Thanks to the success of Angry Birds, the physics-based puzzle game has experienced a little bit of a renaissance over the last few years. Some of them have been little more than catapult games with a few changed graphics, but others have thought about the opportunities on offer. Thankfully Clowning Around is one of the latter.
Time for something that is a little bit more straightforward in terms of goals, gameplay, and complexity. Little Acorns is an arcade game, pure and simple, and it's all the better for this tight focus. There are some genres that respond well to complexity, but the 2D platformer is not one of them. Thankfully developers Chilingo have avoided the temptation to do anything fancy with the game.
Would you believe it? Triangula is another quirky and insanely playable gaming title from Beautiful Mind Games. I'm not sure what they're doing to find some of these gaming concepts (the defence calls Pairanoia and Permutile as witnesses), but they've managed it once more with this two player competitive game that echoes childhood games but with a brilliiant twist.
Sally's Spa (or as it is listed in the Marketplace, Sallys Spa) is the sequel to Sally's Salon, previously available on Xbox Live in an 'LE' (Luxury Edition) version which took the price to £3.99. Spa is a slightly less expensive £2.99, so is it obviously less luxurious. Unfortunately yes, this is an Xbox Live title that feels more like a contractual obligation than a game title that someone has developed with love and enthusiasm.
Unfortunately not a sequel to Doodle Jump (reviewed here), Gamelion's mix of jigsaw and Tetris makes its way to Windows Phone, and provides just as much of an addictive challenge as its arcade namesake. With fun graphics and 100 levels plus 250 solutions to track down, there's a huge amount of value here.
With a sumptuous 3D environment, TV-style pocket cameras, spin/swerve control and full online multiplayer mode, Pool Pro Online has a lot to recommend it. The limitations of Windows Phone's resolution do rather work against really precise gameplay though, and the built-in AI for offline games is poor in the extreme. Still, my favourite pool simulation yet on the platform.
Triple Defense markets itself as a Tower Defense game with lighting, particles, and geometry. I'm not quite sure what they mean by the last part of that descriptive triplet, but with a global high score tables, a variety of enemies and tower types, all the elements of the game are here. And then Triple Defense shows you why it is different.
It's another freemium Xbox Live title from Glu Mobile. Contract Killer has you earning money on the fringes of society, but the developers also hope you'll download the title for free and spend your own money to buy better equipment and advance in the game. Like any freemium title, it needs a careful balance, and Glu Mobile haven't quite hit the target with this one.
When Lode Runner Classic showed up in the Xbox Live titles last week, I made sure I was at the top of the AAWP list to review the classic platform game. First released back in 1983, this is a title that found success throughout the years and I couldn't wait to get this on Windows Phone. I wish I had resisted.
Your Windows Phone can help you exercise. We've seen that with apps like Sports Tracker and Endomondo, but now there is an alternative. A rather horrific alternative called 'Zombies, Run!' Designed to help you get out the house and exercising, this piece of interactive fiction has a lot of promise, but in parts it's a little bit shambolic.
