Depixelate By PixlBot Studios iPhone Review

If you see someone looking at their iPhone like a librarian with glasses hanging off their nose, there’s a good chance they’re playing Depixelate. Get ready to be challenged solving tons of pixelated, aka blurred photos. At your disposal are fourteen letters to tap as you guess what each photo is. Sounds pretty easy but most pictures are very hard to make out, but that’s the whole point. If you tap the picture you can spend two coins to “depixelate” the picture just a little bit. If you’re still struggling you can spend two more coins to “depixelate” the photo even more to help you out. Hopefully at this point you can finally make out what you’re looking at.

The graphics are clean and most everything works perfectly. The best feature of Depixelate is that you have four categories to choose from. Your options are random photos, product logos, and even movie stars! Music Stars was just added as an update, so now you have even more! The category menu will show you how far you’ve gotten in each level so you can brag to your friends how far behind they are. As you stare down each picture you might as well be drunk because all you can really make out are a few shapes and colors. Like many word games you can keep plugging in letters to hopefully figure out the picture, but you won’t be able to slide your letters around. Being able to scramble your letters around like Scrabble is a plus for me, so hopefully we’ll get an update.

Everyone loves free games, so you’ll be able to enjoy Depixelate for free with the option for in-app purchases. Each picture you solve gives you one coin and you can “depixelate” your picture with two coins, or purchase some if you run out. There are multiple coin packages to choose from starting with 10 for .99¢ all the way up to 1,000 for $19.99. It’s up to you how much money you’re willing to spend, but coins are definitely needed if you plan on making it far. You also have the option to ask your friends for help on Facebook by touching the icon next to your word. This is pretty neat as it posts your pixelated photo, all your letters, and your message instead of some annoying advertisement. If you say no to Facebook and change your mind, simply go to your settings and Facebook to turn it on.

Tons of apps sound fun, but very few of them end up actually engaging you for long. Let me tell you how it’ll go down from my experience if you have some friends over and try Depixelate. You and your friends will have a blast sharing pictures as you desperately stare like zombies and dumbfounded. All of a sudden your friends eyes light up and bursts out, “it’s a deck of cards damn it!” Yeah, it gets entertaining quick. This is the first game for the two-person recent graduates from Sheffield UK with more to come. I’m impressed with any indie team that creates a successful app, so if you enjoy a good puzzle word game, it’s time to Depixelate!

Creature Stumble By Asymmetry Games iPhone Review

Get ready for some nonstop creature killing pinball with loads of power-ups and physics! In Creature Stumble you’ll slingshot metal balls and try and kill all the little creatures in each level. In your way is a wacky world of rocks, bombs, power-ups, and black holes to bounce you around the screen. Sometimes it helps to aim your shot, but most of the time plan on some crazy chaotic pinball physics to knock out your creatures.

I was fortunate to test Creature Stumble prerelease, and it’s always good news when I like the game as opposed to having to say, “um, please don’t release your game to world”. What’s great about testing apps is being able to provide important feedback and fixes so you never see it. My first concern was the need for a tutorial so you and I understand everything that is happening. They did add a small tutorial on the first level, but I would have liked to see more information about each feature. I also wanted to see a little bit larger objects because we all know the iPhone screen is limited, and the monsters are a bit hard to see. Through the testing process the developers determined this was the size that worked best. What caught my eye in Creature Stumble was the vibrant level menu screen which has 4 chapter locations to flip through. Plan on opening the app a lot because you have 40 levels to complete before you can unlock the next chapter and so on.

Each level allows you three metal balls to kill the creatures or you lose. As long as you are continuously bouncing around or the slingshot magnetizes your ball back for another shot, you are fine. When you hit the grass below your ball will eventually slow down and stop, or you might end up hitting some spiky rocks. The good news is some levels have multiple slingshots for you to magnetize to. Depending on how well you do you can get up to 3 stars per level as well as points for all your bouncing and creature killing. You really are at the mercy of the game as each object does its own thing whether the rock can be broken, a different bounce, and even some gravity spots. That’s where the pinball feel comes in as you could literally sit there and watch your ball bounce every which way for several minutes.

So there you go, 160 levels of insane slingshot pinball physics action at your fingertips. I find myself saying, “oh my god hit the last darn monster already!”, so be prepare to waste plenty of time in a mad bouncing frenzy with some pretty fun sounds as well. This is the first game for Asymmetry Games and what a great start. So be one of the first to download Creature Stumble, because WuzAPPenin thinks it’s sure to be a hit!

Fizzy Factory By HangZone iPhone Review

You won’t catch me playing many puzzle apps or joining the Candy Crush mania, so it took a contact from one of the developers to get me to download Fizzy Factory. Well I’m glad Tyler did because I’ve very much enjoyed HangZone’s first iPhone game. The play is simple to learn as you draw a flowing path from colored soda geysers to the same colored bottles inside your soda factory grid. Think you remember how your primary and secondary colors mix together? You better if you want to master this game!

Fizzy Factory currently has 384 levels within 5 different puzzle packs to unlock by collecting bottles. Each level is filled with the occasional obstacles, color splitters, color stations, and a slew of merging color combinations. If you mess up your path just hit the erase button to clear everything, or just simply touch your soda path. When the game brings in a new feature you are always welcomed with a nice quick tutorial. So many games forget to provide directions and expect you to know what to do. That’s why I like the fact that Fizzy Factory makes sure you’re never confused and even makes encouraging comments when you win each level. One thing I originally failed to notice is it shows a light blue or dark blue flow so you are aware you’ve done something wrong.

If you’re a fan of the trendy free app with the option for In-App Purchases, you’re in luck. Fizzy Factory has iADs but they are placed snug at the bottom and between levels not impeding your play. If you really want to get rid of the ads you can purchase a few new level packs or hints for a small price. The hints give you a clue of how you should go about bottling your soda. I have no problem with In-App Purchases if they are useful and cheap, and I give Fizzy Factory an “A+” in that category. If you’re really into this game I suggest you go to the HangZone website to see how you can have your name immortalized on their site by winning the Fizzy Factory Secret Password Challenge!

Overall everything seems to work great as well as providing you with all the options and tools needed for a smooth fun time. I’d like to see some more detailed graphics in future updates, but you can’t ask for much more from a free game that works. Don’t worry I won’t forget to tell you there’s access to the Game Center as well as achievements to play along with your friends. I’m only going to end up angry at some point when I can’t get any further and give up. So do me a favor and beat the whole thing and show the Bandy Brothers they need to come up with more ideas. Fizzy Factory is definitely worth a download if you’re an avid puzzle gamer, and the worst that’ll happen is you learn the fundamentals of colors again!

Caveman Golf By Hello Simpson iPhone Review

Caveman Golf is another game I was fortunate to test and offer my feedback on before being released. The first thing that caught my eye probably a year ago was the fantastic app icon that tells your mind to stop here when flipping through the App Store. The caveman is one of those characters you can see turning into a brand of t-shirts and stuffed animals. A little early for that talk, but it has a nice family feel to it to play with your kids.

You’ll have 18 levels to unlock blasting various Dino’s with rocks by swinging your caveman club. Depending on how many rocks you swing at to clear the level, you’ll receive a bronze, silver, or gold medal. If you get a gold medal on all 18 levels (1 shot per level), a secret infinite level will be unlocked! We’ll get to that in a minute, but lets first go over the Caveman Golf game itself.

The swing of your caveman club is not as easy as you might think, or maybe it is, guess you’ll have to see for yourself. You flick the screen at the angle you want to aim, but you also have to choose the right speed and length of your touch. Because it’s not as easy as a simple flick, you may find yourself needing a mulligan or prehistoric bomb. Caveman Golf is free with the ability to remove ads with a .99¢ purchase of 3 mulligans to help you get the gold, or 3 Dino Blasts to blow everything to pieces. Each level contains a mix of green Dino’s, egg dropping Pterodactyl’s, and a head bobbing Ankylosaur. Your screen is also carefully filled with obstacles like rock and wood which can help you or hurt you depending on your flicking skills.

As I said earlier if you receive a gold medal on all 18 Caveman Golf levels you’ll unlock an infinite level of Dino’s coming for you. Swing as fast as your Caveman can or be killed by a slew of Dino’s flying at you! You can challenge your friends through the Game Center and see who can last the longest. Literally you may need someone to bring you food while you survive for hours!

I was able to solve most levels with ease, so Caveman Golf isn’t going to be much of a challenge for most. I think it’s a perfect game though to entertain your kids with a real part of history in a fun way. For a first game from the Schuster’s at Hello Simpson, I think it’s a great start to a game that has a lot of future potential. The graphics grab you, the idea is fun, and Caveman Golf is the beginning to bringing the prehistoric times back alive!

Flight Lander By Francisco Vera iPhone Review

Get ready to land planes, helicopters, and even blimps without crashing into each other and a slew of other obstacles! In Flight Lander you’ll draw paths to land as many of your planes as possible before crashing. If you’ve played Flight Control before you’ll love Flight Lander with its bright colors and eye popping scenery. I was fortunate to be able to test and offer my ideas to the Vera brothers as I was very impressed with their first game FatMole. I state that because I am biased since they allowed me to stay in contact and offer my feedback, but I still promise to always offer an honest review. When you first begin you can add your pilot name or connect through Facebook. You can try Flight Lander free first with new levels being unlocked every three days(turn on notifications), or you can unlock all levels for a small price.

To begin playing you’ll scroll through the sphere planet filled with levels to choose from. When you first try Flight Lander you will start with the Aircraft Carrier level that doesn’t contain any enemies or obstacles to warm you up. As you look down on the Aircraft Carrier surrounded by blue waters, you draw a path from each plane or helicopter to the correct runway. As you draw your path a green line will follow and show you which runway your plane needs to land on. If you draw an incorrect landing path you’ll see a yellow line instead. For instance you can’t just land a helicopter anywhere you want, so you’ll be instructed to land on the Helicopter landing area. As your planes approach the runway they’ll make one final dive so you know you’ve landed. On the bottom left one option I really like is the turbo arrow. What this does is speed up all your planes which adds a little difficulty as well as faster gameplay. If things get too difficult all you have to do is hit it again to slow things down.

I really like the fact that each level has its own unique location and strategy which keeps things exciting. Currently you will find 10 different locations including Aircraft Carrier, Volcanoes, Dunes, Icebergs, Mountains, Pyramids, Islands, Asteroids, Canyons, and the City. Doing nothing but drawing a path for each location can get boring quick which is why I like some of the added features in Flight Lander. In the Islands level instead of landing planes you are tasked with aerial refueling and fixing planes. Some of the other great features to keep you engaged are avoiding asteroids, plane shaking wind gusts, and even a plane grabbing skyscraper jumping gorilla! For you in app purchasers Flight Lander offers a way to deactivate hazards, draw landing paths while planes are frozen, or wipe away every plane on the screen if you’ve lost control. The price of these cheats might be too pricy for some, but the good news is each one is a permanent purchase that can be used once per game.

For you score junkies, on top of beating your Facebook friends Flight Lander offers some stats, awards for accomplishing things, and level ups based on number of landings. The game seems to run smoothly with few errors, and if I could find something wrong I’d like to see larger planes and larger runways, or maybe I just have large fingers! Being an Indie Developer is difficult enough, breaking into the U.S. App Store when you don’t live here is even harder. That’s why I’m excited to watch the Vera brothers and RoomLabDev team grow. You can lose a few hours trying to beat your Friends best scores in Flight Lander, so be prepared for some nail biting, heart pumping, air traffic control fun! So go ahead and give Flight Lander a try for free and see if you like it.

We would love to hear if you downloaded the app and what you thought of it, leave us a comment below!