This review originally appeared within iLounge’s iOS Gems series within the compilation article, iPhone Gems: Good Games with Familiar Names. Additional details may be found in the original article.
Back in August, we looked at Pour1Out, a ridiculous malt liquor-pouring simulator designed as an advertisement for a company selling beer holders. What we didn’t discuss was PhoneSaber, an app that turned iPhones into miniature lightsaber sound effect machines, complete with the famous electric droning noises and a glowing blade effect on screen. That app was pulled from the App Store by demand from Lucasarts, which owned the sound effects in question.
Now TheMacBox has re-released PhoneSaber as Lightsaber Unleashed (Free). It’s not a game, but a promotional tool for The Force Unleashed, previously reviewed by iLounge. All it does is put a light saber graphic up on screen and make sounds that vaguely track the device’s movement, as well as the sounds of the light blade being extended and retracted. You can see the blade in full on the screen, or switch to a full-screen view of a segment of the glowing light.
You can select from five characters seen in the Force Unleashed, with blue, green, and red lightsabers available across the characters, biographical details, and an appropriately John Williams-styled song to play in the background if you want. Ultimately, the app is little more than an excuse to wave your iPhone around and make lightsaber noises, with screen flashes whenever it simulates “hits,” but it’s cute, and a nice demonstration of how developers can collaborate rather than fighting each other for attention in the Store. We’ll check back on it if the lightsabers ever become more visually interesting. iLounge Rating: B-.
Our Rating
Company and Price
Company: TheMacBox
Website: www.themacbox.co.uk
Title: Lightsaber Unleashed
Price: $5
Compatible: iPhones, iPod touches