Digby Forever review - Dig Dug for the Crossy Road generation
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iOS
| Digby Forever

There's a lot to be said for the raft of games on the App Store recently that have been inspired by arcade classics. And Digby Forever fits snugly into that ever-growing cadre of reimagined classic genres.

It's equal parts old school and new school, resplendent in its shininess but always looking back over its shoulder at the games that have come before it.

And it all comes together to create a package that's simple, engaging, and just the right side of casual. You won't tear your hair out, but it's unlikely you're going to get bored either.

Can you dig it?

The game is essentially a riff on the Dig Dug template. You're a miner who's digging through a seemingly endless cavern. You're collecting gems, avoiding enemies, and trying to do as deep as you can.

The controls are simple. You swipe in the direction you want to go. Hit something you can mine and you'll start hacking your way through it. Hit something that'll kill you and you'll die.

There are bombs too. Hit one of these and a red circle will appear around it. You need to be out of that red circle when it goes off or only the sweet embrace of death awaits you.

You've also got a bunch of cards to play with. You buy these with in-game currency, and the game doles them out as you play too. They have different effects, from saving your life to slowing down the crunchy enemies or giving you bigger rewards.

Then there are the digbots. You get more of these as you level up and they'll grab you gems even when you're not playing. Dig, earn, spend. That's the beat we're looking at here.

And it works pretty darn well. It's not as immediate as the likes of Crossy Road, but there's still a decent set of compulsion jaws here, and they're likely to clamp down into your susceptible flesh.

Can you dug it?

It's hard not to play Digby Forever with a smile on your face. Even when things go wrong you'll get enough reward to move you a little deeper into the experience.

It looks good, it plays brilliantly, and while it might lack the depth some people crave, as simple one-touch arcade experiences go it's pretty good.

Digby Forever review - Dig Dug for the Crossy Road generation

A one-touch arcade game that's not too casual and not too hardcore either
Score
Harry Slater
Harry Slater
Harry used to be really good at Snake on the Nokia 5110. Apparently though, digital snake wrangling isn't a proper job, so now he writes words about games instead.