Side scrolling shoot em’ ups have never been a favorite of mine. They are either way too hard or way too repetitive. I could never manage to get the combos right and always ended up getting killed within ten enemies.

OMG Pirates however, is different. The combos can be hard to use at the beginning, but afterwards, when you get the hang of things, it all goes really smoothly. The difficulty curve is perfect and the lovely artwork and great music complement the game really well and make for one awesome beat em’ up!

The graphics in this game are brilliant. The detailed and colorful hand drawn graphics give the game a very distinctive look that make the game look that much more impressive. When doing combos, the animation is smooth and fun to watch and the same could be said about the special attacks, which are really impressive to watch

The music in this game is also pleasant to listen to. The soundtrack consists of several pieces of jolly pirate music, which is very enjoyable and really adds to the game’s atmosphere. The sound effects are also great, as the game is full of the stereotypical pirate shout: arrh! Whenever you finish off a pirate, the satisfying noise will be heard. Also, the weapon sounds are also great. The metallic noise the sword makes is completely believable and the same could be said about the guns and bombs.

Of course, a good game is not a good game without easy or natural controls. This game has that! The controls consist of a joystick and two buttons as well as a special attack button in the top left. Slashing the pirates is extremely fun and is made easy with the simple time based combo system. If you do different combinations of button pressing, you will do different combos. You learn new combos by levelling up and you also get better stats when you level up (faster moving speed, more damage, better special attack etc.).

There are a total of nine levels in the game, with a boss every three levels. However, the game is very replayable as there is an unlockable survival mode as well as a ranking system based on your performance in the levels. The rankings are (from worst to best) terribad, apprentice, average, skilled and master. You get a ‘cheat’ every five master rankings across normal and hard difficulties and these can get really hard to achieve.

Overall, this app is a definite buy, for both serious and casual gamers alike. The art style is pleasant, the music is great, the controls feel right and the game is brilliant. There is no reason not to get this app!

Ratings

Controls-5/5
Graphics- 5/5
Sound- 5/5
Fun factor- 5/5
Value- 4.5/5
Overall rating 5/5 (just get this app!)

OMG Pirates! on the App Store