You’d think the AppStore is too overcrowded by platformer games by now. However if the games are as epic as this one, I really don’t mind.
Babylonian Twins (iPhone: $0.99 | iPad: $4.99)

Bablylonian Twins is certainly one of the best iPhone platformer games (or straight up iPhone game for that matter). The storyline, design and overall challenge simply mesh together to make up a game for the ages.
Presentation
The game’s developer intended for the game to show the true side of the area, along with it’s beauty and history, not as shown in other games that show it as a uncivilized and primitive place. Unfortunately back then the game was never released (besides an Amiga demo).

But now re-made and re-imagined for the iPhone and iPad, it’s here and it’s great. The developers really succeeded in displaying that, with rich, re-done artwork, which are fully animated and look fantastic in motion no matter on what device you’re playing.

Controls
The controls are basically the same for both versions, just moved around a bit on the iPad version to accommodate the larger size and make it easier to play. A d-pad on the left is used to move left and right, climb trees, etc. On the right you have a jump and attack button. The attack button can be held down to use the twins special ability.

Gameplay
The game story starts off with the twins being thrown into prison by an evil sorcerer, which cursed the city they live in. The twins escape and must go on a journey to stop him and save the city. The gameplay involves switching between the twins, using each others ability. When you switch to one, the other becomes a statue, which you can use to hold down pressure switches or use it as a boost for high hard to reach places.

Each of the twins has a special ability, each used to go through / destroy weak walls, making a way to reach other objects. Blasir can dash / sprint, and Nasir can spin and turn pretty much into a human drill. The levels are pretty complex, most taking at least 20-30 minutes each to finish. This is where a fatal flaw comes out (see Suggestions). None the less, the levels are quite a puzzle, as you try to find the 4 palms, with no directions or hints.

Suggestions
The game has two things that really need fixing. The first is a lack of checkpoints, because well, there are none. This is a huge problem because the twins share a health bar. When you die, you have to start over, and just imagine how frustrating this is when you’ve spent 15-20 minutes on a level.
The other is, it needs a resume feature, for when you get a call or notification, so that you don’t have to start all over. And of course, as always, OF for iPad.
Conclusion
Out of all the platformers I’ve played on iPhone, this is one of the best, if not the best. In conclusion, this is a must MUST HAVE, no matter on what device you’re on. And on the sale price (for the iPhone), it’s a steal. Personally I’d go ahead and buy both, it’ll be less than what one version would regularly cost you.
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April 29th, 2010
Dan Morgan
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I’ve been eying this game for the past week. I really wish that there was a lite version of this game.