Armadillo Gold Rush review: roll your way through a labyrinth of danger

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Back in early the 2000s, Armadillo Gold Rush was a big hit on feature phones. It was fairly well made for its time and ended up being a fan favorite. The game has been updated for the smartphone market and is now available on iOS with all of its original charm, but with better graphics and smoother gameplay. We’ve got a game review of Armadillo Gold Rush on iOS for you today.

Concept

Players control a rolling armadillo as it finds its way across various landscapes, picking up coins. The leather armored mammalian rolls continuously in one direction until something stops him. Your job is to help him collect all of the coins without losing his hide.

Design

This is a top-down, cartoon animated game with a brightly colored paint palette. The dangerous creatures that protect the spinning gold coins move back-and-forth like traditional arcade baddies.

This game is a lot like a simple action arcade game, but with puzzle elements. You need more than great timing to get through the maze. Since the Armadillo only rolls in one direction, and only stops when something gets in its way, you must figure out how to navigate through the course, avoiding pits, rivers, and spikes.

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Gameplay

Players roll the gold-seeking Armadillo around through the obstacle course by swiping in the direction they want it to go. It will roll swiftly across the pathway and come to a stop when bumping into a wall, or a ball, or a bomb. Watch out for pits, spikes, and water or you’ll find yourself floating up to the heavens.

The game starts of very easy, but grows in complexity as new groups of levels are unlocked. Players will have to figure out how to keep gates open by depressing a button, or flip the switch on rotating walls to open up new pathways. Additional elements are added to the course, like fans that force the Armadillo to move one way and moving landmines that require decent timing to avoid.

The hardest part comes in trying to figure out which way to roll. If you don’t have something stopping you at the right spot, you won’t be able to line up the next direction to navigate out of a pathway or grab a coin. Sometimes, you’ll have to move crates into new locations so that the next time you roll across the pathway, you’ll stop where you want to. New complications get added to the game with each new level.

The goal is to collect all of the coins on the board. Players are scored by how fast they complete the level, how many swipes it takes to collect every coin and how high their score is (you can pick up extra points for grabbing fruit along the way).

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The Good

This game gets really good by the fifth grouping. At this point, it is no longer a race against the clock to get to the end. You’ll have to really put your mind to work to figure out how to get through the course. Mistakes don’t cost you anything either. No matter how many times you die at the hands of an angry scorpion, you can start the level fresh with no penalties.

The Bad

I didn’t find anything wrong with this game. It plays perfectly, is entertaining, and is reasonably priced.

Value

Armadillo Gold Rush costs $2.99. The game is very entertaining and keeps you interested with new elements on every level. The replay value is reasonable considering you can get more stars by completing a course faster and with fewer moves.

Conclusion

This is a simple puzzle game with components of action arcade mechanics. It is fun to play, but difficult enough to give you a medium-sized challenge. If this appeals to you, check it out. I’ve had a lot of fun playing through levels, especially once I made it to group 5. This game is available on the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. Download it in the App Store today.

What do you think of this classic mobile game refresh? Let us know in the comments below.