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Run, Forrest! Run to iTunes!
Run Forrest Run, the video game tie-in to the 1994 movie Forrest Gump, has made its way to Greenbow, Alabama - and the rest of the United States as well. Previously limited to the New Zealand App Store, Run Forrest Run has now been released stateside, allowing US residents to partake in the fun of an endless runner themed around a 20-year old film (or 28-year old novel, if you're of the opinion that the books are always better than the movies). [Image: Genera Mobile]
Forrest Gump gets translated to appropriate video game genre
If there's one thing video games can teach us, it's that it's never too late to bring an intellectual property back from the grave. Judge, jury, may we direct your attention to Exhibit A: Run Forrest Run, a free iOS game starring Forrest Gump. Yes, that Forrest Gump. The game is a cartoonishly-styled endless runner, because of course it is. According to the app's description, players will recreate the scene from the 1994 film where Gump runs across the country. Players will dodge traffic, use power-ups and collect coins; you know, like in the movie. The game is currently only available in New Zealand, but we won't be surprised if it manages to jog its way home to Alabama and the rest of the United States. But the iOS store is like a box of chocolates; you never know what you're gonna get. [Image: Genera Mobile]
There's a Forrest Gump game on the way, and it's not pretty
That's it, everyone. The "endless runner" genre has officially become a parody of itself, and there's no reason to care about it any longer. Need some proof? Check out the upcoming officially licensed Forrest Gump game based on the 20-year-old movie. The game, called Run Forrest Run (groan) is currently available in New Zealand, which is a market many larger app outfits use as something of a beta testing ground. That means it'll probably make it to App Stores around the world in short order, but if you're for some reason anticipating its release, let me put that fire out right now: It's not good. I took the game for a spin using the old "pretend you're from a different country" Apple ID trick, and I can safely say it's not only a breathtakingly average entry into the endless runner category, it's also kind of a gross app all around. For starters, it takes the Forrest Gump character -- which, in the film, was touching and dramatically portrayed -- and reduces it to a goofy caricature with an awkward gait. He's not the good-natured, intellectually challenged man from the films, he's just an idiot who runs down the middle of a road until he gets hit by a truck or slams into a sign. It almost borders on offensive. On top of that, the game mechanics are about as basic as you could possibly imagine. You can jump and duck, and your movement is restricted to just a few running lanes. There's no opportunity to experiment with your approach to each obstacle since there's typically one solution and one solution only. As has become a trend with the genre, the game is also dependent on microtransactions, allowing you to take shortcuts and shell out real-world cash for the in-game currency. You can buy helmets and bonus items, but nothing is particularly interesting and the game is so poorly conceived that you probably won't play it long enough to care about progressing anyway. Needless to say, avoid this one whenever it makes its way to your region's marketplace.
