One Minute Gaming #28 - Where's My Water 2

 This week, I took a look at a classic Disney game called Where's My Water 2. It's a swiping puzzle game where you have to create pathways for the water to get to various members of the Alligator family. Swampy wants to take a shower but Allie needs steam for her steam powered musical instruments!

That doesn't sound too hard at first but there are gates, funnels, steam, poisonous water and you also have to get the rubber ducks wet to capture them on the way! Some of the challenges flip the world upside down which is strange and kinda messes with your brain!

It has different ducks for you to collect and a variety of power ups. There is a real cash shop but it only has 2 options - a starter pack of power ups & hints and a monster bundle with more of the same. I've also not seen more than a couple of adverts which is a refreshing change for so many of these free games!

The characters are cute in a Disney way and the music is what you would expect. I think kids would love this game if they like puzzles and have the patience to keep trying. I only downloaded it a couple of days ago but I've been playing it a fair bit and I may very well keep this one for the occasional brain exercise so I'm giving Where's My Water 2 an 8 out of 10.

If you have a game you'd like me to try, you can contact me on twitter @NevAHAddict

So until next time, have fun!

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Ingress Got Me Out & About!

Just before I left for my trip to the USA, Ingress became available to iPhone users and Cold picked it up immediately. I have a few Ingress players on my Twitter feed too so I'd seen a few posts about it but never really took much notice. Sadly my Android phone is a 'lite' version which is nice and cheap on my monthly budget but doesn't have much memory so I couldn't play. All that changed when I arrived Stateside though. You'd think after almost 5 months apart that Cold would have put his phone away and talked to me - well, he did, for about 5 minutes at a time!

Yes, he was hooked. Everywhere we went, he had his phone in his hand to hack or capture portals, make links and fields and generally not pay much attention to crossing roads. At first it drove me crazy and I felt like slapping the phone right out of his hand but I'd budgeted to get myself a phone I could use in the US so once I bought my Samsung S3, I downloaded the game so I could play too.

I should mention that I had already downloaded it for my iPad and although my iPad is wi-fi only, I am able to use my old phone as a mobile hotspot so I had tried to play a bit at home. Unfortunately my whole town only had about 8 portals in it so it meant I needed to jump in the car every time I wanted to hack a portal! Obviously that wasn't practical, but in St Louis, Cold has about 10 portals within 50 yards of his building and 2 he can reach from his sofa! Needless to say, the old motto of 'if you can't beat them, join them' applied here and by 6 weeks into my stay, I hit Level 8 and over 1 million XP!

Enlightened Logo T-shirtCheck PriceBrake For Portals Bumper StickersCheck PriceI'd Rather Be Portal Hacking MugCheck Price

Living in a city with great public transport means you don't really need a car so we hacked portals as we walked or rode the bus. Once his vacation time was over and I had all day to myself, I found that I was going out to walk around the University Campus just to hack portals and maintain our coverage of the area. There's also a nice short walk to fill/maintain about 6 other portals too so if I didn't have time for a full Campus walk, I'd just go do the lap around the block instead!

It may seem sad but we also planned some of our day trips based on portal density. We were going places for me to see parts of the city I hadn't seen but if we couldn't decide where to go, the portal density was the deciding factor! There are various achievements in the game, including Unique Portals hacked and Unique Captures so it's a great motivator to get out and about to places you've not been before. We had a weekend in Philadelphia while I was there too and that gave us over 300 new portals on our scores.

Overall, it's a great idea for a game and if there's anything that will get a gamer out and about, it's having targets and achievements to reach. Now that I'm home, I will be keeping my eyes open for places and things to submit as new portals in my home town. Since I've been away, there are already 4 or 5 new portals here so I'm hopeful that a walk in town will not only keep me moving but will help my game experience too!

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One Minute Gaming #27 - Star Wars Commander

This week, I downloaded Star Wars Commander. At first glance, it's very much a Star Wars themed Clash of Clans, a resources management, base building type game. The tutorial is filled with familiar faces and the Intergalactic nature of the graphics are pretty good.

You build your base using alloy and credits which are the two resources you will be collecting and waiting for. At the lowest levels, resources can build up fairly easily, the building upgrades are fairly cheap to buy & are completed quickly.

If this game follows the same path as Clash of Clans, the higher levels could get very slow and patience will be a huge requirement!

The biggest difference besides the theme is that in Star Wars Commander, you can recruit Heroes from across the Galaxy. You do have to recruit them after each use but that will just add a little variety to your army make up.

Overall, it's very polished and if you like Star Wars and haven't played Clash of Clans or Boom Beach then this could be a good game for you. If you have played those other games then I'd guess you won't want to play yet another version!

Looking at it with fresh eyes, I'd give it an 8 out of 10 although I won't be playing it as I'm still building my base in Clash of Clans!

If you have a game you'd like me to try, you can contact me on twitter @NevAHAddict.

So until next time, have fun

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One Minute Gaming #26 - Zombie Dive

This week, I've been playing a game called Zombie Dive - yes, a Zombie high diving competition with great graphics, spooky music and some great sound effects. There's a little humorous trash talking too but it's very family safe stuff.

The tutorial takes you through how to make the dives and then the competition starts! You have 3 attempts to reach the target score and each dive required is shown at the top of the screen - you just have to watch the wind gauge and land in the oil tank! If you do mess up though, you can always bribe the judges for extra dives - they really like cookies!

The only thing that spoils it for me is the adverts in between each dive competition - with only 3 or 4 dives seperating them, they do become a bit annoying but any cash shop purchase will remove them - not sure I like this game enough to spend cash though!

Overall it's a fun game that might keep the kids occupied for a while but I don't see it as addictive or having staying power so I'll give it a 6 out of 10.

If you have a game you'd like me to try, you can contact me on Twitter @NevAHAddict.

So until next time, have fun!

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One Minute Gaming #22 - Toilet Time

This week, I found a silly game called Toilet Time which was one of the titles suggested for this segment so of course, I had to review this game for you! It's also available on Android so no-one gets left out! You can get the Android version of Toilet Time via Amazon and like the ipad version, it's free too.

It really is a silly 5 minute game but it is quite catchy too. If you've ever played Dumb Ways To Die, you'll have a good idea of this game. If you haven't played Dumb Ways to Die - Toilet Time is just a series of very quick puzzles - probably 15 seconds each and you have four toilet rolls for lives!

There's a maze, a wash your hands, a squish the bug and a sort the queue into male & female puzzle to name just a few but it is definitely schoolboy toilet humour throughout.

There's a challenge to beat a certain score & if you do, you get a golden key - that reveals a historic toilet display in the toilet museum with a witty description - so far I've found a Pee-ramid, and Eco-loo and a Chinese loo with a saying from Con-poo-cius!

Overall it's a pretty sad game but it does have a little humour. I'd give it a 4 out of 10 and probably flush it pretty quickly!

If you have a game you'd like me to try out, you can contact me on Twitter @NevAHAddict or perhaps leave a comment below.

So until next time, have fun!

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One Minute Gaming #21 - Asphalt 8

This week, I stepped way out of my usual game types to try a Car Racing game. I picked Asphalt 8 as it had the best reviews out of the top few racing games & I have to say, I have been pleasantly surprised!

The graphics are brilliant and the music is changeable - you can choose between Bass, Electronic & Rock so there should be something for everyone to get your blood pumping as you race.

There's loads of different tracks, race styles, achievements, cars, upgrades etc - way too many to describe here but although I've only done a few races, I'm really enjoying it. I even won my 2nd race!!!

Some of the reviews were a bit negative about the pay to win shop & yes, that is going to be a factor if you want to play competitively but as a free app, it is a great game and you can not only race your friends, you can race their ghost cars too so even if you can't play at exactly the same time, you can still beat their butts!

I'd give this an 8 out of 10 and I have a feeling I might be playing this one for a while too!

If you have a game you'd like me to try, you can contact me on twitter @NevAHAddict or you can leave a comment below.

So until next time, have fun!

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One Minute Gaming #20 - Fates Forever

Fates Forever

This week I've been trying out a new MOBA for the iPad called Fates Forever and I have to say on first impressions, I'm pretty impressed! I've been playing League of Legends this year and this Fates Forever feels very very similar.

The graphics are a bit cutesy  but as it's based on animals as the heroes and set in a woodland environment, I guess cute is not really a surprise! I do like the music & voice acting too.

I've played through the tutorials and I have to say, I think they are some of the best tutorials I've come across - a total MOBA newbie could easily pick up the basics and enjoy playing straight off.

There's the usual gear shop within the game which uses gold earned in a match - that will be familiar to MOBA players but there's also a way to earn Ore by playing. Jade is the Real Money option and you can buy it to use instead of Ore to unlock characters to play.

But there's no need to pay to unlock characters - each week has different free ones and earning Ore works just as well for most purchases even if it takes a little longer!

If you're looking for a portable MOBA to get your fix between League of Legends or Smite fixes, this could well be an option for you - I love it and give it a 9 out of 10. I haven't actually played it very much but with a long journey coming up, I'm pretty sure this game will help pass a lot of time in the air!

If you have a game you'd like me to try, you can contact me on twitter @NevAHAddict or leave a comment below.

so until next time - have fun!

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One Minute Gaming #19 - PewPew!

PewPew!

This week I've found a new version of an old favorite arcade game - it's called PewPew and is an updated version of Asteroids and yes, it does have pewpew sound effects too!

The graphics are simple line elements and the basic controls are direction on the left thumb and shooting direction with the right but that really messes with my brain! In the old arcade game, you could only shoot forward of your ship so you had a direction button and a fire button - I remember hours of spinning in one place and only moving when I really had to!

There are 4 other variations of the basic game you can play - Pandemonium, Dodge This, Assault & Chromatic Conflict - all great fun but Chromatic Conflict is my favorite - you can only kill enemies the same color as your ship & you have to get to colored bases or 'pulsars' to change your own color!

I've only just started playing it but I think this could be a great game for those 5-10 minute gaps, especially if you want an adrenaline boost. I'd give this an 8 out of 10.

"Edited to add - it's 2 weeks later and I'm still playing it a lot! I feel like a big kid again!"

I found it on the iPad App Store but PewPew is also available on Android - Yay! That's good news for me as I have an Android phone too!

If you have a game you'd like me to try, you can contact me on twitter @Nevahaddict or you can leave a comment below.

so until next time, have fun!

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One Minute Gaming #18 - Megapolis

Megapolis

This week, I've been playing Megapolis - a city building, resource management game very much like the old Sim City game I had on my Amiga 1200 years ago!

You start off with some basic buildings and resources available and lots of coins to spend but don't get too carried away! The other currency in game is the megabuck - you do earn some of these each time you level but you can also buy them with real money and as so many game developers do these days, it's the megabucks needed to buy the really cool stuff.

It took me a while to even scroll around the map out of curiosity - I'm so used to the limited play space on some games but this map is huge! The roads to the airport, baseball stadium and loads of other buildings are already in place so there is some structure already laid out for you but I don't think that will restrict your creativity too much!

With over 500 different building in the Infrastructure category and 200 in the residential buildings category, there's definitely stuff here for everyone! If you liked Sim City, I'm guessing this game might just fill a gap on your phone or ipad and even better, Megapolis is available for Android too!

I'm going to give this game a 9 out of 10 - it's already sucked me in!

If you have a game you'd like to suggest, you can contact me on Twitter @NevAHAddict or leave a comment below.

Until next time - have fun!

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One Minute Gaming #17 - Dwarven Den

This week, I've been playing a game called Dwarven Den. It's a puzzle adventure game, set in a lost buried city. You are a dwarf, destined to dig out the treasures and rescue lost citizens.

You start with 3 lives and a set amount of energy and tech points but you use at least 1 energy to dig each block out. You navigate the maze of buried tunnels and sometimes you find extra energy (red) or tech (blue) nodes.

level start

The tech nodes let you use lights to expand the dark areas or place bombs & traps to blow up the spiders or mummies that are trying to stop you.

There are treasure chests to find and gold blocks to dig up too. You can also forge better items by combining two of the same - they increase your visibility, slow monsters or increase your gold & tech rewards.

level finish map

Each level has a specific challenge - dig all the gold (like these screenshots) or to find a missing person perhaps. Luckily there's no timer on the levels so you can take your time to work things out and there are loads of levels to play through. If you need some extra gold to buy an upgrade, you can go back and do some easier levels very quickly.

I'm really enjoying it and for someone who likes puzzles, it's a pretty good game. It's one of my favorites so far & I give it a 9 out of 10.

If you have a game you'd like to suggest, you can contact me on Twitter @NevAHAddict or leave a comment below.

So until next time, have fun!

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One Minute Gaming #16 - Disco Zoo

This week I downloaded a game called Disco Zoo - it has four and a half stars on the app store so I wanted to have a look. The graphics are really basic - kinda cutesy pixellated style and the play mode is also very basic.

The idea is to jump in your helicopter and go out to capture wild animals to stock your zoo. Capturing them is a battleships style event - you have a grid of boxes, 10 attempts and a hint as to how many boxes each animal needs. Click on a box and if it reveals an animal, you then click around that square to find the other segments.

You quickly run out of attempts but they have thought of that - just watch a free video ad to get 5 more free attempts. The ads really are short though so they aren't too annoying!

After you capture an animal, the builders back at the zoo will build an enclosure for it. Meanwhile the visitors are leaving tips and earning you gold.

The Disco part is the stupidest part though - for the low price of 1 note you can start a disco - all the animals jump around, there's a disco ball & the streetlamps flash and you earn double the amount of coins!

It's a silly, very basic game but if you have toddlers, it might keep them amused for a few minutes at a time. Overall I'd give it a 3 out of 10 - nothing to keep me playing and definitely not going to pay for more coins or notes either!

If you have a game you'd like to suggest, you can contact me on Twitter @NevAHAddict or leave a comment below.

Until next time, have fun!

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One Minute Gaming #15 - Swamp Attack

Swamp Attack

Hello & welcome - This week I've been playing a game called Swamp Attack - suggested to me by Cold. It's an endless shooter type game with waves of swamp critters coming at you & your shotgun.

You're sitting on your porch in your rocking chair in the middle of a swamp, with the radio on and all these alligators, rats and mosquitoes are coming at you. You have a shotgun which you need to reload periodically so you can't just keep firing like crazy. Some of the critters shoot back and there are random UFO's too which drop dynamite, molotov cocktails, fridges and other helpful items.

drop a fridge to freeze them

Your aim is to collect coins to add power ups like new weapons, ammunition or defenses which you will need as you progress through the levels.

There are 3 episodes with each one having 18 levels that get progressively harder & harder but the improved weaponry really helps as you level.

It's a fun, quirky game with cartoon style graphics and some okay music although you can change the radio station! Overall I'd give Swamp Attack an 8 out of 10.

If you have a game you'd like me to try, you can contact me on Twitter @Nevahaddict or leave a comment below.


Until next time then, have fun!

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One Minute Gaming #14 - Temple Run 2

Temple Run 2

This week, I've been playing Temple Run 2 - it's an endless runner type game with an Indiana Jones feel. You are Guy Dangerous, a rough & ready looking fellow and you start off running along the top of a broad wall with a huge gorilla chasing you. You swipe up to jump, down to slide on your back and left or right to turn quickly.

So far, I've fallen off edges, drowned, been eaten by the gorilla so many times I've lost count, splatted on a wooden mangle type thing and caught in a flame thrower trap to name just a few of my precarious endings. I also have a tendency to jump when I should duck which doesn't help!

As always with these free games, you can use real money to buy gems which allow you to purchase power-ups - but so far, I haven't been tempted. There are objectives & challenges to complete which help you level up and reward you with extra coins or even gems.

The graphics are pretty good & I have to say, I love the humor on the scoreboard each time you die. It just drips sarcasm but makes me smile almost every time!

I'd give Temple Run an 8 out of 10 - just fast enough game play to be challenging but not impossible, good graphics and some humor too. Not bad at all!

If you have a game you'd like me to try, you can contact me on Twitter @Nevahaddict or perhaps, leave a comment below :)

So until next time - have fun!

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One Minute Gaming #13 - Dextris

This week, I've been playing Dextris - it's billed as a difficult game and it is!

You've probably heard how a deceptively simple looking game like Flappy Bird drove everyone crazy for a while and I think you'll get some of the same frustrating but addictive gameplay reactions with Dextris.

You control 2 small blocks - all you have to do is dodge the spikes, left, right, middle or split the 2 blocks but after playing for an hour, my high score is only 18!

Yup - it's a twitch game and I obviously can't twitch fast enough to succeed at this one.  It will probably be one of those games I play for 5 minutes here & there when I need an adrenaline boost or a giggle but I'm so bad at it, I have to laugh!

I'd give it maybe a 5 out of 10 - simple controls but very fast gameplay make it too frustrating for me to really get into it.

If you have a game you'd like me to try, you can contact me on Twitter @ NevAHAddict or leave a comment below. So until next time, have fun!

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One Minute Gaming #12 - Aerox

Aerox

This week I've been playing a game called Aerox - it's a simple idea but it's not so simple to play!

You control a ball using the tilt abilities of your iPad with an onscreen touch spot for a brake and one for camera angle. Each level consists of an obstacle course magically suspended above an ocean and all you have to do is not fall off the edge! Much easier said than done!

So far, I've come across bridges, boxes to nudge, bounce traps and have just graduated to angled floors but as long as I take my time, I can do most of them fairly easily even if I am slow! There is a timer on each level so I'm definitely not winning any speed prizes or hitting any leaderboards!

The graphics are clean and crisp, the music is gentle and fairly soothing and not too repetitive.

The options screen lets you adjust the camera tilt sensitivity so if you are having lots of problems - maybe try adjusting that - I did and I think it helped.

When I caught myself swearing and tipping the iPad at sharp angles to stop the ball falling off the edge, I realised that this game has me hooked!

Overall, Aerox has a polished feel and smooth gameplay. I like it but it is only an occasional game for me so I'll give it a 7 out of 10.

If you have a game you'd like to suggest, you can contact me on twitter @Nevahaddict or you can leave a comment below..

Until next time then, have fun!

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One Minute Gaming #11 - Lazors

Lazors

This week I've been taxing my brain with a puzzle game called Lazors. At the basic levels, you have a laser, some blocks and a target - all you have to do is position the blocks to bounce the laser around and hit the target.

Once you get the hang of that though, the game designers have added in multiple different types of blocks like non reflective ones which just block the laser, glass ones which split the laser into 2 beams or wormhole blocks which cuts the beam and lets it re-emerge elsewhere on the board!

There are loads of puzzles in the game at varying levels of difficulty. Sometimes if I play on a difficult level, I can solve the puzzle almost instantly but other times it can take 5 minutes or more! It does get frustrating playing an easy or medium level and struggling to solve it though but I guess our brains all work in different ways - I know mine does!

This is a great game to fill those 5 minute gaps in your schedule - until you get stuck of course & then that 5 minutes will expand until you finally get that laser to hit the target!

For being annoyingly compulsive, I'd give this game a 7.5 out of 10 but I will be keeping it installed until I clear all the levels!

If you have a game you'd like me to try out, you can contact me on Twitter @Nevahaddict or leave a comment below.

So until next time - have fun!

Download Lazors for Android for free too!

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One Minute Gaming #10 - Diner Match

This week I've been playing a game called Diner Match, created by an old acquaintance from my photography days. It's a fairly basic, easy to understand game but don't be fooled by the simplicity.

All you have to do is deliver the food to the correct plates and pick up tips as they arrive. The food arrives across the middle of the screen and there is one plate in each corner - simply flick the fresh food to the correct plate.

Sounds so easy, doesn't it?

Well, the first 30 seconds or so are easy but it gets faster and faster until your hand just cannot keep up with your brain! You also get a bonus for delivering 3 of the same in a row but make the most of the slower levels for that - once it gets faster, you won't have time to worry about bonuses!

You do get 3 lives - you lose one for each incorrect delivery or if you don't manage to deliver an item. They disappear fast once you lose your rhythm though!

Yes, it is a pretty basic game but like so many other basic games, it gets you with the adrenaline rush - I'm trying to keep up and so focused that when I lose a game, I sometimes find myself out of breath. It seems I hold my breath whilst concentrating that hard!

Anyway, for simple and addictive gameplay, I give Diner Match an 8 out of 10.

My top score is about 300 at the moment - see if you can beat me!

If you have a game you'd like to suggest, you can contact me on Twitter @NevAHAddict or leave a comment below.

Until next time, have fun!

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One Minute Gaming 09 - Smash Hit

Smash Hit

Hello and welcome back. This week I've been playing a game called Smash Hit, an endless runner type game with a difference. In Smash Hit, you are firing balls at glass pyramids to collect extra balls which you need to smash through glass obstacles.

The graphics are great and the sound effects of breaking glass are fantastic - if you like the sound of breaking glass of course! The background music is a pretty soothing counterpoint to all the damage you are causing and it just feels like a smooth run through a beautiful glass landscape with chaos erupting as you pass!

It has very simple controls, just tap to aim and fire the balls - but you'll soon find out about gravity effects and firing too soon. Some of the later stages move faster of course but there are slower ones too - the challenge of breaking the glass obstacles just gets harder instead of faster!

I love this game - the look of it, the sound effects, great music and the simple but clever gameplay make it a winner for me so I'd give it a 9 out of 10.

If you'd like to suggest a game, you can contact me on Twitter @Nev AH Addict or you can leave a comment below.

So until next time, have fun!

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Army of Darkness #8

Army of Darkness

This week I've been playing Army of Darkness - Defence, starring a knight called Ash, whose job it is to protect the Necronomicon from hordes of invading skeletons. As with most Tower Defence type games, you can upgrade weapons and defences and the hordes get bigger and faster as you progress thru the levels.

Cold found this one and I know he kinda got addicted to it whilst I was there and managed to finish it - I'm not quite that addicted although I am enjoying it. I'm also not that good at these types of games! I love the animations and the boomstick & chainsaw upgrades are fun. The sound effects aren't too annoying so for once I have actually left the sound on - very unusual for me.

I'm about halfway through the levels and I will keep going until I beat the end boss but I don't know how quickly I will get there - it's not a 'must play' game for me, more of a 'got 5 minutes to kill' kinda game. So I'd give it a 7 out of 10 but if you like strategy & tower defence games, it's definitely worth a try.

If you have a game you'd like me to try, you can contact me on twitter @Nev AH Addict or leave a comment below.

Until next time, have fun :)

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Nev's One Minute Gaming 06- Robot Unicorn Attack 2

Hello and welcome back! This week I've been playing Robot Unicorn Attack 2 - I saw the name on the App Store and just had to have a look!

It's yet another endless runner but this one is more my pace - at least to start with.

You control a Robot Unicorn with just 2 controls - jump or dash. You're running  and jumping across a broken landscape of floating rocks - rather like those in Nagrand actually! and you're collecting fairies, gems, coins etc. You need to use the dash to get through the obstacles and enemies and use a jump or multiple of jumps to get across the gaps between the rocks.

It is definitely a little bit girlie to start with but once you have enough coins collected and have met some of the challenges to level up, you can upgrade and customise your robot unicorn into rather an evil looking beast.

There are also two teams you can choose to join - Team Inferno or Team Rainbow. These seem rather passive right now - you just get a reward at the end of the day if your team has the most stars destroyed for the day but it maybe more interactive at the higher levels - I'm just not there yet!

The graphics are crisp and sharp and I can't wait to get my Void Maker Robot Unicorn! I'd give this game a 9 - I love it

If you have a game you'd like to suggest, you can message me on twitter @Nevahaddict or leave a comment below.

Until next time, have fun

Download Robot Unicorn Attack 2 - Tips & Tricks Now

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