TRON App Preview

Disney Interactive showed off its new TRON games at the TRON event at their offices in southern California this past Friday, and invited 148Apps to participate.

First up was a preview of the new addition to the free TRON app, Light Cycles. This new game is added to the already interesting Tank Battles for a double dose of TRON goodness, top-down style. TRON Tanks was launched at ComicCon 2010, and involves a reboot of the classic TRON arcade game.

In the newly launched Light Cycles, players can go up against the computer, or each other via WifFi or Blue Tooth, and fight it out on an arena grid with 7 levels, each with three to four stages. In our hands on time with the game, the local multiplayer had some trouble connecting due to poor WiFi network availability, but what little we were able to play together was fun and added a human dimension to the typical AI/arcade light cycle battle game. In Light Cycles, players flick or tap in the direction they want the light cycles to go, avoiding walls, traps, and the light trail of their opponent while attempting to box in their enemy with their own light trail. There are power ups to ride over in the top-down, battle grid play field, some goal-based battles.

The flick controls were solid, the game itself was gorgeous with no slowdown that we could see. The colors and menus all screamed TRON, as did all the games and merchandise on display. It was all a bit much, but the TRON, well, legacy, has become a cultural touchstone for moviegoers and gamers alike. The developers and project managers on hand were truly passionate about the games and the potential, bringing a genuine excitement beyond the typical movie tie-in game.

The mobile game also allows players to unlock the new Daft Punk single, "Derezzed," from the upcoming film soundtrack. There's also a connection to the TRON: Legacy Pop Up Shop, the retail web portal with limited edition TRON merchandise for sale. Coming soon to the app will be a free TRON themed visualizer and Alarm Clock app, which works with a TRON Disk Dock speaker device from Monster.

The second game we were able to play with was the upcoming TRON: Legacy app, set for sale closer to the movie launch and coinciding with the TRON: Legacy movie tie-in games on home consoles and portable handheld gaming devices. The app will include single and multiplayer action set in the TRON universe and cost $0.99. Keep your TRON-anxious eyes right here for more in depth details as they are released.

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