Stolen in 60 Seconds Review

Stolen in 60 Seconds will be seen by some as a controversial title because of it’s subject matter, which in basic terms involves breaking into buildings and stealing things. It would be valid for some people to be hesitant about a game like this but it is hardly a deal breaker and I for one am not suddenly going to start stealing things just because I have played this game. It is in essence a puzzle game which has been surrounded with realistic graphics and animation, dazzling cut scenes and most important of all game play. This, like Robo which I reviewed last week, is not a title that you just pick up and play- it is one that you have to think about to succeed in and the more you think the more successful you will be at cracking each level.

Robo has had me scratching my head a lot over the past week and unusually for me I have actually spent time thinking about each level and have forced myself to progress further. It is with shame that I admit to still being on level 8 (with over 60 left to go!) but I am determined to try harder and get there- few games have done that for me in the past and this revelation caused me to investigate Stolen in 60 Seconds as well.

Starting off

The instructions in 60 seconds are minimal but after a couple of minutes I started to find my way around the controls. You are given training quests, which you should try to complete because it makes things easier later on, and as each quest pops up so does the complexity increase. The graphics remind me of Grand Theft Auto somewhat and thus have a familiar feel to them which is a bonus. Each quest is started off in a room where you are given simple instructions and a map of the building you need to steal from. You have to choose tools, your thief and plan your route on the map.

Once this is done you are taken to the ‘real life’ display where your thief will follow your plotted route and use the tools at the point you have pre-set for him.

Game play

As with most of my reviews I have not progressed as far as would have liked so far but know full well that much more is coming. The mixture of route planning, thief choosing, tool decision and marrying them all together makes for an experience in which you really do need to take your time to ensure you can achieve your task in the quickest time possible.

I have also found that there is often more than one way to complete a task and this adds more fun. Sometimes finding the only possible solution can get frustrating but these quests are somewhat less computerised in that way and leave more to the imagination of the player.

I have no idea how many quests are included and I really do not want to know because I would probably get depressed at the thought of how much work is needed in the future

Conclusion

The further you progress, the more you will enjoy this game. The training quests are good to start with and then all of a sudden you are hit with two thieves and multiple actions to complete. As you know, I am not often completely positive about a game but I have yet to find a fault with 60 seconds. After trying Robo and now this HeroCraft are way up the ladder in my opinion and hopefully we will see even more from them in the near future.

Available from http://smart.herocraft.com/sss for $3.90 to $11.75 (depending on platform). Works on Palm OS, Windows Mobile Professional and Standard, Series 60, Series 60 v3, UIQ and UIQ v3.

Robo Review

Few games are released today that work on all of the major mobile platforms. Robo was recently released and works on Palm, Windows Mobile Standard, Windows Mobile Professional, Symbian S60, S60 v3, UIQ and UIQ v3. I can think of few other developers that develop for all of these platforms and it is indeed refreshing to see. Anyway, on to the game itself…

Starting up

I completely ignored the tutorial and instructions (I am a man after all) and jumped straight into level 1. The controls are very simple- left, right, up, down to move and to push stones and the centre button to ‘look’ around the whole screen- pressing this enables the directional buttons to move the whole game map around. Within 2 minutes I was playing and enjoying this game a lot and knew it would be a keeper.

Game play

The idea of the game is to reach the exit on each level by blocking beams (that will kill Robo) which are diverted over the playing field by mirrors. You have to find the best path through to the exit and this is no way near as simple as it sounds. Even on level 3 I found myself struggling to think of the way out and have to face a further 73 which to be frank scares me a little

The 76 levels are split over 4 worlds and Robo needs to tackle them in a variety of ways which could involve blocking lasers with stones, using bombs to explode laser cannons or even making them destroy each other. Again, this does not sound complex but it adds a huge amount of variation to how you make up the final solution for each level. At this time, and it is early days for me with Robo, I can see huge amounts of longevity in this game and will keep you updated as I progress through the levels.

Graphics and sounds

The graphics are superb in this game and the way the environments are rendered adds to a feeling of wanting to jump back in and play some more. Robo himself is particularly cute and the animations used for him are some of the best I have seen. The music is a nice touch as well and can be switched to mute whilst leaving the main game sound on. Personally I tend to turn music to mute and leave the standard sounds on so at least the option is available.

Conclusion

Robo is a game that takes parts of Sokoban, Traffic Jam and another game, which I cannot currently remember the title of, and merges them to create a stimulating puzzler that is hard to put down. As I said earlier, it is early days for me with this game but first impressions are extremely good. Considering the price, which unusually ranges from $4.40 to $12.85 depending on the platform you use, it is superb value for me and one which I can highly recommend.

Time to bring the next 73 levels on by which point I will probably be begging for an extra level pack to keep me playing even longer!

Available from http://smart.herocraft.com/robo.