Review of Toy Bot Diaries Entry 1

To date, some of the top iPhone games have been ports of already existing games or mobile extensions of existing franchises. That’s fine and I’m happy to play any quality game, but I think for an iPhone game to really shine it’s got to be something original, something made exclusively for the iPhone’s unique controls. Enter Toy Boy Diaries.

Toy Bot Diaries is a swing and cling platformer developed by IUGO Mobile Entertainment for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Currently priced at $3.99 at the Apple iTune App Store, Toy Bot Diaries puts you in control of Tiny Toy Robot who must make his way though the inside of a strange machine in order to recover his lost memories. With the aid of his electro grappling hook, magnetic boots and expert swinging skills, the little robot navigates three complete levels and one special boss level in an attempt to unravel the mystery that is Toy Bot Diaries.

Toy Bot Diaries Graphics
The graphics is Toy Bot Diaries are pretty good overall. There is nothing that seems unfinished but also nothing that really knocked my socks off. I really liked the the splash screen, game menus, restored memory illustrations and floating Soda Boy can, but found the level backgrounds to be a little dull. I know it’s a tall order with screen size and device limitations but I’ve seen some impressive backgrounds in other iPhone games and think creating a bit more depth and detail in the Toy Bot Diaries’ environments would add a lot more to the game.

Toy Bot Diaries Sound
Toy Bot Diaries has great sound for the iPhone. The opening music, level music, sound effects and character emotions are all great and fit the game really well. The sound of Toy Bot Diaries took me back to my days playing platformer style games on the NES. Sure, the quality of sound is better on the iPhone, but there was something about the Toy Bot background music and sound effects that brought back some good NES memories.

Toy Bot Diaries Gameplay
The main attraction in Toy Bot Diaries are the level obstacles. Levers, zip lines, bowling balls, coin receptacles, water, electricity all stand in way of Tiny Toy Robot’s progress. There are three main levels, all of which are quite long, and one boss level. To successfully make it through these levels our little robot can walk (controlled by the accelerometer), push things by walking into them, swing from metal objects via his grappling hook (done by tapping and tilting your iPhone), cling to metal objects by using his magnetic boots and pull ceratin objects with the grappling hook.

There are a few sections of Toy Bot Diaries that deliver that finest gaming experience currently available on the iPhone and others that made me want to throw my phone out the window. There are parts of the game that seem near perfect. Good pacing leads to a well thought out puzzle involving a few complicated maneuvers ultimately ending with an exhilarating slide or swing. This is Toy Bot Diaries as its best. Unfortunately, the game doesn’t always play like this.

Complicating the sometimes challenging levels are the controls. The controls in Toy Bot Diaries need tuning. I always felt like I was fighting the controls in the game. It often proved difficult to get the tiny robot to do exactly what I wanted, when I wanted. The magnetic boots were a total pain to get working most of the time and walking became unresponsive to my tilts on several choice occasions. The grappling hook works well as does the swinging, but work is needed on swing releases. In addition to the control problems there were a number of level design glitches that trapped Tiny Toy Robot or rendered an obstacle unsolvable. Luckily for Toy Bot Diaries, the good outweighs the bad and those who stick with difficult sections are eventually rewarded with more outstanding gameplay.

Toy Bot Diaries Price
Toy Bot Diaries is currently priced at $3.99 which feels just right to me. Although there are only four total levels, three of them are very long and have collection aspects to them which add replay value. IUGO could have gotten away with pricing Toy Bot Diaries at $7.99, but they didn’t and I think they deserve some points for their accurate price point.

Toy Bot Diaries Summary
Toy Bot Diaries is an original iPhone platformer that mixes a lot entertainment with a little frustration. Overall, the game is very well done, if not a little difficult. Their are parts of Toy Bot Diaries that are incredibly fun to play and represent some of the best gaming on the iPhone. Unfortunately, there are a few level and controls issues that take away from some of the enjoyment this enjoyment. Ultimately, Toy Bot Diaries is an impressive offering from IUGO and well worth the $3.99 . . . if you commit to sticking through the hard spots. Because of its game play and use of iPhone controls, I think we’ll all be seeing a lot more of the cute little robot from Toy Bot Diaries and I, for one, couldn’t be happier.

By: Aaron Robbins