mikolsic
Newbie
I've decided to try something new with this review: with the help of my lovely wife, I've filmed a little clip of myself playing through the Medium difficulty setting of the Pulse Rider Demo. I apologize for the quality of the video beforehand, but try to keep in mind that this is the first time I've tried to film anything on my phone, so I haven't quite got the lighting and everything down yet. I hope that, serving as a companion to my written review, the video will be helpful.
Design
Pulse Rider is a very accessible game (meaning that it is easily playable by even the most casual of gamers), and its design reflects its simplicity. Gameplay takes place on a black backdrop, with your "ship," obstacles, and pick-ups in various bright colors that are easily distinguishable from one another. Pick-up icons and obstacles are all circular, though each has a slightly different interior design. While you won't be blown away by Pulse Rider's graphics, you will feel that everything about the graphical design is perfect for the game.
Rules
Your goal in Pulse Rider is simple: pilot your ship--through the use of your device's accelerometer--around red obstacles to travel a predefined distance in a set time. Your field of play is defined by two vertical red lines set on either side of the screen, and bumping into the lines will affect your ship in the same manner as bumping into any of the red obstacles. Your screen will display three bars: a vertical blue bar on the left-hand side for your zap power (I'll get to this in a bit), a horizontal bar on the top of your screen that is your countdown timer, and a vertical bar on the right-hand side that fills up as you travel closer to the end of the defined distance.
Traveling at its initial speed, your ship would never be able to travel the goal distance in the time you are given, but as Steve Jobs might say: there's a pick-up for that! (Sorry, can't help throwing in a little jab at the man.) Green pick-ups will permanently increase your ship's speed by a small increment with each one you snag, while bumping into obstacles permanently decreases your ship's speed. If you allow your ship to slow down too much, it will come to a complete stop and you'll have to start the game over. Failing to travel the full goal distance in the set time will also end the game.
As your speed increases, it becomes more and more difficult to dodge those pesky red obstacles on the screen, but there are other colored pick-ups that will aid you in your goal. First, there is is the all-powerful shield pick-up. This blue item will envelop your ship and allow you to plow right through obstacles. Next, there is the purple "bullet time" pick-up (my favorite). When you have this purple tool, the game will automatically slow down right before you strike an obstacle, providing you with the fraction of a second that you need to maneuver your ship around the red circle. The last pick-up is yellow, and it makes all pick-ups huge and all obstacles tiny. The effects of each of these pick-ups are only temporary, so you will have to learn how to use them to your full advantage whenever you get them.
The last tool you are given to help you reach the goal distance is a mighty obstacle zapper. This is the blue horizontal bar on the left-hand side of your screen. When you're ready to use it, you tap on the screen and PZZT! All obstacles are blasted away for a short time as the bar depletes. Once the zapper has been used, you must wait until the bar completely fills before you can use it again, so time your usage of this powerful weapon well!
Scoring is based on how many green pick-ups you nab and the distance you are able to travel. The game does not end when you reach the goal distance, so if you have time to spare you can continue to rack up your points. If the game ends before you reach the goal, either because you run out of time or your ship comes to a stop, you will not be able to score.
Gameplay
Pulse Rider plays flawlessly on my Motorola CLIQ, and there was hardly ever a hiccup on my G1. The tilt controls are intuitive and responsive. You can pause the game (on the CLIQ, at least) by using the hardware button to turn the screen off; however, I have found that the game never resumes correctly after being paused. You are supposed to tap the screen to resume, but whenever I do, I hear the zapper go off and the game resumes, all while the screen remains on the pause screen. This can certainly be irritating if you have to pause when you are near the end of a particularly good run, but each run is generally quick enough that this won't be a huge issue--it hasn't been for me. Other then the pause bug, though, the gameplay is solid.
Soundtrack & FX
The singular track for the game is a rhythmic techno piece that goes very well with the kind of heart-pounding dodging that takes place as your ship increases speed. (To be fair, I very much enjoy trance, so I'm not the most objective reviewer when it comes to soundtracks that are techno-based.) The sound effects are low buzzes and beeps, so there is nothing here that will set you on edge. The only exception to that are the first three beeps you get when you get your countdown to start the run--those are a bit high and whiny. Generally, there is very little to no lag between what is happening on screen and the sound effects that you hear. The sound effects fit in nicely with the soundtrack, and makes for an complete and satisfying audio experience.
Options
It may seem odd to some for me to include an "Options" section, but I must confess that I'm obsessed with settings. The first thing I do whenever I download a new app or game is press my trusty Menu button to go the settings and see what I can mess with. In Pulse Rider, you are given the option of turning on/off the music, the sound effects, and the vibration function. You are also given the option to calibrate the tilt controls, a task I've never seen the need to perform, since the default calibration works perfectly.
What You Get
With two exceptions, the Pulse Rider Demo has all of the same functionality and playability as the full game, including the ability to post your scores to the global listings. What you do not get is access to Endurance mode (a play mode for those not interested in timed games), and the last three difficulty settings for the Time Trials. If you are a casual gamer, Super Easy, Easy, and Medium Time Trials are enough to make the Demo a full game unto itself; and, if you find yourself needing more, the full game is only $2 in the Android Market. Pulse Rider is a very well done, accessible game, and it offers endless replay value as you can constantly strive to beat your own scores as well as all other users' scores. I highly recommend giving the Pulse Rider Demo a chance today!
Here's a short video of the game in action:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hV6crdGpPRU
Design
Pulse Rider is a very accessible game (meaning that it is easily playable by even the most casual of gamers), and its design reflects its simplicity. Gameplay takes place on a black backdrop, with your "ship," obstacles, and pick-ups in various bright colors that are easily distinguishable from one another. Pick-up icons and obstacles are all circular, though each has a slightly different interior design. While you won't be blown away by Pulse Rider's graphics, you will feel that everything about the graphical design is perfect for the game.
Rules
Your goal in Pulse Rider is simple: pilot your ship--through the use of your device's accelerometer--around red obstacles to travel a predefined distance in a set time. Your field of play is defined by two vertical red lines set on either side of the screen, and bumping into the lines will affect your ship in the same manner as bumping into any of the red obstacles. Your screen will display three bars: a vertical blue bar on the left-hand side for your zap power (I'll get to this in a bit), a horizontal bar on the top of your screen that is your countdown timer, and a vertical bar on the right-hand side that fills up as you travel closer to the end of the defined distance.
Traveling at its initial speed, your ship would never be able to travel the goal distance in the time you are given, but as Steve Jobs might say: there's a pick-up for that! (Sorry, can't help throwing in a little jab at the man.) Green pick-ups will permanently increase your ship's speed by a small increment with each one you snag, while bumping into obstacles permanently decreases your ship's speed. If you allow your ship to slow down too much, it will come to a complete stop and you'll have to start the game over. Failing to travel the full goal distance in the set time will also end the game.
As your speed increases, it becomes more and more difficult to dodge those pesky red obstacles on the screen, but there are other colored pick-ups that will aid you in your goal. First, there is is the all-powerful shield pick-up. This blue item will envelop your ship and allow you to plow right through obstacles. Next, there is the purple "bullet time" pick-up (my favorite). When you have this purple tool, the game will automatically slow down right before you strike an obstacle, providing you with the fraction of a second that you need to maneuver your ship around the red circle. The last pick-up is yellow, and it makes all pick-ups huge and all obstacles tiny. The effects of each of these pick-ups are only temporary, so you will have to learn how to use them to your full advantage whenever you get them.
The last tool you are given to help you reach the goal distance is a mighty obstacle zapper. This is the blue horizontal bar on the left-hand side of your screen. When you're ready to use it, you tap on the screen and PZZT! All obstacles are blasted away for a short time as the bar depletes. Once the zapper has been used, you must wait until the bar completely fills before you can use it again, so time your usage of this powerful weapon well!
Scoring is based on how many green pick-ups you nab and the distance you are able to travel. The game does not end when you reach the goal distance, so if you have time to spare you can continue to rack up your points. If the game ends before you reach the goal, either because you run out of time or your ship comes to a stop, you will not be able to score.
Gameplay
Pulse Rider plays flawlessly on my Motorola CLIQ, and there was hardly ever a hiccup on my G1. The tilt controls are intuitive and responsive. You can pause the game (on the CLIQ, at least) by using the hardware button to turn the screen off; however, I have found that the game never resumes correctly after being paused. You are supposed to tap the screen to resume, but whenever I do, I hear the zapper go off and the game resumes, all while the screen remains on the pause screen. This can certainly be irritating if you have to pause when you are near the end of a particularly good run, but each run is generally quick enough that this won't be a huge issue--it hasn't been for me. Other then the pause bug, though, the gameplay is solid.
Soundtrack & FX
The singular track for the game is a rhythmic techno piece that goes very well with the kind of heart-pounding dodging that takes place as your ship increases speed. (To be fair, I very much enjoy trance, so I'm not the most objective reviewer when it comes to soundtracks that are techno-based.) The sound effects are low buzzes and beeps, so there is nothing here that will set you on edge. The only exception to that are the first three beeps you get when you get your countdown to start the run--those are a bit high and whiny. Generally, there is very little to no lag between what is happening on screen and the sound effects that you hear. The sound effects fit in nicely with the soundtrack, and makes for an complete and satisfying audio experience.
Options
It may seem odd to some for me to include an "Options" section, but I must confess that I'm obsessed with settings. The first thing I do whenever I download a new app or game is press my trusty Menu button to go the settings and see what I can mess with. In Pulse Rider, you are given the option of turning on/off the music, the sound effects, and the vibration function. You are also given the option to calibrate the tilt controls, a task I've never seen the need to perform, since the default calibration works perfectly.
What You Get
With two exceptions, the Pulse Rider Demo has all of the same functionality and playability as the full game, including the ability to post your scores to the global listings. What you do not get is access to Endurance mode (a play mode for those not interested in timed games), and the last three difficulty settings for the Time Trials. If you are a casual gamer, Super Easy, Easy, and Medium Time Trials are enough to make the Demo a full game unto itself; and, if you find yourself needing more, the full game is only $2 in the Android Market. Pulse Rider is a very well done, accessible game, and it offers endless replay value as you can constantly strive to beat your own scores as well as all other users' scores. I highly recommend giving the Pulse Rider Demo a chance today!
Here's a short video of the game in action:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hV6crdGpPRU