If you’ve been searching for an excuse to either buy or replay either Spider: The Secret of Bryce Manor [$2.99 / HD] or Pix’n Love Rush [99¢], how about this: Both have been updated with Game Center support, sporting online leaderboards and achievements. In case you missed these games the first time around, here’s the rundown on both:
Spider: The Secret of Bryce Manor, $2.99 – Our game of the year for 2009, we explain the premise in our review:
Spider: The Secret of Bryce Manor is a beautifully created action (adventure?) game that places you in the role of a spider who must spin webs in order capture enough food to make it to the next level. Use up too much silk between meals and you won’t survive.
As a spider, you are able to crawl across objects, jump great lengths and lay down silk to weave your web. Spinning a web simply requires you to create closed geometric shapes using your silk. Tapping on the spider toggles silk production while swiping on the spider causes it to jump. Finally, crawling is invoked by simply tapping on the screen. All in all, the controls work incredibly well and makes it feel like a natural iPhone game.
Pix’n Love Rush 99¢ – An absolutely fantastic retro style high scoring game that is still one of my go to games when I have a few moments to spare. We explain how it works in our review:
Left and right arrows control movement, and separate buttons control jumping and firing. You can only shoot straight up in the air Space Invaders-style and must be cautious with your bullets as the ones that miss the mark will fall back down to the ground, possibly hitting you if you aren’t careful. Collecting coins with a plus symbol will net you 250 points, and touching boxes with a minus symbol with deduct 500 points. There are enemies to take out with your weapon, sometimes moving and sometimes stationary, but there are also angels which must be protected from both the bad guys and your own errant bullets.
Grabbing coins without getting hurt while avoiding minus boxes will work towards building up a multiplier to x2, x5, and x10. A handy indicator in the upper right corner shows you how close you are to each one, and similarly a heart icon in the upper right displays your remaining life. Beyond worrying about what level type is thrown at you next, you must constantly be getting the good stuff while avoiding the bad stuff, and it’s a wonderful challenge of your dexterity.
Both of these games are absolutely fantastic, and while I’m reluctant to call Pix’n Love Rush a classic quite yet, Spider is without a doubt. If you’re looking for some great games to fill up your Game Center achievement listing, look no further than either of these.
