SPL has ported a couple of its mobile games to the Vita, and if you're after a quick endless runner shooter in the style of Commando, Ikari Warriors meets Cannon Fodder, or a fun little tower defence game, these are here to entertain you at just £3.29 each.
Battalion commander is only a 55MB download, and looks like it with pretty weedy graphics. In play, your commander starts marching up the screen, auto-firing away, looking for allies to recruit and enemies to mow down in a hail of gunfire. As you progress, special weapons become available that you can unleash when you get in a tight spot.
Every time he frees a comrade, your fire power goes up and there are plenty of mini-missions to complete. Then, you just keep on marching to complete laps of the game. In between deaths, you spend the collected cash to boost your forces' perks and add new skills. And that's pretty much it.
It is fun when you have a full magnificent seven (or more) marching up the screen laying waste to the bunkers, helicopters, jeeps and tanks that stand in your path. there's the campaign to play with an endless mode and online high scores. However, with wildly inaccurate shooting and poor visuals, with often too much on-screen to see where a real threat is, Battalion Commander is a hard game to really love, especially as it crashes rather regularly.
Score 4/10
Price: £3.29 (PSN)
Developer: IBIY Soft/SPL
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Keeper of the 4 Elements is a more meaty 88MB download and offers a traditional tower defence game with a couple of neat twists. Using the elements as the basis for your towers, you need to fend off an invading horde trying to take over your island.
With a vaguely Asian flavour to it, its entertaining seeing the towers improve and the many new types of enemies being unleashed at you, and having to adjust your tactics accordingly. While its art style is also pretty simple, the game is more endearing and the characters have a certain charm,
Otherwise its stock tower defence fun! Find the best place for each type of building, ramp them up in power to keep the horde at bay, sell ones you no longer need and pray that last tank (or, warrior on a bear) doesn't make it to the end. The elemental powers also provide special attacks, in the form of tornadoes, earthquakes and meteors to boost your attack, while rain can slow down speedy enemies.
Each level can be played on easy, medium and hard, collecting stars along the way, which you can use to power-up your towers abilities. At the end of the road is your Monk, who provides a last line of defence. While its not a patch on my all-time favourite, the FieldRunners series, this is a delightful title that you can drop in and out of with ease.
Score 7/10
Price: £3.29 (PSN)
Developer: Char/SPL
