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He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe

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He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe

If you were born in the '80s, at some point in your life you've probably raised a cardboard tube over your head and shouted, "I have the power!"

That's because you grew up in an age when men in furry pants wielding giant swords was acceptable Saturday morning TV fare.

We may live in darker times now, but thankfully Chillingo and GlitchSoft have found a magical portal to take us back to those halcyon days. This portal is He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe.

GlitchSoft's new iOS cartoon adventure has all the hacking, slashing, and furry pants any child of the '80s could want, plus enough sly winks and in-jokes to satisfy the He-Man diehards. Throw in a clever control scheme and a decent challenge, and you're left with an utterly brilliant blast from the past.

By the power of Grayskull

The game starts with He-Man dangling upside down in the dungeons of Snake Mountain, taunted by his archnemesis Skeletor about the evil plan he's concocted to take over Eternia. It doesn't take long, mind, for the Most Powerful Man in the Universe to get free and start a 27-level campaign to get to Castle Grayskull and save the day.

You control He-Man by sliding a finger in the direction you want to go on the left-hand side of the screen. Keeping your finger held down after a slide keeps him moving in that direction. Sword slashes are executed by tapping on the right-hand side of the screen.

As you work through the different locations that make up He-Man's home planet of Eternia, you'll gain enough crystals to learn new moves. To perform these moves, you swipe on the right of the screen. Up is always a jump, while the rest of the moves you learn are mapped to left, right, and down swipes.

It makes for a fluid experience that's not hampered by hard-to-locate buttons or complex combinations of taps. You're swiping your way through the game as He-Man slashes his way through the creatures and obstacles you come across.

Manly '80s man

Those beasts and blockages pose a pretty stiff challenge. While the first few levels walk you through the different parts of the game, including your special Grayskull power - which makes you invincible and super strong for a burst - once the hand holding is over, things get pretty tough.

Flying enemies, collapsing scenery, and giant boss battles all block your path to Grayskull. You'll normally manage to scrape through a level with a single-star rating, but getting the highest scores requires some dexterous manipulation of our Eternian hero.

Thankfully, you can call on Man At Arms (He-Man's long-time mentor) for help if you have the right tokens. He'll stomp on from the left of the screen, and as soon as you start swiping, he'll start blasting away with his lasers until his power runs out and he has to pop off to recharge.

Childhood dreams

He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe is a brilliantly put-together action-platforming romp, with a knowing sense of humour and enough winks and nods to keep fans of the original cartoon grinning from ear to ear.

Some might find its tougher sections a little much to bear, but fans of the genre are going to find themselves swept away in the cartoon brilliance of the game.

Fun, funny, and wonderfully constructed, He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe is a fitting homage to your childhood memories.

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He-Man: The Most Powerful Game in the Universe

Equal parts a stomp down memory lane, a cheeky wink to the past, and a hardcore action-platformer, He Man: The Most Power Game in the Universe is a game that's worth wasting your time on
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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.