Puppet War. What a concept, and what a game. This is an attention grabber to be sure, but does it deserve all that attention?

Puppet Wars ($0.99)

In my opinion, absolutely. This is a novel concept, and it works very well, and makes for a light hearted game with a far darker mode of play. Read on for the low down on this fantastic game.

Presentation

Puppet War is a new kind of FPS, but that doesn’t make it bad. It starts off with a video, describing the over-ambitions of a group of TV-star puppets (Sesame Street anyone?), and it is your sole task to shoot down (literally) these puppets and save the planet. Sounds great on paper, right? A new FPS, with an original concept, and a great progressive system of play, that will keep you engaged.

But what matters is how it is applied to the platform, and this one has hit a home run, with a fluid combination of effective gameplay, awesome graphics, and fluid controls. The graphics are intended to be cartoonish, and they are detailed and sharp, accentuating the game excellently. The controls are nearly perfect, I couldn’t ask for a better way of controlling this game.

Controls

Puppet War has the controls down pat. There is an omnidirectional nub on the left side to move left, right, forward, and back. This is complimented by swiping up, down, left, and right in the centre of the screen to move the crosshairs. You attack with your chosen weapon by hitting the red button on the right. Change weapons with the icon in the upper right. This is simple, and it works marvelously. I couldn’t ask for a better combination of controls for this unique FPS.

Gameplay

The gameplay is meant to be funny, and even ironic – and it succeeds. Vengeful Sesame Street, who would have dreamt it? But more than just a concept game, it is a fully functioning, and actually quite fun. You have to hold back the oncoming hordes of puppets, with a constantly growing arsenal of weaponry – from mops of AK-47s.

You use these weapons to shoot down these enemies, and you can carry as many as 3 weapons with you at a time. This is your basic FPS, just given some awesome graphics, and theming. But that just makes the gameplay that much better. The gameplay is fun and engaging, just as any good shooter should be. It’s hard to say much negative about the gameplay – typical FPS horde management experience with rocking graphics? Bliss.

Suggestions

* iPad version
* iPhone 4 graphics
* More scenery, and a more lax weapon purchase system.

Conclusion

Puppet War : FPS is far more than just a corny take on a very “hardcore” genre of games. It is legitimately far more than just a copy, it is an excellent game in it’s own right. I genuinely enjoyed this game, and you will too. I wholly recommend this game, for everyone.