Tag: Flying »

Games involving flying down narrow corridors using only a single button for lift have been around almost as long as video tennis. Some of these iterations get around the stigma associated with "classic" formulas by using attention-grabbing visuals or funky music. Still others just go nuts and see what sticks.

Doodle Plane, from the minds over at Chitralekha Productions, mostly follows the example of the former. It's pretty much flying through narrow spaces and tapping a button to climb, but the colorful chalkboard graphics (and "sketchy" animations) make it a bit more interesting visually. The addition of a throttle, however, adds a (basic) new dimension to the idea. Having to carefully monitor height and speed make the levels a bit more frantic, and it's all too easy to accidentally fly past a parachuting office worker (?) when not being careful. If nothing else, it certainly ups the challenge.

It's also interesting how Doodle Plane forgoes the typical endless corridor design of most similar titles and instead uses stages with a definitive start and finish. Shortly after taking off the levels fall into the expected "one wrong move and BOOM" pattern, but after a bit players will reach an actual end and have to ever-so-delicately try to land their scribbly aeronautical nightmare. It's not as tough as it sounds, but as with the hapless skydivers it can be easy to overshoot the target when not paying attention.

I doubt anyone who doesn't enjoy these kinds of games will jump at the chance to play Doodle Plane, but I imagine genre fans will have a good amount of fun with it. Especially as the addition of take-off and landing segments, as well as mid-air rescues, make it more than just a simple re-skinning of a classic.

Ever want to fly around as a bat dodging cats and planes? It's not something that immediately occured to me as a fantastic creature to become but The Night Flier ensures that such an experience is great and cutesy fun.

Flying is the name of the game here with 10 unique levels ensuring plenty of variety throughout. Simply glide from rooftop to rooftop avoiding the many obstacles while popping balloons and eating midges. As the levels go on, the bat gets faster and faster making for a frantic but addictive experience.

High scores are based around completing each level as fast as possible with GameCenter, Twitter and Facebook connectivity enabling players to compare their best scores.

The Night Flier looks set to be a fun distraction for both younger players and adults with its cute and loveable appearance. The bat even changes looks after each level.

The Night Flier is a free and universal app with in-app purchases also available.