all: a map that shows where your targets are.

The graphics in AirFight, particularly the plain-jane fighter jets, are nothing to get excited about, but overall this is a pretty good game if you’re into this kind of thing. Even on the easy level it’s pretty hard to lock your missiles onto a target, but it’s doable if you can figure out how and when to control your speed. Naturally, every gamer’s first instinct is to haul ass and go full throttle at all times, but with AirFight it’s generally better to be smart than fast.

Ocko AB built some nice features into this game and I have to confess that I haven’t tried the most intriguing one which is two-player mode. Apparently you can do some dogfighting with a friend which I think is awesome, but of course I’m a pathetic loser and I can’t seem to get out of the house to fire missiles at the few iPhone geeks I know.

Aside from the mediocre airplanes, my only real complaint in AirFight is that it would be way more fun if it were easier! The map totally helps, but I think the gameplay would improve drastically if there was a better way to (a) spot your targets which can be pretty hard to find in the vast airspace, and (b) lock onto them so you can blow them out of the sky. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a pretty fun game, but more killing and less chasing is what the casual gamer in me really wants. Oh yeah, and some explosions wouldn’t hurt either! Or at least a splash when an enemy plane hits the water below. Killing is always more satisfying when the enemy’s death is visually confirmed.

$7.99 feels a little steep for this app in its current form, but I like what AirFight has so far and the two-player deal looks pretty sweet for people who, unlike me, have iPhone friends. With some better graphics and more engaging gameplay this could be a pretty awesome game so I hope Ocko keeps working to improve it.

Tags: $7.99, 3D, arcade

Q&F: Audiogasm

Michael (Admin) | Jan 13, 2009 Music, Quick & Free

User rating: (4 votes, average: 4.50 out of 5)

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Ooohhh baby… it’s Audiogasm! Great name for an app, and the app itself isn’t too bad either.

Audiogasm is a visualization thingy just like you’ll find in most desktop media players. It reacts to sounds picked up by the iPhone’s mic and creates all kinds of crazy animated patterns in response. Shake the iPhone to change the animation and swipe a finger across the screen to take a screenshot of it.

It’s a pretty cool app that we all knew someone would create eventually… in fact, there are a few different visualizers available in the iTunes App Store right now. Unfortunately they all share one major shortcoming that the developers don’t have any control over: they can’t play visualizations while the iPod is running! Yeah that blows. Blame it on the device, blame it on Apple, but you really can’t blame TMSOFT. They want the app to be able to rock with the iPod but it’s just not technically possible, and they say this right upfront in their app description.

Audiogasm is currently “free for a limited time!” so if you like zoning out to psychedelic patterns while your non-iPod music is blaring, go get it. The visualizations are pretty cool and very responsive so even the most discerning stoner should be able to enjoy it.

Whoa dude that's a trippy phone you got there

Tags: free, strictly visual

Thanks!

Michael (Admin) | Jan 12, 2009 Website Stuff

User rating: (1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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I just want to say thanks to everyone who has expressed interest in writing for iPhone App Reviews – I’m still going through writing samples and figuring out what’s what. If you’re interested but haven’t submitted your info yet please visit this page.

Some new reviews are in the works… sorry, had a busy weekend!

Thanks,
Michael

Writers STILL Needed!

Michael (Admin) | Jan 8, 2009 Website Stuff

User rating: (2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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About a month ago I recruited a team of eight writers to pick up the pace of new app reviews here, but it turns out that a lot of them weren’t really all that into the idea. Maybe it was bad timing with it being right in the middle of Christmas season, but I think they really intended to start reviewing apps and just never got around to it. The few who have been writing, though, have been doing great so far.

SO… I’m opening the door again! Let me rehash what I’m looking for and what I’m offering in return:

Aside from being really good at writing, the ideal writers would be FUNNY and able to follow my format which really isn’t hard to do. Post a picture of the app store price, write the review, then post a screenshot gallery with captions. That’s pretty much it! Very easy.

In return, reviewers will get free apps for review purposes, the option to place a link at the end of each post, and the satisfaction of having their work seen by thousands. Sure, you could write reviews on your own blog, but most small blogs don’t have much of an audience. Mine has more than tripled since I started reviewing apps in August this year! Things are going well.

If you’re interested in “applying” to be a writer, please visit this page:

http://www.iphoneappreviews.net/writers-needed/

Hopefully this time around my new recruits will actually want to review some apps!

Singing Cat

Michael (Admin) | Jan 8, 2009 Entertainment

User rating: (5 votes, average: 2.40 out of 5)

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I installed Singing Cat thinking it would be the dumbest iPhone app on the planet, and it definitely qualifies as dumb… but it’s also kind of funny! I guess it would fall into that class of apps that are basically a cheap laugh, then after about five minutes it gets old and you forget about it. Think Wooo Button and Peanut Butter Jelly Time.

Singing Cat is basically a picture of some dude’s cat that moves his mouth to sounds picked up by the iPhone’s mic. The thing about this app that surprises me is the quality of the mouth animation… it’s way better than I was expecting! Honestly, I thought it would be like a ventriloquist’s doll where the mouth moves up and down in a single piece, but I can tell that Gigabyte Solutions Ltd. put some effort into making the cat’s mouth move as smoothly as they could. The cat even blinks at you which is a nice touch.

For most people, Singing Cat will have a pretty short shelf life, but in the right hands I think it could be set up as a prop in some mildly amusing pranks and maybe even diffuse a hostile situation. Imagine you’re screaming your guts out at someone and they hold this app in front of your face while you’re yelling… the cat will be mimicking your every word and, unless you’re on a truly murderous rampage, you just might break down and laugh.

Worth a buck? Ehhh… to some, sure. Cat fanatics, especially those who have a cat like the one in this app, will probably love it to death. Dog people like myself, not so much, but even so it’s still pretty funny.

If cats annoy you, Gigabyte Solutions also sells this app in other varieties: dog, monkey, camel, orangutan, and snowman.

I normally post a full gallery of app screenshots below, but this is pretty much all there is!

OMG!! What the hell happened to my teeth??!!

Tags: $.99, funny, useless

Juxtaposer Update

Michael (Admin) | Jan 7, 2009 Photo & Video, Updates

User rating: (1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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Juxtaposer has just gotten some major upgrades and here’s the scoop, directly from developer Hendrik Kueck:

I just wanted to let you know that a major update to my app Juxtaposer just appeared on the App Store.

I added the ability to save multiple sessions (with their complete undo history). Additionally you now can save masked top images as ‘stamps’. If you spend a lot of time accurately masking for example somebody’s head, you can later load in the already cut out head and use it in a new session.

I also added the ability to flip the top image left<->right, created a nice new menu system and tweaked a ton of things under the hood. It’d be awesome if you decided to mention this update on your blog.

 

By the way, if you’re a developer who’s already been reviewed on iPhone App Reviews, please take note… I’m glad to post your updates. They don’t have to be “major”, but they should at least be significant enough that people actually want to read about them!

Updates can also be self-posted at iPhone App Index.

Ysearch

Michael (Admin) | Jan 7, 2009 Lifestyle

User rating: (2 votes, average: 1.50 out of 5)

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The little slogan at the top of this website says “honest reviews of the latest, greatest, and lamest iPhone apps” and luckily I don’t get too many that fall into the lamest category. YSearch, though… ehhhhh… I really really really hate ripping on small developers… but this app is not good. That’s my nice way of saying it’s BAD! Sorry Yeerp, but if I don’t say it then nobody will.

Your iPhone’s map function is already pretty good at finding stuff you want and mapping it out for you, and YSearch’s goal is apparently to kick that map’s ass and become your new go-to app when you’re on the prowl for pizza or booze or latex or whatever you’ve got a hankering for. Unfortunately there are two big issues standing in the way of this happening:

• YSearch isn’t good at finding your location
• The default iPhone map already does pretty much everything you need

I gave YSearch permission to use my current location and, after several tries, not only did it give me some odd location info (it said I was in Italy on a couple of occasions) but even when it knew I was in Chicago it couldn’t actually locate my exact position the way the iPhone map does almost every time.

Location problems can be fixed, but the second issue with my built-in map already doing what I need it to… that’s a lot harder for the developer to overcome. It’s like trying to build a better mousetrap when the one you’ve already got is great at murdering rodents 99.9% of the time.

The one positive thing I can say about YSearch is that I like the idea of having the option to view my search results as a list rather than a bunch of pins stuck on a map. Frankly I think the pins are more useful when I’m sitting in my car and wondering what my next move is, but I could see the list view being more practical when the map spits out a giant clump of pins that are hard to sort through.

There are other minor areas where YSearch falls short, but I really don’t see the need to kick this app in the balls any harder than I already have. Here’s my second and final attempt at saying something positive: maybe this app is awesome in Europe! I have no idea. But I live in the U.S. of A., and all I know is that YSearch doesn’t really bring anything new to my iPhone and it definitely isn’t worth the $3.99 price tag. Unless you live in Europe. Maybe.

Tags: $3.99