Forget Angry Birds, Rage HD ($1.99 on iTunes) for the Apple iPad demonstrates exactly how far developers can take HD-level gaming on the world's most popular tablet. I downloaded the graphic and somewhat bizarre Rage HD for my iPad based solely on the reputation of its developer, ID software. ID's responsible for some of the PC gaming world's earliest first-person shooters, including Wolfenstein 3D and the Doom series. Note: If you'd like recommendations for other fun iOS games, check out the titles included in our 50 Best iPad Apps roundup.
Rage HD for the iPad is based ID's full Rage game (on PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360), but focuses on one element: The Mutant Bash TV show. In this post apocalyptic game show, the primary goal is to kill as many mutants as possible and stay alive in the process.
Rage's game control scheme takes some getting used to. Mastering it requires using your right thumb to shoot (by tapping the gun icon), change weapons, and dodge projectiles (usually bricks thrown by the mutants). At the same time, your other thumb is used to aim and steer around the game's many rooms.
For those that have played other HD games on the iPad, this is probably second nature, but it took some time for me to get the hang of it. Soon, however, I was blasting mutants in the face, hitting some of the bonus bulls-eyes scattered throughout the game, and even blowing away bricks moments before they hit my virtual head. Rage HD equips you with three weapons, a piston, shotgun, and machine gun. The game also scatters money, or "Bash Bucks", and ammo throughout the game, but it's hard to stop and pick it up while a mutant is hacking you to pieces, especially if your thumbs are busy aiming and shooting. I had to remember that the fire icon doubles as a "pick-up" button and that I could aim at my desired item with one thumb and the fire button would automatically switch to pickup mode. Even knowing this, I rarely had a chance to stop and pickup anything.
Which leads me to the one odd quirk about this game: It puts the player in permanent auto-walk mode. As soon as I was done killing one mutant, I find myself hustling along to the next room—there's no opportunity to explore or find more ammo, health, and bucks. I guess the best way to play is either to develop super-quick reflexes so you can shoot, kill and pickup in few fast, thumb-driven moves or to learn where these objects are and get them during your next trip through the level. There are, by the way, not only three different levels to work through, but three levels of difficulty: Easy, Medium and Hard. I played exclusively on "Medium."
Learning to effectively dodge projectiles and on-coming mutants is critical. Fortunately, there's an icon dedicated to the dodge move (which results in more of a "lean" than a true "dodge"). Ignore this feature and expect to die rather quickly. When that happens, you can return to your last check-point, or simply restart the level.
Ultimately, Rage HD for the iPad looks and plays as well as any FPS trial I've ever played on a PC. The game features rich, detailed graphics, smooth animation, immersive sound, and intense gameplay. Angry Birds may be cute and addictive, but this $1.99 game is killer—in all the right ways.