Crazy Chicken Pirates 3D

Only a few years ago pirates were everywhere, and I don't mean the Somali ones. Your average Joe was soaking up stripy t-shirts, Pirates of the Caribbean films, and even video games - there was no real escape from those swashbuckling fellows.

Then, rising from the dead as it were, zombies jostled their way into the limelight - a trend that's only now beginning to die down. While I'm no fan of either theme, I'm very glad that this isn't Crazy Chicken Zombies 3D.

There's something very charming about the combination of a chicken's harmless idiocy and a pirate's swarthy evil, and charm is a big part of this game's appeal.

Havin' a clucking good time

Tasked with clearing an idyllic desert island from its chicken pirate invasion, you're given 90 seconds and a gun to make feathers fly. It's all very Duck Hunt, except with chickens and a fair bit more depth.

Playing on a 2D stretch of the island's coastline, you can scroll the camera around to frame each part of the onscreen action. In an effort to offer precision, the game lets you aim using the touchpad to track chickens on the 3DS's top screen before firing off with one of the shoulder buttons.

It's probably best played using the Kid Icarus: Uprising stand, as it's a little awkward to hold the 3DS when playing. Essentially, it's all down to quick reflexes and ensuring that you fire off rounds into beaks, hats, boats, sharks, and even UFOs.

You'll also find yourself being sucked into the action thanks to some rather superb 3D visuals that really add a sense of depth to the action. While this doesn't exactly change how you go about playing Chicken Pirates, it does accentuate the already sublime hand-drawn visuals that Teyon has used in this hectic fowl-'em-up.

Don't count your chickens…

It may sound like Crazy Chicken Pirates 3D is a rather one-dimensional shooting gallery affair, but that descriptions sells it short. Chicken Pirates becomes devilishly good when the highscore-hunting really sets in and you begin to find the tricks underneath all the madcap violence.

It's not about blindly shooting your way through the only level on offer - it's about planning your attack and executing it flawlessly to reach the high rungs of the leaderboard - even if it's difficult to gain pinpoint accuracy on smaller 3DS screens.

What Teyon has created here is quick, easy, and addictive portable gaming at an attractive price of less than two quid. It's instantly accessible to casual players while still offering a challenge for those who want some depth to their gameplay. If it had a couple more levels this would be 3DS gold.

Crazy Chicken Pirates 3D

A highly entertaining offering that'll absorb your free time in 90-second bursts and leave you wanting more. It's a shame, then, that it only has one main level to offer you
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Vaughn Highfield
Vaughn Highfield
Quite possibly the tallest man in games, Vaughn has been enamoured with video games from a young age. However, it wasn't until he spent some time writing for the student newspaper that he realised he had a knack for talking people's ears off about his favourite pastime. Since then, he's been forging a path to the career he loves... even if it doesn't love him back.