“Tongue Tied!” for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch ($1.99)
In this distinctive side-scrolling game, players control a pair of dogs, Mick and Ralph, in a quest for the “WonderBone,” the ultimate canine treasure. The protagonists are connected at the tongue, and this connection, while initially seeming a hindrance, is actually crucial for the dogs’ ability to navigate the two-dimensional landscape. Players can pull one of the characters back and release, using the dogs’ elastic tongues to catapult them from platform to platform. Players can also swing or drop the dogs to reach coins or avoid obstacles, ranging from bundles of dynamite to burning coal on the ground. “Tongue Tied!” is original and fun, and with over 50 levels and many challenges it provides hours of entertainment.
“Rejoin X” for iPad and Mac ($0.99)
“Rejoin X” tests players’ aptness to multi-task, challenging coordination between the brain’s two hemispheres. In the game, players control two “energy balls,” one red, one blue. By pressing the right arrow key, the red ball moves right, and the blue ball moves left-both at the same speed. The inverse occurs when the left arrow key is pressed. Players try to make the two balls meet, increasing a winning score by picking up stars along the way. Levels may have multiple platforms or features like trampolines or teleportation devices, but there is not enough variation to keep the game from becoming monotonous at times. “Rejoin X” is a good game for anyone who enjoys puzzles or brain games, but for a casual gamer, there are some apps that would be more enjoyable. The game, like many, has annoying music and sound effects. Normally, apps feature a mute button, but in “Rejoin X,” the only way to turn off these sounds is by turning off the volume of the device entirely. “Rejoin X” is mediocre, and its obnoxious sounds and repetitive gameplay will keep it from being successful.
“Doodle Top” for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch ($0.99)
In “Doodle Top,” blocks are dropped from the top of the screen, and players move them left or right, attempting to stack a tower to a goal height without that tower losing balance and toppling down. Stacking games is common, but “Doodle Top’s” features set it apart from other games. Moving parts and various obstacles add challenge, and items allow players strategically to overcome difficulties they may encounter. “Doodle Top” also offers an “unlimited mode,” in which players stack their tower as high as they can, without presence of obstacles or items. This app features over 48 levels, with another 12 coming in the next update, which will likely come with bug fixes because the app has crashing problems at startups and in between levels. At $0.99, Doodle Top is well worth its price, and after a little tweaking to make it run more smoothly, it could be the best stacking game available on the iTunes store.
Written by Gavin Rackoff’14
