Did I ever tell you about how terrified I was of moles when I was a kid? Oh man, I was. I really was. I think I saw a mole once above ground, and according to my parents I spent the day shouting "Mole! Mole!" and running and hiding. Burrowing little MF-er scared the pants off of me.
I don't really feel that way about moles anymore. And what lingering animosity I may feel has been erased by Super Mole Escape for iPad and iPhone. In the game, you play as a mole who has escaped from prison by—what else?—digging. Except you don't actually control the digging—the player moves from the top of the screen to the bottom, and your mole digs ever-downward as you tilt the device to keep him on the finest, fastest dirt.
So, it's something like Jetpack Joyride, except that instead of going from left to right, you're falling from top to bottom. The game winds up feeling something like bowling—there are diamonds that you can pick up, and packages that contain power-ups, all of which help you go faster and dodge hazards. And you better not get slowed down too much, or the cops will catch up to you.
I had a total blast playing Super Mole Escape, far more fun than I thought I would—something about the pace of the game makes it always exciting, and every close encounter with the cops feels close. The downhill momentum is well-designed and feels good, and the inclusion of a multiplayer mode (you can race alongside another mole via an internet connection!) feels like icing on the cake.
Seriously. Fun game. It's a buck. Check it out. You'll never look at moles the same way again.
Super Mole Escape [App Store, $0.99]