Seeing as how iOS rules the roost as far as mobile games go, smaller competing platforms like Windows Phone don’t get too many exclusive games worth noting. Windows Phone has had some high profile Xbox-branded exclusives now and then, but they often end up migrating to Apple’s pastures as well. Wordament, Kinectimals, and Tentacles are a few such titles to jump ship from Windows Phone.
Chalk another one up for iOS. Chickens Can’t Fly from developer Amused Sloth has long been considered one of the best Xbox games for Windows Phone. Recently the game got pulled from that platform due to an In-App Purchase formatting bungle on Microsoft’s part, though it will return without Xbox features in the future. At the same time, Chickens Can’t Fly has migrated to iOS – currently the only place to get it!
Staying out of the fryer
In Chickens Can’t Fly, you play as a chicken who must navigate a variety of obstacles courses. The chicken is always falling downward, making for a sort of reverse Doodle Jump. Tilting the device left and right steers the avian hero.
Chicken literally can’t stop falling, but you can at least slow him down in a couple of ways: touching walls cause shim to slide, while tapping the screen flaps his wings. Still, he continually gains speed the longer he stays alive, so even with those moves at your disposal, things get pretty hectic. Thankfully his speed resets whenever you pass a checkpoint.
Science gone wrong
The game’s 80+ experiments (levels) are divided up into six labs: Hatchery (tutorial levels), Butchery, Cemetery, Military, Physics, and Aquarium.
These labs are more than just different backdrops. Each one has unique powerups, powerdowns, and obstacles, making for a nice bit of variety. New items are usually introduced in their own specific experiment, with creative titles like “Does Chicken like 8-bit?” which involves the Pixelizer item. This teaches players what the items do organically.
Experiments can have a variety of different goals. Sometimes Chicken just needs to survive until the end. Other times he’s fighting against time or has to pick up a certain number of items by the time he reaches the end of the level. If you reach the bottom without meeting the experiment’s criteria, you fail and have to retry it.
Extra modes
Once you’ve completed a certain number of experiments within a lab, you’ll unlock that lab’s Survival mode. Rather than ending after a certain number of checkpoints, Survival is made up of endless checkpoints, so it lasts as long as you can stay alive. Passing checkpoints gives Chicken an extra life, so skilled players can potentially play for quite a while.
Weekly Challenges are specific Survival levels that change every week. This mode has its own global leaderboard, so players can compete against each other for high scores.
In-App Purchases
Chickens Can’t Fly packs a ton of content for $1.99. But players who want even more Chicken have a few optional purchases to choose from. The first is the Dojo set of levels for $1.99. The Dojo adds 10 new experiments and a ninja outfit for Chicken to wear.
Speaking of outfits, the game includes three skins automatically: naked, Girlie, and Diver. Players who need more variety to their wardrobes can pick up the Knight, Vampire, and Alien skins for 99 cents each.
Tastes like chicken
Chickens Can’t Fly is just as engaging now as when it debuted on Windows Phone last year. More so, in fact, thanks to some minor balance tweaks and fixes. Amused Sloth’s game features a charming art style, quirky sense of humor, and catchy music to boot. And GameCenter Achievements, why not. Give it a try and save the Chicken from the fryer.
- $1.99 – Download Now
