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App of the Week: Temple Run (Android)

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The hugely popular iOS game Temple Run has leapt onto the Android platform, at long last. As of today, Imangi Studios’ massively addictive app is available to download from Google’s Play Store for absolutely nothing.

Temple Run has been around for a while for Apple devices, building up an impressive fan base and reputation. Over 45 million people have downloaded and played the free title on iPhon, iPod Touch and iPad worldwide, and recently its developer decided it was about time Android fans got a look-in. Oh yes, we’ve been waiting for Temple Run on Android for a while, but today is finally the day.

For those who aren’t familiar with Temple Run, it’s classed as an “endless running” game. Your character has just stolen the cursed idol from the temple and is on the run, chased by a pack of Evil Demon Monkeys who are nipping at your heels. Using up, down, left and right touchscreen swipes and a bit of phone tilting action you have to keep your character running along the temple’s walls, avoiding obstacles and drops and that dastardly bunch of rabid monkeys. The idea of the game is to get the highest score possible by running as far as you can. Coins can be collected along the way which can then be exchanged in the Store for powerups, such as Invisibility and speed boosts.

We’ve given Temple Run a thorough testing this morning, for research purposes only of course, and it feels every bit as smooth as the iOS version on our Samsung Galaxy Nexus. Graphically the game looks sharp as well, although that clarity may take a hit on less powerful devices with lower resolution screens. We also tested the game on the mid-range Galaxy Ace and it seemed to run well, with only one notable hiccup – the graphics lagged for a second when things got hectic in-game.

The beauty of Temple run is how simple it is to control, with the difficulty coming from the game’s speeding up as you progress, with corners and various obstacles appearing more and more often as your high score racks up. Simple swiping of left and right to turn corners, up and down to jump over or slide under obstacles, and tilting your device slightly to move to the left or right of the path – that’s all there is to it.

Although the app itself is free to download (and will continue to remain free), users have the option to make in-game purchases, which is where the developer really makes its money. The coins you collect can be saved up and used to buy power-ups, but for those less patient, up to 200,000 coins at a time can be purchased in-game in exchange for real money (£12.70 gets you 200,000 coins). Unlike many other free games, Temple Run doesn’t feature those annoying in-game adverts, which is a breath of fresh air to us.

If you’ve been waiting for Temple Run to make the jump to Android for a while, get yourself onto the Android Market/Play Store and download it now for free. For those who aren’t yet convinced, check out our short video below for a glimpse of how the game looks in action.

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