Boom It Up – Review
App Type: Uncategorized
Our rating: 
By: Gamevil
Version #: 1.2
Date Released: 2010-07-05
Developer:
Price: 0.99
User Rating:
Loading...
Today, retro games are all the rage on the iPhone. If it has jagged pixels and 8-bit chip tunes it is bound to gather even a modest following. Today we are looking at a retro style game that not only looks, but plays like a java game I would have played on my Nokia ten years ago. Gamevil’s Boom It Up take you back to a simpler time where cell phones were for calling people, and it if played a couple simple games, then you were lucky.
The premise is that while recreating on a tropical island complete with palm trees and clear blue ocean, you have decided that soaking up rays and drinking fruity drinks in a hammock just isn’t for you. You instead find yourself a cannon, complete with cannon ball, and proceed to point said cannon into the air and fire it at what appears to be a swarm of flying baskets. Okay, so this isn’t the sort of game that needs an airtight backstory. In Boom It Up you have to navigate your ball upwards by timing your jumps into each basket, while avoiding black birds that will grab your cannon ball (insert a joke about coconuts and african swallows here), or allowing your ball to fall into the abyss.
Control-wise this game is as easy as it gets. You tap to jump. The timing on this game can be a bit difficult due to the inconsistent frame-rate and occasional stuttering of the animation. The game response to your taps fairly well, but it seem to be difficult to time some jumps correctly and if you run out of lives you have to start from the very bottom. The paddles that start to tilt downward are the worst. Getting the timing right is very hard and if you wait too long to tap you will be launched too far and will miss your target.
At first I wanted to pan this game for being frustratingly hard to play, but I realize that this game is really a retro classic style game that even has the feel of the sluggish feeling of the old pre-smart phone Java games. While I can’t quite give this high marks, I will say that the game is currently available on the app store for $.99, so it doesn’t cost much to download and give this little gem a try, perhaps you will find yourself shooting for the sky from your tropical paradise.
Quick Take
Value:Low.
Would I Buy Again:Not really.
Learning Curve:Easy.
Who Is It For:Causal gamers.
What I Like:Interesting concept, retro graphics.
What I Don't Like:Horrible frame-rate, difficult reaction times with some obstacles.
Final Statement:Firing cannonballs on a tropical beach...why not!
Description
Deceptively Simple and Addictive!
Boom It Up! is all about timing.
The aim is to 'boom' your cannonball at the perfect moment into the baskets to go as high as you can.
Your skyward journey will be challenged by obstacles such as birds, flaming logs, levers and trampolines.
Boom It Up! is a simple but yet addictive arcade game which everyone can enjoy.
Also, compete with friends globally by posting scores on Facebook.
?????????????????????
HOW TO PLAY
-Tap the screen to boom the cannonball onto the next basket
-Use baskets, wooden levers and trampolines to ‘boom’ your way to the top
-Avoid firing at birds and landing on flaming logs
-Adjust to the different speed of moving baskets
-Compete locally or with global users and share your scores on Facebook
Screenshots
Article By Nathan Kline
Nathan has been an avid Apple user and advocate since the days of the Apple ][. He has always sought to find new ways to make use of technology to assist his daily life. As a paramedic in southern California Nathan brings his familiarity with technology to the field, and at whatsoniphone.com he brings his critical thinking to he analysis of apps and news. You has also written app reviews for the mobile app site Smokinapps.com.
nathan-kline has written 110 awesome app reviews.
