Order & Chaos: Online (5 Stars)

Would you like to play World of Warcraft on your iPhone, iPod or iPad?  Well you are in luck then as Gameloft has you covered.  Order & Chaos: Online is, for all intents and purposes, a clone of Blizzard's hit MMORPG.  From the art style to the play mechanics I truly felt like I was playing World of Warcraft on my iPhone 4.  To date there is no batter MMORPG on the iOS platform.

As you first boot up O&C:O you are welcomed to a static screen showing an orc, undead, elf, human and mendel with background music that sounds like it was ripped straight from WoW.  Once the game checks for updates you are dumped into the character select screen where you can play a previously played character or create a brand new one.  You have a choice of five races; orc, human, elves, undead and the newly added Mendel race (they are like hairy blue gnomes).  All five races are able to be any of the four classes which are warrior, mage, monk and ranger.  All four classes seem to solo pretty well but I have only reached the low twenties with any character.

Quest wise this game is identical to WoW, right up to the exclamation point hovering over their heads.  Most quests are your run-of-the-mill kill/fetch quests but some are deeper and continue throughout all your levels of play.  Questing is fun and helps you can experience at a faster level than just going out and grinding on the mobs.

The graphics are very good, way better than I thought you would find on a tablet or phone.  You would swear you were playing an MMORPG on the PC.  The art is very similar to WoW with the hand drawn, cartoony look.  It fits the game very well and the animation moves perfectly with no stutter.  There are lots of nice effects with the magic spells and shadowing.  Again this is spectacular for a mobile game.

Like most games O&C: Online allows you do in-app purchases but it is limited to in game currency which is gold.  With the currency you can buy all your armor, weapons, spells etc.  There is another form of currency which you can also purchase called runes.  With runes you can purchase special items from a trader called Ubiquitous Nick.  Some of the items are temporary boots for attributes and experience, pets and materials for crafting.

Speaking of crafting it is almost up to par with what you would do in a PC MMORPG.  You have your choice of tailoring, leatherworking and blacksmithing.  As you build your skill you are able to craft better armor and weapons for your character.  To craft the best items in the game you have to attain a skill level of 500.

The cost of the game is a little more than the average game in the iTunes Store but it is way more in depth than the average game also.  For $6.99 you get the full World of Warcraft experience on your tablet or phone.  The game no longer has a monthly fee after the last update so now there is no reason for you not to play this fantastic game.  This game is one of the best on the platform.

Earth and Legend (4 Stars)

Earth And Legend is a really good game and one that shows off the power of the Streak very well.  It is a spiritual sequel to Dvide Arts earlier entry Crusade of Destiny.  Earth And Legend plays very similar to Crusade of Destiny but with a lot of updates that make the game more enjoyable.

First thing you will notice are the graphics as they are very well done.  Lots of detail in the environment and character models.  I was surprised how well the facial graphics are.  It really reminds me of the original Everquest with the graphic updates introduced with the Shadows of Luclin expansion.  The frame rate is very high, I would guess in the 50s as everything is silky smooth. There is a full day/night cycle and weather effects which really add to the experience.  Only some quests or mobs are available at certain times of the day so the time of day is important to finishing quests.  When raining you can both see and hear how hard it is coming down which adds to the atmosphere.

The sound is top notch with great sound effects and a pleasant soundtrack.  There is no voice over which I am thankful for as I have seen many a game hurt themselves because of corny voice acting.  I would rather read the text and leave their voice to my imagination.

There are lots of quests and most just follow in the traditional "fetch" style but there are some that move the story along.  You will be doing a lot of grinding to get your level up so you can continue with the quest but that is the norm in a traditional RPG.  Luckily you have lots of fighting styles you are able to utilize from hand to hand, to archery to magic.  You also are able to train a pet to fight alongside you.

If you are into RPGs then you will enjoy Earth And Legend.  It is fantastic to play on the go and is constructed so you can get in and out quickly and actually make some progress.

Great Little War Game (5 Stars)

Great Little War Game could not possibly be more perfectly titled as this war game is fantastic.  Not since Herzog Zwei on the Sega Genesis have I played a game with simple resource management (take over oil wells to get more funds to spend on troops) that is so much fun.  Let's take a closer look at this fantastic game.

The basis for the game is simple, two generals are battling it out along many different maps.  The game is played in rounds where you can build your army (ground troops, tanks, ships, helicopters etc.), move them along the map and attack if the enemy is within range.  Each round starts with funds being collected from all the oil wells that you control.  There are friendly, neutral and enemy oil wells scattered along the map and utilizing the engineer troop you are able to capture these oil wells which adds extra funds at the beginning of each round.  This is similar to capturing bases in Herzog Zwei and whoever controls the most oil wells have the advantage.  Once you capture an oil well you need to defend it or the enemy will come and take it over from you.  Luckily you have many different options for protected what is yours.

You have four ground troops available to you, all with different fighting styles.  The most basic troop is the Grunt.  He has an attack range of 1 to 2 hexagons and can attack infantry and vehicles but does no damage to airborne or ships.  The next unit is the Bazooka troop who also can only attack for 1 to 2 hexagons but can not attack airborne.  The Engineer is defenseless so you must protect him while he makes his way to enemy or neutral buildings so he can capture them.  The last troop, and the best, is the Sniper.  He can attack up to 3 hexagons away and will "one shot" infantry.  

Using the map to your advantage is important.  On level ground two soldiers of the same class will attack each other for the same amount of damage.  Get your soldier to higher ground and the advantage is yours.  For the island maps soldiers can only exit a carrier in designated landing areas so if you populate all those hexagons with your soldiers then no enemy soldiers can get on your island.  There are many strategies you can use to help you win the maps and experimenting is half the fun.

The visuals in this game are crisp and clean and work great for this style of game.  You can easily identify each class of soldier by their graphics without having to click on them for a description.  The animation is fluid as it should be in a game without non-stop action.  The maps are simple but nicely drawn with weather effects like rain and snow.  When a battle begins in zooms in on the action which is a nice touch.

The sound is minimal but is well done.  Your soldiers will make a snide comment whenever they take out and enemy troop and there is the sound of gun fire when the attacks happen.  The music is decent but I found myself turning it off and just focusing on the battle.  

The controls are fantastic and it is these types of games that work like magic with touch interfaces.  Touch a troop will allow you to target a nearby enemy or show you the make hexagon moves you can make in this round.  Manipulating your troops is easy and intuitive. 

This little war game is great and that makes it the most accurate title in gaming history.  You can pick this up in the App Store for around $2 depending on sales etc.  This game will supply you with hours of battle fun!

Fieldrunners (4 Stars)

After playing my first Tower Defense Game (Plants Vs. Zombies) I really was in need of a new one so, with a little research, I decided on Fieldrunners and boy was I happy! This game is fantastic. Go buy it. That is all I am going to say! Ok I will give you a little more.

The entire premise of the game is that you must defend your base from an onslaught of enemies ranging from footman, tanks, prop planes and blimps! Your base is represented by the heart in the upper right hand corner with the number listed next to it.  You start out with twenty hearts and every time and enemy makes it to your base you lose a heart.  Once your heart reaches zero the game is over.  The enemy will come from one or two designated areas and will walk in a straight line to the exit (which is your base) unless you change their path.  You do that by placing towers in from of them.  The towers all have different attack modes ranging from straight fun fire to electrical tesla towers.  Each tower can also be upgraded three times for more firepower and distance.   Building your towers into a maze will allow the most opportunity for damaging the enemy since that tower will get to attack on two passes of the enemy instead of just one.

You have a nice selection of game modes to choose from so the game never gets boring.  You have your choice of Easy, Medium or Hard along with game modes Classic, Extended and Endless.  With Classic you have to survive 100 rounds with four tower types.  Extended adds two more towers and Endless goes on until you are defeated, with each round bringing more and faster enemies.  No matter the mode or difficulty you select you only have the twenty heart pieces.

There are a four maps available with the purchase of the game and another four available for .99 each.  The maps vary in style and strategy and are a must pick up for anyone who enjoys this game.  A couple of the maps also have tracks where trains will attempt to make it to your base.  Being that the trains are on the track you would think it would be easier to build a defense but the speed is your worst enemy.

This is a very strategic game and one that is fun for hours on end.  Every match can be different and some will take many sittings to complete (thankfully it picks up right where you left off when you close the game). The only thing I would have liked to see in this game is some type of multiplayer aspect as this game screems for head to head gaming.  I would love to battle our a friend and see who has the better strategy.  Perhaps in a sequel we will see this.  This game looks fantastic on the iPod/iPhone and even better in HD on the iPad.  Picking up this game is easy as the App store has it normally for $2.99 but if you watch sales you can pick it up for .99 like I did.  Enjoy!

Chaos Rings (4 Stars)

Now this is simply an amazing achievement for the iTouch. While playing Chaos Rings I swore I was playing a PS2 game as the graphics are amazing. The story is one spot where I feel it is lacking though and that is a big part of any RPG. The control is silky smooth and unlike alot of games where the "analog" stick is hard coded in postion this one is dynamic ... anywhere you touch the screen the stick shows up and that point is center so you can control it from where ever you want. Gameplay is straight "Final Fantasy-esqe" with one cool addition, you can fight solo with your parter and each have their own attack and target or you can pair up and do a more damaging attack. Only issue with this is that both parties will suffer damage when the enemy attacks. The spell effects are just as gorgeous as any Final Fantasy there is a huge variety in spells. Overall this game is a must have in that it really shows off what the iTouch can do and almost makes up for a "blah" story.

Crash Bandicoot Nitro Kart 3D (4 Stars)

Kart racing is one of those genres you either love or hate.  Purist racers just scoff at the cartoony graphics and physics but that is the exact reason I love these type of games.  Who needs to work at earning cars and licenses, this is a game people.  Just have fun!  And that is exactly what this genre has always provided!

The Crash Bandicoot kart racing series started on the PSOne with Crash Team Racing.  This was a fantastic first outing and competing with Mario Kart 64 very admirably.  From the courses to the weapons the first game in the series did it right.  Fast forward through many sequels on many different platforms and we arrive at what I am reviewing here, Crash Bandicoot Nitro Kart 3D for the iOS platform.

Now this is one fun kart racing game!  This game has the same look and feel of the PSOne original and is a great homage to that game.  Being on iOS you know the control scheme will be different and for what it is worth it works.  CBNK 3D is a fast game and screens for physical controls but on this platform you have to do with tilt controls.  You just tilt your iOS devce left or right to turn in that direction. It does take a little practice but once you get used to it it does control very well. The graphics are very sharp, just as good as the PSOne in my opinion. Before purchasing my iPod Touch I had no idea iOS could do 3D graphics this well. The courses are all fun and imaginative and the action is fast and furious!

If I had to pick one area where I feel it falls short it would be in the sound area. The music just doesn't live up to the normally great Crash Nitro Kart tunes of the past. You are missing a lot of sound effects also that you will be used to from the series.  Sound wise the game just seems kind of blah.

Overall the game is great and I highly recommend this to any kart racing fan! .I am sure most of my issues will be fixed with future entries to the series.  You can't go wrong with the Bandicoot!

Plants Vs. Zombies (4 Stars)

Until I had purchased an iOS device I had never played a tower defense game before. I wanted a really fun game to test out what iOS could do so I checked out what was most popular on iTunes and it listed Plants Vs. Zombies. I did a little research by reading reviews and thought it sounded interesting so I took the plunge and purchased it for $2.99. It was well worth it.

I am surprised I hadn't ever played a tower defense game before as I have been a huge fan of RTSs (Warcraft, Command & Conquer etc) since I love strategy. The premise of the game is simple, zombies are trying to get to you.  The are coming from the alley through your backyard.  If the zombie apocalypse does ever happen it is good to know that zombies can only walk on the grass!  The first level starts out with one lane of grass and just one flower.  This is to get you used to the way the game works.  The flowers are the star of the show.

Utilizing some "flower power" you are able to setup a defense of plants to attack, slow or even blow up the zombies as they attempt to reach your home. You collect sun rays with sunflowers which is the currency with which you purchase the plants you are using to defend your home.  Your back yard changes as you progress by adding a pool for extra strategy.  You will also find fog which hides what lane the zombies are coming from but you will be able to get lamps that will open up the fog.  Towards the end of the game you will be battling on the roof where you have to put pots down first to plant the plants.  This can be frustrating, especially since the roof is angled so you must use lobbing plants instead of the pea shooter that shoots straight. 

In between boards you are able to use coins you have collected from fallen zombies to purchase items from the back of a van (Dave's Shop) to use in your battles like rakes and pool cleaners.  Overall there are 24 different zombies and one boss so there is lots of variety.   As you progress there are lots of mini-games to play also, with one of the most fun being the bowling.

The game is really colorful with fun music and sounds but what makes the game stand out is the variety of plants and zombies which require different strategies. This is one of those games that is easy to learn but takes a lifetime to master. I suggest if you are in the market for a fun and polished iOS game then you need to purchase Plants Vs. Zombies.