Strip Music Box Review

We've seen this type of game plenty of times before: tap the screen when the icon passes through the line as precisely as possible to achieve the highest score. While Strip Music Box makes a valiant attempt at creating a similar type of game, it falls short in a couple of areas.

In this game a strip a paper scrolls across the screen, as music plays, with icons that direct players to either tap, tap and hold, or swipe in the direction indicated. These icons act as the music notes that should be performed as soon as they pass through a vertical line positioned over the strip of paper. An indicator at the bottom of the screen shows how much life the player has left. Too many errors will end the game. At the end of each song players are given a percentage score and letter grade. Also, once a song is completed the next one becomes unlocked.

Sometimes the icons are simply dots that are tapped on a trackpad. Other times, the icons are numbers that are performed on a number pad. While the track pad is very easy to use, the number pad adds a great deal of confusion to the gameplay. Sometimes the number pad is a three by three grid of one through nine. Other times, if the trackpad is also present, the numbers are positioned in a grid of one through eight, with number one starting on the bottom row. Take a look at the screen shots to fully understand how it becomes very confusing.

In addition to the confusing controls, I experienced some hiccups or glitches that occurred when I played a wrong number, or when there were many icons to play, close to each other, at a fast tempo. This suggests that the app is just not completely solid yet.

One of the most important aspects of an app like this one is the music. There are only six songs available, and are very short in length. Furthermore, the style of music is much different that you'll find in other games of this type, and is just not for everybody. While Strip Music Box has a beautiful user interface, the fun factor just isn't here. The music is strange, the controls are confusing, and the content is limited.