This week we look at two iPhone apps with suspiciously similar titles - Fling, a never-ending puzzle game drenched in colour and Ping, a low fuss messaging app that costs less than a phone call.
Fling!
Fling!, from the developers behind Fuzzle, is another fairly simple puzzle game on the App Store. The objective is to fling (thus the title) those little furry fellows (in the screenshot above)*off the screen by bumping them into each other, and eventually be left with only one on the virtual board. There's only a few rules - you can't fling two creatures sitting next to each other and a time limit is set for completing each level (except in free-play).*You can choose to play in arcade mode (based on 'beat the clock' style gameplay), challenge mode (the goal is mostly to beat your best while playing new levels) or the self-explanatory free-play mode.
The best part of Fling! is it's interface. Whether the game sounds like your cup of tea or not, it's worth noting the apparent work that's gone into making it look good. The menus and controls are reasonably easy to navigate and well presented, while the characters themselves are bright, colourful and fun to, well, fling! In fact, the interface itself has retained my interest in Fling! for quite some time. The first few levels can become a little tedious, but once you achieve and unlock harder games, you may just find yourself to be somewhat addicted.
The developers promise that you'll never, ever run into the same two boards - apparently, more than 10,000 are included at varying levels of difficulty. Of course, it's extremely hard to test that so I can't guarantee if you'll play the same game twice, but I think I'll trust the developers on this one. I've given this to a few friends to get their thoughts, and I have to say that Fling! might not be your type of game... most have enjoyed it but some lost interest quickly. A free, limited version of the game is available (and currently sits at #1 on the App Store) so give that a go first and see for yourself.
Version reviewed: 1.1.2
Price: $1.19
Developer: CandyCane LLC
App Store
Ping!
If you've been browsing the App Store recently, you've probably noticed the low cost iPhone-to-iPhone messaging application, Ping!. Since it's release just one week ago, the app*has already taken the number one spot on both the free and paid App Store charts (it was briefly free during the first few launch days before becoming paid). It makes sense - any application that offers free texting with quick setup has to sound appealing - especially when, for iPhone users, it works over the cellular network too.
The good news is that Ping! delivers. Unlike most of the ever-growing number of IM apps filling the Store, the way that*Ping! works is extraordinarily simple. I was initially sceptical about the sign up process, but quickly found that it couldn't be any easier to set up. Essentially, all you need to do is download it and create a username. Then, of course, you can add folks who are also using*Ping! - but here in lies this app's biggest problem. Like any messaging system, the most important part of it's success is the number of regular users it has.*A perfect example of this is MSN/Messenger/MicrosoftWindowsLivePlatinumOnlineMessagingSystem® . It's poorly developed, poorly executed and totally insecure, but a large number of users means a successful system. Until it was released last week,*Ping! had just about none.
Aside from it's (currently) low user base, Ping! is a wonderful example of how the future of cellphone messaging will be formed. It does away with the idea of being identified by a number, away with the idea of character limits and away with the idea of charging for quick messages. iPod touch users looking for a messaging alternative should go and download this application right way - it's the closest thing to true SMS that touch owners will ever get, and by utilising Push Notifications, it's also just as convenient to check your messages as iPhone users can with more traditional services. I truly hope that Ping! takes off among iPhone users just as Microsoft's IM service has among PC users, but patience is needed as more and more people download and install this powerful messaging app.
Version reviewed: 1.0.1
Price: $1.19
Developer: Gary Fung
App Store
iPhone App Reviews - Fling! & Ping!