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iPhone Freebie Focus: iMob Online

Keep it in the family

iPhone Freebie Focus: iMob Online
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| iMob Online

I bet mobsters sit around their card tables smoking cigars, ordering hits, demeaning strippers and gesticulating hugely as they complain that being a real life Mafioso is nothing like you see on The Sopranos.

In many respects, it’s easier to associate real mob life with the likes of iMob Online than it is to the bullet-riddled shooters we see on consoles. It’s one of maintenance and relationship building, with a strong business undercurrent that supplies power to you and your criminal family.

Ascending the family ladder is a steady process that involves taking odd jobs and completing a variety of actions. Fighting, buying weapons, going on missions, visiting the bank, recovering in the emergency room and a host of other activities are all handled via menus.

Knocking over a bookie, for example, requires you to have ten energy points and a getaway car. Shoring up enough cash to afford the car means performing easier tasks first and reaching a high enough level to allow you to add a few extra points to your energy.

Experience points are used to level up your characters, which you win (and lose) when completing missions and fighting with other mobsters/players. Fighting is a simple matter, but an important one. Early on in the game you need to be careful to pick fights you can win, as fixing yourself up is a costly affair.

What really builds the life of a mafia man in iMob Online is the intrinsic connection between each and every facet of gameplay. Fighting, earning money, inviting recruits, conducting finances and getting yourself into other people’s families are all different tasks with the same objective: attaining power.

No single aspect is more or less important than the others. It’s this subtle, accurate balance that keeps you checking after your criminal alter ego as often as you check your Facebook page. The community might be virtual, but iMob Online somehow makes it every bit as important to your daily iPhone schedule.

You can pour some money into the game should you want to buy a bit of currency or respect from the Don, but the developer hasn’t really given any favour toward the paying player. Personally, I’ve reached a pretty high level and have kept iMob Online completely free from beginning to end. The upgrade packs are simply shortcuts and don’t tip the balance of play in favour of the affluent gamer.

What’s clever about iMob Online is it transcends its gaming status. Before long you’ll be checking in on your crime family quite obsessively – taking on quick missions and kicking a few rivals as compulsively as you check your email.

Turning iMob Online into something of a pseudo-communication application, as much as a game, is a brilliant tactic and one that makes this an essential addition to anyone’s Home screen.

While I have your attention, add me to your mob - 147 618 064.

Spanner Spencer
Spanner Spencer
Yes. Spanner's his real name, and he's already heard that joke you just thought of. Although Spanner's not very good, he's quite fast, and that seems to be enough to keep him in a regular supply of free games and away from the depressing world of real work.