It takes a lot for me to love a mobile game. Great art style, replayability and the number of hours you’ll get from it all factor in, as well as having a reasonable price. Enter returning old favourite, Ninjatown: Trees of Doom! by Venan and Shawnimals - which brings it all together so so well, and with ninjas!

Mobile developers Venan worked with Shawnimals characters from Ninjatown to create this arcade-action game. Controlling your very own Wee Ninja, your job is to climb the trees as high as possible while avoiding enemies and obstacles.

As you climb, the obstacles and enemies get progressively harder. Timing is everything - eventually, you’ll need to be able to dodge the Wee Devils shooting evil Dark Syrup (all that purple goo) while making that jump which lets you avoid the angry bees and flaming volcano debris. It sounds crazy, and sometimes the leaps you’re expected to take seem impossible, but therein lies the replay value. Each missed jump, or each failed attempt to get to the Timed mode’s checkpoint, is another challenge. It’s hard to stop playing when you think “I can make it!”

Now, you may have noticed I said “old favourite” - yes, it’s true this game is a re-release of sorts. Originally making it to the iOS app market in 2010, the original Trees of Doom! was a full featured app that cost only a few dollars. Eventually, the app was updated to include some extras for those long time fans of the Shawnimals Ninjatown characters.

Recently, the app has been updated once again, getting not only a slight redesign but now working from a free-to-play model. Now as your Ninja climbs those trees, you earns coins that you can spend in the Ninjatown Store getting power ups, items to use and new ninja outfits. Plus you’ll always earn some additional coins via Feroshi’s Magic Scrolls, a daily spin machine where you always win.

Fans of the Ninjatown tower defense game available on DS a few years back really do need to give this game a go. Otherwise, with its simple gameplay, cute and colorful graphics, and appropriately themed fun music and sound effects, this game is quite addictive and a little bit of ninja fun for most.

Grab it if: You love bright games plus simple, addictive action. Plus, it's FREE!
Don’t grab it if: You prefer your games to be a little bit more serious, or you're more of a pirate person (booo!).

If you’re interested in the game, played and loved the Ninjatown tower defense DS game, or are a fan of awesome plushies, I really recommend checking out the Shawnimals site. On top of featuring some cute collectible plushies from Ninjatown, they also have some super creative Ninjas of the Month (I have the Mastermind Ninja)! Plus... MUSTACHIOS!

 

This copy of Ninjatown: Trees of Doom! was played on Android (Samsung Galaxy SII, ICS). Available now on iOS and Android.