You remember those first few waves of iPhone games, don't you? Some tried clumsily to mimic other experiences from the PC or consoles. A few tried to make use of the touchscreen or accelerometer in interesting ways but didn't quite get it. Eliss—a clever but hard little game about moving planets with your fingertips—was one of the first that made you feel like it got that touchscreen gaming could be different and special in its own way. Now that iOS classic is getting a major refresh. This is awesome news.
Eliss Infinity combines the original Eliss game with new visuals and a few tweaks to make that first iteration—which lived on our list of best iPad games for a while— a bit more approachable, along with long-awaited native compatibility for Apple's tablets. It's also adding an Infinity mode which developer Steph Thirion describes as a "score-based, endless version of Eliss, with a new chaining mechanic. It's a short burst, deep focus game, that ends fast and makes you go back for a higher score, until you master it and beyond."
Though his output is all too infrequent, Thirion's one of my favorite iOS developers, a guy whose games feel like little, pixel-paintings come to life. It's really great that he's revisiting his previous work so that a new crop of players can discover it. Eliss Infinity will be out on the App Store for Feb. 6 for $2.99