Few video game genres are saddled with plotlines as predictable as those found in 2D shooters. Nine out of ten of your average scrolling blaster sees the player - usually humankind’s only hope - stepping into a state-of-the-art spacecraft (which they only bothered to make one of, for some bizarre reason) and taking on an entire alien fleet single-handedly.
Ixion doesn’t attempt to deviate from this old and tired blueprint. Earth is under attack (again) from bloodthirsty mutants and our weapons have so far proven woefully ineffective against the xenomorph horde.
The only hope lies with Project-X, which handily involves fusing a human pilot with a spaceship that just so happens to be fully loaded with all kinds of awesome alien technology. Predictably, you’re that pilot.
The general gameplay doesn’t offer up any surprises, either. You navigate a series of horizontally-scrolling levels taking down wave after wave of alien assailants whilst taking time to collect power-ups which bolster the offensive capabilities of your futuristic war machine.
Fortunately the hum-drum nature of the action is mitigated slightly by the appealing visuals. If you’re a fan of 2D ‘pixel art’ then you’ll appreciate what’s on offer here, as while the sprites are a little on the small side they’re colourful and well-drawn (the Ixion craft itself reminds us of the ship from Konami’s superb SNES blaster Axelay, which can only be a good thing).
The screen automatically defaults to a tiny postage stamp-sized display (again, a throwback to its Java heritage) but you have the option to zoom in for a better view of proceedings.
Sonically, things are also solid. The pumping soundtrack complements the on-screen events perfectly, which is fortuitous because there’s little in the way of sound effects to speak of.
Sadly all of this good will is quickly squandered thanks to the abysmal controls.
‘Out of the box’ the default controls are mapped to the G1’s numerical keys: '2' is up, '8' is down, '4' is left and '6' is right. This layout betrays Ixion’s roots (it’s essentially a Java game running on the Android platform), but it’s also woefully impractical - as any self-respecting Android enthusiast will tell you, the number keys on the G1 are arranged in a line, so they don’t actually replicate the layout of a D-pad, as would be the case on a standard mobile phone.
In an attempt to make the most of the Android platform, developer Hovr has incorporated some alternative control schemes, but none works with any degree of satisfaction.
First up is the on-screen touchpad, which basically overlays a numerical pad on the screen. Unfortunately, said pad is positioned slap-bang in the middle of the display, which means you effectively obscure the on-screen action whilst using it.
The second choice is accelerometer control, which really is as silly as it sounds. Even on paper the notion of steering a spaceship through a tightly-knit hail of enemy fire by tilting the phone should strike any right-minded gamer as absurd. Amazingly, Horv’s system is even worse than you might imagine.
The ship simply refuses to respond to anything but the most exaggerated motions. You can alter the sensitivity in the options menu but even putting it on the maximum setting fails to result in anything resembling a half-decent control system.
Amazingly, Hovr has chosen not to allow you to control the ship using what would have been the most logical interface - the trackball.
Putting aside this rather thorny issue for a moment, it’s hard not to feel slightly short-changed with Ixion. It’s not a free app, although we’ll admit that at $0.99, it’s hardly costly. However, those of you who are clued up on developer Hovr will know that the company also runs a site which offers ad-funded mobile phone games free of charge.
We covered the service not so long ago and even played Ixion. As a gratis download on a standard mobile phone (sporting a standard keypad layout) it’s not bad at all, but by porting it to the G1 in such a lazy and clumsy manner, Hovr has essentially wasted whatever chance it might have had at impressing a far more discerning crowd.
Sticking a price tag on it - no matter how inconsequential - just adds insult to injury.
Ixion
Ixion certainly isn’t a terrible shooter by any standards but the ropey controls and general lack of innovation make it one to avoid on Android. This is basically money for old rope
Damien McFerran
Damien's mum hoped he would grow out of playing silly video games and gain respectable employment. Perhaps become a teacher or a scientist, that kind of thing. Needless to say she now weeps openly whenever anyone asks how her son's getting on these days.