My children now have a new favorite game on the iPad. And they don’t mind the trailers that the folks at Half Brick have been producing for their Fruit Ninja game, either.
Like so many popular iPad games, this is another super-sized version of an iPhone game, with improved graphics and improved game play that comes thanks to the larger screen that developers have available to them. One nice addition to Fruit Ninja HD (thanks again to the screen size, but obviously not a requirement) is the addition of multiplayer mode. Two players can now play head-to-head in either Classic Attack and Zen Duel. This has been a bonus from this GeekDad’s perspective, as it saves the arguments over who gets to play with this new toy, only to be replaced by the occasional argument over who is cheating.
My real desire is to see this game branch out and use the Bluetooth functionality of iPad and iPhone as they have for Scrabble on the iPad. I can see multiplayer games of up to five players, where some players throw fruit from their iPhones onto the iPad screen and another player has to “ninja” it. The potential to really branch out with these new generation of touchscreen games is much greater than we are currently getting. I’m looking forward to seeing where developers can take it in coming months.
Fruit Ninja HD is available on the iTunes App Store for $4.99.
Wired: A bigger screen gives better ninja slicing finger experience.
Tired: Another up-sized game that leaves you wondering … what else could we be doing here?
