NiceGuys (Find Bruce) are back with FlipWorld, a platform game that will have both your idevice and your head, spinning. FlipWorld is a simple and entertaining game, which is a unique take on the “endurance run” genre, requiring a good deal of stamina and focus. Your little character (an armless red sock monkey-looking dude) is constantly running (quite literally) AROUND your screen and you must turn your device when he reaches a corner to adjust the world’s gravity and avoid either crashing into a wall or taking a massive face plant.
As the game progresses, the action gets faster and faster, and bonus items and monsters will start appearing with greater frequency. Jump over monsters by simply tapping anywhere on the screen, and collect the apples and energy drinks for points and bonuses. We felt that the game is a little too forgiving when it comes to the jumps and you are not penalized for accidentally clipping the sides of the monsters.
The basic premise and gameplay is similar to other popular “endurance run” titles like Run! and Cannabalt, but in the round. As you probably suspected, your goal is to last as long as you can and therefore traveling the furthest distance possible. Fans of the endurance run genre will probably enjoy the variation offered by FlipWorld’s accelerometer-based gameplay, as it definitely takes a bit more user-interaction and physical exertion than just a straight screen-tapper would. The dimensions of the iPhone itself lend nicely to naturally varying the speed between turns offering a long path, followed by a short path, etc..
The cartoony graphics are colorful and charming and you can’t help but fall in love with FlipWorld’s fearless protagonist (who looks a little like a red light bulb). Heck, even the “evil” monsters are cute! There is some cheery (and repetitive) background music, but you do have the ability to mute the in game audio and listen to whatever you happen to have playing from your own music library.
With a game of this type, it’s all about bragging rights and FlipWorld does have the option to update your Facebook status with your latest score. While this is nice, unfortunately there is no Twitter or OpenFeint integration, but we’re hoping that the Developers will consider adding these in a future release. OpenFeint leaderboards would be ideally suited for a game like this and would also allow for achievements. With just the single game mode and difficulty level, the game may not have a great deal of longevity for more casual players who quickly lose interest in just bettering their high score.
The Bottom Line
FlipWorld feels ideally suited for the iPhone and is perfect for those moments when you’ve got a little time to kill, but be prepared for quizzical stares from onlookers as you frantically spin your device around and around. The cute graphical style means this one could be entertaining for the kiddos as well. We’d really like to see the addition of OpenFeint and possibly some additional options for difficulty, but otherwise it is a fun distraction. If you are looking for an inexpensive “endurance run” game that offers something a little new and different, then FlipWorld (and a case with a good grip) could be just the thing.
