Bounce On Review

Before I start this review I just want to apologise ahead of time for the many comparisons I am likely to make between this game and Rolando. That being said, don't assume I'm about to argue how the more publicised and expensive game is superior, because I'm not.

Bounce On is a cute side-scrolling adventure charting the story of a little red ball trying to make its way back to the pocket it fell out of. Along the way it (can I say he?) encounters collectible gems, foes, and all kinds of varied environments that we never knew existed. His quest plays out across 15 levels, starting off easy and steadily become more difficult by the time you reach the end. The levels are displayed on an overview map as can be seen in the image, and the level icons represent the difficulty of the level as well as what medal you've achieved, if you've completed the level. It's a fun way to pick a level, as you even get to roll the ball around to the level you wish to play on. I do think this is cool and do appreciate the effort, however if you're looking for a few minutes of play time, it can be frustrating having to roll your way to one of the later levels every time you start up the game. Plus if you've taken alternative routes you can get stuck on levels you haven't completed yet, and then have to roll all the way round again to go to later levels. Novel way to display the levels though, don't get me way.

The gameplay itself is relatively simple, and is probably exactly as you'd imagine. You roll and bounce along, trying to reach the end of the level, collecting gems along the way and avoiding the enemies. There are checkpoints on some levels, and you are fired out of a cannon once you reach the end of each level. It's very similar to Rolando, although there generally isn't really much of an objective other than to reach the end of each level. Despite lacking an actual challenge or problem to solve, Bounce On poses enough of a challenge in making it to the end, especially in some of the later levels. The height of your bounces is based on how long you hold down for with your finger, so when you're jumping between narrow ledges as you do in later levels, it does take some precise skill/practice/luck. You are awarded medals for making it through the levels; bronze for making it, silver for making it with all gems collected, and then gold for collecting all gems in a certain time. I like how these medals are progressively more challenging, unlike in Rolando where you can concentrate on one medal at a time, with no greater reward for achieving all of the objectives at once. These progressively challenging medal requirements add some replayability, however I can definitely see it becoming frustrating after a while if you are going for gold on some of the later levels.

While the game takes a little getting used to (the controls are great, but maybe not as precise as Rolando's), it is very addictive once you get going. Even if you die repeatedly on a level, you keep trying over and over again, which I never find myself doing with Rolando. Somehow, being able to see the entire level and the challenges ahead put me off after dying a few times, whereas with Bounce On, you just want to give it another go to see if you can get a little further along than you did the last time. However, there are a few things that could be improved to make this a little more enjoyable. You have a certain number of 'lives' as you play each level, and while I see their use for when you've made it to a checkpoint, they seem kind of pointless the rest of the time. If I've died once I'd much rather start the level over with the clock at 0:00, and 2 full lives again, which can be done by leaving the level and going back in. Also, if you're going for a more difficult medal where you have to beat a certain time, it would be nice to have a restart level button in the menu, because as soon as you die once, restarting at the beginning with the clock still ticking makes it impossible. Instead, you have to go back to the overworld, and then re-enter the level to stand a fair chance. Minor other improvements could include a nice visual effect on the ball (while the powerups give the sense of rolling and motion, the standard red ball has no graphical features to make it appear to 'roll' as opposed to just floating along). Also the overworld level selection could be slightly improved to make it quicker to get to the later levels.

With an average rating of 4.5 stars on the App Store (albeit it from only 10 reviews) players are clearly impressed, and the description states new worlds will be released as free updates in the future. While I feel that currently the game may be better off priced at $1.99 instead of $2.99, with a few improvements or a few more levels it would be a good buy at $2.99. If you loved Rolando and need something similar to play, or even if you found Rolando to be a little too complex and demanding, then Bounce On offers similar yet distinctly different gameplay for a much lower price.

Thanks to Team Phobic for the chance to review their game, check it out on their website.