Chelsea Stark2013-04-18 19:03:24 UTC
Full disclosure: Jetpack Joyride is still one of my favorite iOS games. It was simple enough to figure out and play a game while waiting for a train, but the achievements, power-ups and depth meant I probably spent, over time, a dozen hours playing. So when I learned creator Halfbrick's newest game was out this week, I had high expectations.
Fish Out of Water [iTunes link] is an endearing title that asks you to skip fish across the ocean's surface for a high score. It sounds simple, but the beauty of all Halfbrick's games is that the simple, goofy premise leads to a lot of depth in gameplay.
You're given six fish (well, two are ocean mammals, but let's not get technical) to pick from, and they range in size, shape and skipping ability. For example, Finlay the purple dolphin is good for distance, but it takes some nuance to get him to skip more often. Olympus — an orange, square-shaped fish with bulgy eyes — is much lighter, and you can flick him across the waves easily, but he won't travel as far. The Brothers are actually a group of fish that separate and add to your skip total.
After three tries skipping the fish, you're judged by a panel of five crabs, Olympics style, and each crab judges on different merits. The centermost crab judges you on how many times your fish bounced on surface of the water, making it clear that it's not just about distance in Fish Out of Water.
Your scores are also displayed to any of your friends playing in the same league as you. The game allows you to set up simple leagues, and there is a daily ranking of players. You can also connect and share your scores on Facebook and Google+. There doesn't seem to be much tied to being top of the leaderboard beyond bragging rights, but maybe the function will be expanded to give you power-ups or something for that honor.
Along with just trying to satisfy your crabby judges, there are achievements to unlock as you play, and each set outs a fun goal to shoot for. It's a system Halfbrick borrowed from Jetpack Joyride, which is great because it adds hours of replayability to mobile games as you shoot for more and more difficult goals. After completing three achievements you'll level up.
The world you play in changes dynamically, too. Each hour the weather changes, and different conditions mean a different ocean course to play on. Cloudy days bring out bouncy jellyfish to give you a boost if you land on one, while storms seem to limit your distance.
There are a few powerups in the game. You'll have a boost meter that pools between your three fish, so use it wisely. Thankfully there are nuggets of boost juice along your path to snag, but it's still important to manage resources. There are also gems to collect after each level, and you can combine them for a temporary power boost that varies depending on their color.
All these layers in a 99-cent game are quiet impressive, and Fish Out of Water has enough depth to keep you interested for a long time. It's great gameplay, ridiculously cute art and addictive achievement system make it worth the pickup on iOS, and double if you plan on competing with friends.
Images courtesy of Halfbrick
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