4 in a Wheel

One of the core contradictions at the heart of the mobile games scene is that social multiplayer gaming has never really taken off, even though the platform itself is arguably a more inherently social device than any games console. Y'know, 'cos it's a phone. Getting a connected game to function properly over 400+ devices is a job of fairly nightmarish proportions, and implementing something like Bluetooth multiplayer is just as bad, especially considering the limited budgets most mobile games are made under.

Failing this, the archaic practice of passing a handset between friends is currently still the most sensible method of getting two players in on a single game. What better source material for a game like this could there be than Connect 4? 4 in a Wheel is a sea shanty-ing, rum-swilling pirate-themed version of that classic game.

However, the 'wheel' of the title brings its own gameplay significance. The wheel in question is the thing into which the matching tokens are dropped, and it has a tendency to spin around by 90 degrees, throwing the tokens about like canoes in a whirlpool. There are three game modes in total. Classic is for the Connect 4 purists, where the wheel doesn't spin at all. In Wheel, the eponymous contraption spins clockwise every four turns, while in Off Course the regularity and direction of the spin is randomised. In the latter two modes, there's always a prompt near the top of the screen that tells you how meny turns are left until the next spin, as well as its direction.

If you don't have a friend to play with, you can go up against an AI opponent. Here, the spinning dynamic reveals its usefulness. Without a real-life opponent, the Classic mode feels a little stodgy and dull. Making AI interesting when it's involved with what is essentially the very simple task of selecting between eight different rows is difficult, but the spinning mechanic allows you to use a whole new set of strategies.

Unfortunately, it still suffers under comparisons to the mobile phone staple, the matching puzzler. Unlike this more traditional take on Connect 4, this matching puzzler is essentially the casual gaming equivalent of Connect 4 fully re-imagined towards a single-player experience. Titles such as Bejeweled and Chuzzle offer comparable pattern-searching gameplay, but with the benefits of a relatively turbo-charged pace.

Comparing these sub-genres may not seem particularly kind, but the fact that there are just a handful of Connect 4-style games and a barrel-load of matching puzzlers does speak volumes. The simple possibility for an endless mode in the latter is a design boon. In order to counteract the limiting nature of the necessarily round-based 4 in a Wheel, there could have been a story mode added perhaps, where you sail the seven seas, engaging in encounters with increasingly difficulty and swarthy pirates. As is, there are just four different characters to choose from, all available at the start.

There is a story in there somewhere, but it has so little effect on the gameplay itself that it's positively begging to be ignored. The result of this is that there's just not quite enough incentive to keep you playing for anything more than short sessions.

These concerns aside, 4 in a Wheel still remains one of the better Connect 4 style games available on mobile. The attractive pirate theme does add a much-needed layer of charm to the proceedings, and the new spinning dynamic is also a valuable asset in a game that would otherwise just be a little too simple for its own good.