Appletell reviews Bugz for iPhone, iPod touch

Category: Game
Developer: Didev Studios
Requirements: iPhone 2.1 software
Compatibility: iPhone and iPod Touch
File Size: 3.2MB
Version Reviewed: 1.2.0
Price: $0.99
Age Rating: 4+

When I discovered I was going to review Bugz, my first though was that is was a Pixar movie in which a cockroach travels great distances and overcomes a great deal of peril in getting to its destination, which turns out to be a twinkie crumb. In actuality Bugz is a game for the iPhone/iPod touch. Go figure.

My first impression of the game is that it reminds me of a scene transition from That 70s Show, or a skit from Yo Gabba Gabba. Very trippy and psychedelic. Kinda cool. The first time I played the game, however, I did notice that the gameplay is identical to an application I have already reviewed: Sneezies. You start a chain reaction of explosions, and if another bug is touched, it, too, explodes, thereby causing a chain reaction. That is if you’re successful. The iTunes store lists the release date from the most recent update, not from the date when the game was first introduced, so I am not able to tell which application hit the market first. Regardless, the gameplay is where the similarities end.

Bugz has a really neat feature that you are introduced to before beginning game play; it allows you to store profiles. This is a feature you don’t see a lot on iPhone/iPod touch games. My daughter, my son, and my wife can all have a different profile and have a specific game saved for them. The developer is claiming 102 levels of gameplay. I will never test this to see if it is true or not, but why advertise 102 specifically, not a round number, if it’s not accurate? As with most iPhone/iPod Touch games, there is an online component to the scoring, allowing you to track your scores with others that are playing Bugz.

The best feature of the game by far is the sound system. You can not only change the music in the game, but you can listen to your iPod at the same time if you choose to. Nice touch on the sound. It is not obvious, however, where to make these changes. You actually have to go into the settings application and scroll down to Bugz and modify the settings there. There is no instruction anywhere in the game to tell you this; I found it on the description page in iTunes. It’s a cool feature, so I would want to tell the users inside the application if I am the developer. I made a couple of attempts to speak with the developer, and I was either ignored or no one is monitoring the e-mail address they have listed. That tells me something.

Overall a decent game with some cool features, just like Sneezies. I am torn when it comes to my opinion of this game. The developer is unavailable, and the gameplay is exactly like another game. I was hoping for a better showing from the developer.

Appletell Rating:

Buy Bugz