How low can you go? This is the challenge Paper Plane Studio’s App Store debut, Uggy, sets the player. With an eye-popping visual style and what’s best described as a reverse Doodle Jump mechanic at its core, the game has you guiding a cute little creature (think Mike from Monsters Inc but blue) from platform to platform as he falls through a wacky world of trees with eyes and grinning hills, munching magical donuts and racking up high scores en route.
The idea of the game is simple: avoid getting squished at the top of the screen or falling off the bottom for as long as humanly possible. However, this is more easily said than done as different types of platforms – some which have to be landed on, and others that should be avoided (the ones with snapping teeth in particular) – will test your reactions to their limit, while knowing when best to trigger your special abilities quickly becomes a necessity.
Aimed squarely at the casual crowd, the game’s non-complex style of play and pitch perfect tilt controls (there are also touch and point options) may only take minutes to get to grips with, but once you’re hooked putting the game down again is considerably harder to do.
With 5 difficulty levels, a host of unlockable achievements and online leaderboards, Uggy is certainly no slouch when it comes to providing a lengthy single player game with tons of replayability. Yet it’s a couple of well implemented bluetooth multiplayer modes that truly help this title to stand out from the crowd. Friendly has two Uggies sharing a health bar and working together to achieve a high score, while Hostile, as the name implies, pits Uggy against Uggy in a tense battle for the best power-ups and last monster standing victory.
Overall I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this little game – admitedly having seen the screenshots I initially wrote it off as yet another Doodle Jump wannabe – the crisp graphics, pick-up-and-play accessibility, and brilliant two player options making for a remarkably fully featured package for the 99 cent asking price. Recommended.
iFanzine Verdict: What Uggy lacks in originality it more than makes up for with wonderfully addictive gameplay, a striking visual style and fun multiplayer modes. Paper Plane are definately an indie dev worth keeping an eye on.
[xrr rating=3.5/5]