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Out at midnight: Motion captured horses gallop onto Joust Legend for iOS

The best jousting game since 1982

Out at midnight: Motion captured horses gallop onto Joust Legend for iOS
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iOS
| Joust Legend

Every sport needs its own detailed and realistic video game. Except curling.

Well, now horseback martial art jousting has got its very own game in the shape of Rebellion's new iOS curio Joust Legend.

The game takes place in the year 1472, and the King of France has set up a grand tournament with King Edward IV of England. Old Ed needs to find the finest knight in the kingdom, so he's set up a series of grueling jousting tournaments.

Think Britain's Got Talent but with horses and big pointy sticks.

Joust Legend

The bouts are fun 2-minute mini-games. First off, you wrestle with a power meter to set your horse going at a good clip, then you drop your lance and carefully position it so that it will hit your oncoming opponent.

Joust Legend is all about risk and reward. Will you go for that all-important helmet hit and risk your pointy stick flying over your opponent's noggin? Or play it safe with a body blow?

The game's got a load of modes - including practice runs, prize fights, and big-money wagers - and tons of skills to unlock. You can also customise your armour and your horse. I called mine 'Horace'.

Joust Legend

Joust Legend also looks lovely. The game's powered by the same tech that powered Rebellion console games Aliens vs Predator and Sniper Elite V2. Rebellion actually uses motion capture from a champion jouster called Jason Kingsley (who just so happens to be the game's creative director, too) here.

"Both he [Kingsley] and his horse were wearing lycra suits with ping pong balls," a PR man told me. I'm glad this technology exists.

Joust Legend will be out at midnight on the UK and US App Stores, priced £1.49 / $1.99. You'll need an iPhone 4 or above; iPad 2 or later; or the most recent iPod touch to play it. Check it out.

Mark Brown
Mark Brown
Mark Brown is editor at large of Pocket Gamer