At the ripe old age of 30, the boy that was Prince Adam is now a man. A He-Man, and the Masters of the Universe franchise is back with us in the all-new He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe ($2.99) from Chillingo. And this isn’t just a dusting off of the 80s cartoon toy advert you and I grew up with. It’s a reimagining of the cheeseball franchise that clearly understands its audience isn’t 10-year-old boys any more; it’s the immature men (He-Men?) they’ve grown into.
Everything about He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe draws heavily upon a delicious retro-ironic conceit, and that was a very wise design decision. So wise, in fact, that I suspect it was actually the saucy Sorceress who came up with it.
Anyway, He-Man and his buddies have undergone a slight change of appearance, hinting at the popular ‘super-deformed’ art style prominent during the hallowed days of 16-bit gaming. And that’s not all the game borrows from those wonderful times, back when the pixel was king.
He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe is a classic 2D platform game in every possible sense, with lots of cell-shading, basic parallax scrolling and lots of little nooks and ledges to climb on when you’re hunting for gems. Quite honestly, Sonic the Hedgehog wouldn’t look out of place in these environments, and nor would Simon Belmont, Rastan or Sir Arthur. It’s rich in traditional gaming artistry, from characters to collectibles and flickering, evaporating scenery after it’s met with your sword.
This makes it a very simple game to play, requiring only that you make it to the end of the levels alive before moving on to the next and slightly trickier collection of platforms. Each of the characters you remember from the tacky cartoon make their cameo appearances as required either in boss battles or cut scenes, including Beast Man, Trap Jaw, the friendly magician Orco and even Skeletor himself, who now has the keys to Grayskull (yep, the castle drawbridge apparently has a set of keys that He-Man carries around in his furry pants) as you chase him across Eternia.
We’ve seen dozens, if not hundreds of retro remakes and direct ports of classic games over the last couple of years, but this is one of the few times that a developer has successfully captured the essence of those blessed days while still providing us with a brand new game to play.
A sticking point with such games, as you’ve probably already anticipated, is the controls. Fortunately we’re not handcuffed to a radiator by awful on-screen d-pads and buttons in He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe. Instead, swiping or pressing on the left-hand side of the screen moves He-Man in the appropriate direction, while tapping on the right-hand side swings his sword. Upward swipes on the right perform jumps (double jumps are included, of course, in accord with 80s-style game mechanics), and as the game progresses other simple and equally accessible gestures are brought in to perform more powerful moves.
It’s unfortunate that quick access to these power-ups is locked away behind in-app purchases, but not entirely unexpected. You’ll have to replay quite a few levels to shore up the number of gems needed to get the most desirable power-ups without shelling out real money, but the game’s not so greedy that it can’t be done with just dedication alone. Your work will pay off, and the game is endearing enough that you’ll earn stacks of gems purely as a side effect of your gaming enthusiasm.
Every time you kill something or knock something down in the game, gems are scattered about the floor. You can save these up to swap for these new moves, to summon Man-at-Arms with his fancy long-distance weapons, or to call upon the power of Grayskull. The latter is highly recommended whenever you’re in a sticky spot, as it’s not just a useful method of clearing the screen, but it’s one of many hilarious, tongue-in-cheeks moments that give the game so much salty flavor.
The power of Grayskull puts He-Man into a brief bezerker rage, making you not only invulnerable, but doubly powerful. The enemies don’t just disappear after being killed; they’re thrown face-first into the screen, shattering the glass of your display while you smile like Skeletor at their dazed expressions. It’s completely unnecessary, and completely wonderful.
Once upon a time there were very believable rumors that He-Man was a rip-off of Conan the Barbarian, tweaked to appeal to the younger generation. Given the sword-wielding, monster-slaying, hack ‘n’ slash nature of He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe, those rumors are still just as believable. Considering the lack of a great Conan game, this only makes He-Man all the more appealing to anyone who likes a good old fashioned fantasy romp.
The game is rife with lavish quirks, nods and winks toward those of us who grew up taking this stuff so seriously, but can now look back at it with a wry and friendly smile. By casually lampooning itself, He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe is entirely accessible to both the young and old alike. It’s a celebration not only of He-Man and Eternia, but a respectful bow to the type of gaming that became so popular when Price Adam was still a boyish whelp, and you’d be mad to miss it. Not as mad as you’d have to be to enjoy wallowing in such naughtily nostalgic nonsense (as I do), but mad nonetheless.
This is good news and all, but I hope they manage to update Chinatown Wars sometime this century.
Do you guys think ipod touch 4 can handle this?
Am I excited about this? I'm not really sure, I absolutely loved this game on the ps2, but I'm so down on iOS action game controls that I'm worried I won't enjoy it. Ill 100% for sure play it though.
Can we all stop pretending that the game is unplayable with virtual controls? Or am I just the only person on this planet who has never been disappointed with virtual controls?
I can play games quite well with these types of controls as well
I am perfectly fine with the GTA3 controls, I can't see why people complain about them
Touch controls are not hard to use. The whole true games and gamers need buttons is just stupid, and it's mostly ps3,Xbox,nintendo people that say that.
Though I agree with you that gaming doesn't need tactile controls, I've been waiting since Star Trek: TNG for virtual controls, from both a physiological and psychological perspective it is far easier for the majority of people to have them. Developmentally humans use tactile sensations before any of our other senses to explore the world. This is why babies put everything in their mouth. Virtual controls are actually counter intuitive to the way we are wired. For some, adapting to it isn't as easy as simply practicing at it. Just like some people claim to lack a proper imagination, people who struggle with virtual controls tend to lack more acute spatial relations which allows for "feeling" where the virtual controls are.
I feel the same way but it's gonna be like ten years until we see hat 5 on iOS devices it would be awesome if rock star put unlock able content for finishing the game
So San Andreas is next.
Probably the best game of all time
I'm pretty sure Vice City is. :P
Gta 3 was great for iOS, this will definitely be picked up.
I hope iPhone 4S
Maybe a new feature could be some sweet IAP's like Gameloft does! That really should help the anniversary festivities... 😜
R U KIDDING ME :/ gameloft IAP are up to $100
That’s super cool and all, but can we get an update to GTA3
on iOS to support the iPhone 5? The game sucks letterboxed IMO haha
I don't have iPhone 5, but wouldn't the simplest improvement ever for devs to implement be to just move the virtual buttons out to the sides into the black space (assuming portrait mode makes equal black borders on both left and right sides?)? Has any devs done just that, yet? The benefit, of course, would be to get the thumbs less in the way of the action.
I hope this means we get San Andreas, too.
This should be nice on the iPad.
"later this fall" Is almost gone.
Fall is almost gone? We're only ~38% through!
People have to really stop complaining about controls for certain games on iOS, that's why you have a console like a Ps3 or Xbox. iOS gives you a different way to play games, and for better or worse, that's what I wanna experience. (Had no issues with GTA 3 for the iPhone)
Hopefully gta 5 comes out on ios
iphone 8
8S*
This is great news! Hopefully better controls as well especially for targeting they need an auto target mechanic to help.
But I'd really love to see San Andreas that's all we need! My iPhone 5 arrives today I can't wait to get home.
Gta 3 already has auto targeting
All A5 will handle it! And. It will play smoothly!! :D
I held off buying it on the recent Steam sale specifically because I figured it'd hit iOS sooner or later - glad to see it's almost here!
This is Awesome :D I liked GTA 3 on IOS I will like this
I would buy this for the soundtrack alone. Nothing compares to fleeing the cops while listening to "I Ran" by Flock of Seagulls. NOTHING.
Absolutely 100% my thoughts. Plus while standing up in a motorcycle. This is what I look for in video games.
What was the Talk Show in Vice City? I forget. I just remember it being hilarious.
The music was such a big part of this game, but I wonder if moving this game to mobile creates a new music licensing agreement. For this game, that would be VERY expensive.
Wow. So awesome. I thought this was possible. They should bring all the great psone era squaresoft JRPGs to iPad. Like final fantasy 7-9, chrono cross, vagrant story and parasite eve 1 & 2. Plus, add San Andreas and my life is complete.
Shadow of the Colossus for iPad anyone?! Another awesome idea. Hope this happens one day.
I'd buy all of those, without a doubt
Awesome. For the soundtrack alone this is worth it.
Yes!
This is the second time I've literally shouted 'Yes!!!' out loud this month!
Last time was Crazy Taxi. Seems like my early-sin gaming days are finally being relived without the hassle of setting up my old PS2.
Now I just await THPS3
This is by far the best news I heard all day, and I just passed driving school!!! Vice City ftw!!
Gamecenter? iCloud support? Nobody?
Because they only thing is rockstar games o iOS misses is these two (expect Max Payne with iC)
Omg Omg OMG Vice City !!! But Why Not San Andreas ?!
San Andreas after? That would be epic.
Really cannot wait for this to be released! Enjoyed playing this back in the day so it's going to be something special to see it on iPhone! San Andreas next please RockStar
Vice City, my favorite GTA. YES! And yes, you're right about "I Ran" by Flock of Seagulls. I used to love running from the po po while that song was on!
Jesus. Has Rockstar forgotten about Chinatown Wars and the long overdue retina update? Everybody just post a Rockstar support ticket and request the feature.
Lets hope they keep aiming as it was like they did with max Payne,I got killed in GTA 3 to many times from not being able to control who I was shooting
I'm waiting... :D