Doodle Dive Review
Price: $0.99
Version Reviewed: 1.0.1
Device Reviewed On: iPhone 3G
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Doodle Dive turns the concept of doodle games and vertical platformers on its head, literally. Instead of trying to ascend as far into the heavens as you can, here you're trying to make the caped blue protagonist Doodle Dave descend as far as possible, avoiding enemies and picking up items in the process. There are collectible blocks that grant you an extra life for every 100 that you collect, and powerups that let you smash enemies or slow your descent to let you easily collect more blocks.
However, the doodle art style is becoming overplayed, and endless vertical "platformers" are hardly fresh either, so despite Doodle Dive's attempts to provide its own twists, it still feels a bit derivative at times. The game does have OpenFeint implemented, but there's no hint of it unless you click the "Online" button. While OpenFeint usage by players is often low, hiding it from even seasoned users is a mistake, as there are cool features like the ability to see who's next on the global leaderboard as you cross into the top 25 scores that are otherwise hidden from view behind an ambiguous "Online" button.
Doodle Dive may not be the most original game on the App Store, but it does a good job at differentiating itself slightly from the other doodle-style endless games that have come along, and isn't a bad fix for those looking for something new in a crowded genre.