Girl Gamer

If the title sounds familiar, it should. Toki was originally released as a downloadable WiiWare game, and Chillingo has since expanded it for portable play. In the game, you play a cutely animated chick that roams around stages scattered through four worlds, seeking out his egg-shelled brethren. They’re scattered throughout each level, sitting in perches. (You’d think they’d be up and about looking for you, but, nooooo, they’re happy in their little shells.) Over the course of the game, you’ll run across obstacles and enemies, and you’ll need to use special items to get around them. These include such devices as time warp portals, a quickly built bridge and a freeze-o-matic. It’s sort of like Lemmings’ inventory system, only not as complicated. (You can choose your items through a sidebar on the left half of the screen.)

Toki Tori is easy at first, but as you progress through each stage, it becomes increasingly harder. The touch-screen controls couldn’t be any easier, as you simply touch a place on a screen to move the bird. If it’s accessible, it highlights in green. If not, check your item selection screen to see what can help you.

You’ll soon be looking around to make sure the coast is clear on enemies, while also seeing what item would work best to get you to your last egg-shelled buddy without getting grilled. There’s 80 levels in all, with harder versions available once you beat them all. That’s a significant value considering the $4.99 price tag.

The game doesn’t look any better than most 16-bit platformers, but it is neatly designed and fits perfectly on the iPhone format. The animations are cute and never menacing, making this ideal for younger gamers as well. There’s not much to the sound either, although the looping music is okay and the sound effects don’t become annoying.

Toki Tori is lots of fun, another winner from the folks at Chillingo. Check it out and have some fun with a hot chick. You won’t even need your credit card. (Well, except to initially purchase it, we suppose.)