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Orbia (Free) by JOX is an action arcade game that tests your one-touch dashing skills. If you enjoyed other games like AZ Rockets and Lichtspeer, but want a world like Badland 2, then you'll get a kick out of Orbia.

When life gets too much (and boy has it been lately), I just want to sit down and enjoy some mobile games while in the comfort of my fiancé's arms on the couch. Usually I turn to puzzle games for these moments, but sometimes I want a game that tests my reflexive skills. For these moments, I like arcade games, and Orbia is one that fits the bill nicely. Even though Orbia has been out for a while, it slipped my radar until now. And I'm glad I discovered this hidden gem.

$1.99

Lichtspeer

Noodlecake Studios Inc

Free

AZ Rockets

Itatake AB

$0.99

BADLAND

Frogmind Oy

$0.99

BADLAND 2

Frogmind Oy

Visually, Orbia is beautiful. The game carries a fairly minimalistic aesthetic due to the softly colored backgrounds with serene landscapes and scenery. The targets you're dashing towards are simple circular outlines, sometimes with power-ups inside. Your character, a cute white fuzzball with glowing eyes, along with the enemies (dark evil versions of you in various sizes) are rendered in 2D and pack in a lot of personality in small packages.

There are various skins that you can come across as you play, which change your character's appearance and grants special abilities, and they all look unique and distinctive from each other. Animations are smooth and fluid, so there is no issue of lag or choppiness on my iPhone 8 Plus. Orbia also has a soothing and ambient atmospheric soundtrack that is immersive, so it's delightful to listen to as you play.

Even though the end goal is to get as far as you can in the game, there are still levels, and you can jump back to any completed level if you wish. Orbia features four different worlds with their own scenery and baddies to watch out for. On top of that, there are a ton of stages in each world to complete (the first one has 400 alone), so it should be enough to keep you busy for a while. Other chapters can be unlocked by spending crystals (in-game currency) or meeting other requirements, such as liking their Facebook page.

The goal in Orbia is to get as far as you can, and to complete each stage, just dash to each target unscathed until you get to the next level. Easy, right? Like plenty of other games, Orbia sounds easier than it looks.

To dash, all you need to do is tap anywhere on the screen. You don't have to worry about tapping on your target, since it would obstruct your view of obstacles. This one-touch control scheme lets you play the game with just one hand, so it's great to play anywhere. However, there are bad fuzzballs surrounding each target, and you must time your dashes right so you don't touch them, because otherwise, it's game over.

The game starts out easy enough, but things get trickier as you go. You'll encounter multiple orbiting layers of bad fuzzies, and they rotate at different speeds. Or there are large ones that are harder to avoid, rotating belts of them, and more. It's all about timing here, so just look for the opening and take it.

Sometimes you'll find power-ups in the targets that help you out in the long run. Things like shields protect you from a hit automatically, so you survive a bit longer. Other items let you dash faster, making it easier to get through tight openings. These boosts get activated when they're needed, so you don't have to think about additional controls besides dashing. They also pop up fairly frequently, so you may get a few items before a run ends.

Orbia also rewards players who are able to consecutively dash to targets without pausing. When this happens, you get a speed boost, and more crystals are awarded to you. Plus, it's fun to see how quickly you can complete a stage just for kicks.

As mentioned earlier, there are skins to unlock for your character, which add not only a dash of color, but grant you special talents too. For example, you can get faster dash speed, change your size, increase the time for bonus items, and more. Each skin is locked to the area that you find it in though, and more can be found on select stages. There are a ton of skins to discover and unlock, so it adds to the replay value.

Since Orbia is a free game, there are occasional banner and video ads. However, they don't necessarily get in the way, but could still annoy some people. Fortunately, there is an in-app purchase to get rid of ads if you so choose. Additionally, some skins are locked behind in-app purchases, and they also have pretty good bonuses as well as getting rid of ads too. However, some of the prices for these are pretty high, which I didn't like.

An orbital ascent.

The Good

Orbia is a gorgeous game that's relaxing and challenging at the same time. The simple and clean graphics are great eye candy, and the colors are definitely soothing and complement everything nicely. The music is whimsical and delightful to listen to. THe gameplay is simple enough for everyone, but still proves to be a nice and welcome challenge for all. The one-touch controls make this the perfect kind of pick-up-and-play game to try when you're just waiting around somewhere. Plus, there are hundreds of levels and a ton of unique skins to unlock that boost your game.

The Bad

Personally, Orbia has a lot of good stuff going on, but the free part does bug me a bit. The ads, while not intrusive during the game, do get annoying over time. At least there are ways to get rid of them. But that brings me to another point — some of the prices for the skins are ridiculous. One costs $20, and while it pretty much gives you godly bonuses, I just think it's too much. Plus, I'm not a fan of how each skin is locked to the area that you get it in. I think giving players the option to use any skin in any chapter grants more freedom.

The verdict

Despite my qualms with the game's in-app purchase skins, I'm finding Orbia to be a fun game to play when I have some downtime. The game's visual style is beautiful to behold, and reminds me a lot of games like Badland. I found the music to be tranquil and soothing too, which is always welcome for me these days. The one-touch controls are fantastic, and the gameplay itself is challenging, despite looking easy on the surface. It's one of those games that is hard to put down once you get started.

Orbia is available on the App Store as a universal download for your iPhone and iPad for free. There are in-app purchases.

9.1

OVERALL

Game Controls 10

Replayability 9

Graphics 9

Sound/Music 9

Gameplay 8.5

FREE

Orbia

JOX Development

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Oddmar ($4.99) by Mobge is a challenging action-adventure platformer based on Vikings and Norse mythology. If you enjoyed other recent titles like Reed and Temple of Spikes, then chances are high that you'll like Oddmar. It's from the same development team of Leo's Fortune.

Since I was born in the '80s, I grew up with platformers during my childhood. I have fond memories playing Super Mario Bros. and Sonic the Hedgehog games with my siblings, and going to friends' houses and playing their games as well. Platformers are definitely one of those genres that we consider tried-and-true classics these days, and I'm always up for any new one that happens to pop up on the App Store, which turns out to be a lot. Though they're still a genre I'd prefer to play on a console with physical buttons, titles like Mikey Shorts seem to have perfected the controls, though are hard to come by. Still, Oddmar looked intriguing from the get-go, so I had to give it a shot. Plus, Leo's Fortune was a pretty good game back then, so it gave me high expectations with Oddmar.

$4.99

Leo's Fortune

1337 & Senri LLC

$1.99

Reed ^_^

Crescent Moon Games LLC

$5.99

Temple of Spikes: The Legend

TIGRIDO, INC.

$1.99

Mikey Shorts

BeaverTap Games, LLC

Visually, Oddmar is stunning and gorgeous, but that's to be expected from the team who created Leo's Fortune. Even though this is a side-scrolling platformer, everything appears to be rendered in 3D with the beautifully blurred and scenic landscapes in the background, with contrasting sharpness for the stage in the foreground. These layers give off the illusion of 3D, and it works incredibly well. Oddmar's depiction of Valhalla is ravishing, as the world looks lush and even whimsical. The colors are bold and vibrant, with some more muted, earthy tones mixed in along the way.

Oddmar is a distinctive looking Viking who seems to be bursting with a jolly personality, and the various animals and enemies you'll encounter are just as lively. Animations are smooth and fluid, so there's no issues of lag on my iPhone 8 Plus. The game also features an epic and delightful soundtrack to go along with the epic adventure, complete with what sounds like bagpipes and all. Of course, Oddmar is quite a special Viking, so there are some fun sound effects to go along with everything.

There's a unique story behind Oddmar, and it's revealed to players through a series of motion comics. These are hand-drawn and look fantastic, as they convey emotions and other tones well. Essentially, Oddmar is a rather odd Viking. His village has deemed him not worthy of being in Valhalla since he seems to have squandered all of his potential. However, one day he gets an opportunity to prove himself once more, but at a price. It's kind of amazing that the story of a Viking could be relatable for many of us, right?

Since Oddmar is a platformer, it goes along with the level-based formula. At the moment, there are 24 hand-crafted stages to get through. While that does not sound like much, the levels are pretty lengthy and full of challenging physics-based puzzles. So if you want to finish the game, that means spending some quality sit-down time with it, as there are also a lot of hidden secrets to discover too. The goal in each stage is to make it to the end where the ritual stone is. However, there will be many obstacles and new enemies along the way that try to prevent you from proving your worth as a Viking. Fortunately, you're armed and ready to take on all that stand in your way. Plus, there are checkpoints, so if you die, you'll just pick up from the last checkpoint you reached.

Controls in Oddmar are simple and intuitive. To move left or right, just slide your finger around in the bottom left corner. In order to jump, you'll swipe upwards from the bottom right corner. Though you can't double jump, you're able to jump off of walls, so take advantage of that. To attack, just tap the bottom right corner — if you do it fast enough, Oddmar goes into a slashing combo. You can do a shield slam by swiping down while you're in the air. This can let you reach higher spots if done on a bouncy surface, or you can break weak floors to get to hidden areas. For the most part, the controls are responsive so there isn't too much of an issue with that.

However, I'm not sure I like the swiping controls that are on by default. Fortunately, you can toggle on-screen controls in the settings, which puts buttons on the screen. This works out for me much better, and I'm sure for many others.

As you explore the various lands, Oddmar will find gold triangles to collect along the way. These are the game's currency, and they're plentiful. Every now and then, you'll encounter a shop on the stage, and you can "enter" it by hitting the bell with an attack. This opens up the shop, and you can check out new weapons and shields that you can purchase with your gold. These new additions can increase your attack power and speed, and protect you from more damage, so it's important to upgrade when you can.

Oddmar is a gorgeous action-adventure platformer that keeps you entertained while you prove your worth in Valhalla.

The Good

Oddmar is a fantastic action-adventure platformer that is full of content and challenging at the same time. The game looks beautiful with the hand-crafted artwork and motion comic cutscenes. The music is fun to listen to, and the sound effects give everything a dash of personality. While 24 levels doesn't seem like a lot, the length of each stage is pretty good, and the puzzles can be fairly challenging even for skilled veterans. The checkpoint system is nice since they're pretty frequent, so the game is forgiving and not frustrating. It's an overall great addition to anyone's platformer collection.

The Bad

While there is a lot of good stuff about Oddmar, I did find the swiping controls to be a bit odd to be the default option. At least you can change it to on-screen button controls, so I'm thankful for that. The only other negative is the fact that there are only 24 levels — I hope to see more added in the future, as it would extend the lifespan of the game.

The verdict

As a platformer fan, I love Oddmar. The game is visually amazing, and the music is top notch. Controls are nice once you find your preferred setting, and the gameplay is challenging. It's all rather humorous too, which makes it even more charming. And while there are only 24 levels right now, it will take some time to get through them all considering the length, as well as the hidden secrets to collect. Oh, and there are Dream levels to finish too, so the replay value is high.

Oddmar is available on the App Store as a universal download for your iPhone and iPad for just $4.99. There are no in-app purchases.

9.2

OVERALL

Graphics 10

Replayability 9

Game Controls 9

Sound/Music 9

Gameplay 9

$4.99

Oddmar

Mobge Ltd

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