The King of OX

 It seems to be that the Android game market is oddly flooded with education games that are oddly addictive. The most recent one is WestRiver's excellent "The King of OX" which is very different to the other ones I've reviewed. This time the sums have been done for you and you're job is to be the teacher marking the answers. Although the premise might seem incredibly stupid and pointless you will quickly find yourself hooked and with the leader boards for the game allowing you to compare yourself against the world and against your country you'll be back for more.
The game sounds very simple and is simple if the equation is right you click on the "O" and if it's wrong you click on the "X". So in the image beside this paragraph you would click X for the first one and the second one then O for the third one.

Your score is recorded and shown in real time on the screen (in this screen shot the score is O=5 and X=1, or 5 right and 1 wrong) and set against a clock. In the image to the side the "clock" is displayed over the score and runs down swiftly, each wrong answer taking a portion of the clock away meaning if you rush you will do worse than just thinking about things carefully.

OMG Buttface returns!

Although graphically the game is very simple it moves along at a very quick pace and the style suits the game really well. The sounds are similar in that they too are very simple, a different noise for getting something wrong or right though again they fit the idea of the game well and due to the speed would over-pollute if you were to have a background tune.

The best part of the game needs to be the leaderboard which is really well done and has allowed "Buttface" his first appearance on a worldwide game. Although I've not managed to break into the Global or Daily rankings I've managed to break into the "Country" (British) rankings a few times (and at the time of writing I'm 16th in Britain with a score of O=56 X=1, an improvement on the screen capture to the right).

RiverWest have really nailed this game and created something that despite having a stupid premise is addictive, rapid fire and enthralling. It's educational it's fun and although it won't appeal to everyone it's worth a download (if just to try and beat me). Technically it's nothing amazing but this shows you don't need to pushing the boundaries of realist graphics or having amazing music to make an amazingly addictive and playable game.

Addictiveness-10/10 What is it with these maths games being so addictive? The leaderboard is amazing and will have you trying to beat everyone!
Controls-10/10 So stupidly simple...but so ridiculously effective
Graphics-6/10 It's a shame here that the graphics are limited but like many other games it doesn't depend on the looks to be brilliant
Sounds-2/10 The weakest part of the game. It simple makes a different tune depending on a right or wrong answer. Oddly they work though are limited.
Originality-7/10 It seems that mathematical games are actually rather common but they all take a different slant on using numbers, this is unlike the other two.

Total score: 35/50

Overall probably my favourite of the maths games, though it's close between the three of them. The developers are apparently trying to add a Facebook Friends part to the game soon which will hopefully make the game even more addictive. With it's simplicity and it's speed it's hard not to love. If only being a teacher really was this much fun.

Game mark A

If you like this try:
Math Maniac
Mathgame

Mathgame

The title screen

By now I'm sure we've all had some form of experience with the mega-selling Brain Training series of games which attempt to test your brain an allow you to improve your brain age. If you enjoyed those games but felt that the maths part of those games was too easy or too short then Eddie Hsu's excellent "Mathgame" is the answer for you.

The concept of the game is simple, you need to select two numbers and a function from the randomly generated ones on the screen (between 2 and 81) to create a full equation. It sounds so simple and in fact it should be simple but you will quickly find yourself panicking, pulling your hair out and wondering why you can't see the most obvious equation there.

The game comes in two modes a "normal" game and a "quick" game. The normal game sees you playing the game until there is no possible equations on the screen much like the marathon mode on Bejeweled, all the while racking up a score. The games scoring system is a clever addition that sees you getting a bonus multiplier for using the same number in different equations. I.e. 5+4=9, re-using that 9 (which will be coloured) adds an extra multiplier. So then going 9-5=4 would give you a bonus and make the 4 tile the bonus number.

Whilst the normal game mode is the long term choice it's the games "quick" mode that really stands out. This mode gives you 1 minute to try and rack up the biggest score possible, all the while you are getting more and more worried and finding it harder to think. The quick mode really sorts the men from the boys, sadly I appear to be a boy. It's the pick up and play speed that really separates the two game modes and it's the difference between having a leisurely walk in the countryside and being chased by ravenous dogs.


As well as being very simple to play with you selecting the relevant tiles by just using your finger to literally touch them the game also has a very simplistic look to it that perhaps wouldn't look out of place in a late 1980's home console. The idea, I think, is that the monkeys are sat in a classroom and whilst it looks simple it does the job. There isn't really much point in over-doing the graphics here as it's the gameplay that the game relies on, not beautiful glowing colours, yet the graphics do have a real charm about them. The games one lacking quality is sound. And by lacking quality I mean there is no sound at all. Whilst this doesn't make any difference to the gameplay or the addictiveness it would have been nice to have had some soft soothing music and maybe even some sounds come to congratulate getting an equation.

Whilst the game is incredibly charming and addictive as well as infuriating it's also a learning experience and one that you will find yourself coming back to time and time again. Whilst the game doesn't break the boundaries of video gaming, it plays nicely inside the boundaries whilst teaching kids maths in a fun and addictive fashion.

If I was asked what could be improved maybe a difficulty setting (for example easy uses just numbers 2-20 whilst hard could be expanded to 1-100) and some light "elevator music" (with the option to turn it off) as well as a small graphics over-haul though they are only minor things and certainly don't take away from a fabulous game.

Addictiveness-9/10. Learning has never been this addictive!
Controls-10/10. Exactly what you'd expect and they work sublimely
Graphics-4/10. It looks simple and is charming but nothing amazing on the eye
Sounds-0/10. Completely absent. I turned the sound all the way up but nothing at all.
Originality-7/10. Yes it's a concept borrowed from Brain Training but it's done in a very unique and clever way that feels fresh and original.

Total score
30/50

Overall this is the best learning experience I've seen put into a game. Whether your a young child just learning how to use numbers or an adult you will be hooked and you'll try repeatedly to break your own top scores. The scoring system of the game makes you want to come back for more whilst the quick game is the most frustratingly brilliant thing I've seen on the Android market so far. Eddie Hsu you have made a monster!

Game Mark B+