Jurassic Lark
Man, I am so not down with the kids. Case in point? I somehow managed to almost completely miss out on the Chop Chop craze that’s been sweeping the App Store ever since Gamerizon released Chop Chop Ninja back in ’09. So time to make amends and regain some street cred by getting to grips with the latest title in the immensely popular series, Chop Chop Caveman (out now, $0.99), a timely throwback to the classic sidescrolling platform games of yesteryear, methinks!
Within moments of loading up this little beauty, I was damn near floored by an overwhelming rush of nostalgia. And halfway through the game’s first level, I could totally get why Gamerizon has amassed a cult following among iGamers with this franchises’ winning blend of old school presentation and new school sensibilities. Put simply, you’ll love Chop Chop Caveman whether your ancient enough to recall playing the titles that inspired it or if your iPod/iPhone is your very first game console.
Chop Chop Caveman sees you guiding an oval-headed early man (think Family Guy’s Stewie, circa 10000 BC) through a sumptuously rendered series of sidescrolling stages – a Mario Land-esque jungle abounding with oversized venus flytraps (natch), a swamp and an eerie bone-yard, to name but a few – tasked with turning every dinosaur you encounter along the way into a tasty snack.
Now, as I say, this is a back-to-basics platformer at heart, meaning each stage features plenty of pits to be jumped over, moving platforms to ride and secret areas/objects to find. But while there’s a definite retro vibe to the game’s brilliant level design, Gamerizon have taken care to also put a contemporary, touchscreen friendly twist on the gameplay. New-fangled features arrive in the form of an amusing, albeit simplistic, series of physics-based environmental puzzles and not one, but two, well devised control schemes – a ‘one touch’ method and a virtual d-pad/action buttons combo (my preferred option) – that makes traversing the outlandish environments and attacking enemies a smooth, intuitive affair.
For the best part, I thoroughly adored Chop Chop Caveman. As mentioned, the puzzles tend to be a bit too straightforward, but then again figuring out how to best some of the game’s inventive array of boss enemies did give me pause for thought. And, to be honest, my only real criticism of the game is that it ended all too soon and left me wanting for more. But, hey, I’ve still got another five Chop Chop titles to catch up on, right?
iFanzine Verdict: Chop Chop Caveman is a little on the easy side, and it ends all too soon, but it’s pretty much impossible to find fault with any other aspect of the game. From the vibrant visuals and charming concept to the well devised control scheme(s) and superb level design, this is up there with the very best iOS platformers.
[xrr rating=4/5]