'Trundle' – A Free Game You Need
posted January 26th, 2010 5:31 PM EST by Eli Hodapp in Free, Games, Platform, Puzzle, iPhone games, iPod touch games
Mobile Bros' puzzle platformer Trundle [App Store] was released yesterday, and is getting nowhere near the attention it deserves. Trundle is a free game with a neat art style all tied together with simple tilt and touch controls that create a great (but short) gameplay experience.
The object of the game is to simply roll a black ball from one side of the screen to the other. Tilting the phone controls your movement, and tapping on the screen jumps. Along the way you'll come across different vehicles to ride in, switches to activate, platforms to navigate, and other obstacles that often have different physics-based challenges to overcome.
Trundle itself is rather short, and shouldn't take you much more than an hour to finish. However, the iTunes description mentions additional level packs available in the future via an in-game purchase. I had a lot of fun playing through the game, and I think this kind of DLC model is great, especially since the amount of content in Trundle doesn't make the game feel like a demo at all.
The few people who have downloaded the game already in our forums are really enjoying it so far, and I doubt I'm alone in hoping they hurry it up with the additional level packs.
App Store Link: Trundle, Free
This is probably the best free game I have played in a while (reminds me of Bounce On in a way). I have been having a blast playing through the worlds and I would gladly pay for more levels through DLC. Although the gameplay is short, only two worlds, I enjoyed it immensely while it lasted.
This is really a very nice game. Still, it should be mentioned that it's a pretty faithful replica of an upcoming (and long announced) Wiiware game called Night Sky. Those interested can check out the Trundle thread for a video of the Wii game for comparison. Personally, I was very taken by the art style and believed that it as a (somewhat) original concept. It's too bad that it's most likely a copy.
I liked this game the first time when it was called Rolando. . .
It's not like Rolando at all. Nice try, though.
ya i know, they r like the same game cause they both have… circles
Circular protagonist in a side scrolling physics based world where you move with the accelerometer and jump with a finger tap/swipe.
Yeah, smells like Rolando, only more generic.
I liked Rolando the first time too, when it was called Loco Roco!
No, in LocoRoco you manipulate (rotate) the environment to move the characters. In Rolando you directly control the character, not the environment. . . just like Trundle.
Next.
Who's to say we aren't really moving the environment instead of the circle?
Please update the icon. It's so dark.
I've been playing this with mixed feelings. The visual style and kind of minimalist atmosphere are beautiful and absorbing. And the simple gameplay becomes somewhat compelling. These things have kept me playing, and I've been really charmed by the game's unique world.
With all that said, however, the game can be frustrating as hell. Many of the puzzles just don't seem to work like they're supposed to. Often times I know what's supposed to be happening, but some small hitch will cause the puzzle to malfunction. Othertimes I've accidentally bypassed certain puzzles or other game elements just by the fluke of a lucky jump, etc. Add some dubious platform jumping elements that took try after try, and the frustration level peaks. There are just too many times where I wondered to myself if beta-testing had ever occured to the developers.
Despite all that, I'd still recommend the game. It's just too unique and charming to ignore. …Something kept me playing, and it's that something that others should really experience for themselves.
The developers behind this game have obvious talent and obvious promise, and any support they receive is well-deserved. Keeping them involved in producing games will only mean good things to come for us gamers.
And the game is free! Check it out.
The art style is "neat".
If this has nothing to do with Nicalis' Wiiware game "Night Sky" (Working title) then this news post should be deleted. Why give attention to people who blatantly stole another developer's idea? This isn't like "Oh it's just a God of War clone" type thing, this is pure plagiarism.
thats not the point, the point is that this is a great game at the price of free (for now at least). Would u not want to download a great free app just because it is very similar to something sold for another console?
Hmmm…yep…that's pretty darn much a ripoff in my opinion.
Wouldn't be surprised to see this game get yanked soon.
An iClone before the original even launched. Nice.
I hope they had talk to the original creator about this, as this seems to be a pure copy of the night game/nightsky from Nicalis
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h08ZvuC1QDI
http://wii.ign.com/objects/143/14320530.html
^Angry much? This game is very hard and very frustrating. Terrible.
dis game is not veri gud too hard and maks nah sence
The same could be said of your post.
can anyone help me on the level with the box in world 2?
With the spring box? You have to roll from the slide before really fast into it and that catapults you into the next slide.
bring on the level packs!
I didn't even bother checking out the video and went straight playing the app. It felt like a more shallow version of Rolando with less responsive controls (and to me upon first impression then I went to check out Night Sky for the wii. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h08ZvuC1QDI Yikes. The gameplay footage and music looks way more compelling than Trundle (no offense) and if it ever came to the iphone I'd probably pick that up.
"Ditto!"
I mentioned the same thing above.
Too bad others don't see it.
This is definitely a straight clone and ripoff of the excellent Night Sky for the Wii. If I was the creators, I would have at least a LITTLE sense of decency and/or shame and pull this from the store immediately.
If you're going to clone Tetris, fine, whatever, I think EA owns the copyright now anyways. Cloning a game designed by TWO F'ING PEOPLE (Nifflas and Ara) that is not even out yet is just pathetic.
Taking someone else's design, sound, look and feel, rushing it out first (without any of the polish of the source), and then selling levels to the people you suckered in using Nifflas's hard work and ingenuity is inexcusable.
Not telling them that you were getting your clone on until TouchArcade positively reviews your game is pretty telling. Claiming that the resemblance is coincidental takes some real nerve. Grow a pair and design your own game, you parasitic embarrassments!
Damn, now I want Night Sky for the iPhone, and I can't hav it! That game looks way better, at least from the videos. I'm going to pass on Trundle until I get confirmation that it's not just a weak rip-off.
This post, targeted at an early Crayon Physics clone, pretty much says it all:
http://www.steveswink.com/posts/to-games-4-touch/
I am absolutely disgusted by this, I hope this news post either gets deleted so they can't have the attention or it's rectified informing how much of a blatant rip-off it is.
Wow, what a total rip off this game is.
It's clearly a rip off of Night Sky. It doesn't matter than they're giving it away for free or charging for it, copyright & trademark violation is still copyright & trademark violation.
I'd expect this game to get removed from the app store pretty soon.
Okay, very little originality here. Too bad, although it looks and plays nice. I still can't believe Touch Arcade didn't spend any article on Bad Apples though, a very fine nice game everybody needs to know about. Please, give it some attention, rather than this blatant knockoff.
http://www.iphoneclub.nl/58266/review-bad-apples-fantastisch-puzzelspel-met-appels/
Seriously people? It's a free game. They saw Night Sky and thought that it was cool and wanted to make a similar themed game. If they went with a different color scheme, it would just be another physics puzzle/platformer. Secondly, Nicalis did NOT invent that color scheme. I've seen other platformer games that did the same simple gradient background with silhouettes for the foreground. He also didn't invent the physics puzzle/platformer genre.
Maybe I should feel ripped off too. Trundle uses my physics engine (interestingly so does Night Sky). The walking contraption in the second world is straight out of my demo code. http://howlingmoonsoftware.com/chipmunk.php Look familiar? But wait, there's more! I didn't invent that mechanism. A Dutch kinetic sculptor name Theo Jansen did! Maybe I am just ripping off his work too? Practically every physics library I have seen has one of those for a demo, maybe they are too?
If I was Nicalis, I'd feel good that people were inspired by my work. It's not like they are producing something that is competing with his own works or livelihood.
While there is admittedly a fine line between inspiration/homage and clones/ripoffs, this is CLEARLY the latter. In what way does Trundle differ from Night Sky? The name? The platform?
My earlier comment is still 'awaiting moderation', but I will reiterate my request for the creators of Trundle to show that they have even a shred of integrity or decency and pull this from the app store immediately.
Selling level packs based on how much people like someone else's designs is immoral and regrettable.
In what way is it the same? Other than the graphic style and genre… It really isn't. Are the levels the same? Again, I really have to say that you can't say it's the same because they are the same genre and similar graphic style.
You're the Canabalt guy right? I've played a mini-game almost exactly like your game before in another game. Does that make you a thief too or does your art style make the gameplay idea into a completely different game? You invented neither the gameplay mechanic or the art style. Is it simply the combination of the two that makes it yours?
By making the game freely available for a non-competing platform, I'd argue that they aren't breaking any unwritten indie developer bylaws.
First (when I saw the topic on NSF) I was like "lol, it can't be that serious, it's probably only a little similar", but then I raged.
All I will say is I look forward to downloading this game. There is only one reason for this, and that is the fact that I belong to nifflas support forum. Night Game has been in the works for a little over a year, maybe more. There is really no possibility that this is not copied, and, affiliation aside, I don't think you realize that you aren't stealing some guys game, you're stealing freeware from Nintendo.
I don't think you were very careful when scanning for legalities, because if you were you would notice that Nintendo Freeware is protected by nintendo. Therefore, I am looking foreward to the legal result.
to further expand, we at the nifflas forum would love if you would sign up there and explain yourself before getting in legal trouble, which I'm sure you don't want.
At least in the Italian AppStore, Trundle isn\'t available anymore.
Here are some other "coincidences" from Mobile Bros.:
Peggle (PopCap)
http://www.popcap.com/games/peggle
Pachingo (Mobile Bros.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kNVuOI_sKo
Auditorium (Cipher Prime)
http://www.playauditorium.com/
Energy Harvest (Mobile Bros.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdFe9FFZNj0
Hey, slembcke, both Peggle and Auditorium are on the iPhone. Do you think PopCap and Cipher Prime should feel good about it, also?
Yeah it's not in the US store anymore either.
Hey, I was right. Here's an article about it being removed from the app store:
http://www.gamesetwatch.com/2010/02/nightsky_lookalike_pulled_to_c.php
They updated the game, changing the graphics. I don't plan on updating mine, but you can see the changes on their app page.
What a complete sack of asses. This game isn't based off of Night Sky. It's blatantly ripped off from it. I could say someone just took Night Sky and edited it for like 5 minutes and got this.