Tilt Away A Robot Seafood Attack With The Little Velocispider

Part spider, part velociraptor and apparently mostly mechanised cannon, as the Velocispider you must defend your precious Yoshi eggs from an evil executive of the Robot Seafood Corporation. Such is the premise of Velocispider, a new iOS game that makes tilt control feel good.

Velocispider the game, not the Frankensteinish creature, is also a mishmash of video game styles, playing much like a Space Invaders or Galaga, with flying enemies filling the screen wave after wave, your Velocispider moving horizontally along the bottom, his only goal to protect a trio of eggs. A bizarre collection of mechanised enemies, like robot crabs and bomb-dropping whales, marching across the battlefield and dropping from the sky. Destroying those enemies will drop power-ups, in a fashion not unlike Arkanoid, that will give your lil’ Velocispider special shots.

The Velocispider fires automatically, a steady stream of bullets spraying from the top its head. Double-shots, spread shots and rapid fire options help make your Velocispider more dangerous, but a charged shot – fired by tapping and holding the touchscreen – is your deadliest option.

Retro Dreamer’s Velocispider is a simple affair, but it succeeds largely on its presentation, with is gorgeously pixelated, colourful and sharp. Tilt-based control is sometimes a little finicky and, due to its nature, doesn’t always feel like your most accurate option, but Velocispider actually controls quite well. This is a combination of simple, enjoyable pick-up-and-play fun meshed with a simple interface.

Velocispider also sports a peppy, chippy soundtrack, which is described by its creators accurately as “thumping”.

The best aspects of Velocispider are its fantastic 16-bit visuals and its sense of humor, infrequently delivered in brief cut scenes that underscore the ludicrous nature of this simple arcade game.

For $1.19, you’ll get a charming little lark for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad in Velocispider, an easily enjoyable arcade addition, if that’s what you’re looking for.

Velocispider [iTunes]