This is the absolutely best (and the only official) Tetris game on the Android. I won't go into too much detail on what this is or how it's played, because (most likely) everyone has already played it, or some variation of this amazing puzzler.
The Good:
- The touch controls are simply flawless, and I have not experienced any problems that other reviewers have reported about them. I only went up to level 12, but even at that speed everything responded fine. You have plenty of time to change the orientation of the Tetrimino even AFTER it falls.
- "Magic" mode puts a great spin on the classic Tetris by giving you set level line clear goals and throwing in a ton of cool power ups into the mix.
- There are Statistics to help you keep tracks of your lines and high scores in both modes (Marathon and Magic).
- Multiple languages are supported. English, French, Dutch, Italian and Spanish. Not that there is a lot of writing here, but at least you will be able to go through the extensive options and help file in the language of your choice.
- The Help menu explains pretty much all the Tetris basics, as well as new features exclusive to this game.
- It's the classic Tetris I grew up on (with a few twists).
- The music is fairly pleasant, mostly remixes of original and classic tunes, with a lot of new ones thrown in for good measure. Purists will hate this, I think it's a good change.
- Graphics are outstanding. The blocks are big and bright, and the backgrounds are cool and bubbly (you can disable these bubbles should you want to in the options menu).
- It does NOT have to be connected via WiFi or 3/4G to be played. I tried it on a tablet and two phones in airplane mode. This is a single player game.
The Bad:
Permissions, permissions, permissions. Oh my:
- Read only access to phone state - This permission gives an application access to the IMEI, IMSI, and your phone number (as well as incoming and outgoing calls). So think of it as a massive tracking cookie that keeps tabs on everything you do, and that you had no choice in installing.
Many software developers use this permissionsto track purchases and piracy. However the potential for disaster is huge here. A lot of companies will pay good money to get the information above, and once that falls into their hands...
- Open network sockets - This permission gives an application free range Internet access. I still don't know why this and the above permissions are needed in a SINGLE PLAYER game.
- Change network connectivity state - This permissions allows the game to enable or disable your WiFi and 3/4G connection. Most likely to force you onto one of them (probably the 3/4G one).
- Access information about networks - Works in tandem with the above permission to show EA what kind of networks you are running.
- No VS mode. The permissions are already here, why not take Tetris online? I would probably (not really) kill to be able to play against my friends.
- $2.99? What for? There are literally hundreds of free or $.99 Tetris clones you could play on your Android device.
- No picture backgrounds? I really miss the Russian Red Square and Kremlin backgrounds of PC fame.
The Ugly:
EA is know for excessive snooping and data mining. I stupidly installed Origin (EA's gaming service), only to have it (without my permission) import games from Steam INTO itself, as well as send spam e-mails to my address that I TO THIS DAY can't get rid of.
EA's business practices and customer support are also downright terrible. I purchased a copy of Battlefield 3 through Origin and couldn't wait to play. Later that week I noticed another charge for the same Battlefield 3 copy on my credit card statement, and immediately contacted EA support. I was informed that this was a mistake and would be taken care of. Weeks later it was still not remedied.
Contacting EA support again (this time I called them), I was told that I never contacted them in the first place (thankfully I had an e-mail to prove otherwise).
I was then accused that I had a pirated copy of Battlefield 3... Which I bought TWICE...
Long story short, I solved the problem by calling back and speaking to someone that actually knew what they were talking about, I also called my credit card company and told them to block EA and Origin from placing any more charges on my credit card for one year. I then got a full refund from them (my credit card company).
To this day I am not sure if I still have a copy (or two) of Battlefield 3 on my Origin account, and I won't bother checking.
This was my one and ONLY experience with Origin. I will never, ever buy another game that requires that service. I simply no longer trust EA as a company. The only company with poorer support than EA is Lenovo.
My main concern about this game is that knowing EA's practices (and after reading their EULA), I just don't feel safe with giving this application all the permissions it requires. There is always airplane mode, and that is something to consider while playing this game.
If it was not for the incredibly intrusive permissions, I would rate this version of Tetris a 10 out of 5 - because at heart it is still a great game.
If you download it as today's FAOTD, make sure to play it in airplane mode (or if you have a rooted device, install the ad/track blocking software). Otherwise stay away.
I also don't think the game in its current state is worth the $2.99 asking price. There are many free versions of Tetris that are also ad and spyware free.
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar