When I saw John Carmack show off Rage on the iPhone a few months back, I was rather excited. The promise of real console-like graphics were in our grasp. Then, the game finally came out and I was initially blown away, but then…

Rage HD on iPad is set in a post-apocalyptic future. Typical of these types of games where you play a contestant out to earn money by defeating mutants. The game is set in a first-person shooter (FPS) perspective, but it is on rails. This means the game “moves” for you and you are only allowed to maneuver the cursor on screen at any given time. This is okay, as the games visuals are amazing and this style of game worked really well for Doom Resurrection on iPhone.

The screen is comprised of only a few buttons. The left side is meant solely to move the cursor, target enemies, etc. The right side has the action button (to shoot and pick up items like health, ammo, etc), dodge button (the enemy throws bricks at you), reload weapon and select weapon. If the touch screen modality does not work for you, there is a tilt option as well as lefty mode and other configurable choices such as inverted axis and more.

As you start a level, you immediately notice there are several bulls-eyes scattered among the levels. By shooting them, you increase your score. As enemy mutants appear, you target and shoot them. You can often get a one-shot fill if you time your shots appropriately; you get a special reticule when you in the correct area to pull it off.

As you maneuver your cursor around the screen trying to take out bulls-eyes and mutants, you will notice you can also pick up money, health and ammo bonuses; your cursor turns into a green hand. The ammo comes in particularly handy as I found I ran out of ammo a little too fast. The good news is that you have a pistol with unlimited ammo, but takes forever to reload. However, I have played entire levels with just the pistol with no problem. The additional weapons that you can find ammo for are the shotgun and automatic weapon.

The games graphics are really, really good. I mean, really good. It is a testament to iOS’s capabilities. No slowdown, plenty of particles flying at you and a ton of action. But this is where the problems begin for this game. It’s gorgeous. But that is all it’s got. You only have three levels of play, you fight the same enemies over and over. Rage HD is literally a $2.00 technology demo. It wouldn’t be so bad (since the game is clearly score based) if you had Game Center support to see where you rank on the leaderboards and add some challenges with achievements. Alas, none of these options exist.

I am impressed with id’s effort in this title to bring an amazing console experience to our beloved iOS devices. I am not impressed with the paltry three stages and lack of Game Center support. Should you get this game? It’s hard to tell. It is only $2.00, and will hardly break the bank. You will enjoy it till you beat the three levels and you will be left with the insatiable need for more. I am happy to have played it, but after 30 minutes (that is how long it takes to beat all of the levels) you are left with a very, very, very empty feeling.

[$1.99- iTunes Link]

Pros

• Amazing graphics
• Fun to play
• Varying levels of difficulty
• Different versions of the game for newer/older hardware
• Universal app for iPhone/iPad

Cons

• Only three levels
• Only two types of enemies (really only one type if you want to get picky)
• You are playing for what amounts to a tech demo
• No Game Center support (missing leader boards, achievements, etc)

Do you like old-school shooters? If so, Dodonpachi Resurrection is the game for you! Cave has brought out another awesome shooter on the iPhone (the first being Espgaluda II).

There are two game modes in DoDonPachi. The first is iPhone mode which is a great way to jump in and play. It uses a hit variable to determine the strength of your weapons (the slider is indicated in the top right) and has an interactive hypermode to unleash the ultimate destruction on your enemies. The other mode is Arcade. This mode has you pick the fighter style you want and requires a bit more strategy while playing since you don’t have the freedom you have in iPhone mode. You can also configure how much screen is displayed while playing (I am partial to large so I see as much of the screen as I can) as well as button placement for attacking enemy ships.

You start the game as you do in any shooter of this type as a lonesome ship against an onslaught enemy armada bent on destruction. Fortunately, you have technology on your side and you are packing enough firepower to send the enemy back where they came from. One of the things I like about iPhone mode is that when you die, you automatically drop a bomb and become invincible for a short while. Little details like this make the game more accessible to the casual shooter fan. However, Arcade mode is where it’s at if you need a true challenge. Of course the OpenFeint integration keeps it old school allowing you to compete with friends and strangers for the highest score possible.

I was looking forward to this game’s release and especially having the sharp graphics that are in on the iPhone 4′s retina display. Sadly, this is not the case. So as awesome as this game is, it ends up being a tad fuzzy on the iPhone 4 but looks great on the latest generation of iPod Touch devices and iPhone 3GS. Make no mistake that the graphics are great and there is no slowdown. All of the ships and terrain have tons of detail and move effortlessly around the screen.

I can’t recommend this game enough for shooter fans. It is hands down the best offering in the App Store. I am hopeful that Cave will create iPad specific versions of their games for the masses to take advantage of the full screen real estate that device has to offer. For now, you can’t go wrong with this title. I am still giddy about it.

[$8.99- iTunes Link]

Pros

• More bullets than you can shake a stick at!
• OpenFient leaderboards and achievements
• Works great on iPad. Looks awesome!
• Fun and frantic
• No noticeable slow-down

Cons

• No retina support
• Only works well on current-gen devices
• Larger file size (around 500MB)

Let me start off by saying if you are a fan of side scrolling shooters or zombies, spend the money and buy this game now. Zombieville USA [iTunes Link] is my new favorite iPhone game available in all of the App Store.

As the lone survivor of a zombie apocalypse, it’s up to you to battle legions of the undead in a never ending fight for survival! How long can you hold out? Scrounge for cash and ammunition, and buy up to 15 upgradeable weapons as your inevitable doom closes in around you…

Zombieville USA has two simple objectives: shoot zombies and stay alive. Your weapons and ammo are in short supply so using them at the appropriate time is critical. As you progress thru the levels you can jump into houses that will supply you with cash and ammo as well as keep you protected from the zombies. At the end of each level you can use the cash you’ve pick up to upgrade weapons and refresh your health.

While Zombieville USA is not without some quirky bugs, the developer promises to have them addressed in it’s first update, which is due out next week. This game is on sale and can be purchased right now for only $.99! The sale ends next week when the update is released so be sure not to let this one pass you by.

So again, if you are a side scrolling shooter fan or just love zombies and have a fantasy you are Bruce Campbell kicking some zombie butt in Evil Dead 2… minus the chainsaw, this is your game.

Wait, there is a chainsaw… “Groovy…“