The Hero – Review

It’s super, man
Damn, being a super-hero has got to be the coolest job on the planet! Just look at the perks- there’s the obligatory buff body and natty costume of course, the ability to sweep chicks off their feet (literally), you save a small fortune on air travel and, best of all, get to wear your underpants on the outside and no-one dares giggle.

Preeety sweet, right? Well no actually, because according to Chillingo and Traplight Games’ tongue-in-cheek take on super-hero mythology, it’s not all high-flying fun and games.
Anything but it would seem, as with great powers comes a shed-load of responsibility.
There’s nary a minute when there isn’t a bank robbery to be foiled, a raging fire to be snuffed out, or a falling baby to be plucked from the sky. And that’s just for starters; it’s not too long before terrorists, ninjas, aliens, zombies and giant insects crash the party.
And while a desk-job suddenly might sound more appealing, thankfully The Hero is a helluva lot of fun to play. Touch or tilt controls (the on-screen d-pad my personal choice) guide the burly protagonist through vibrant 2d cities, as you soar around saving lives and fighting crime.
Each level in campaign mode begins with a quick briefing from the donut-chomping chief of police who fills you in on what to expect, be it parachuting infants or mutant bugs, and introduces new characters such as your arch-enemy, the nefarious Dr. Hubbub.

Basically most stages play out the same, with you twatting as many enemies as you can, keeping collateral damage to a minimum and topping up your “fame gauge” by hi-fiving members of the fickle public as they lean out of their windows. This an arcadey experience, that despite lashings of comic book style and humour, gets a tad repetitive a few levels in.

Fortunately though the pace soon picks up again as new powers (Freeze, Boom and Zapp) are unlocked, a dizzyingly diverse rogues gallery of foes try their damnest to put you out of commision and crazy achievements are dished out for the more outlandish heroics.

All in all, the main game, while it doesn’t quite live up to the pre-release hype, is an enjoyable and action-packed romp while it lasts. And once you’ve battled your way through two difficulty levels worth of campaign mode, there’s a host of challenging survival stages to be tackled and online leaderboards to dominate.

As far as superhero titles on iPhone are concerned, it’s safe to say- best.game.ever.


iFanzine Verdict: A stylish and darkly humourous take on the superhero game, chock-a-block with arcade action, larger than life characters and a diverse roster of enemies for you to open a can of whup-ass on. Super-fun!

Score: 8 out of 10

iPhone apps at AppStoreHQ