My first experience in mobile gaming was a super sweet lime green GameBoy Color, for which we had only a few games. I preferred Pokemon Blue, and I thought the graphics during battle were downright epic.
Now, I tend to stick to my DS Lite and, much to the chagrin of myself a year ago, my iPhone 4.
See, I grew up using Apple computers. We had an amazing G4 that I loved for every possible reason. I learned to type on an Apple, and I even used a very old, antiquated Apple laptop for my writing. I would save stories on a nice collection of … gulp … floppy disks. I shudder at the thought.
When Apple became boisterously popular, and prices shot through the roof, we became a PC family. With that came the uppity attitude towards Apple, and Apple fans. Last summer, in fact, when all I heard about was the iPhone 4 and how great it was going to be and how Apple just works. Blah, blah, blah. I vowed to never own one.
To make a long, embarrassing story short, I ended up getting an iPhone 4, which is now basically glued to my hand. I sleep with it. I caress it lovingly. It’s saved my skin on many an occasion. We are the best of pals.
Not only does it just work (which is something I find myself saying now), but it’s great as a mobile gaming device. There’s an amazing variety of games, from action to racing to role play to puzzles and every other possible game. Thanks to the touch screen, it’s also easy and fun to play said games.
For example, the contents of my gaming folders, sans Game Center: Call of Atlantis (puzzle), Luxor (puzzle), Tetris (puzzle), Angry Birds (action), Plants vs. Zombies (action, puzzle), Bejeweled 2 (puzzle), Grimm (action), Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 (fighting), Words with Friends (word), TriZen (puzzle), Zentomino (puzzle), and Chicktionary (word).
No, I don’t like puzzles, but thanks for asking.
I will go through phases where all I do is play Luxor or Chicktionary before bed. I’ve played Call of Atlantis so many times over. The nice part of playing on my iPhone is that it’s right there. I’m not going to miss a call or text while I’m playing. It’s a small device that fits comfortably in my hand. If I get bored with a game, there’s inevitably something else either in my folder or in the App Store that I can buy.
Games like TriZen and Zentomino help me calm down if I’m worried or stressed about something, because I’m forced to focus completely on how to fit the pieces into the puzzle. Words with Friends is a game that I’ve recently become obsessed with as soon as I figured out you could play more than one game (not that waiting days at a time for the other person wasn’t fun). Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 is just plain fun.
Whether I pick up my iPhone intentionally so that I can play a game or I’m waiting for an appointment to start, the games on my phone have supplied me with entertainment and casual gaming on a level I didn’t expect. I love knowing that no matter where I am, I have the option to solve a puzzle, keep zombies at bay, or maybe even kick Kung Lao’s ass.
