Thu 20 Oct 2011
Widgetpad
Frogger App Review
The core gameplay is deceptively simple. You are a wee little frog
trying to get to your lily pad to do…well, whatever it is you do. The
only problem is, someone built a multilane highway between you and your
lily pad. The nerve of those humans! As if that wasn’t bad enough, the
highway looks like rush hour, no matter how long you idly sit by the
side of the road waiting for you chance.
The good news is that the cars in each lane all stick to about the same speed and distances from each other, making it relatively easy to time your moves into the next lane. Not only can you move forward and back, you can also move side to side to help navigate the traffic more easily. And you’re no slouch in the speed department on your tiny frog legs, as you can actually outrun some of the slower cars for a short distance, just long enough for the break in the next lane’s traffic to open up.
Once you’ ve crossed the highway though, you have a whole new set of problems. You’re now forced to cross a rushing river that presents a new set of challenges. You can’t simply move wherever you want, as you could on the highway.
Instead you must traverse the river on the moving turtle shells, logs, and even alligators backs! And to add even more wrinkles to the mix, some of the turtle shells randomly submerge, giving you only the briefest of windows to utilize them. And the alligators have big teeth to eat you with, so if you move too close to their jaws, it’s game over.
If you can manage to navigate all that and land on one of the five lily pads, you’ll have the joy of doing it all again until you’ve got all 5 frogs safely across; at which point you’ve advanced a level, and things speed up.
The graphics have been updated from the arcade original and have a pleasant, cartoony look to them, with some nice animations. The music and sound effects have also been upgraded while still paying homage to the original.
The controls of course offer the biggest change from the original. You can either slide, tap, or tilt your way across the road and river. Sliding works much like a virtual joystick, as you can slide anywhere on the screen to get the desired results. I found sliding to be far preferable to tapping and tilting.
Frogger is one of those games that stands the test of time.
The combination of simplicity and challenge makes it infinitely replayable and enjoyable. For just $1, it’s the perfect game to play when you’re on the go; just don’t play it while you’re trying to cross the road (or a river) yourself.
RATING – 4.7/5
Platform – iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad (iOS 3.0 or later).
Genre – Arcade
Price - $0.99
The good news is that the cars in each lane all stick to about the same speed and distances from each other, making it relatively easy to time your moves into the next lane. Not only can you move forward and back, you can also move side to side to help navigate the traffic more easily. And you’re no slouch in the speed department on your tiny frog legs, as you can actually outrun some of the slower cars for a short distance, just long enough for the break in the next lane’s traffic to open up.
Once you’ ve crossed the highway though, you have a whole new set of problems. You’re now forced to cross a rushing river that presents a new set of challenges. You can’t simply move wherever you want, as you could on the highway.
Instead you must traverse the river on the moving turtle shells, logs, and even alligators backs! And to add even more wrinkles to the mix, some of the turtle shells randomly submerge, giving you only the briefest of windows to utilize them. And the alligators have big teeth to eat you with, so if you move too close to their jaws, it’s game over.
If you can manage to navigate all that and land on one of the five lily pads, you’ll have the joy of doing it all again until you’ve got all 5 frogs safely across; at which point you’ve advanced a level, and things speed up.
The graphics have been updated from the arcade original and have a pleasant, cartoony look to them, with some nice animations. The music and sound effects have also been upgraded while still paying homage to the original.
The controls of course offer the biggest change from the original. You can either slide, tap, or tilt your way across the road and river. Sliding works much like a virtual joystick, as you can slide anywhere on the screen to get the desired results. I found sliding to be far preferable to tapping and tilting.
Frogger is one of those games that stands the test of time.
The combination of simplicity and challenge makes it infinitely replayable and enjoyable. For just $1, it’s the perfect game to play when you’re on the go; just don’t play it while you’re trying to cross the road (or a river) yourself.
RATING – 4.7/5
Platform – iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad (iOS 3.0 or later).
Genre – Arcade
Price - $0.99
