Review: Time Crisis Strike / FingerGaming
“On-rails shooters are a popular genre on the iPhone and iPod Touch. After all, they make sense in the context of the hardware, demanding little more interaction than tapping, and they’ve always been a tempting genre in the arcade setting, where prices are similarly low and the fun quick and disposable.So the thought goes that a conversion of Time Crisis would be a great idea, especially as the requirement that you duck to avoid shots adds an extra level of interaction that the iPhone/iPod Touch’s accelerometer can play a role in.
I don’t know about you, though, but while I’ve always expected on-rails shooters to be easy to play on my iPod Touch, I’ve usually found them a bit inaccurate. Because the system relies on pudgy fingers to strike at baddies – who can often be small on screen – I often miss in my urge to strike as fast as possible.
Then there’s the fact that my finger then obscures the screen for often crucial milliseconds. So although you’d think tapping at a screen would be easier than aiming and shooting with a plastic gun, I’ve found it harder. So with a game as reliant on accuracy and speed as Time Crisis, can the iPhone really be as good a platform for it as it would initially seem?”
No. No it is not.
“It sounds daft, but the reason I was attracted to play Trapped: Undead Infection was explicitly similar to the reason I didn’t think I was going to like it.
“Like many other journalists, I do a fair amount of travelling. And like many other gamers, I have a secret addiction to getting achievements.
“Now, I’m not one who has ever been willing to talk fondly about my school days — especially not my time during high school. Not that I’m one to hold adolescent grudges long after they have relevance; I’ve just never considered them interesting or remarkable enough.
“To a certain strata of gamers — those who owned an Amiga in the early nineties — Pinball Dreams is legendary. So legendary, in fact, that I doubt any who currently own an iPhone or iPod Touch should need any more than the knowledge that a direct port of the title is now available to stump up the $5.99 it costs and envelop themselves in some truly nostalgic gaming.
“I’ve been thinking about the — perhaps not obvious — comparison between the Wii and the iPhone/iPod Touch a lot recently, and I think racing games are one of the best examples of their similarities (and differences). You see, I’ve never really got on with racing games on either system, with one vital exception – Mario Kart Wii.
“Sometimes, I’m sure, we’ve all looked to the sky and asked aloud, ‘God, why do bad things happen?’
“Straight up — I’ve never played the original Newtonica. If you’re already familiar with the fact that Newtonica2 is a completely different game, then my bothering to tell you this is almost certainly maddening, but shut up for a minute and let me meander to the point I’m trying to make.”
“I love Space Deadbeef.