Iron Sight

While war has never exactly been a picnic, there was a time where it was at least straightforward. Back when horses and cannons were the arsenal of choice, armies would have the decency to wait for their foe to line up neatly on the other side of a valley before attacking.

Iron Sight, though actually set in a future where rebels are fighting back against a capitalist empire, taps back into those forthright days of old. Not everything lines up in the sights, but it fires off satisfying action nonetheless.

Using two or more mechas (one, amusingly enough, bearing a striking resemblance to a crab), you take turns moving around the map firing at your foe, attempting to wipe them out before they have a chance to consign you to history.

With just 90 seconds to make each move, you have to position yourself, determine the angle and power of your shot, and the missile you'd like to use, all before firing. The key to success is using the geography to your advantage, lining yourself up with the enemy without exposing yourself too much to the inevitable counter-attack.

That's unless you choose to sacrifice one of your machines. Luring your enemy one way while attacking them from another supplies depth and it actually becomes harder to keep a check on your strategy when the number of bots at your disposal increases.

Switching the targeting handicap off adds to the challenge, too. The handy blue line that predicts your missile fire disappears, leaving you at the mercy of memory, guesswork, and the ever-changing wind, which itself can have a surprising effect on your shots.

Missing your target doesn't just make you look foolish: it's the critical difference between victory and defeat. When just one direct hit can take out one of your robots, taking any opportunities that present themselves becomes more and more essential as the levels pass.

If even these battles become too predictable, Iron Sight comes with a multiplayer mode that lets you take turns against a friend using a single handset or one online. Unfortunately, our foray for an internet match proved a waste of ten minutes with games difficult to start up.

Navigation, too, could do with a bit of a bulk-up, the fiddly nature of the maps meaning it's all too possible to find yourself grappling with what appears to be an invisible wall.

Minor gripes aside, with some smart looking settings and levels that get progressively harder Iron Sight is an entertaining way to spend a spare minute. This isn't a revolutionary war and its plot is slightly hackneyed, but simply indulging in the struggle is a victory in itself.