Superbloke Review

A bloke's gotta do what a bloke's gotta do - and sometimes that involves lobbing grenades at baddies that thoroughly deserve it. Superbloke is a 2D platformer/physics game by Videodane that features plenty of running, jumping, and bombing. Players take control of "Superbloke," a yellow Gumby-like critter toting a supply of explosives and detonators.

Superbloke's weird, pixelated world supplies him with plenty of platforms and traps to navigate, and even more enemies to do away with. However, unlike Mario or Sonic, Bloke's stubby legs aren't any good for leaping on bad guys' heads. Instead he must chuck grenades at his foes - and given how many of them perch in high places guarded by narrow passageways, doing so is often harder than it sounds. Superbloke can be moved around via swipe controls or on-screen buttons, and both schemes work surprisingly well Though it would be nice if the buttons were adjustable and/or more visible. There's a great deal of hopping to be done in Superbloke, and for the most part the game's controls won't betray the player.

The grenade-throwing mechanics might prove a bit troublesome, however. The player brings up the targeting reticle by tapping on Superbloke, then swiping to throw an explosive. The targeting and physics are accurate; operating the detonator is what tends to get fingers in a bind. Once a grenade is thrown it can be exploded instantly by pressing the detonator icon in the upper-left hand corner of the screen. Doing so is often necessary to kill enemies in a safe and timely manner, but tapping Superbloke and then tapping the detonator when the grenade is properly-positioned can be a real chore when he's perched on a collapsing platform.

Good thing Superbloke's frustrations are generally offset by its strengths. The levels are decently-sized, set with plenty of checkpoints, and contain lots of branching paths that lead to extra lives, coins, and other goodies. When one level is completed, it's hard to resist jumping to the next. The game even utilizes a star-rating system, so it's worth re-visiting old levels and attempting a better performance.

Superbloke has its flaws, but it's solid as far as mobile-based platformers go. Superbloke is a cool little dude to spend time with.