Some of you may recall that I have a long relationship with these killer cannon games.  I first played them way, way, way back on my Apple II+.  Back then it was called Scorched Earth.  the graphics were pretty simple, but the basics of gameplay were already being formed.  The game went through a myriad of iterations since then, and I caught back up with it on Windows Mobile, where it has been expertly remade as Atomic Cannon – one of my very first reviews here at JAMM.  So, now, the game has crossed back into Apple’s realm, showing up in the iTunes App Store under the name iShoot.  And how does it compare?  Let’s take a look.

The basic of the game never change.  You control one of the cannons (there can be as few as 2 or as many as 4 cannons in any game).  Cannons may be controlled by humans or the computer.  There is no networked version of the game, however, so multiple players will have to pass the iPhone between them.  The goal is to knock out all of your opponents before they destroy you.  a game can consist of up to 25 rounds (or you can play in unlimited mode).  Obviously, the winner will be determined by which cannon wins the most rounds, and gets the most kills.

At the beginning of each round, you will need to do some shopping.  Yeah, it is going to be pretty difficult to fight those other tanks without some munitions.  In the first round, you will be allotted $15,000.  After that, your allotment will vary based upon your performance.  If you are at all familiar with this genre, then the store should hold no surprises.  Mini mortars are your standard shell.  You can also purchase dirt, bombs, rockets, missiles, and even powerful nuclear explosives.  The store selection was not as robust as some variations I have played, but I thought they did a good job of stocking it with items in all price ranges, so you will always have choices to make when outfitting your arsenal.  I was a bit disappointed, however, by the small amount of information about each weapon.  Specifically, there was no indication as to the maximum amount of damage each could inflict.

Once you have outfitted your tank, it is time to head out to the Killing Fields.  I was pretty impressed with the graphics here.  The backgrounds are extremely well drawn.  The foregrounds, as is the custom in these games, is completely destructible.  So, each blast is going to change the terrain in a noticeable way.   And, in addition to your standard terrain, iShoot even allows you to conduct your battle at some historic and notable locations, like the US Capitol (above).  It would be nice, however, if you could select your location rather than just having them come up randomly.

The other cool thing to note is that gravity is in full effect here.  So, if you hit a spot near the bottom, watch for the ground above it to slide and fill in the gap.  And if you happen to be sitting atop that slide…well, you won’t be for long.

Gameplay is consistent with the way it has been done in these games for years.  Select your weapon, choose your angle, set your firepower, and fire away.  Watch out for the wind speed and direction, though, as this can affect your shot. 

As much as I enjoyed this game, however, I will admit that I was not enamored with the controls.  sure, selecting your weapon worked fine.  Just scroll through the weapon names on the bottom of the screen.  Then, it is time to set your angle.  To do this, you must drag your finger around the screen, watching the little green arrow above your cannon.)  This worked all right, but I was starting to get concerned as my hand was continually blocking parts of the screen.  It would have been nice if there had been an angle dial, which I could have used to set the angle without blocking the whole screen.  More troubling for me, however, was setting your power.  Rather than setting power and then firing, you just hold the fire button and release when the power meter reaches your desired strength.  This was horribly imprecise, and led to quite a few accidental firings.  I hope this control scheme will be modified in a future release.

These minor criticisms aside, I really enjoyed iShoot, and I was thrilled to find a game like this sitting atop the iTunes App store top 25.  It presents a fantastic addition to the genre, with stunning graphics, realistic physics, and a nice selection of  weapons in your arsenal.  And as an added bonus, it does not make any farting noises…

What I Liked:

• Graphics are well drawn
• Destructible foreground
• Recognizable and historic locations
• Great Gameplay

What Needs Improvement:

• Controls, especially firing power, could be better
• More weapons
• More information about each weapon

Developer: Ethan Nicholan

Price: $2.99 (there is also a free version which offers only 6 of the 25 total weapons)

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