Playman Track & Field ($0.99, iTunes link) is a good-looking sports title featuring 5 track & field competitions: 100 Meter Dash, Long Jump, Hurdles, Pole Vault, and Javelin. It’s a “button masher”-type game, meaning that most events are won by how fast and accurately you can tap the onscreen buttons. The gameplay is simple but becomes challenging in the more advanced levels when your competitors gain Olympic-like skills. Besides the increasing difficulty levels, the game never changes much and lacks any real depth–but for its current price of $0.99, there is enough to entertain you for several hours. A good deal, we think. Overall, Track & Field is a polished sports title ideal for the casual mobile gamer. We rate it a 7.4 out of 10, recommended.

There are three levels of difficulty for Track & Field: Amateur Challenge, Playman’s Pro Challenge, and Survival. You must win all the events in the Amateur’s Challenge to unlock the next difficulty level. After defeating the Pro Challenge, you gain access to Survival Mode, which moves the competition to an arctic setting where you’ll perpetually compete in events until you lose, racking up high scores that you can upload online and compare to others.

As far as controls go, Track & Field is a game of quick reflexes and timing. The 100 meters dash, for example, is all about how quickly you can tap the buttons that randomly appear on either the right or left sides. Other events like the long jump combine the speed tapping with a test of accuracy. As you approach the sand, you must simultaneously tap two onscreen buttons before your long jumper hits the foul line. Once in the air, you must tap the buttons again at the right time to get some extra distance. (See our forums for game tips.)

The overall polish of Track & Field is a good example of RealArcade’s experience in creating casual games. We saw no buggy behavior, and the entire game flowed smoothly in terms of menu systems, game controls, and overall completeness. While we enjoy the ingenuity that small independent developers have brought to the iPhone, it’s also nice to purchase a game without it missing features.

Conclusion

Playman Track & Field is a well-designed game with frustration-free controls and attractive cartoon graphics. Its short game times and ability to pick up where you left off make it perfect for casual mobile gamers. Overall, it’s a solid way to spend 99 cents (the price as of this review), and it gets our recommendation with a rating of 7.4 out of 10.

Playman Track and Field is a 99-cent download in the iTunes App Store.

Name: Playman Track & Field
Developer: RealArcade
Version Reviewed: 1.1.1
Price: $0.99
iTunes Link: Click here