All Your Base reviews games created by independent developers. A game with a score of 10 Bases is pretty much the OK Computer of video games.
Download (117MB)
Developer: Jack in the Box Worldwide
Platform(s): iPad
Genre: Racing (allegedly)
Price: Free
I haven’t played many iPad games that I haven’t liked. Most often, the pure novelty of controlling something by just touching/tilting it fills me with such childish glee that I can’t help but love it. That said, Bang Bang – Bombay Auto Rickshaw Challenge is not a good game. In fact, it’s awful. The most fun parts of the game are quitting, and saying the name really fast.
You drive a rickshaw through Bombay, trundling your way through six whole levels (SIX!) including the Sea Link and Bandra. Each level takes between one and three minutes to finish. Whilst attempting to dodge random obstacles ranging from a pile of barrels in the middle of the road to a slightly different pile of barrels on the side of the road, you collect cupcakes and clapboards along the way (what more could an auto driver need, right?).
Don't these people have jobs?
For some reason, as well as driving a rickshaw through disturbingly smooth and mostly empty roads, you also work at a company called Bang Bang Films. The point of the game is to get to the Bang Bang office(s) on time to get promotions, working your way from production intern to executive producer.
When you’re driving (veeeerryyy slooowwly I must add), you can drive into the boundaries of the road as much as you wish. However, when you hit a barrel at two kmph, it’s game over. Bang Bang’s logo (a stylised explosion with the word ‘BANG’ in the center) appears in the middle of the screen accompanied by a car crash sound. It’s a little annoying when crashing tends to happen often due to the 2/3 seconds of delay between pressing the direction buttons and your rickshaw jerking into the side of the road.
The irritatingly superior flash version
To add insult to injury, the flash version on Bang Bang’s site is actually good and looks like it would have taken about a fifth of the time to make. It’s a little simple, but it cleverly avoids the problem that BB-BARC had – namely, not being a good game. Why make the iPad version at all?
The only semi-saving grace of this game is that the 3D isn’t half-bad.
Bases: 
Jack in the Box Worldwide is “a thinking and doing company” that is based out of Mumbai.
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