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Traditional action games on the iPhone are hard, thanks to the fact that you don’t have buttons. Traditional platformers are even more so. The virtual buttons most games have just don’t give you the accuracy you need to be able to play these things. However, I’ve recently picked up Pix’n Love Rush on a whim and tried it a few times during breaks at work, and it’s pretty amazing how well it works.

Apparently this game is based off some French retro gaming series? I honestly have no idea. All I know it is stars a very cute little pixelated person who plays a very traditional platformer. You’re randomly thrown into little snippets of stage for short periods of time, and have to collect the little + circles and shoot the little bats in order to maximize your score. It’s very simplistic, but it has a great art style and a great soundtrack. That soundtrack is kind of key. Normally, I hate iPod games that bring their own music, because I just want to listen to my podcasts while I play, but this short action-y rush game is set up to use such music, and it really enhances the experience, I think. At the same time, once you get tired of it, you can always go back to your iPod music.

The main thing that’s awesome is how well it controls. The only button I have problems with hitting is the shoot button. It seems too spaced-out, but I assume that’s so you don’t hit it when you want to hit jump, which is the more important virtual button. Running and jumping is nearly as good as with actual buttons. I rarely felt like they were fucking me over. My own skill was doing that. It’s pretty impressive, and I wish all games that attempted to have virtual buttons had ones as good as these.

In any case, if you’re looking for a cheap little arcade-y blast of a game, Pix’n Love Rush is a great purchase. It’s only a buck, and it’s pretty well exactly the right amount of content for a buck, I think. Maybe even more so if you really enjoy setting high scores in games like this. Give it a try.