Delifishes Review

Delifishes is a new app by 17-year-old developer Tin Stribor Sohn. It is as simple as games get, but in an age when you can play Final Fantasy V on your iPhone, it's nice to see a humble little retro-style game that will keep you entertained for 30 seconds and doesn't take a lifetime of loading screens to get stuck into. Controlling a baby jellyfish through the use of the gyroscopic (motion-based) controls, players have to navigate around the screen, collecting orange orbs whilst avoiding rival jellyfish, mini torpedoes and fishing hooks. The controls are sensitive and therefore very responsive. One issue I had, however, was that the calibration was slightly off, with no way to re-adjust it. Upon starting a new game, with the iDevice being at what I would call a comfortable angle for playing, the jellyfish shot to the top of the screen and I had to compensate by leaning the device slightly too far towards myself. Even on different devices and after a reset, the issue still persisted, although I'm certain this will be addressed in a future update.

Taking it back to basics, it is impossible not to reminisce about the mobile games of old while playing Delifishes. It has the same pick-up-and-play, quick-fix, one-more-go draw that Snake had back when I was 13. However, rather than a collection of black squares set against an ugly green-lit background, Delifishes is a bright, cute and colourful game that will keep the user coming back for more. Game Center integration simply serves as a further incentive to beat those previous high scores. Although I think this would do better as a free game, those who like their games quick and simple might find reason to make a purchase.