Developer/Publisher: Hexage.net
Genre: Shooter
Price: $2.99
Pros: Pleasant and Sound
Cons: Lacks variety

Sometimes you just need a little happiness in your day to get yourself through it and so does Buka.  Why Buka is so unhappy and why she is so far away from her happy place is why she needs you to help her find that place. But there are Baddies out there trying to stop her. Now what would the point of the game be if there were no evil asteroids trying to stop her from getting there. In that, you have the whole premise for the game.

When I first picked this game up, I struggled to figure out what genre to classify this game as. It is so off the wall that it really doesn’t fit into just one.  When I first picked it up and started playing it, Geometry Wars came to mind.  Just replace your spaceship with Buka and start protecting her with explosions and shockwaves,  created with a single touch to the screen.

Game play is fun and challenging to start with but after a few levels it slowly becomes a chore.  You find out pretty quick that the whole game is about flying through space and avoiding the Baddies. You can destroy them by touching the screen and creating an explosion, the longer you hold down on the screen the bigger the explosion.  As the game progresses and you face more Baddies to blow up, you’re going to have to maneuver Buka around the screen to keep her from getting hit by them. You can do this in two ways, you can drag her with your finger or you can use the built in accelerometer.   And that my friend is the whole game in a nutshell minus picking up some green star for health now and then.

The first couple of levels in Buka’s world were pretty easy, giving me a false sense of security. I soon found out that the game becomes extremely difficult in the latter stages. I do however think that the ability to conquer these levels comes from good ole fashion replay and skill. The more you play the better equipped you will become to knock these levels out and get Buka to her “Happy Place”.  Sadly the game didn’t hold my attention long enough for me to achieve these skills.

Now I had to think long and hard what kind of score I was going to give this game.  This game was developed by a small development team called Hexage and it was their first game on the iPhone. The controls were seamless, giving you the right amount of control and ease that made the game play enjoyable.  The graphics are a pleasure to look at and the game holds some replayability. Some people are going to just love this game while other will play it for five minutes and not give it a second chance. Sadly I fall under the second category. I do however believe that for those who enjoy a good sound shooter with good controls will find some life in this game after the first couple of levels.  I am going to refrain from putting a star rating on this game; some are going to find it most enjoyable while others are going to use it as an interruption in a long car ride.