Just when I was thinking when would I get an iPhone game styled after those 16-bit games of old, in comes a review request for Jetsom Sam. Now, the game looks like a typical 2D-platformer (and even has the typical “rescue somebody” storyline), but the gameplay mechanics are something different.

You’ll play as Sam who has this pair of rocket boots. Basically, he’ll jump to anywhere you tap on the screen. Each level you encounter both obstacles (buildings, fires and moving vehicles), which you have to jump over, and enemies in the form of aliens.

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Tackling the latter is an interesting aspect of the game. You’ll have to make Sam jump up before diving down to head butt the enemy. Unorthodox, yes, but with some practice you’ll get the hang of it, just don’t try to fly into an enemy straight on as the only way to destroy them is to hit them at an angle.

Each level features items to collect, and different objectives too. One had me beating 10 enemies while others simply require me to stay alive until the end of the level. Some of the levels auto-scroll like some of those Mario levels, so you’ll have to pay attention to besides all the other moving elements (vehicles and enemies).

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The game’s soundtrack is also a throwback to those earlier days when MIDI ruled, but it gets annoying after a while. Fortunately this can be switched off. The only other gripe I have about the game is the slow loading time.

While not perfect, I like Jetsom Sam and it’s selling for just USD 0.99! If you have a dollar to spare and want some pretty old-school-style graphics and interesting gameplay, but sick of them puzzle games, Jetsom Sam is the way to go. Click here to head over to the App Store.