The success of Warioware led to many copycats, but few have been able to duplicate that success. Pix’n Love Rush uses a similar, fast-paced mini-game formula, but on a much smaller scale to that of Nintendo’s beloved evil Mario clone. Instead of an iconic character, we get…well, a pixelated cat with a huge smile, ear to ear. How titillating.
The gameplay is likewise brain-dead simple: Collect “plus” icons, avoid “minus” icons and shoot any bats that get in your way. A few levels are static while others will force you to move in any direction, often quickly. A platformer at heart, Pix’n Love Rush is appropriately named: lots of pixels, lots of rushing.
As a fast-paced game, it challenges players to earn as many points as possible in either a five-minute mode or infinite-time mode, the latter of which must be unlocked upon a successful completion of the former. Actually making it through five full minutes of gameplay is fairly difficult, and doing it well is even more so. Damage can be taken, but the only indication of how much “health” remains is a tiny beating heart, which doesn’t really indicate anything.
Players will know when they’re doing well when the point multiplier changes everything onscreen, from the background to the characters. Everything changes color dramatically. This may seem like a good idea, until certain things onscreen become difficult to differentiate between. Some bats have halos on their heads and shouldn’t be hit, but when the screen is white-shifted, it’s almost impossible to notice the difference between them and ordinary bats. In a sense, the game punishes players for doing well, while also rewarding them with more points.
For a buck, this is a quality purchase. The five minute mode is intense, fast and hard, and players will come back to it time and time again. That said, their stay in the game won’t last very long. It really is a five-minute run, maybe once or twice a day. The downsides are subsidized by the low price, and it for sure is a good buy, similar to Doodle Jump.
