International Athletics

This games is from the same group of developers that brought you Triple Shot Sports (although licensed and distributed by Ghostlight), that you can read about twice on this site:

* http://www.nziphone.com/news/other/sneak-peek-triple-shot-sports.html

* http://www.nziphone.com/iphone-and-ipod-touch-software/games/triple-shot-sports.html

The theme tunes are the same, the graphics and menu navigation are the same, the sweeping 3D panoramas (which still look impressive but feel unnecessary) and the limited choice in who you represent (5 countries) are all there.

I have an amazing fondness for a decathlon game on a computer or phone...mostly because the last time I played one was wayyyy back on the Apple IIe (yes, I'm that old) but I'm yet to grow fond of this game. As I type this, I've started the game up, selected to be French and begun a 100m race....but the phone is sitting next to me. I'm meant to be swiping my finger backwards and forwards over the phone, but I'm not...even so, my character is running. OK, I'm 8th in the race, but I'm doing nothing...and strangely, I'm both running whilst doing nothing, and wearing an Union Jack all over my outfit?!

I'm hoping as I work my way through the games, I get a nostalgic sense of pounding the Apple IIe keyboard in various ways to run, hurdle and throw javelin, but in the quick test I've just done, I'm not sure. Anyway, it's all about the decathlon, so let's decath....and please note, the following is a stream of thought based upon my first experiences with the game...

100m
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I'm really impressed with the graphics to create each individual competitor. OK, the sweeping scenes create a sense of atmosphere I guess, as well as the sound in the background...but the gameplay itself is a little boring. Just slide your finger backwards and forwards as fast as you can on the screen to run.

Hmm...OK, I came first (as a Rookie) but it was kinda dull. Maybe it would have been better to have a left-foot/right-foot tap combination on screen that required a bit of coordination? Any way, my anglo-french bloke is puffing a bit, but let's hope he recovers for the next event!

One thing I do like is the instant reply feature...although I'm not sure how many times I can embarrass myself singing "We are the champions" as I sweep the rest of the field?

Long Jump
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OK...here's where sweeping panoramas get a bit silly. I haven't even jumped as I type this, but I read the instructions (they look challenging) and then had to sit through watching a guy rake the jump pit...why? Then back to my athlete and a countdown. Am I meant to run and jump now or will I be disqualified because I haven't been told to go? In the end I was disqualified....there's no indication that it is time to go other than that countdown!

Second sweeping panorama and man with rake...swipe my finger repeatedly til he gets near the jump line...lift finger and put down...angle measure appears...when it gets to the right angle you want, tap again and your man goes flying. Strangely, you then tap to land...although I'm not sure why? Anyway, I failed dismally in my second jump (0.71m) but swept the board on the third jump.

A moderately challenging activity, but now it's time for something else...


Shot Put
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Rats, the first instruction screen had the pause button icon showing, I pushed it to take a break and in fact swept past the instructions. No way of going back and no help menu!

OK, the controls kinda seem like the previous ones....swiping backwards and forward, and the angle thing, but I have no idea...three fouls and it's my coaches fault! Englance (the country I'm calling the English/France hybrid) isn't happy.


High Jump
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Three fouls again...and this time after reading the instructions! At least I got to adjust the height of the bar. Again, it's a sort of "swipe furiously, tap to jump, tap again for angle" kind of an approach, but this time the angle is the bend angle of the athlete in mid-jump (I think). Really should have a tutorial section that works you through all this until it's sorted!


400m
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Please don't let it be 4 times what you do in the 100m...because I'm not looking forward to the 1500m then! There's only so much Chariots of Fire I can hum.

Well...yes it was.....and it didn't help that the game crashed twice meaning I had to do it again. That was a lot of finger swiping! Really! And although I won, my finger hurting kinda blocks out that win.


110m Hurdles
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OK, well that didn't work...and partly my fault for not reading the email I got with the game. The instructions in the game are wrong and that's why I ran through all my hurdles and came 6th. It seems to I need to read the email next time I try the hurdles. There is an update coming for the game.


Discus
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This time I read the instructions before proceeding and find that you're required to slide your finger in a circular motion (that makes sense) to create a spin, and then use your fingers to create an angle and release.

OK, three fouls again. One of the issues here is that with the camera (looking at you) at times it is incredibly hard to figure out where the heck you are. In the first and third throw, I had little idea. In the second one, I could easily see the front and released my finger when I was near that point in my spin...but then strangely the athlete did one more entire circle before bringing up the angle option and releasing the discus off-angle. Three fouls and a complex and frustrating game. Note I'm not saying "challenging" there as I'm worried that might sound positive.

Pole Vault
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OK, coming into this one, I've noted in the instructions that after doing the swipe to run, it says "When power is locked".....oh....of course...makes perfect sense! And I'm being sarcastic! What does "When power is locked" mean? What good are instructions if they don't help?!


Again, the second run creates a camera angle quite different from the first, with little indication of when I'm coming up to crucial points! The third angle was almost absurd, and I came away with little idea of what I was meant to do and so, three failed jumps.

This game is starting to really feel like it needs a game controller!

Javelin
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Hmmm...side-swiping while angle swiping (I love how the instructions say rub diagonally but the image shows a finger going up and down) with your finger to adjust the angle. That sounds like a challenge I might be able to do!

OK, the game crashed again, but not a bad concept once I got going, but I failed dismally on my first two throws and by the third, I fouled. The sideways rubbing sort of matches up with the notion of the athlete pulling his arm back and getting ready to throw. Nice idea that I'll try again.

Really not looking forward to the next one.

1500m
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Well spending close to 4 minutes sliding my finger back and forth across the screen is a bit odd, but it gave me the chance to experiment. I discovered that I don't have to swipe as rapidly and that I can confine my finger to a selected area. I also found that it truly is a 1500m race and I ran out in front way too early. My stamina started to affect me with a lap to go and by the time I recovered, I was back into third place.

Overall, I didn't come in any of the top three, as the podium screen has just played, and the game has crashed again....so I'll load up and try the whole experience and try other options again.

Conclusion
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Having spent more time with the game than you read above, it's blatantly obvious that this is a port from PSP and Nintendo DS. I can't comment on the games there, but on the iPhone it just doesn't capture my attention the way I hoped it would.

Don't get me wrong...I really want to like this game, particularly because it has so much more to offer than the Triple Shot Sports, but my experience hasn't been great. I've managed to master the running and some of the jumping (well, hurdles only), but the throwing has me (pun alert!) in a spin...and try as I might, I can't get to grips with it. This is for 3 reasons....1, obviously me....2, the gameplay such as camera angles etc...and 3, the controls that might have previously worked well on these other systems, just don't translate that well to the iPhone.

I'm also experiencing a number of crashes of the application that are concerning. The problems is that the activities I have mastered (such as running) are a novelty at first, but soon lose their appeal. Or, they are a challenge...but for the wrong reason. I've spent more time trying to understand the controls than actually using them. If interacting with your phone is that challenging, then it's likely to lead to frustration.

Now perhaps you might ask me what the solution is? And the honest answer is...I don't know. I don't know how to bring the hurdles to the iPhone...or how to bring the high jump...but however a company does it, I think they need to make it a bit easier to understand. I also think the thing I liked about the Apple IIe game is missing. It really felt like you were hammering out the footsteps of the athlete on the IIe game...but here it doesn't really feel like it...and the fact that in things like the hammer throw, the athlete seems to do an entire additional spin after I've said to throw, makes you feel you have less control than you thought.

Ghostlight have done a fabulous job at being fairly consistent with the changes between activities to keep things reasonable understandable...but it still doesn't feel like an iPhone game. It feels like a really cool game that has somehow just made it on to the iPhone.....and even at $8.29, I'm not sure if I can recommend it at this stage...no matter how much I wish I could.