Air Supply - 1bit Run

Containing old skool graphics, a dearth of goodies to unlock, and plenty of achievements to obtain, Air Supply - 1bit Run is a perpetual runner with a difference.

Dashing headlong into the most saturated of genres, it manages to succeed where so many fail by offering genuine incentives to play in the absence of innovation.

In other words, it's fast, familiar, and fun, giving you everything you want in an endless runner.

You control Spaceman Sam, an astronaut stranded on an alien moon following an ambush during what was supposed to be a routine trade mission. Your survival is a matter of run, run, running as far as you possibly can while avoiding enemies and collecting pick-ups in the process.

You run from left to right, gradually increasing in speed as you clock up more miles. Various hazards seek to impede your progress - pit falls, aliens that wander aimlessly in your direction, and projectile firing UFO - but you can jump or double-jump by tapping the bottom-left and fire a pistol with taps of the bottom-right.

You have a limited supply of oxygen - displayed in the top-left corner - which diminishes slowly over time or upon contact with enemies. Full depletion results in death, though you can top up your supply by collecting canisters floating in each level. It's a neat addition that adds a layer of challenge.

New characters, stages complete with accompanying enemies, music tracks, and the ability to change the colour of your surroundings can be unlocked by collecting stars, defeating set numbers of enemies, and reaching distance goals – all of which keep you coming back for more.

Air Supply isn't perfect, however. For one, it crashed when I received a notification. For another, although achievements are on hand they're unlocked in-game only – Game Center or OpenFeint support would be a sensible addition.

Air Supply – 1bit Run is a solid outing that successfully breaks new ground on an ageing genre, even if it's not enough to be classed as innovative.