Mobile offerings took a huge step in 2008 and 2009 as mobile phones themselves got a shot in the arm with new mobile smartphones taking center stage. Mobile phones, once merely there to address the immediate call-making and -receiving needs of business executives and emergency response personnel, have emerged as true personal items capable of almost anything in today’s technologically-advanced age. Ringtones, which serve as classy announcements that the phone is receiving a call or message, have transformed from simple MIDI-type beeps into full-on clips from your favorite songs. Calls and messages themselves have gone higher and higher on the tech level, from voice calls to video calls to videoconferencing and from simple text messages to multimedia messages.
One of the most exciting new developments is the mobile app, which has itself taken center stage in the last year or so. New “smart” phones now have the ability to run mini-software applications on their sophisticated hardware platforms and operating systems, and these apps have displayed multiple functions and features as developers scramble to take their piece of the pie. Whether it’s a sophisticated business and planning organizer that keeps track of your appointments and schedules, or a multimedia library planner that keeps track of your downloaded and listed music and video files, mobile apps have not without reason become all the rage in the last year. Among the newest and most popular types of mobile apps are games, which may be ports of existing console games or all-new creations from startup developers.
One popular new app is Cartoon Wars: Fight for the Black and White, a new game by developer ganawoo choi that combines affordability [at a surprising $.99], compact size [clocking in at a comfortable 3.0mb], and entertainment value. This arcade-style game blends Tower Defense and RTS play styles to portray a civil war between black-and-white toons and full-color creatures, who are positioned on either side of a field. The tower defense aspect comes into play when you fight to keep the opposing side at bay and far from your own castle, while using the real-time strategy aspect to try and breach their defenses and break down their own castle. Gold, which is gained through the progress of the battle, can be used to upgrade and strengthen your forces by giving them better weapons and attributes.
Gameplay is fairly simple, with the central elements being your castle, a lineup of soldiers and your cannon, as well as your mana booster. Mana is currency used to spawn and fortify soldiers, and the cannon is for longer-range assaults that come in handy when you don’t have enough mana to create a soldier. However, the cannon can’t be aimed without firing it, which puts a wrench into the more strategic aspects of its use. Nevertheless, the cannon and the soldiers are a formidable force in protecting your castle, whose life bar must remain sustained throughout your play. The soldiers, after all, can offset the weaknesses of the canon – mana increases at a rate of 1 unit per second before you upgrade your booster, and gives you the means with which to upgrade your cartoon soldiers and even create higher-spec ones as you go along.
The graphics and music in the game are simple but they suit the genre, with NES-like cartoony and pixel-based artwork competently executing the look well and blending capably with the medieval-style bells and violins [if the latter isn’t to your taste, you can play music from your own library]. All told, good value for money and a reasonably full play experience – while not without notable flaws – makes it a solid download.
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