Chris Buffa (Modojo): We've played countless running games on the App Store, including Canabalt, Don't Run With a Plasma Sword and I Must Run!, all of which focus more on action, less on story.
That said, InterWave Studios' rComplex may trump them all. This re-imaging of a 2009 game follows a similar premise of keeping the hero constantly moving forward, but introduces a narrative and something we don't often see in these types of smart phone titles, weapons.
Running. This is what my life has come to. I sprint through these streets with weapon in hand in an attempt to flee this monstrosity breathing down my neck. It reaches out with its black tentacles in an attempt to snatch me off my feet. For what reason? I know not. What I do know is that I must keep going in order to survive. This beast keeps nipping at my heels as if to end my existence with its grasp. Is this a dream? Is this a nightmare? No, this is rComplex.
Nightmare Mode reviews rComplex, the recent iOS platformer from Interwave Studios:
"...in spite of its simplified design elements and pick-up-and-play accessibility, rComplex is seriously deficient in one crucial element – intuition and rhythm. As a game that aims to embody the spirit of running, you would think this is the one thing it would have nailed. Simply put, it doesn’t, and that keeps it from being counted among the mobile greats."
Excerpt: "Playing the game has a real sense of purpose. Rather than just running for the sake of running, You don’t know who you are, but are being relentlessly chased by the tentacles and slowly recovering your memory in cube form along the way, in the darkness. The world is bathed in red, with a city in the distance of a blue. It’s a stark contrast as you and the creature following you are black silhouettes. It’s a very visually striking world that demands your attention. Sound is haunting and exciting that benefits from using your headphones."
