I wouldn’t be surprised if people were to call Bulky Pix’s latest iOS title, JAZZ: Trump’s Journey as the smartphone gaming’s answer to Prince of Persia. This here is platforming at its hardest and most beautiful. JAZZ: Trump’s Journey is a 2D platformer set in New Orleans when jazz was just taking root as a music genre.

Players take the role of Trump, who is retelling his story on how he became a famous jazzman and it’s during this adventure he recruits band members to form a jazz band. Like I’ve mentioned earlier, the game is beautiful, featuring stylized art inspired by 1920s New Orleans but the star of this game is the amazing soundtrack.

The accompanying music is just awesome and it just gets better and better as players progress through the levels and recruit more bandmates. The game is a platform puzzler at heart and actually features some of the most hardest platforming I’ve ever done on an iOS game…and it nearly made me renew my vow that I made years ago to stay away from platformers.

JAZZ: Trump’s Journey is an ode to the music genre and a well-crafted platformer so much so that limiting this game to a single platform would be a shame (do you hear me Bulky Pix!?). Nine Over Ten 9/10 rates JAZZ: Trump’s Journey at a 5 out of 5 for being simply amazing. The game is available on the iTunes App Store for USD 2.99: http://itunes.apple.com/app/id478314434

A review code was provided to Nine Over Ten 9/10 for the purpose of this review.

Paladin Entertainment’s latest iOS title, Gun Strike, is a pretty tongue-in-cheek FPS shooter. The game is like a cartoon/chibi version of the hit PC FPS, CounterStrike. Even the levels are named after popular CS maps and players get to purchase weapons, ammo, grenades and equipment. The only difference here is that the player character stays rooted and all you need to do is point, and shoot!

The 3D graphics are pretty good for such a game and the controls complement them rather well. Shooting enemies nets the player cash and as mentioned earlier, this can be used to purchase even more powerful weapons, ammo, and equipment. The objective in each level would be to kill a certain number of enemies and making sure that you don’t get hit too many times yourself.

The 70 levels are divided across 7 maps, ensuring a lot of replay value, and that’s not including the couple of mini games that the developer decided to throw in!

Nine Over Ten 9/10 rates Gun Strike at a 4.5 out of 5, it’s actually pretty good. Gun Strike is available for free on the iTunes App Store with a USD 0.99 in-app purchase to unlock the game and get rid of the ads that can be found at the menu portion of the game. Check it out over here: http://itunes.apple.com/app/id458277064

My casual game of choice during lunch breaks is not Hanging With Friends, neither is it Angry Birds….it’s actually a game that takes two very distinct subject matter, mathematics and gameplay from Fruit Ninja and mashes them both to come up with a thinking person’s version, of well, Fruit Ninja.

Titled Factor Samurai, this iOS title by Third Rail Games will have players slicing numbers, any number is fair game as long as they are not prime numbers. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the term “prime number” (where were you in school during Math?), it’s a term used to define a number that can only be divided by 1, or by itself.

The game’s difficulty mode is divided into 3 with the toughest being “Master”, which when selected will cause you to think that the game is spitting out numbers at you out of spite and your score keeps reducing over time if you are not slicing non-prime numbers fast enough. Personally, I would prefer to select the “Apprentice” difficulty mode to have an enjoyable, math-based gaming experience.

For parents, this can be a great teaching tool for kids, and a fun one at that to learn about prime numbers (and division, to a certain extent), and it’s actually available for free on the iTunes App Store! Nine Over Ten 9/10 rates Factor Samurai a 5 out of 5, for being both an awesome educational tool and a great game. Check it out here: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/factor-samurai/id441919897?mt=8

Konami’s Gesundheit! is a prime example how iOS games can give certain Nintendo 3DS Download Software titles a run for their money. At just USD 1.99, you get an amazing looking game, with storybook-like graphics accompanied by great action/puzzle gameplay, something that can’t be said for some of the more expensive titles you find on Nintendo’s eShop.

In Gesundheit!, players take the role of a little pig with a runny nose, who is out to save his town from invading monsters. The only way to do that would be to distract the monsters by expelling your snot (apparently they really like eating snot…like some fellas I used to know back when we were kids), and luring them into traps.

I can’t get enough of how beautiful each levels look like, and while you are at it, do not forget to collect the pears lying around the levels as this will also judge how well you do in each level. I gotten the game when it was available for 99 cents on the iTunes App Store, and despite the game reverting to its original price, it is one game that deserves to be in your iOS game library.

Nine Over Ten 9/10 rates Gesundheit at a 5 out of 5, simply outstanding. The latest update brings OpenFeint connectivity, complementing the Game Center connectivity provided when the game was released. Check it out over at the App Store: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/gesundheit!/id449344432?mt=8

Long time readers would know that Nine Over Ten 9/10 started on the basis of reviewing Nintendo DS games, and you guys would’ve probably known that it was a matter of time before I start reviewing Nintendo 3DS games. Well, the time is now and the game having the distinction of the first 3DS title to be reviewed on this site is WayFoward’s Mighty Switch Force.

This puzzle action-platformer is something that wouldn’t look out of place on the iPhone, but it does make use of the 3D in 3DS (sounds a little lame, but I’m just starting out here, so bear with me please). In each level, you are supposed to go about running, and gunning and capturing all the female convicts that seem content enough to be hanging around.

The first two things, running and gunning are pretty run of the mill, and basically makes up two thirds of the genre mashup: “action” + “platforming”. However, it’s the puzzle part that gets the cake. In order to make your way to each of the female convicts, you will need to go through several obstacles which also double up as puzzles. Your space-cop character is equipped with the ability to phase in (and out) stuff, mainly blocks.

By doing so, you can create steps to reach hard to get places, crush enemies (by phasing in blocks on them, pinning them onto the screen (so much for the fourth wall eh), trapping enemies….you get the idea. And to me, it’s totally fun! There’s a par time in each level that you can strive to beat, but I think that’s for those who had tons of practice and crazy reflexes.

Nine Over Ten 9/10 rates Mighty Switch Force at a 4.5 out of 5. The game is available on Nintendo’s eShop for just USD 5.99.

If you are tired about your wordsmith friends yabbing about how great Words with Friends is on the iPhone, Robot Entertainment may have just the thing for you, if you are the type that is more into multiplayer, turn-based strategy/tactics games. Their latest game, Hero Academy is a turn-based title that reaches out to grab the best of gameplay elements from games such as chess, tower defense and even Magic: The Gathering.

Players spend their turns (which allow them a number of moves) putting units on the game board, moving them around, casting spells, attacking enemy units…all in no particular order, until the pool of moves is exhausted. What the player can place on the board is determine by what he has in his “hand” (borrowing a term from MTG), which is then replenished from a deck (again, borrowing from MTF) at the end of the turn. The objective in each game would be to destroy the other player’s crystal.

Like Words with Friends, the game is played asynchronously against other players, and the cool thing about Hero Academy, each time you open up an on-going game, you get to see the moves that were played out in the just concluded turn. When you have an game development studio with folks that previously worked on Age of Empires, you would expect their debut iOS title to be no less than great, and with Hero Academy, they’ve just about achieved that.

The game looks great, and the diverse amount of units allow for some really creative play. There’s an in-game chat system which can be a good or bad thing but hey, it’s a leg up over the competition (someone called me a fagot, and then, I assume, rage-quit on me). Nine Over Ten 9/10 rates Hero Academy at a 5 out of 5. Very Impressive indeed. The game is available for free (seriously, it’s just asking to be grabbed) on the iTunes App Store: http://itunes.apple.com/app/id488156323

Jumping jellybeans Batman! Heh. I’ve been dying to put that down ever since playing Bubble Jets for the iPhone, simply because the cute duckies in this water physics game kinda reminded me of jellybeans. The game takes inspiration from the handheld water jet games that we used to play as kids.

Push either buttons at the bottom of the screen to cause jets of water to either shoot up from the left or right to move the cute little duckies (among other things) into the respective containers. As the levels progress, players will face obstacles that can only be overcome by some determined button pressing . The levels themselves are brilliant, colourful 2D affairs, and the gameplay is the type that is addictive and suitable for all ages.

Players are graded by how fast they can complete a level and Openfeint integration takes care of the online leaderboards. Bubble Jets is one cute game with 12 levels spread across 4 stages. Social Agogo has done a brilliant job in capturing the look and feel of bubble jet games of yore in this iOS title.

Nine Over Ten 9/10 rates Bubble Jets at a 4 out of 5, and it’s worth checking out especially if you have children. The game is available on the App Store at a price of USD 1.99, check it out over here: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/bubble-jets/id479877548?mt=8

A review code was provided to Nine Over Ten 9/10 for the purpose of this review.

I’m not quite sure what kind of game studio would call themselves “Mediocre”, but this Swedish outfit’s latest iOS title is nothing but mediocre. Sprinkle Junior for the iPhone is a beautiful looking 2D physics-based title that puts players in a fire-fighting role as they use jets of water to put out fires. From the onset players would notice that the game is geared towards kids.

Based on Mediocre’s original title Sprinkle, Sprinkle Junior puts in all the fun and challenge in putting out fires minus the time and water restrictions, along with (this may be a good or bad thing) the scores. I would understand the rationale for removing the first two, but scores are one of the minimum indicator of the player’s success in a game aside from level progression.

Anyways, Sprinkle Junior is a really enjoyable title. The game’s adult roots are still around, with the later levels containing surreal looking puzzles that reminded me of stuff like Katamari Damacy. Having said that, the game’s visuals are amazing and the water physics got a “wow” from me at the very first level.

Nine Over Ten 9/10 rates Sprinkle Junior at a 4 out of 5. Parents would do well to get this one, but at USD 1.99, the game faces competition from its older, more complete sibling, Sprinkle. Check out Sprinkle Junior on the App Store: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/sprinkle-junior/id474724068?mt=8.

A review code was provided to Nine Over Ten 9/10 for the purpose of this review.

First review of 2012 and it’s for a match-3 game for the iPhone, but it’s no ordinary one. If anyone is crazy enough to come up with a really difficult match-3 game, you can count on the folks from Bedtime Creations to come up with one. Their latest game, Panic Block II will have novices lasting mere seconds in the game’s Classic mode. Basically, players can only form matches in the middle row as blocks are constantly added to the rows of colourful blocks.

The level progression is kinda like Tetris, and the rate in which the blocks are added increases with each level. Players will need to possess nimble fingers just to manipulate the middle row in order that they do not get trapped by columns that become too tall for their own good. Matching a row of 5 blocks of the same colour will result in the player rewarded with coins, these coins can be used to purchase power-ups in-game.

The game’s Action mode is a little more kinder to newbs, since it’s just a race against time and the number of blocks that are added is based on the number of blocks that get destroyed by the player. Unlike what the title seems to suggest, the way to gain more points in either game mode in Panic Block II would be to actually NOT panic. Having a cool head (and an alert one at that), will certainly allow you to go far.

Unlike most match-3 games, Panic Block II is for the hardcore (just take the game for a spin and then check out the Game Center leaderboards and you’ll get an idea how tough this game can be), and it’s probably God-send for some . Nine Over Ten 9/10 rates Panic Block II at a 4.5 out of 5….Excellent Stuff! The game is actually available for free on the iTunes App Store, so check it out over here: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/panic-block-ii/id472155211?ls=1&mt=8

Nine Over Ten 9/10 was provided with a review code for the purpose of this review.

If you are a fan of Super Mario Land on the GameBoy, you really should check out Fire Fruit Forge’s latest title for the iPhone, Terra Noctis. Much like Super Mario Land, Terra Noctis is a 2D platformer that borrows liberally from the earlier mentioned game, it even has destructible blocks and their very own version of coin boxes, secret areas within levels and the same method to get rid of enemies..by jumping on their heads.

Imitation is often said to be the sincerest form of flattery, and what Terra Noctis brings in addition to what that has already been mentioned above is tight controls. The game is a joy to play with and while Mario’s pixelated look on the GameBoy was necessary given the hardware available at that time, Terra Noctis’ pixel art graphics is simply astounding. It just goes to show that besides aiming for console like graphics for 3D games on the iPhone, there’s plenty of room for exploration in other genres as well.

Nine Over Ten 9/10 rates Terra Noctis at a 5 out of 5, this game is just…awesome! Go out (I mean figuratively, you’ll just need access to the App Store) and get the game for USD 2.99. Check it out over here: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/terra-noctis/id479517015?mt=8. A review code was provided to Nine Over Ten 9/10 for the purpose of this review.