You’re a young lady pirate. There’s a big water wheel contraption rolling through a randomly-generated level. You sit inside it (most of the time) and swipe the screen to jump in order to avoid obstacles, collect treasure and destroy enemies. It’s not really like anything I’ve ever played before, despite sitting comfortably next to Run, Canabalt, etc.


At first it all feels a bit too random, despite a decent tutorial. It takes time to become comfortable with the jumping and after several games I’m still a long, long way off feeling like I’ve mastered it. It’s not that it feels wrong – you jump exactly where you tell the game you want to jump – but there’s too much going on for you to simply be able to practice the jumping. From the very beginning you’re avoiding slime-filled pits, skeletons, bats and cannonballs and there’s barely time to breathe.

You gradually become better at the game, though, better at timing your jumps, better at learning the best time to use your equipment and you start to realise that the game might be something special. There’s a lot to unlock and equipment choices to make before you play. (Do you want to hang on to the wheel or be able to return to it if you lose it?) It’s a full, polished package and, despite still not feeling like the game’s really clicked, I don’t have any hesitation in recommending the game at the introductory price of 59p. Just be prepared to give it some time.