What do you get when you strap a cap with a propeller onto a kids head?
In their debut app for iPhone (and iPod touch), Rishi Modha and Anirudh Sharma, two university graduates from the newly founded London based iPhone development studio FIPLAB, bring a uniquely designed, side scroller to the platform.
The guys were kind enough to hook us up with a copy.
So, How well does Copterkid play out? ..
Update: More is Coming! (01/08/09 @ 20.10pm)
We’ve just received word from FIPLAB that they’ve submitted a mini-update to Copterkid which addresses in-game play among other things:
– Play again menu redesigned.
– Spacing of shields improved.
– Increased gap between incoming objects for initial islands.
– Remove bouncing at the top.
– Improved touch handling.
– Fixed sound issue on application exit.
The update should be available on the store shortly.
Original Article:
Copterkid [App Store] sees you playing the role of either Calvin, or Cassie – two kids with awesomely cool propeller caps. Your aim? Guide either Calvin or Cassie as far as you can, whilst keeping out of harms way.
Playing Copterkid
The game is played on a landscape which consistently scrolls from right to left. Although, unlike most titles, you are actually in control of your character’s acceleration and position. You start off with your character on a launch pad out at sea. To fly, you simply have to tap and hold the screen. Careful though, the first time I tried this, I fell into the water just past the launch pad (lol). The reason being is the developers have made sure to make the in-game controls very sensitive. Although not always a good thing, and not entirely suitable for every title, in this case – it is.
Moving over the landscape you’ll encounter menacing aliens, evil scientists and an entire squadron of the Soaring Skulls which will try to trip you or your copter cap, up. It’s game over as soon as a piece of your body touches an oncoming enemy, or the underlying landscape.
Character acceleration and movement plays out as if you have a jet pack on your back. A long tap and hold will propel you further than a short tap burst. I really like this. Your not mindless, being propelled automatically like some other titles I could mention. Your in control of your character’s precise movement. Somehow this adds more depth to Copterkid’s gameplay.
See it in Action:
Level Progression and Visuals
As you advance past level one, you’ll find your in store for a few surprises. The first being the side-scolling dodger that was, turns into a sort of shooter, with oncoming enemies firing back at you.
To counterbalance this comes Shields. Shields become available from level one for you to collect (while flying). These encapsulate your character in a bubble outlined by a multi-coloured ring. Shields last for 60 seconds a pop if un-hit, and 5 seconds if you hit an object in flight. You’ll know when one is about to run out as it starts to flash. While shielded, you are protected from oncoming enemies,
Progressing through the game the level of difficulty increases constantly, not only this but, you’ll also encounter various landscapes including; the countryside, a desert-type landscape, the arctic and more, all of which I have to say are accompanied by incredibly well designed graphics. If there’s one aspect I can’t fault Copterkid on, its it’s superb visual user feedback. You can just tell a lot of time and effort went into making this title look and feel how Rishi and Anirudh wanted it to.
Overall
With 14 five star user reviews, Copterkid is sitting pretty – and I’ll tell you what – it deserves it. This title screams polish, and for 59p (I’m sure you’ll agree) it probably trumps most of the trashy apps you’ve plunked for, up until today. However simple it’s concept, with it’s highly addictive nature, online leader boards, quirky soundtrack and super clean visuals; you might find you have to drag yourself away from this overlooked little gem.
The company’s slogan is: “A Fascinatingly Interesting Proposition”.
Well, Copterkid is certainly not one to be missed.
Did I mention the studio is currently running a contest in which you can win yourself $150
for being the highest overall scorer on the Copterkid online leader board? Sweet, huh? 😀
Current Status: Recommended
Reviewed at: v1.00
Reviewed on Firmware: 3.1 Beta 3 / iPhone 3GS
Download size: 6.3 MB
Released on: 26th July 2009
Retails for: £0.59 / $0.99
Compatible with: iPod touch Gen 1 and 2 / iPhone Classic / iPhone 3G / iPhone 3GS
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