Tiny Wings does not sound like a title that will make it big in the iOS games industry, which is plagued by thousands upon thousands of mobile games. Surprisingly, this tiny little game is high addictive and fun, and was even chosen to be the iPhone Game of the Year in Europe’s App Store Rewind 2011.
What exactly makes this game popular among Apple gamers? Let’s find out.
About the Game
This game from Andreas Illiger is an exercise in simplicity—Tiny Wings features a very simple one-touch and one-button control that allows the player to soar through the environment of the game. Tiny Wings changes every day, with procedural generated graphics that will make the game appear different every day that you play it. This title is perfect for those who are looking for an uncomplicated game to enjoy and be addicted to in your iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad.
Gameplay
As mentioned earlier, Tiny Wings is relatively simple to play. You will control a squat bird with big eyes—yes, he is rather cute, but unfortunately, he has been given a limited wingspan that hinders free flight in the air. You and the bird have to fight gravity in order to achieve goals, but this fight is not as complicated as it sounds. You will just need to hold your finger to your device’s screen to stop the bird from flapping his wings. Remove the finger from the screen and the bird will flap once again. This control scheme sounds simple enough, but the challenge lies in how you will time the tap and release.
You will also need to get as far as possible before the sun goes down. As soon as the sun sets, the bird will drift off to sleep. You will get bonus points if you make longer jumps and vaults into the clouds. There will also be a couple of coins that you will need to collect along the way.
Everything still sounds so simple, but the real secret to Tiny Wings’ success is that introduces challenges in good pace, which makes it highly addictive as you go along. There are mini-challenges that you will have to complete along the way, as well as specific objectives that you will need to fulfill.
User Interface
As mentioned earlier in this review, Tiny Wings is very easy and simple to use and learn. Perhaps it is this intuitive interface that constitutes a big part of the title’s appeal to iOS gamers around the world.
Graphics and Sound Effects
The world of Tiny Wings is detailed and rendered in a cute and appealing style. The illustrations in the game are very colorful and attractive in a very endearing manner. The soundtrack is quite enjoyable too, but quickly fades into the background once you really get into the game.
One of the main features of the graphics in Tiny Wings is the procedural generated graphics—all the patterns and the colors in the game’s world changes every day.
The Drawback
In future editions, the developer can reconsider the placement of the pause button, which can get in the way of thoroughly enjoying the game. Many players of this title end up pausing the game when they do not intend to. The procedural generated graphics can also pose some trouble to the device’s processors, because the constantly changing graphics demand more from the processor than other kinds of games. There might be a couple of instances when the player can experience lags in the game.
Conclusion
Even if there are a couple of performance issues with the older iOS devices, Tiny Wings is still a highly enjoyable game that you can get hooked to for days on end. The stunning and vibrant graphics are just one part (but a rather big one) of the game’s appeal. Game mechanics are very easy to understand and Tiny Wings progresses interestingly—and with all these great components to an attractive whole, it is quite easy to understand why this title is very popular among iOS gamers all around the world.
What Do You Think?
Tiny Wings
Category: Games
Price: $0.99
Developed By: Andreas Illiger
Requirements: Requires iOS 3.1 or later
Compatible With: iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad
Other OS: Android, Facebook, BlackBerry
Our Rating: 
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