Ginger Roll is a 3D platformer developed by IRF Media. It features screen tilt compatibilities and tells the story of a ginger, pint-sized boy trapped in a Zorb ball by an evil child genius who must roll and dodge obstacles to escape each level.
Ginger Roll starts off with main protagonist Saif, who is trapped inside a Zorb Ball, imprisoned by evil child genius Ibis. In order to stop him from world domination, you must navigate Saif (and his friends) through different obstacle increasingly difficult courses. There are currently four worlds to play with a total of sixty levels to defeat. Ginger Roll embraces the short burst mobile arcade platformer formula with quick levels, simple graphics and easy concept with the twist of navigating the orbs by using motion sensor technology (meaning you can tilt your screen to move Saif and his Zorb Ball). Simple, right? Don’t worry, there’s more. Each level has a countdown timer to add some further challenge, and some course will have various paths, some with edges or no edges so that Saif can easily fall off to his death. In the recent update, Ginger Roll also has on-screen joystick controls as an alternative.
https://youtu.be/gVwQM7QPMqM
3D platformers are fairly normal in console gaming, and are growing in popularity on mobile platforms. Ginger Roll looks to be geared towards a younger audience or even a family game, and as such, the visuals are pretty appealing. There’s not much story of course, itself more of a guideline rather than something deeper as we travel from one level to the next without much context.
Still, the levels are creative and challenging. Sometimes, it takes some thought to derive the path from beginning to finish in the allotted countdown timer. There is a cue when there are only ten seconds left, which is a nice mechanic as it takes some concentration to get through the latter stages. The levels are also introduced in a roundabout overview, so we can see them in entirety before zeroing back to the start. The are also filled with items to collect and various types of obstacles to get around, which require some dexterity and mastering the controls so as to not let Saif meet his end.
That said, it is the controls that need polish. We tried both the screen tilt/motion sensor experience and the on-screen joystick controls (as shown in our gameplay above) and notices that the screen tilt lacks precise responsiveness whereas the on-screen joystick controls had much better sensitivity though at times a little too much, making it also difficult to control Good frustration is a natural part of gaming, resulting from our own lack of mastering the mechanics, however, Ginger Roll makes us feel defeated because the controls make it hard to master challenges and improve. For a game that focuses on its screen tilt functionalities, unfortunately, we do prefer the on-screen joystick controls as the increased responsiveness makes it easier to maneuver through the course.
Still, as a mobile 3D platformer, Ginger Roll nails a few key aspects. These are short, timed levels, which fit perfectly for those quick pick up and play moments that satisfy those on the go gamers not able to commit too much time for session. It is cute and simple to learn, plus it has a nice color scheme and welcoming world to maneuver along these various stages. However, a few updates could make the gaming experience much more engaging.