I came into reviewing Connect 4 ($2.99, iTunes link) with fairly low expectations. I mean, it’s Connect 4, what could you possibly do to get it wrong? Or get it right? However, after playing the game, I’m damned impressed with the time and effort EA has put into making it. It has surprisingly nice graphics and animations, and besides the classic style of play, there are a handful of game modes, bonuses, and features that put a fresh twist on gameplay. But none of that changes the fact that, at its core, it’s still Connect Four, Tic-Tac-Toe‘s ungainly cousin. You’re not going to find anything here that will bring you to love the game if you weren’t already a fan.

The most striking feature of this app is the amount of graphical flair EA have shoved into such a simple game. It could have been decidedly bare-bones, but instead the board is rendered in 3D, it rotates and flips. The individual chips are stacked on your side, and a nice animation shows each as it is taken off the top for every move. If you’re playing two players locally, every time it switches between contestants, the screen inverts so you can sit head-to-head. None of these effects are game changing, but they do serve to make an otherwise boring game look far more exciting. Our only complaint is the entire interface is bright red and yellow, a garish combination that reminds us of the infamous “hot dog stand” theme for Windows 3.1.
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