App review: Big Top 10

review by Daynah

Big Top 10 is an addictive, challenging, yet simple puzzle game that you’ll find yourself playing over and over again. A 5×5 board displays the numbers 0 – 9, along with some bonuses, and negative numbers too. The object of the game is to simply drag and select the numbers so they add up to 10. The longer the selections, the more points you will earn. Your selection of numbers must be continuous on the board and diagonals are not allowed.

For example, you can select “9 + 1″, “3 + 4 + 3″, and “1 + 4 + 5.”

You can also take advantage of the zeroes and negative numbers to create even longer selections. For example, “0 + 3 + (-3) + 4 + 6.”

Power-ups are also available, which include a clock that will freeze time for 5 seconds (or in verses mode, will freeze your opponent for 3 seconds), a bomb which destroys numbers around it (and you are awarded extra points), Double points, and a star that reduces the numbers on the board to allow longer selections. If you’re stuck, you can also shake the iphone/ipod touch (or click on shuffle) to get a fresh new board. And to top it all off, the twist to the game is the 59 seconds you initially start off with.



You need to be on the same Wi-Fi network to play with another opponent. You have 2 minutes to go head to head with each other in the “Verses” mode. The player with the most points win. If you make a selection with the clock, the opponent’s screen will freeze for 3 seconds. It’s highly addictive, and a lot more fun playing with another person.

To make the game more social, Big Top 10 also uses OpenFeint to bring to you the global leaderboards as well as your friends’ game statuses. You can also integrate Twitter and Facebook and play and compare scores.

Click on “Scores” to view your personal top 10 scores, records you set, and various achievement awards. The graphics and music are beautifully done and gives a nostalgic feeling of the old big top circuses. This is what really completes the gaming package.

There is also a Big Top 10 Lite version for you to test out. You have all the features of the full version except for earning more time, head-to-head verses play, and global scores integration. For just 99 cents and hours of playtime, Big Top 10 is definitely well-worth a try!

Big Top 10 is available in the App Store.