2D Boy’s award winning physics based puzzle game, World of Goo is finally available on the small screen for iOS device owners. Players have a choice of two versions, first the already established HD release for $4.99, which debuted in December of last year. This release has just recently been updated from an iPad-only app to a Universal app, including Retina Display support and the ability to run on the iPhone 4 and the 4th gen iPod Touch. In addition, 2D BOY has just released this highly anticipated title in an iPhone-only release for the iPhone (3GS or newer) and iPod Touch (3rd gen or newer) in standard resolution for $2.99. It doesn’t matter which version you get, you are guaranteed hours of fun!
World of Goo, is the only game by the indie developer 2D Boy, consisting of Kyle Gabler and Ron Carmel, both former EA Employees. This title was first released on WiiWare, later Windows, Mac OSX, Linux and finally last year debuted on iOS for the iPad.
The game consists of building structures using “balls of goo” and keeping the structure solid until reaching the exit, which is a pipe sucking in a requisite “x” number of balls of goo per level. If you gather more than the required number balls of goo, they will go to a mini game called World of Goo Corporation where you will compete against other players around the world building the tallest possible tower. More than a mini game, just food for a gamer’s ego. Another smart idea to delve deeper into the achiever’s Psyche.
Going from point A to B may sound simple, but in each level you will encounter several difficulties to overcome, ranging from gravity to terrain. World of Goo is divided in 5 chapters and a total of 48 levels. The graphics are exquisite. Nothing fancy, just perfectly executed in concordance with the whole concept and balanced for each
level with their own graphics and musical score. And speaking about sound, according to Kyle Gabler, the opening theme was inspired by Piazolla´s Libertango. All I can say is Good Job!
During the game you have different types of “balls of goo”, each of them with different characteristics and unique attributes to help you conquer the level. While easy to play, World of Goo is a complex game, which is exactly the decisive factor in keeping you interested in the game, challenging you to finish what you started.
I’m not going any deeper into the game, as I want the review to be spoiler free for people new to this title, but I will make one comment regarding screen resolutions. Some games are very easy to convert to HD, while others need extensive re-coding. World of Goo HD’ssupport for retina display resolution (960×640 on a 3.5″ diagonal screen) and iPad resolution (1024 × 768 pixels on a 9.7″ screen) can be attained by the developer uploading an image library into the code with graphics and screens optimized for each device and hard-coding it such that the right ones will install depending on what type of device the game is running. So if you own an iPhone 4 (or 4th gen iPod Touch) and the iPad, you should hands down get the Universal HD version, as it’s much easier to play on the iPad’s bigger screen and the game will play in the native resolution of each device.
In Conclusion
World of Goo is a very original title that every iOS puzzle game enthusiast should try. It shows dedication, testing, polishing and love…all the variables leading to a successful game. While I certainly recommend spending the extra couple of dollars for the HD release, in the end it really doesn’t matter which version you get, as either way you are going to have fun!
Below are a game trailer as well as iPhone and iPad game play videos.
WARNING: These will give away spoilers as to how to solve some of the puzzles!.
