QuickLook.Technobrains

When I first played Action Hero I thought to myself, “eh, it’s just another run-n-dodge game”. Thankfully I gave it a couple more tries, because I should know better than to think that anything Donut Games does is “just another something”. The stylized art, cool sound effects and train top setting make this one stand out from others in its genre. And, like several other pick up and play games I’ve tried lately, I have to give it the “just one more time” tag when it comes to trying to quit playing.

You are the eponymous Action Hero, the faceless wonder willing to risk life and limb to thwart the bad guys at all costs. Or maybe you just like running atop trains, beating people up and dodging things. Who knows? In Action Hero your goal is simply to keep going until you make a mistake and something takes you down. Your character automatically runs, so all you have to worry about is jumping and dodging, which are performed by swiping up and down respectively, and punching, which is accomplished using the button on the right side of the screen.

Kee-rash!

As you can imagine given the control scheme, you’ll have to jump over, duck under or knock out a lot of obstacles in this game. The top of the train is littered with random crates that serve no real purpose other than to trip you up, and it also seems to be the place where a throng of goons like to hang out. Your basic goons are easy enough to thwart, as you can just walk up to them and punch them out. More advanced goons will throw things like bottle and bombs at you, which you have to deal with before taking out the goons themselves. The cool part is that depending on your timing you can either punch, slide under or jump over thrown items, giving you several ways to accomplish the same goal. As the game progresses you’ll get additional obstacles like poles to duck under and train cars of various heights to jump around. I’m still waiting for the thug with the Tommy gun, but I guess I haven’t gotten far enough into the game yet.

I love the visuals in this game. It still has the underpinning of the typical pixel art style that we’ve come to appreciate from Donut Games’ products, but this one has a more stylized look to it. For some reason it reminds me of a scene from Dick Tracy, though I couldn’t really tell you why. The details come more from the use of shading than any true details in the objects, and it works really well. When you jump between cars there’s a slight shake to the car when you land. The best part, however, is the use of word bubbles reminiscent of the 60s Batman show. Whether it’s a Biff, Kee-rash or Ugh, you’ll always know visually how things are reacting.

Slip Slidin' Away

The sound effects suit the game perfectly. Taking out a thug produces that fake punch sound that makes TV action shows so entertaining. When a bottle hits the train the crash sounds authentic, and the trains’ whistle blows to let you know a pole is coming up. The only thing really missing is occasional wise-cracks from the thugs. They’ve got the voice for it, which unfortunately they use for a score increment alert instead. The music is a nice little action piece, which sadly gets drowned out with all the sound effects.

Action Hero is quickly becoming one of my favorite Donut Games acquisitions. The cool visuals, atmospheric audio and fast pacing of action make me want to play again and again. Donut Games does a great job of adding that special flair to every game they produce, and Action Hero is certainly no exception to the rule.

Final Verdict: Recommended
App Store Link
App Shopper Link

[All About Quick Looks]

Don’t fret people, I haven’t moved into the realm of adult entertainment here.  Icy Escort is not about a prostitute with a cold.  It’s actually a game about a penguin trying to find her lost babies.  This is the second game (that I’m aware of) from Donut Games that uses a simple “one action” mechanic for interacting with the game, and as far as I’m concerned they can keep pouring them on.  The graphics look good, the music is soothing, and the game is both fun and challenging.

In Icy Escort your mission is to find all your babies that have wandered away.  You’ll travel through 30 levels ranging from “Over The Edge” to “Freeze Factor”, jumping from platform to platform, collecting ice cream and ultimately rescuing all your kids before the time runs out.  What makes  this game different from most platform types is that your character is always moving.  She will continue to go the same direction until she runs into a sign or box or something that forces her to go the other way.  The one influence you have over her actions is that tapping on the screen will make her jump.  Until she’s reached maximum height, the longer you hold your finger down the higher she’ll jump.

Going Down

The only thing you must do in each level is retrieve all your babies before the time runs out.  However, there is also ice cream that you can collect along the way for extra points.  Each level has three stars that you can earn.  The first star is simply for beating the level, and the second and third are based on total points accumulated, which is a mixture of how much ice cream you collect and how quickly you finish the level.  The key to Icy Escort is a combination of timing and jump length.  For each level you need to figure out what the best path through the level is.  If you’re really skilled (I’m not), you’ll also be able to figure out the best combination of time vs. ice cream to get the maximum three stars on a level.  So far I’ve managed that on only one level.

Graphically the game isn’t going to blow you away, but it does look nice.  It hearkens back to a simpler day when not everything had to be pre-rendered 3D images.  The foreground is quite colorful and everything is nicely detailed.  There are little animations like the penguins’ feet wiggling when you jump and snow flying when pull a baby out of its trap.  The background is a bit more subdued, but there’s still plenty of detail where appropriate.  The sound effects aren’t bad, though when you jump it does sound a bit like your penguin is spring loaded.  I rather enjoy the laugh when you rescue a baby penguin or listening to the baby cry “mammy” on the levels where they actually try to come to you.  There appear to be two musical tracks from what I’ve heard, and they are both nicely done.  The tone is lighthearted to fit the mood of the game.

I haven’t quite figured out what the appeal of “one-tap” games is yet, but they sure are fun.  Maybe it’s the fact that you don’t have to worry about pressing 10 things in just the right combination to get something to happen.  Whatever the case, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the simpleness of Icy Escort.  It looks good, it sounds good, and if I get ambitious enough to go for three stars on every level, it will certainly be some time before I’m finished with this game.  Icy Escort is definitely worth a place on your iDevice.

Final Verdict: Recommended
App Store Link
App Shopper Link