Must Try iPhone Games

Jayesh Shinde 13 Jul 2010

If you’re an Apple iPhone or iPod Touch user, here are some of the games from the iTunes apps store you simply have to try.

FIFA World Cup 2010
I must say I am pretty impressed by EA’s iPhone version of FIFA World Cup 2010 game. There are over 100 international teams to choose from and 10 distinct stadiums based purely in South Africa. Like previous FIFA World Cup titles from EA, FIFA World Cup 2010 on the iPhone follows the official tournament structure with the original 32 teams correctly sorted into eight groups.

There are various game modes in FIFA World Cup 2010 for iPhone -- Kick Off lets you waste no time in challenging a team for a quick game of football; FIFA World Cup is your chance to guide your favorite team through their continental qualifiers and book a ticket for the World Cup in South Africa. Penalty Shoot-out mode is exactly what it says, while Captain Your Country lets you create a custom player and play games involving teams where you control only him. Multiplayer mode allows you to game over Bluetooth with friends or Wi-Fi with online players.

Gameplay is fun on the iPhone/iPod Touch version of EA’s FIFA World Cup 2010 game -- controls have been simplified to ‘pass’ and ‘slide’ while you’re out of possession and ‘shoot’, ‘pass’ and ‘skill’ while you’re gunning for goal. The virtual joystick direction pad sits on the left of the screen and is a little quirky at times, but good overall. Cinematic replays of goals, crowd celebrations (minus the vuvuzelas), and engaging commentary add to the in-game atmosphere.

This game is a ton of fun if you’re a football/soccer fan and is a respectable EA FIFA title for the mobile platform. If you have an iPhone and are struggling through World Cup withdrawal, get your hands on FIFA World Cup 2010 for prolonged soccer entertainment.

RATING: 4/5 | EA’s FIFA World Cup 2010 | US$ 6.99 in iTunes Store

Predators
A quiet jungle filled with an eerie premonition. This is no puzzle, there are no items to collect here, neither are there traditional trophies. It’s plain hack, slash, and ripping apart humans to see what they had for dinner. This is a blood bath. Welcome to Predators -- a no nonsense game that cuts to the chase unlike any other.

The plot couldn’t be more simpler: you are a young predator trying to prove your worth to the clan. And how? By tearing humans to pieces! You do so by approaching a target and slashing at it repeatedly (by pressing the action button), but the clan also requires you to collect honor points by executing combo moves and trophy kills through the course of the game.

Predators is expertly divided into 20 short levels, each with a clear objective shown at the beginning. At every level you uncover a new way of killing humans -- razor claw slash, trophy kills, plasma cannon, invisibility, et al. -- and accumulating honor points to take back home as you go along. The game controls are one of the best I’ve seen (among all the games reviewed in this article), with optimum sensitivity and fluid character movement. A highlight of the game has to be predator’s trophy kills, where you hoist your prey in one claw, high above your head, before you kill and holding their skull and spine in the other claw -- bone-chillingly exciting, don’t you think?

As you progress through the levels, you will unlock weapons and have a boastful trophy cabinet. What’s interesting is that as you reach new highs in the game, the human AI increases in difficulty, uncovering new ways to catch you at unawares.

Predators also has familiar sights and sounds from the original and recent motion picture it’s based on, and it will surely have you riveted to the screen. This game offers great value for money -- times three! Yeah, it’s that good. Just give it a try.

RATING: 4.8/5 | Predators | US$ 2.99 in iTunes Store

Street Fighter IV
Having played the console version of Capcom’s earlier Street Fighter titles, I was apprehensive of Street Fighter IV’s mobile version. Will it be worth the money? And what about the touch controls?

Street Fighter IV involves gaming on a 2D plane with some 3D animation effects thrown in for good measure. You have a pool of 10 characters to choose from -- Chun-Li, Blanka, Ryu, Ken, etc -- in this iPhone version of the game, their only objective is to fight and win. If you’ve played Street Fighter 4 on an Xbox or PS3, you’ll recognize some of the game screens and menu options of the game’s iPhone version.

Start off with the ‘Dojo’ mode for detailed training instructions on how to play the game. Tournament mode is where you face-off with each and every character in the game until you defeat them all and win the ultimate prize. Free-Sparring lets you play with a particular opponent as many times as you want (hint: I use this mode to drill down an opponent and figure out their special moves).

Surprisingly, playing a fighting game like Street Fighter 4 with the iPhone’s touch controls doesn’t involve a huge learning curve -- I got the hang of its controls within minutes. Props to Capcom, they’ve really made performing special moves very easy -- all you have to do is press the SP key on screen during a match. Even dealing sick combos and ultra moves in the heat of Street Fighter 4’s battles is quite easy. Character animation and moves are nearly as good as they are on the game’s console version, however their taunt animation (post victory) seem limited. The game also has a local Bluetooth multiplayer mode to pair-up with friends and beat the living daylights out of their characters -- so much fun.

Bringing a fighting game to mobile touch control platform isn’t easy. My initial apprehension aside, I’m happy to report that Street Fighter IV on iPhone is pretty awesome once you get the hang of it.

RATING: 4.5/5 | Street Fighter IV | US$ 9.99 in iTunes Store

Assassin’s Creed II Discovery
If you played the console and PC version of Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed II, make sure you don’t miss the game’s iPhone/iPod Touch avatar -- it is much better than the original Assassin’s Creed: Altair’s Chronicles.

The Assassin’s Creed II Discovery plotline brings an exclusive chapter from Ezio’s story to the Apple iPhone/iPod Touch platform. Your in-game character, Ezio, has to travel to Spain to rescue fellow assassins held captive under the guise of the Inquisition. But Ezio ultimately stumbles upon and uncovers a Templar plot to sail west and discover the New World.

As usual, before starting on your quest, Assassin’s Creed II Discovery requires you to successfully complete an elaborate tutorial -- the Stealth Kill bit can get a little frustrating at times. Once you get to the real game, you are greeted with an interlude of Ezio’s back-story which sets the stage nicely for his current quest.

Although the character movement is restricted to left-right (2D) instead of 3D in Altair’s Chronicles, Assassin’s Creed II Discovery still looks beautiful. The game’s environment depicts cities like Florence and Venice back in their Renaissance splendor, with cobble-stoned streets, architecture, and innocent bystanders.

Controls are pretty easy to learn and get used to within no time. They include a standard jump button, weapon button, and a magical button which offers something different depending on the scenario -- hide into a pile of hay to evade enemies, roll when you encounter a low ledge, etc. Every stage sets out with a small intro briefing you on its goals and objective, and the game’s auto-saved after successful completion of a stage or block. Assassin’s Creed II Discovery has eight memory blocks with three stages in each block, so it’s a pretty long game.

This game drains the battery out pretty fast, so keep your iPhone or iPod Touch charging cable at hand. But apart from that, Assassin’s Creed II Discovery is a very good handheld action game with a nice storyline and engaging visual environments.

RATING: 4/5 | Assassin’s Creed II Discovery | US$ 5.99 on iTunes Store

Fruit Ninja
Perhaps the most crazily addictive game I’ve come across on the iPhone for some time, Fruit Ninja is simple yet oh so much fun! It’s a slice and dice mayhem.

The brief on this game couldn’t be simpler: slice an assortment of fruits as they pop up on your screen with the razor sharp blade of your katana. But watch out for unexpected bombs the game keeps slipping in at timely intervals -- slice any of them and your game comes to a swift, explosive conclusion. All you have to do is move your finger across the screen to swish your blade and slice the fruits that keep popping up. While you’re at it, also notice the wall behind the screen that keeps getting splattered with fruit juices. You also get extra points for slicing a combination of fruits in one strike.

But that’s besides the point. The pure allure of Fruit Ninja is the uncomplicated focus on one thing, and that’s slicing up fruits as and when they pop into your screen. What could be more simple and easy than sliced bread? Sliced fruits. Don’t say we didn’t warn you: Fruit Ninja’s an extremely addictive game.

RATING: 4/5 | Fruit Ninja | US$ 0.99 on iTunes Store