iPhone Game Review: Hexxagon
Reviewed by Leah Jennings

Hexxagon is a strategy game in which your goal is to dominate the playing field. The field is shaped like a hexagon - bet you probably wouldn't have guessed that one - and in each corner there is either a cell or a crystal. The computer (or your human opponent in Human vs. Human mode) starts out with 3 cells, and you start out with 3 crystals. To dominate the field, you tap one of your crystals and tap one of the highlighted spaces to either move it to a space not directly beside it, or reproduce a new one if you tap right beside the first crystal you tapped. Once you place your crystal, any cells surrounding it turn into crystals. In computer mode, there are 3 different levels of difficulty to choose from: Beginner, Professional, and Expert. Professional and Expert take a little longer because the computer ?thinks? on his turn.

If you wanna see how you fair against your friend, there is Human vs. Human mode, in which the gameplay is the same as in Computer vs. Human mode.

The graphics are 3D, but aren?t very smooth. The constant colors (red playing field, green crystals, and blue-orange cells) get a little old after looking at them awhile. It would be a nice feature to be able to change the colors. There is no background track, just sound effects. You can listen to your iPod while playing, but you can?t turn off the sound effects, which is really annoying when you?re trying to enjoy your music.

It?s an entertaining game the first time around, but I don?t find myself wanting to pick this back up and play it a lot.

Ratings (scale of 1 to 5):

Graphics: -3- 3D, but not smooth
Sound: -2.5- No background track, just simple sound effects
Controls: -4- Easy to learn, very simple
Gameplay: -3.5- Simple strategy game, but don?t find myself wanting to pick it back up later

Playing Hints and Tips:
I found it was easier to win if you reproduce more crystals than just moving them, because you gain 1 crystal and also change any cells you are beside of.

Game Facts:
Developer: Alexey Volovik
Release Date: July 09, 2009
Genre: Strategy
Price: $0.99
Buy Game: iTunes App Store

---