Mega Jump - App Review

Click the pic to go to the App Store.

Mega Jump is basically the bastard son of Doodle Jump, but whilst that's one of the most frustrating and tricky games for the iPhone, Mega Jump feels easier to get to grips with and the introduction of levels rather than just perpetual motion upwards lends it more of a challenge.

I found Doodle Jump a nice little distraction but Mega Jump is one of those addictive games that you can't put down.  The premise is simple, your little monster leaps from the ground and climbs by touching coins that move him upwards.  You move him left and right by gently moving the iPhone in your hand.  It's a control system which just works, honestly if there's one gaming device that has motion control nailed it's the iPhone.  If Sony had utilised the motion control, within the Six Axis Controllers, games like this could have sold brilliantly on the Playstation Network.

At times the path you take your monster on is obvious and various power ups make your journey an easier one.  You pick those up as you climb although often it's more by luck than judgement as the pace is relentless.  It's not often that progress is slowed to just short jumps at a time.  The subtleties of the control really come into play when it does slow though and it's way more forgiving than it's brethren.

The only way to die is to fall and even then you might get a last second reprieve by hitting one of the coins you just passed by.  The whole level isn't left for you to fall back onto but at least there's something of a second chance.  Equally there are monsters and traps that can impede your way but hit one and you lose a few points and fall back.  But brilliantly, as the coins tumble out of your monster, you can hit one and start climbing back up again.

The various power ups range from the monster turning into as a balloon and floating up the screen to an umbrella that slows your descent.  There are some that send you shooting up the level like a streak of monster fire ball.

My one small issue with Mega Jump is the way that the marketing boys have set up the level system.  Of course you can unlock them by getting to the top (no mean feat) but there are also two other ways of unlocking them.  You gain MP points as you play which you can use to unlock each level.  However each level needs progressively more MP points to unlock it, level four requires 6000.  Now that's all well and good but your points allocation per game are pretty miserly, even completing a level is only going to earn you around sixty.  But hey there's an option to buy them... hmmm.

Personally I prefer to earn the next level by just getting better at the game but there must be a few kids out there with iPhones and iPod Touches buying points on their parents iTunes accounts to get to the next level.

However the App is free at the moment and well worth getting.  If you liked Doodle Jump you'll love this, graphically it's better, game play is way more fun, all in all it's just a much better package.

★ ★ ★ ★ 

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