Hypership Out of Control Review

I first played Hypership Out of Control some time ago. Almost one year ago exactly, actually. This was back when it was an Xbox Live Indie Game. I was quite impressed with Fun Infused Games' retro-inspired not-quite shooter, but after spending some time with it on my phone it's become apparent that this game was meant for iOS.

Players assume control over an out-of-control spacecraft as it careens through all manner of obstacles with no space breaks. Unfortunately, the breaks are the only thing that's out. The accelerator is still perfectly functional and perhaps even a little over-zealous. The ship will build speed fairly quickly until it reaches its limit, however successfully navigating a section/wave will increase the speed cap so the longer players survive the tougher it gets. There are some power-ups available along the way to make things a little easier, such as a power shot that can destroy anything it hits (even the seemingly indestructible obstacles), a shield and even one that can significantly slow down the ship for a time.

Playing Hypership Out of Control with a touch screen just feels natural. It uses the same kind of scheme most shmups on the platform do: touch and drag on the screen to move the ship. It's infinitely more responsive and exact than using a joystick or console controller. In addition to just playing great, there are also lots of game modes to keep score-hungry players interested. These include the normal "survive as long as possible" mode, a mode with absolutely no speed cap and my personal favorite, one where the only way to survive is to constantly collect coins. On top of all that there's also an option to flip the levels, so once all the patterns are memorized (no easy task, believe me) it can all be done backwards.

This is normally where I talk about the various issues or problems I've had with the game, but I honestly can't think of any. The retro aesthetic is wonderful, the music is awesome, the controls are spot-on, the challenge is fine-tuned to perfection, there are a ton of variations to enjoy and plenty of achievements to acquire. I suppose I could complain about the various ships that are available to choose from not having any actual affect on the gameplay, save looking different and changing the color of the HUD, but that's all I've got.

In all seriousness, Hypership Out of Control is a gem of an iOS game. It's got all the pick-up-and-play trappings and super-addictiveness that a successful App Store release needs, wrapped in an incredibly tight package and sold for what I'd consider way too small a price. This is a must-own, people. Seriously.