hiveipodapp

Review: Hive board game app offers all sorts of buggy fun

As a tabletop board game, Hive has been around since 2001. It draws inspiration from classic abstract strategy games like chess and shogi but does away with that pesky board (see also: Tile Chess). The iPhone/iPod touch app [US$1.99, iTunes link] brings everything from the physical version to your pocket, and if clever placement of bug-decorated pieces is your thing, the game is well worth the download – at least for a short while. The Game The rules of this two-player game are entirely simple. Each turn, you either add a piece to the hive (you can think of the hive as the board) or, if you've already placed your queen bee, you can move a piece in the hive. The object of the game is to surround your opponent's bee and, like in chess, each type of piece (different kinds of bugs) has its own movement abilities, so knowing when to move where is a challenge and certainly part of the fun. Beetles climb on other bugs, the ant runs around the hive, and so on.The full rules are detailed in the app's tutorial, or you can watch a video review after the jump (or get the rules PDF). Read on to discover if these bugs are the kind you want invading your iPhone. %Gallery-84698%