Pineconeattack!

Since my BlackBerry Bold decided it liked to give me shit whenever I tried to connect to anything, I’ve fallen back to using my first-gen iPhone again. Sure, it’s not the new hotness that is the iPhone 3GS, but it was something that I already owned and saved me from having to buy a new phone altogether. And in the time-frame since I got my BB and came back to my iPhone, this little sucker has gotten itself a decent little selection of games on it. Some are just standard cell-phone crap, but some developers are taking the platform seriously and are releasing real titles for it. Jango already went over Space Invaders Infinity Gene some months back, so I won’t go over that one (by the way, it really is a fantastic game; forget that it is on a phone, this would sell like hot cakes on any platform). I’m going to talk about a couple of titles that I’ve also picked up, one of them brand-new to the platform and dirt-cheap right now, too.

Arkanoid

Developer: Taito
Cost: $4.99

I’ve been a fan of Arkanoid for as long as I can remember, really. It’s one of the first arcade games I remember trying out, way back in the mid-to-late 80’s at a 7-Eleven in Redding, CA. I sucked at it, but there was something about it that caught my eye. Probably the name, now that I think about it. Arkanoid, to any kid, is going to get a reaction like “Woah, that sounds awesome!” Or maybe just me.

Anyways, there isn’t a whole lot to say, really. It’s Arkanoid in tried-and-true style. If you’ve played any version, you know the gist of it by now: control the Vaus and keep the ball in play while destroying the colored blocks. Moving the Vaus via the touch screen is a well-handling affair, thanks to how responsive the iPhone touch screen is. It did take a bit of getting used to, since unlike Arkanoid DS, you can’t press anywhere on the bottom of the screen and magically have the Vaus pop over to that part. You need to have a finger on the on-screen slider at all times to move it, which keeps in tune with the old knob the cabinets have. It’s not even worth griping about, really, but it’s worth a mention to those who might have played a lot of Arkanoid DS and gotten used to some of its mechanics.

A lot of the sound effects seem to be ripped from Arkanoid DS, but none of the graphics seem to be recycled, so it’s a bit fresh. You have a plethora of levels to play through, with boss battles against DOH waiting for you at the end of the line to challenge your skills. Options include being able to set up your own music for different areas of the game, like the title screen, as well as setting up if you want barriers or lives (barriers are the way to go; it speeds the game-play up and makes things a little less frustrating to me). All in all, this is a solid version of Arkanoid and well worth the $5 it will run you. Taito definitely seems to get the iPhone/iPod Touch platform, since with this and Infinity Gene, they’ve made real games instead of just pumping out crap.

• Pros: Tried and true game-play, lots of levels, great control
• Cons: Later levels might be too hard for some

Cobra Command

Developer: Data East/G-Mode, Ported by Revolutionary Concepts
Price: $.99 (may go up in the future)

Leslie M. Collins’ favorite game is now in portable form. It’s rather strange how Laserdisc games have found a home on the iPhone, with the likes of Dragon’s Lair and Space Ace already finding their way onto it. I guess we can thank modern video compression methods for helping to make it all possible. The only previous port that America got of Cobra Command was for the Sega CD, which wasn’t exactly the greatest. Then again, FMV games are only fun for about 5 minutes at a time and no one was terribly keen on getting a port of a game that suffered from poor video compression and low re-playability. Still, there’s a certain charm to these games and are at least worth taking a look at.

Cobra Command follows a simple premise: shoot the shit out of animated helicopters and planes while making sure to press the right direction when prompted. That’s really about it, but it manages to do it fairly well. There is definitely a charm to the cel-animation and I’m always a sucker for old anime, which this definitely falls into. The game has several difficulty modes, so those that suck at FMV games will still stand a chance. The tilt direction doesn’t seem to work too well when you use it for dodging, so I just stick to using the on-screen analog nub to take care of that and aiming for me. At first, when seeing screen-shots, I wasn’t sure if aiming would work out, but it handles just fine. Fast timing with it takes some practice, but once you learn the enemy patterns, it does become easier.

I have to hand it to Revolutionary Concepts, since they managed to get the game looking great. Video quality is top-notch and all-new graphics were made for the cockpit and HUD. The only thing that looks really out of place are the missiles, since they are completely polygonal. Just looks a little funky to me. Cobra Command also has online leaderboards so you can flaunt your high scores. So, if you enjoy Dragon’s Lair already, give this a look, especially since it’s super-cheap right now since it just came out. Be aware that that price will most likely not last.

• Pros: Video quality is great, nostalgic fun
• Cons: Low re-playability, some new graphics are iffy

-Ancient Flounder