iPhone App: Race For Home Review
Race For Home is a simple, yet addicting game for the iPhone and iPod Touch. It’s unique gameplay and soothing soundtrack make it stand out from the crowd.
The game is simple. You control a young girl named Grace who must find her way home by traveling through a variety of locations using only her trusty umbrella for transportation. Each level is set up the same way, just with different backgrounds, objects and enemies. There are several objects in the sky that Grace can grab onto by using her umbrella. Some objects are only used as pivots while others will give you points for grabbing them. For example, in one level you can fire your umbrella to latch onto the clouds or balloons, but the clouds are only used to swing around and get to different parts of the level while the balloons actually give you points. Each level also has an enemy that is always right behind you no matter where you go. The enemies will constantly fire shots at you to slow you down, but you never actually die in the game. When you get hit, you simply fall toward the ground without the ability to use your umbrella. This only lasts a few seconds, then you’re back in the game. At the end of each level you can use your points to buy upgrades such as a weapon and invincibility.
The backgrounds in each level are well done and look pretty nice, although sound effects are minimal and uninteresting. The music is the same in every level and consists of a solo pianist performing soft, tranquil music. This music adds a calming effect to a very fast pace game. When you get in a rhythm grabbing objects in the air, your character really gets moving fast. The gentle music is a different approach to this type of gameplay and really works well here.
The main issue I have with this game is the amount of content it offers. You can really fly through the levels in no time. There are not enough levels to make the game last. The game is only 99 cents, but even at this price there should be significantly more levels to play, especially when it’s so easy to pass each stage. Also, a minor gripe is that you can’t pause the game.
Race For Home is definitely a unique gaming experience on the iPhone and iPod Touch. It’s fun and addicting, but only for so long. The concept is great but has so much more potential with regards to graphics and animations. The objects in the game just float upward and that’s it. It’s a little too simple. For this game to truly succeed, it needs a significant boost in content and maybe an upgrade in graphics. But, for 99 cents, it’s worth checking out.
