Game review: Chopper 2

For iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch

BY GERARD CAMPBELL

Last updated 09:11 17/08/2010

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A screenshot from Chopper 2.

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Will you buy Chopper 2?

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In 2008, Wellington game developer David Frampton made a helicopter game for the iPhone called Chopper.

It found favour with gamers around the world, and became an App Store sensation. (Last week it was No 3 on the US iPad App Store.)

Chopper 2 is the sequel, a side- scrolling game that is easy to play, and perfect for those moments when you have a few minutes to spare.

With an impressive-looking 3-D engine and some equally impressive mission intros that feature flying text, you fly your helicopter through 36 missions by tilting your iPod/iPhone left, right, up and down across a variety of landscapes.

The tilt controls work flawlessly, although sometimes I inadvertently hit the pause button by accident, when firing weapons.

If tilt isn't your thing, use an on-screen analogue joystick to pilot the helicopter.

Your helicopter is armed with bombs and machine guns, and you'll need them to defeat the enemy forces, including tanks and soldiers firing heat-seeking missiles.

You'll also have to avoid flocks of birds as you rescue stranded civilians and ferry around allies.

A nice feature is that if you own an both an iPod/iPhone and an iPad, you can use a Bluetooth connection to fly the helicopter on the iPad using the smaller device.

I see a bright future for Chopper 2. It is well worth the $4.19 and has New Zealand content to boot.

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