Smash Hit
by Mediocre

 

If you look up the expression ‘time waster’ in the dictionary you’ll find a photo of me sat on the toilet playing Smash Hit.

 

Gameplay is incredibly simple in that you auto-move around a futuristic world full of targets attempting to shot/smash said targets. The more targets you destroy the more ammo you get. The more ammo you have the longer the game lasts. Easy!

Its not the kind of game you have conversations with your mates about. Nor is it the type of game where you day dream about tactics whilst when you should be working. No it’s the type of game that’s perfect for when you have time to kill but you want to use as little brain power as possible.

 

It not an amazing game but its certainly not a bad game - I definitely cant see myself deleting it off my phone anytime soon.

3/5

God of Light
by Playmous

Every aspect of God of Light is quite simply AMAZING.

The gameplay is curiously entertaining. You control a beam of light shining out from a happy looking star. You then in turn reflect and deflect the beam around the world using strategically placed mirrors until you reach a solar power generator which, once fully charged, can illuminate the world (and thus you complete the stage). Some mirrors can be tilted, some can be moved in straight line, and some can be teleported to another part of the screen. The games challenge comes from precisely positioning the mirrors in such a way that the beam is bounced around each stage’s light blocking obstacles. Trust me it’s a lot of fun. 

Another major factor that contributes to my absolute love of this game is the hauntingly beautiful soundtrack. Composed by one of my heroes of trip-hop/down tempo electronica- U.N.K.L.E- the ambient background music helps to create a fantastic out-of-worldly experience that perfectly encapsulates the eerie but wonderous nature of the game.

Also noteworthy is visually stunning and intrinsically detailed graphics. I notice on Play Store there is an option to buy the game in HD- I can only imagine how amazing that must look because the regular version is already so pleasantly lush.

The level progression is also something I’d like to highlight and ask any game companies who happen to be reading this blog to take note of. To get to level two you have to collect 50 fireflies. There are 26 stages in a level with 26 fireflies. The remainder can either be bought (for a reasonable 59p) or you can sit through a sponsor video for a firefly a time. I realise games companies have to make their money somehow and to me this way seems the fairest way for all parties. I watch a TV program; I sit through the commercials that paid for that program. Makes sense that this system would work for video games too. Listen up other game companies!!

God of Light is an incredible all-rounder of a game -visuals, gameplay and soundtrack. As with all good puzzle games the challenges start off easy but then turn into real head scratchers as you progress through the levels- though not to a point where you get bored or disheartened. God of Light is without a doubt my favourite game of the year so far and frankly if I didn’t have to go to work every day I wouldn’t put it down!

5/5