Vortex (iPod) > Reviews (1)

** Vortex - ipod **
When I bought my ipod 5th generation about 2 years ago it came with 3 preloaded games on it. One of these games is Vortex which I have become rather addicted to when it comes to needing in flight entertainment or train journey entertainment.

Vortex is played by holding the iPod horizontally and using the click wheel to control the game. The game itself is a simple block breaking with a ball and a pad to rebound the ball back at the blocks and to stop the ball flying off the screen.

If you have played games such as Pong or the Blaster ball series in the past then you will find that Vortex is based on the same principle as these games. The main difference is that instead of being set on a flat screen with the ball simply moving up and down the screen, in Vortex your ball is fired away from you down a tunnel full of blocks that need to be destroyed, and your pad that you use to rebound the ball will move around the edge of the tunnel.

Once you are through the brief menu screen your game will begin, to launch your ball you need to press the button in the centre of the clicker wheel, your ball will then move away from you down the tunnel. If the ball hits a block it will rebound off the block, depending which angle the ball hits the block will affect the way it will rebound so you must be ready to quickly slide the clicker button to move the pad to catch the ball and send it back down the tunnel. In the game you will be destroying different kinds of blocks, some will be destroyed with just one hit, where as others may need two or three hits before they are destroyed. Some blocks cannot be destroyed and others contain a boost which is released when the block is destroyed. To use the boost you must catch it with your pad as it moves towards the edge. Boosts include speed boosts, multiballs, larger or smaller pads, multipads and power balls which crash through and destroy any blocks in one hit.

The level ends once all of the blocks which can be destroyed are destroyed or once you loose all of your lives. Lives are lost by the ball coming out of the tunnel and you failing to catch it on the pad. At the end of each level you will be shown your time and how many points you have before you move onto the next level. Each level gets progressively harder as you play. I'm not sure of the total number of levels available but my record so far is level 9.

** Graphics and Sound **
The graphics in the game really good and always smooth moving. The sound effects can be turned on or off depending on your preference, I usually have them on while I am playing and listening to my music at the same time.

** Price and Availability **
This game came free with my iPod, I've been told by a friend that you can download it from the iTunes store, but as yet I am still searching for the area for iPod games as I can only seem to find iPhone and iPad games on there.

** My Experience and Opinion **
When I first got my iPod I only really used it when I was walking my dog so I didn't really play very often, however this year I seem to have spent a lot of time on flights or very long train journeys and I have found this game to be a great distraction and because it is really addictive it has passed many hours on these adventures, my only little grumble about the game is that is does seem to zap the life out of the battery on my iPod so I have found myself reaching for the charger and doing a quick charge through my laptop.

This is a great addictive game though and a great way to pass some time so I do recommend it.

Thanks for reading :)