continue?9876543210 Review

Few times does the average mobile game really get philosophical. Almost no one will claim that Rovio attempted to show the plight of the working class with Angry Birds, nor would anyone accuse King of using Candy Crush Saga to address the growing obesity epidemic in America. But those hoping for a deeper meaning within their games need look no further than the peculiar indie title continue?9876543210 - a game that explores the age old question: Where do video game characters go when they die?

In continue?9876543210 we meet one such brave adventurer; one out of a group of them who has met his untimely demise at the hands of a foe and wakes up in an unfamiliar location. It's essentially the digital version of purgatory. Throughout this land of Random Access Memory the hero works to, as the great poet Dylan Thomas writes, avoid "going gently into that good night" and evade inevitable capture by the garbage collector, which will delete the protagonist into nothingness. There is no avoiding the end, but continue?9876543210 isn't about winning per se, it's about the spiritual and philosophical journey. The game pieces together a story through broken sentences and artistic, almost poetic constructs of words. While there is no avoiding death, there is the journey to either get lighting or prayers. Each of these will give players advantages to delay the inevitable.

Perhaps the only real issue with continue?9876543210 is the controls. While the look and sound of this game is amazing and makes perfect sense given the theme, sometimes the movement of the hero can feel awkward; mainly based on how the control schemes are set up. On the iPhone the controls may seem rather small, while on the iPad, the controls can feel cumbersome. The on screen directional pad requires special attention by the player to make sure they aren't missing their queues. This difficulty with the controls, in turn, can make the combat in this game a tad challenging.

continue?9876543210 is one of the more sui generis titles in the app store. It sets forth to tell a story and answer an age old question as to what happens to our heroes in games once they pass on. Through its imaginative text and entertaining gameplay, players can explore the more philosophical side of gaming and the afterlife of digital beings. While there really is no chance at victory and the controls feel less than perfect, continue?98765433210 is an exquisite game that any iOS device owner should not miss out on.