Ziggurat

 iOS
Metascore
83

Generally favorable reviews - based on 18 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 18
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 18
  3. Negative: 0 out of 18
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  1. Destructoid
    Feb 21, 2012
    95
    ZiGGURAT succeeds where past action-based iPhone games have failed because the developer put the proper attention on balance and controls instead of unlockables and multiple backdrops.
  2. Multiplayer.it
    Mar 7, 2012
    90
    ZiGGURAT doesn't need extra modes or tons of unlockable content to be addictive, because it's just fun, manic and full of brilliant game design ideas.
  3. Gamezebo
    Mar 3, 2012
    90
    A refreshing blast from the past, an endless shooter that gives you a gun and a simple task, survive as long as you can. No frills, no tricks, and pure fun.
  5. TouchArcade
    Mar 1, 2012
    90
    My favorite thing about Ziggurat is that it dismantles the hardcore-casual myth that has so long plagued videogame culture generally, and iOS gaming specifically. An "endless" shooter with Peggle controls doesn't make for good advertising, but Ziggurat is a game that forces its players to pay attention, to process and react to constantly shifting situations, to do the (literally) impossible.
  6. Edge Magazine
    Feb 27, 2012
    90
    For a game with a premise as simple as kill the aliens before they kill you, Ziggurat's stylishly retro visuals, gleeful arcade precision and deeply interlocking mechanics trigger a chain reaction that kicks off like some interstellar combustion. Not the sound of a world ending. But the sort of bang that would make Richard Dawkins lean back, fold his arms and grin like a chimp.
  7. Modojo
    Feb 23, 2012
    90
    Factor in addictive chiptunes music and those aforementioned graphics, and ZiGGURAT will quickly become a guilty pleasure, one that is well worth your time and dollar.
  8. Games Master UK
    Apr 3, 2012
    85
    It's hugely addictive high-score chasing stuff. [Apr 2012, p.93]
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  9. Hyper Magazine
    Apr 12, 2012
    80
    It's bleak, but very fun, with a killer soundtrack. [May 2012, p.29]
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  10. AppSmile
    Mar 30, 2012
    80
    Featuring great pixel art, a challenging one-finger control scheme, and a hefty dose of difficulty, ZiGGURAT simultaneously frustrates and delights.
  11. Gameblog.fr
    Mar 30, 2012
    80
    A retro-shooting game that offers an incredibly well balanced, yet simple gameplay.
  12. Eurogamer Portugal
    Mar 21, 2012
    80
    Ziggurat deserves a prize for betting in retro hardcoreaction with the control schemes for casual gamers. It is something unique and different.
  13. AppSpy
    Mar 5, 2012
    80
    Simple and straightforward, but only the most dedicated players can best the arcade gauntlet that has been thrown down by this title.
  14. TouchGen
    Feb 27, 2012
    80
    Yes, there is only one game mode, and there's nothing to unlock or achieve, but this is one of those games that drives you to play it without any quirky gimmics. It's insanely easy to pick up and play when you have literally a minute or two to spare, and the mysterious stats page really makes me wonder what I will discover if I can stay in the game for just a few more seconds than last time.
  15. 148Apps
    Feb 27, 2012
    80
    The music, art, and depth of gameplay are all fantastic, but I just never got all that comfortable with it.
  16. Pocket Gamer UK
    Feb 27, 2012
    80
    A compelling, never-ending shooter, ZiGGURAT turns the high score chase into a two dimensional art form.
  17. Slide to Play
    Mar 3, 2012
    75
    While it's not for everyone, if you're willing to take the abuse, you'll have a blast trying to survive the apocalypse.
  18. Thunderbolt
    Mar 20, 2012
    70
    Missile Command for the iOS generation. It succeeds in matching that arcade simplicity and yet feels designed chiefly around the efficiency of Apple's portables.
  19. Gamereactor Sweden
    Mar 8, 2012
    60
    Quotation forthcoming.

Awards & Rankings

100
#100 Best iOS Game of 2012
28
#28 Most Discussed iOS Game of 2012

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
6.9

Mixed or average reviews- based on 14 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 14
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 14
  3. Negative: 4 out of 14
  1. ipodder
    Feb 27, 2012
    10
    great game with simple controls yet precise. very cool graphics and a strong replay value. it's a fair game so when you lose it does not feelgreat game with simple controls yet precise. very cool graphics and a strong replay value. it's a fair game so when you lose it does not feel cheap at 99 cents its well worth it… Full Review »
  2. Kinto
    Feb 27, 2012
    10
    You might remember a time in some video game you've played where the game had managed to figure out your maximum skill output and forced youYou might remember a time in some video game you've played where the game had managed to figure out your maximum skill output and forced you to keep yourself there, hovering just a hair's breadth from impossible, and the concentration required to keep going forced you to empty your mind, forget who are or that you even exist. Maybe that time was during the last level of Half-Life 2: Episode 2, or some Zen mind-state you conjured in a Halo match, or the Destroy Them All level of Gunstar Heroes. Whatever it was, whether you succeeded or failed, when you snapped out of it your heart was probably pounding like you had been running flat-out for 5 minutes. Maybe you had an adrenaline rush, maybe you had to stop for a bit and lie down. Wouldn't it be cool to experience that again?

    It turns out There's An App For That. The app is a game called Ziggurat. Ziggurat wants you to feel like that all the time, it is precision-engineered by mad scientists to put you in that state of mind every time you play. Unlike some other iOS games it never goes too far, it never makes itself impossible. It gently lowers you over the edge of a cliff but never pushes you, it's up to you to never let go. It never distracts you from what you're there for, either. All the achievements are things you want to do anyway. There are no unlockables or coin shops or micro-transactions. The only progression is feeling that bicep between your ears bulge and swell as your skills improve, your repertoire of tactics and tricks growing as you discover the game's intricate nuances, and the light fading in the background as you press on.

    Ziggurat is the best one dollar you will spend this year, if not ever.    … Full Review »
  3. HeavyViper
    Feb 24, 2012
    10
    The experience starts as soon as you tap the gold Z on your iPhone's display. Company logos fade in and out, accompanied by the low, boomingThe experience starts as soon as you tap the gold Z on your iPhone's display. Company logos fade in and out, accompanied by the low, booming bass. A sea of clouds appears, piercing synth cascade from your earphones, and from underneath erupts the word you'll see in your sleep for the rest of your life, embossed in giant, golden letters: ZIGGURAT. It glows radiantly, a shining beacon of hope amidst a sea of depressing grey. You want to touch it, more than anything you have ever wanted to touch. You touch it.

    With a thunderous boom, a black silhouette on red appears. A single figure atop a massive mountain. With another boom the picture fills with colour, with life. Clouds stream by the base of the mountain, and others in the distance. The sun beams down and slowly makes its way to the horizon. The figure's hair waves in the wind, the light of the sun glinting off of the sizable gun in its arms. This figure is you. In this one image, you know all you need to know: this is your mountain. Your stand. Your ZIGGURAT. You will defend it until your last breath. In a few more seconds, you see who you will defend it from.

    Aliens. Monsters. Freaks. Bizarre horrors with skeletal bodies and massive, pulsating eyes come bounding up the sides of the mountain. They claw frantically at any handholds they can find and propel themselves fiercely into the air. They fire things at you; they move slowly, but you know that will only take one to end you. The freaks move closer; they move slowly, but you know the pain will be unimaginable should they get to you. When they get to you.

    At this point, you know you are going to die.

    You pull the trigger on your weapon. It hums rhythmically as a glowing green orb emerges from the firing end. It grows larger and larger and spins more frantically with each passing millisecond. You aim the weapon at the closest beast to you and release the trigger. The orb flies off in an arcing trajectory, spinning wildly, sailing over your target. You missed, and the beast draws even closer. You pull the trigger again, and another orb grows from the weapon. Once again, you take aim and wait for the orb to mature.You begin the feel the right moment to release, deep inside. You fire. This time, you don't miss.

    The orb detonates on impact, vaporizing the creature you were aiming for along with two, maybe three others who were unfortunate enough to be close by. More take their place. They begin to vary. White ones, huge ones, yellow, orange, red - all of them different, yet all of them the same. They want you. They want you dead.

    You are going to die.

    You pull the trigger, aim, and fire. Again, and again, and again. They won't stop coming. You won't stop firing. The sun sets, and the world - perhaps even the universe - begins to end. They won't stop coming. You won't stop firing.

    You'll falter eventually. One will get close enough to tear you limb from limb. A stray shot will pierce your defenses and turn you to dust. But regardless of the many ways it can and will happen, one thing is certain: your scream will be loud and long, piercing the heavens. Echoing through eternity as the last remnant of an entire race.

    You aim. You fire. You kill. You die.

    This is your last stand. Our last stand.

    This is the end.

    This is ZIGGURAT.    … Full Review »
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