Peggle Review (iPhone)

Peggle for the iPhone and iPod touch sucks--but I don't mean pejoratively. It is litterally sucking up much more of my free time (and battery power) than should be allowed. There are several key reasons this is the definitive version of Peggle for me: It's accessability, the platforms inherent touch screen controls and the overall excellent translation to Apple's platform. It's actually a dangerous prospect for gamers-on-the-run like me because its addiction is like a ninja. It will sneak up on you and take you by surprise!

But not surprisingly, Popcap utilizes the iPhones touch screen interface to control the game really well. The controls are on par with it's mouse driver counterparts on the other platforms thanks to it's three aiming modes: The finger-swipe for broad aiming, a crank located on the right-hand side of the screen for fine-tuning adjustments to aim and finally a double-tap zoom in mode for access to a really percise aiming mode. The combination of these three aiming mechanics really allow for a less frustration expereince and not once have I found them to be clumsy.

In addition to that, Popcap has added a OMG-I-have-a-plane-to-catch fast forward button that allows you to lessen the wait time. It can be used to speed up the wait for that perfect shot, or--not that I would encourage it--you can even use it during the "Ode to Joy" segment if you wish.

Popcap has also included the ability to capture replays for those one-in-a-million shots that you must show off to friends and family. Though I've not exepreinced any performance issues on my iPod touch, I have heard of some performance issues with older hardware. Nothing that would destroy the experience, but it's only fair to mention it for those that are hyper sensetive to those kinds of things.

Much like the original game, Peggle for the iPhone includes 55 levels and only 40 of the 75 Grandmaster challanges that are in the other versions.

With an asking price of $4.99 this game provides a excellent amount of entertainment for iPhone gamers but to be fair it's a little pricey when considering the average price of similar games (Pachingo is $.99) is a 1/5 of the price.

I almost always have my iPod with me and not my DS . That being said, with all the tweaks mentioned above, the pass-the-phone duel mode, and trophy room--this makes it my favorite version of Peggle.