DoubleTake

Developer: Retro Dreamer
Price: FREE
Version Reviewed: 1.0
Reviewed on: iPhone 3GS

iPhone Integration [rating:3.5/5]
Gameplay [rating:3.5/5]
Controls [rating:3.5/5]
User Interface [rating:3.5/5]

Re-use / Replay Value [rating:3/5]

Overall Rating:

Its been a while since I've played a good pair matching game, both on screen and with those trippy animal cards (you know the ones, right?), so when Sneezies developer Retro Dreamer announced their latest title DoubleTake which was just that, complete with OpenFeint, I couldn't resist taking a look.

The game plays out in four modes. These include:

Sprint. In this mode the game becomes an out and out rush to see how many points you can earn in the short space of 1 minute. Failing match no pairs within this time means its game over boyo.

Timed - Just as it suggests, this mode gives any any fresh matches the rather awesome ability to increase time .. the trick here? Whatever you do .. keep that finger moving!

Survival - What would I game be without a survival mode? In this mode each fresh match you manage to create actually increases your overall health. All you have to do is, well .. stay alive!

Basic - The games Basic mode is just as it sounds .. taking things back to basics, you simply have to match every square with another square (forming a pair) as fast as you possibly can!

Just like most pair matching games, DoubleTake sees you trying to find and match objects and squares which are identical in their look and feel. Accompanied by a rather cool per-square flipping animation and set on an ever changing boarding on psychedelic backdrop, the game is played out on a 42 square grid. Gradually (and for most of the time frantically) you tap a pair of squares at a time, turning them over. To make a successful match each square must have an identical object in the corresponding colour. Found a match? You'll have to be quick! A match only counts as one if both tiles are still turned over facing upwards. The game ends when you manage to match all the pairs that are available on the board, successfully. Once you do you'll hear a rather loud crescendo-type sound, with all the pieces of the board glowing, signaling game end.

When each level ends, the game will show you how well you actually did. Here you'll be able to see the time in which you completed the level, and whether this counts as a new record or not and how many moves it took you to complete that certain level. You'll also have the option to see how well those stats compare against others around the world by going online and checking the OpenFeint leader boards If you're not yet familiar with OpenFeint, OpenFeint is social system by Aurora Feint which allows players to record how well they are doing compared to others in a number of apps which support the service.

Overall, while I found DoubleTake to be well-designed, I didn't find anything new or that I hadn't seen before, that I could really latch onto giving this the high replay value I would've expected. That said, for killing a few minutes it's definitely worth picking up. It's worth noting that the app does also support ads via AdMob, although these are pretty noninvasive from my personal experience, and hey the app is free, so I can't complain!

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