We reviewed a lot of great games this week, but the three with the highest review scores this week I feel really confident in saying you need on your phone. 2015 is ramping up to be a hell of a year, and we’re barely a month and a half in. I can’t imagine what the rest of the year is going to bring us.
Dark Echo, $1.99 [Review] – While I love blockbuster gaming as much as the next person, there’s no question that the ever-increasing budgets and thinner margins have made the whole upper-end of the video game business disappointingly conservative from the player’s point of view. Iteration is great. It’s how games have come as far as they have. Yet, as an exclusive diet, playing it safe can sometimes be a little bland. It’s a good thing we’ve got smaller developers who can afford to take risks on crazy ideas, because without such occasional spices, the hobby would be a lot less interesting. Dark Echo is one of those games that simply couldn’t exist under the traditional model, but I’m ecstatic it does.
Radiation Island, $4.99 [Review] – Take the most irrational and demanding mobile gaming fan – you know the kind, the person that only wants paid games and hates in-app purchases and ads in any form – and ask them for a dream wishlist of everything they’d want from a mobile game. What they will describe to you is basically what Radiation Island from Atypical Games delivers on. It’s a game that pushes iOS devices to their absolute limits, provides PC-style gameplay on the go with gamepad support, doesn’t do much hand-holding, delivers dozens of hours of gameplay, offers online multiplayer, and oh yeah, it’s only $2.99 for the entire package. And there’s not in-app purchases to be found anywhere in the vicinity of the game, because those are for suckers, right?. Atypical Games decided to make a game for this most vocal and demanding of irrational consumer.
Pike and Shot, $19.99 [Review] – Pike and Shot is out now on iOS from strategy vets Slitherine. This port of a PC game has made the transition very well. I bet you saw the price tag on this game, but let me be the first to tell you it’s worth it. If you are wondering what the balance between quality and quantity is for this title, the balance is that it comes with heaping amounts of both. A host of features, in depth combat, historical narratives and a clean visual style make this an amazingly well rounded premium game.
Additionally, we reviewed a few other games this week. As always, you can dig into all of our reviews by clicking here. Alternatively, you can hit up specific scores by using these links:
