Sweden
Very
good
 |
Wave Blazer - Fame, Money and Speed Boats
Tested version: 1.0.8
Latest version: 1.0.8
Requires Android: from 1.5
|
Summary
Beautiful speed boats on the high seas with sweet 3D graphics – that’s what Wave Blazer is all about. But can the app bring the thrill and adrenaline of boat racing to your Android? Find out in our oh-so-thorough review!
Test video
Features & Use
Section rating:
At 5.28 MB, Wave Blazer isn’t exactly going to make your SD card explode. Once the game loads up, you’ll be prompted to turn the sound on/off. Pop in those headphones and you’ll be exposed to an old 90s sound reminiscent of Sega and Super Nintendo. Nostalgia, here I come!
As with any game, there’s a main menu divided into the following subcategories:
- Start Game
- Profiles (saved games)
- Options (Music and SFX volume, accelerometer on/off, adjust the acceleration sensibility, change the GFX level and turn auto acceleration on/off)
- Records
- Help
- About
- Exit
From the looks of it, Wave Blazer is one of those games that you have to learn on the fly. On the next screen, you can select between single and multiplayer (you’ll need a network account for the later). For single player there are three different playing modes:
- Grand Prix (one course unlocks after the other, collect medals and new boats along the way, unlock new races and upgrades)
- Time Trial (set records for all unlocked racing courses)
- Arcade (race through all of the courses without a timer)
At the beginning you have only one boat at your disposal, so it will take some good deal of winning to unlock all six racers.
The first course is pretty simple and I managed to pick up several power-ups along the way, although it is unclear what exactly they can do. After looking around the Help section, I found out that these power-ups are actually called power-cells. So what do they do?
- Blue power cells give you a short power boost
- Orange power cells give you a longer boost
- Red power cells cancel out any boosts you have
Make sure to collect all the power cells to receive precious rewards at the end of the course. On the game screen itself there is a speedometer and a respawn button underneath that allows you to reposition your boat if you’re stuck. At the top right, you can see a map which displays the positions of all the other boats on the map. Beneath that there is another button called Autopilot which lets you hand things over to the computer for a maximum of 15 seconds per race. It can be especially useful for challenging twists and turns.
While the first couple of rounds are a breeze for anyone with basic gaming skills, things get progressively more difficult in the higher levels. After each completed level, you’ll have to enter your initials. Unfortunately, the game doesn’t automatically remember your name and you are then forced to repeat the same three letter initials every single time. Unlike a lot of other racing games, you don’t have to come in first to complete a level. Third place is usually good enough to unlock the next track.
To wrap things up: Wave Blazer is great, with each and every boat having an individual quality. Same thing goes for the race tracks: not one of the race circuits resembles the next. I enjoyed the fact that you had only limited access to the autopilot because it makes the game more realistic and challenging in the long run. In terms of graphics, the game looks awesome, especially on tablets with dazzling colors and an impressive ambiance.
The only problem is the sound. After hearing the same song over and over again, after around level 7 of playing Wave Blazer I felt like my head was about to explode. There is also definitely a lack of sound effects, which makes the game less appealing. Where are all the cool splashing noises and wipe out sounds?
Screen & Controls
Section rating:
Wave Blazer has got an amazing layout and you never get the impression that you’re missing any of the action. Playing the game on the Galaxy Tab 10.1 is even more impressive. All of the buttons are located comfortably within reach on the screen. Personally, I think it’s kind of a shame that you can only see your position on the track instead of viewing a preview of the track ahead of you.
Speed & Stability
Section rating:
All in all, Wave Blazer works perfectly on both devices and without any glitches or lags. Not a single crash at any point in the game.
Price/Performance Ratio
Section rating:
At $2.99 Wave Blazer isn’t exactly cheap. But as this weeks App of the Week you can enjoy all the fun for just half the money.
Comparable Apps
Report comparable or similar appsReviews of this app in other languages
Developer
Top App:
Raging Thunder
Raging Thunder is a gut-churning, tyre burning racer giving you control over the most (...)
Raging Thunder is a gut-churning, tyre burning racer giving you control over the most (...)
You must be logged in in order to become a fan of Polarbit.
Features
Screen
Speed
Price
Market Rating:
AndroidPIT User Rating:
Own Rating:
Log yourself in!
Ad
Bookmark / E-Mail
Click on an icon to bookmark this test report. » Send this article via e-mailScreenshots
All Test Reports
- Applications (505)
- Games (300)
Archive
- 2012 (142)
- May (25)
- Songify – Speech to Music
- Money Tab – Everything's Under Control!
- 500px – The Official App
- Get-neutral – Environmental Activism à la Android
- OsmAnd+ – Navigation Made Easy
- TimeTable++ Schedule – What's On Today?
- GRAVITY PROJECT – A Better Temple Run?
- AlarmDroid Pro
- Chord! Free (Guitar Chords) – Crazy Chords
- Rail Maze
- Cartoon Wars
- mSecure - Password Manager – The Ultimate Security Service
- Get Taxi – The London Edition
- Akinator the Genie – Omniscience For Android
- Talking Tom Cat 2 Free – Return Of the Cat
- Solitaire – A Classic
- trainANDtrack! – How fit are you?
- Sonos Controller for Android – Music In the Palm Of Your Hand
- Folder Organizer – Tidy smartphone, tidy mind!
- BMX Boy
- IMDb Movies & TV – Films and Telly Galore
- ICQ Messenger – Chat! Chat! Chat!
- Samurai II: Vengeance – Pure Action!
- Remoteless (for Spotify) – Remote Control for Spotify
- Tiki Kart 3D – Does it compare to Mario Kart?
- April (29)
- March (29)
- February (30)
- January (29)
- May (25)
- 2011 (360)
- 2010 (303)
Write new test report comment:
You must log in or register now,
to submit a comment!
As a logged in user, you can also change the order of the comments.
Market Comments
Duane, Jan 2, 2012
App works but... Game works fine for me but tons of ads on a purchased app...boo! Now they want me to pay more to block the ads...forget it
Bryant, Dec 24, 2011
I do not understand why everyone is saying that they go backwards, maybe you need to re-calibrate your accelerometer? You can fix any problems through settings.
Karen, Nov 1, 2011
First rate. Can't stop racing. I feel sorry for those who are having glitches as they are missing all the fun of tweaking the engines and racing various courses.
Anthony, Aug 2, 2011
Fun game for about 30 seconds at a time then the control glitches take over making it unplayable. Droid X
Charles, Jun 28, 2011
Works great on my thunderbolt and droid however won't work on my transformer tablet.
Zhu Lee
having some serious trouble with the controls. they are bit too responsive for my taste-