Car Jack Streets

Comparing Car Jack Streets to GTA is an obvious but worthy accolade. Created by the original developers of GTA, at first glance it might appear to be just an extension of this on a new platform.

Stealing cars, gunning down gang members and flippantly avoiding the police; it's hardly reinventing the wheel stuff. But what you'll find with CJS is something hugely original with gameplay that thrives on the iPhone console.

CJS is a real-time, objective based title where you take on the role of Randal, an indebted gambler tasked with coming up with $1,000,000 for sinister mob boss, Frankie.

While the story is old-hat, the ‘real-time' aspect is something to be savoured. A refreshing feature, when it's nine o'clock, it's the same in the game. The money you owe? Well make sure you pay back a set amount by this coming Friday or it's game over buddy! Even more intricately, objectives may not start until 18:13, so make sure you're back in the next ten minutes to grenade those sportscars.

All this immediacy and relevancy to what's happening outside the game is a brilliant touch. There's always talk of the ‘casual' emphasis of mobile gaming, but here you are forced (unbegrudgingly) into regular engagement. While sometimes not ideal (your bus pulls up just as you are seconds away from an important mission), it's refreshing and you'll find yourself pretty engrossed after a few days play.

So while the concept of CJS creates something you just can't ignore, the gameplay doesn't totally share this intuitive nature. Handling Randal is simple, with a touchscreen d-pad giving no hassle. It's when you jump behind the wheels the game, at first reflection, loses its edge. But it's a feeling out process with the two control touch points. Getting to know which car you can safely turn at full speed and mastering all the subtleties takes time.

Away from the user control, there is then the added challenge of avoiding other cars at all cost. Living in a city where, despite our own reckless speeding, cars happily pull out into the middle of the road - collisions aren't just likely, they are guaranteed. This can be infuriating as the timer ticks away, but the almost comic and frequent nature of accidents means they do become a habitual nuance and less of a bother.

Of these, major objectives are often hugely frustrating, far too easy to fail, and thus, hugely engrossing. The calamitous nature of other drivers, the ease of mowing down pedestrians and often confusing situations ("Which guy do I protect and which do I kill?!") means its like having a hugely addictive arcade game burning a hole in your pocket. "Just one more go, please!"

There's no denying there is a pressure on the user to commit to CJS. Far from being its ultimate failing, this creates a bond between player and game similar to great console titles. Providing a world and challenge that entices ongoing and repetitive play, CJS is the expansive and ambitious project that succeeds.