Canabalt

For iPod Touch

Canabalt, by Semi Secret, is possibly one of the best and simplest games I've ever played. Is that a silvery enough endorsement? The game starts with a crash, with your black-suited alter-ego running down a corridor before crashing through the window to a rooftop below. From then on it is a high speed parkour jaunt in a Matrix-style rooftop race against, of all things, yourself. The controls are...well...who am I kidding? The control is just as simple as the concept. Tap the screen to jump. It doesn't matter where you tap, as long as you tap the screen. I imagine that someone out there is going to see someone on the subway shaking his iPod, trying to get the little fella to run faster. Trust me, it won't work.

Could you get any more headstrong than this? The music in the game is indeed perfectly matched to the awesomeness of the game, which dashes along as the limited story unfolds in the beautiful multi-layered backgrounds. More than a few times my runs were cut short by high ledges and flesh shredding obstacles as I was looking at the gigantic walking machines in the background, spraying white breams at the earth. The megalopolis spans as far as the eye can see under dismal gray skies.
If there is any problem with this game, I have to say that it is the fact that it is so engrossing that you will likely, at some point, miss a bus or forget to put their pants on because they are hopping along mightily, tap after tap, attempting to run farther than their last attempt. Also, the game is so simple and so fun that you will have a hard time telling people what you're playing. It's not that you'll really care very much, its just that explaining a game this simple usually leaves someone thinking that they are better than the game. Well they're not! They're nothing compared to this game, and you should not let them forget that. If anything, let them know that there are plenty of doves to jostle while you're running, and that's a beautiful thing.

The Good

Simplicity, good graphics, responsive control, action driving music, epic imagery in a tiny package.

The Bad

All of your attention must be focused on jumping a nine-pixel character, hard to explain game because you think its more than it is.

Canabalt= 88%

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