Moon Chaser, get Your Hill-Surfing Ninja to the Mountain before the Moon Eclipses
by Paul Wilks
Jun 22, 2011 1:12 PM –
Install
Moon Chaser sees you adopt the role of a hill surfing ninja who you control as he slides and flies through the night sky. Collect coins and boosts to get to the next mountain before the moon is eclipsed. Scratching your head? Oh it makes perfect sense when you start playing!
Price: Free
Tested on: HTC Desire HD
Content Rating: Everyone
Pros & Cons:
Pros
- Simple, intuitive controls.
- Beautiful graphics.
- Nice music and sound effects.
- Online scoring charts.
- 32 Missions to complete, including number of mountains reached, coins collected, number of perfect slides and length of fly.
- Addictive as oxygen.
Cons
Features:
In Moon Chaser you are a ninja who must travel to the next mountain (level) before the moon is eclipsed. Essentially the background Moon is your timer and you can watch as it’s crescent gradually gets smaller. If the Moon eclipses before you reach the next mountain, you drop out of the sky like a stone and the game is over. So, you must get as far as you can and rack up as many points and coins as possible.
You control your ninja via gravity when moving downwards, touch the screen to increase his gravity, release when he is moving upwards. The landscape is succession of hills, dips, follies and slopes so, if you increase gravity while he is sliding down a hill he will shoot off the top and fly through the sky. It’s incredibly simple, yet rather clever. As your ninja is flying you must look out for the rolling hills below you increase the gravity if he is about to land on a downward slope for greater flying. If you land on an upward slope prepare for a rather jarring dead-leg as you come to almost a stop- if this happens you must increase momentum again. It’s actually quite similar to going on a swing in a park, you have to have a rhythm to build up your velocity.
Each level ends with a huge bumpy slope and a bunch of coins to collect before sending you flying through the sky to the next mountain- here, your moon is replenished and you must get moving again! There are small boosts you can collect which will give you extra flight, so look out for them, they look like little red boots.
When the moon catches you up and you plummet, unceremoniously from the sky, the game is over and you have to start again. This is a minor niggle, it would be nice to try later mountains, but it gives the game that old-skool kind of difficulty where you have to regularly go back to the start.
The graphics are cartoony yet very smooth. Despite action essentially taking place at night, with the backdrop a night sky, the colors are vibrant, clear and bright. Gameplay is simple, as I have already described and you get a nice feeling as your ninja soars through the sky- likewise you can almost feel the jolting sensation if your timing is out and you ninja hits a hill on the wrong side.
The game is brilliant fun to play and if you’re good at it you can share your scores with the world via the online scoring options, it’s no Openfeint, but it works well and you can see how you rate against the great faceless mass of Android users from around the world. One criticism might be that there isn’t much variation in gameplay, mountains seems a little harder as you progress but the game is all about good timing and hitting the slopes to boost your speed. While the game is very well executed and even addictive, there is not much variety in there to perhaps keep you playing the game regularly for more than a week or so.
Watch on Mobile
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Moon Chaser – Much better, flying through the sky.
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Moon Chaser – Looks like I’m about to smash into the side of the hill. Brace yourself.
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Moon Chaser – Last hill of the level.
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Moon Chaser – In-game view, start.
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Moon Chaser – Flying to the next mountain.
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Moon Chaser – Flying to mountain 3.
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Moon Chaser – Game over.
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Moon Chaser – Menu screen
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Moon Chaser – Mission screen
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Moon Chaser – Submit score for the global boards.
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Moon Chaser – Local high scores
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Moon Chaser – Share your score.
Fun Factor:
The game is lots of fun and you get a real kick from flying through the air and really hitting the hills right. Combined with simple controls and lots of achievements to unlock it hits the nail on the head for a short-term gaming high.
Addictive:
There’s 32 missions to unlock (when I say missions, this sadly doesn’t mean difference in gameplay, simply collect a certain amount to coins or do more perfect slides). With the simplicity of the game it is easy to pick up and play for both children and adults alike. I certainly got into the game and became quite addicted for a few days. Unfortunately I got a little tired of it after this time and the draw wasn’t there anymore. It’s a great game might you not play it beyond a few weeks.
Graphics:
Graphics are good without being completely mind-blowing. The sweeping movements of your ninja are well rendered and very smooth. There is plenty of little details that make this game prettier; little ninja legs, little red boots, lush trees and the bright receding moon light.
Accelerometer, Vibration & Sound:
The sound is a rich, penetrating oriental theme, which is complimented by whoops and moans when your ninja jumps to the next mountain to hits a hill badly. If you were to make a soundtrack based on a viewing of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, it would sound like this. 