Jetpack Joyride

There's unprecedented hype around Jetpack Joyride. Not because it's a game springing off a popular franchise, nor does it offer anything revolutionary in the mobile gaming sphere. The studio developed a wildly popular pocket arcade game. This title is the next offering, which makes players excited about reigniting that fun factor.

Jetpack Joyride has nothing to do with anything previously released by the studio. It's an entirely new intellectual property designed to leverage the popularity of endless runner games on mobile. From the initial outlook, the game doesn't offer anything groundbreaking in terms of mechanics. However, we're well aware of what this studio can do to entertain, which sparks anticipation. So does it live up to its hype?

Adrenaline Thief

Anyone that's played Halfbrick games will immediately know this casual mobile game's protagonist. Barry Steakfries returns under the narrative of stealing a jetpack from a secret lab, initiating the gameplay of flying around using this airborne device forever. So once you've clipped that jetpack, what's next? In typical studio fashion, mechanics are straightforward yet provide an exponential challenge.

Players must stay afloat on their jetpack for as long as possible to avoid obstacles that progressively become more difficult to dodge. You'll rack up points with survival time elapsed and garner additional rewards from collecting tokens and other shiny treasures pugged away en route. If you'd explain this to anyone, it sounds like another arcade game. However, Jetpack Joyride is highly addictive.

The studio has built another winner in making Jetpack Joyride accessible to anyone. The game mechanics immerse players immediately, presenting a clear-cut challenge to beat your best score. Jetpack Joyride's colorful, fluid aesthetic also contributes to the title's allure. There are plenty of thrills and spills, and facing defeat rarely means you want to give up and put it down; you want to try again.

You have to give it to the studio so that they understand what makes an addictive mobile game. Their formula of easy-to-play, hard-to-master, and comical themes has created a series of the most popular portable titles of all time. Their stride towards canonical relevance continues with Jetpack Joyride.

The Joyride of the Year

If you had to pick one flaw, it would be the watered-down competitiveness of Jetpack Joyride in the online sphere. The lack of leaderboards can limit gameplay because you'd instead showcase your skill to the world rather than yourself. Endless runners like Temple Run push that feature a little better, offering a little more incentive to get your highest score.

Round-Up - Pros & Cons

Pros:

• Straightforward, accessible mechanics
• The randomness of some obstacles provides thrilling gameplay
• One of the most fluid mobile gaming experiences

Cons:

• The lack of online leaderboards removes global competitiveness