I don’t know why Redford is having a delightfully happy adventure in dreamy locations while his brother and sister remain kidnapped and locked up in a faraway land by a mysterious monster. But you know what: I simply don’t care. The instant I hit the Play button, I’m drawn into the game’s infectiously fun atmosphere and find myself swaying to the delightfully light calypso music, jumping over pretty hills and platforms, smashing monsters, picking up stars, coins, magnets, and hidden gems, that any missing family member is soon forgotten. Mega run is not just a game of collecting stuff while having the longest run. It’s highly emotional as well; you’ll smile, laugh, jump in joy, ooh and aaah you way through, and at times, even rant and swear ! Mega Run awakens your senses and leaves you feeling utterly good at times and frustratingly helpless at others.
An Explosion of Colors, Music, and Gaiety
Little red Redford is the first of many adorable characters you’ll meet in Mega Run. He runs from left to right across colorful platforms, bumping monsters blocking his path, jumping over gaps between platforms and picking up plenty of coins, hidden gems, magical upgrades and more to the finish line. There are some seriously cool power ups Redford picks up along the way that wildly enhances the fun element of the game. For instance, when Redford picks up a spinning Blazo, he spews fire destroying bad guys comin his way. When he picks up a fireball, he can double jump and run at super speeds while exuding fire. Magnets are just as delightful because for about 6 seconds Redford can draw all surrounding coins and gems towards him. And that’s just a few of the awesome power ups you’ll find in the Store. As you progress through the game you unlock new levels, more game characters and even more powerful power ups. Mega Run ensures that the fun never ends by stocking up on a whole lot of additional characters including missing brother Bluto, feisty sis Rosie, speedy turtle Sheldon, Pepper the penguin, Dizzy, Rolf, and even a running Refrigerator called Redfridge!
There are three hidden gems in each level and if you manage to pick them all, you’ll collect a 3 star rating. While this is easy at the initial stages of the game, they are much trickier to get as the game progresses. One of the coolest features of Mega Run is Save Stars. Save Stars are life giving stars that have the capacity to bring you back to life when you fall into the bottomless pits when you miss a jump. Save Stars are quite hard to get and you’ll dearly want them in your kitty when you move ahead in the game. The best way to get them of course is to buy them, as earning them through game play will probably take forever. (8000 coins will only get you 10MPs). You can luckily start off with some free MPs by liking the developers on Facebook, following them on Twitter, or subscribing to their YouTube channel.
All upgrades and power ups can also be unlocked early by heading to the Mega Run Store and flicking a few game coins or real world currency. That said, Mega Run’s in-app purchasing system deserves a bit of credit. The developers provide enough opportunity for players to pick up coins and upgrades through reasonable game play. And that’s a huge plus because today, we see more and more aggressive push for IAPs . For the patient at heart, there’s plenty of time to pick up coins and MPs and for the not-so patient ones paying anything between $1.99 and $49.99 should give you the power to unlock pretty much anything you want instantly.
Mega Run’s Troubles
While the game play gets high praise there’s a lot left to be desired when it comes to the technical side of things. Many users have complained of force close issues and lags which unfortunately is true. It’s surprising that the developers haven’t fixed the chinks yet, and this single factor badly lets down the game. Prolonged play leaves the screen hanging, and while the music is a delight you don’t really want to still keep hearing it long after you’ve closed the application. Repeated lags and glitches only adds to your increasing frustration. If the developers do manage to get this right, Mega Run can surely be ranked with some of the best games in this niche.
Final Verdict
Despite the technical glitches, Mega Run is a refreshingly wonderful endless runner game. The platforms that Redford runs across are multi-tiered, each tier offering a different experience. Even when you repeat levels, you don’t get a sense of deja-vu. The variety of power ups, their random placing in the game, the multiple characters, happy music, colorful landscapes and fast paced action continues to keep the game fresh and engaging. While the game is pretty straightforward with easy controls it is quite difficult to hit those high scores and capture those three precious gems consistently.
In fact, the game brings back sweet memories of that oh-so-lovable video game from long ago, Super Mario. Watching little Redford grow supersize when he hits a Embiggenate and barreling through rocks and walls definitely takes you back to the re-run of little Mario supersizing when hitting those mushrooms! With colors so vibrant, music so gay, animations so delightful, characters so adorable and environments so appealing, Mega Run manages to charm its way into your heart and leaves you feeling happy, chirpy and jolly long after your done.
Mega Run is available for free in the Play Store so grab your copy now.
