Looking for an addictive game for your Windows Phone? Like word puzzles? Look no further than Trine's Hangman. Gydar Industries has developed a hangman fashioned word game for Windows Phone 7 that is highly addictive and very entertaining.
The game itself is simple. You try to guess the word, one letter at a time. Each wrong letter ads a piece of the gallows and your hangman's body. Your afforded nine wrong guesses before the picture is complete and you loose.
One of the great things about Trine's Hangman is that your scores are a collective of all the puzzles. So while you may miss a word, your game continues. Don't worry about running out of words any time soon. Trine's comes loaded with 10,000 words and phrases.
But there's a lot more to Trine's Hangman than simply guessing letters. To find out more on this Windows Phone game, follow the break.
Not your ordinary game of hangman
While the game play follows the classic game of hangman, what set's Trine's Hangman apart is the continuous play and worldwide leader board. While Trine's doesn't have XBox Live integration, it does have a leader board where registered members (free) compete for bragging rights.
The leader board tracks how long you've played, your scores, worldwide ranking, and game precision. Game time reflects your actual time in the game and not time spent tweaking settings or changing wallpapers. In checking the worldwide leader boards, there are already several 20+ hour players. Want to brag to a friend? Trine's offers a "Braggin' Rights" page that is accessible via the internet that can be sent to friends and family via email.
There is also a level of customization in that you can change the background image and control how the game feeds off your data package. There are seventeen pre-loaded wallpapers ranging from a tree frog to a full moon. Unfortunately, you can't add your own background image.
Data usage can be regulated to determine how often your position is updated on the leader board. It doesn't take much data to refresh your standings but it's nice to see Trine's Hangman try to conserve data. You can refresh your standings after every 5, 20, 15, or 20 completed words (or you can turn it off all together).
Game Play
Game play with Trine's Hangman is simple, straight forward and highly addictive. You simply tap the letters you think will complete the word and if you guess wrong, a portion of the hangman will generate. If you need to stop play in the middle of a word, Trine's will remember your progress and when you get ready to resume play, you don't loose any ground.
With every correct word, your points increase. With every wrong word, your points decrease. Periodically, your position on the leaderboard is updated based on how well or bad you're doing.
Another nice touch with Trine's Hangman is a Wikipedia connection. On every failed word, you have the option of looking up the word on Wikipedia. You also have the option to lookup words from the list of your most recently played words.
Trine's Hangman ran smoothly with no bugs, glitches or crashes experienced. In playing Trine's Hangman, I found it hard to put down at times. What helps the addictiveness of Trine's is that the game ends only when you want it to. While you loose ground on missed words, the words keep coming. Your game time is encouraged by updates that show how far you've advanced or declined on the worldwide leader board.
Overall Impression
I really liked Trine's Hangman. It was a fantastic way to pass the time and compete against others to see who can solve the most word puzzles. The continuous play lets you play at your own pace without worrying about seeing "game over" until you want to stop playing.
While it's not an "XBox Live" game, it could easily become one. I liked the detail your leader board reflects. It gives you a nice snapshot of how well (or bad) you're progressing and with the periodic updates, it motivates you to keep playing. All in all, Trine's was entertaining, addictive, and a nice way to pass the time.
Trine's Hangman is a must for those who like word puzzle games. There is a free trial available to let you try before you buy. The full copy will run you $2.99 (Good news is that the app is on sale for $1.99 until 1.1.2011!).
You can find your copy of Trine's Hangman here (opens your Zune desktop).
