Game Reviews

The Walk

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The Walk
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| The Walk

All sport is essentially an elaborate trick to get you to exercise.

Even as someone who enjoys playing sport, I know that. I'll chase a ball around all day long, but ask me to run to the end of the street and back for the benefit of my health and I'll laugh in your face.

The Walk is another trick to get you to exercise, and while it's unlikely to replace football or squash any time soon, it's a pretty neat one.

On the wild side

Utilising your iPhone's accelerometer, The Walk will track you whenever you get up and walk - even when the game isn't running. It'll note how many steps you've taken and, most importantly, the length of time you've walked for.

When you reach certain walkies-time milestones, as laid out on a colourful 2D map, The Walk will unlock the next snippet in a specially written audio play.

As for that story, it's a nicely executed and adequately acted - if somewhat conventional - tale of espionage, mistaken identity, and a plot to take down the world's electronic infrastructure. Oh, and it's set right here in the UK.

It's a bit like if Nike and BBC Radio 4 got together to make an app. Which sounds awesome, I'm sure you'll agree.

Walking a fine line

In an extra dose of interactivity, you can touch certain elements on the map as you move along the linear path set out for you. At certain points you can opt to divert to a different path, which will give you an extra story-related item - a newspaper snippet, for example - but only if you walk a little longer.

Elsewhere there are faint symbols on the map that can be tapped for additional audio clips and atmosphere-boosting snippets of information.

In truth, the link between the map and the tense drama unfolding in your ears isn't particularly strong. And we were a little disappointed that there's no real-world GPS element in there.

But none of that really matters. What matters is that The Walk makes you forget you're walking, and urges you to do more walking in order to reach the next portion of the story.

Basically, those dirty tricksters at Six to Start have fooled us into exercising again (they also made Zombies, Run!), and we're even more inclined to play along this time around.

The Walk

The Walk is a fabulous way to turn your daily walk into work or to school into an engrossing interactive story, and an exercise app for those who don't do exercise apps
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Jon Mundy
Jon Mundy
Jon is a consummate expert in adventure, action, and sports games. Which is just as well, as in real life he's timid, lazy, and unfit. It's amazing how these things even themselves out.