Flashback was a unique game in its time. It was initially released for the Amiga in 1992, then ported to MS-DOS, Acorn Archimedes, Sega Mega Drive/Genesis and Super Nintendo in 1993. The game featured rotoscoped animations that set it apart from the stiff animations of the day. The controls were dynamic featuring a large selections of move sets and options. Offering puzzles and some great platform gameplay, the game became a classic in the eyes of many players.


Now it has been published for the iPhone by an independent developer and has become somewhat of a mess. The game is played within a box on the screen and is controlled by a joystick that appears wherever the player's finger touches the screen. This is extremely annoying as there is often not enough space to move your finger and see the character on the screen. Being a game requiring planning and quick reaction, this becomes a huge issue. But that's just the beginning. There is no tutorial for controls at all, so if you haven't played the game before, like me, you have no idea what the controls are. I had to look up strategy guides online just to figure out all the controls available, some absolutely necessary to survive. If faulty confusing controls are enough to stop you, how about a game-killing bug? On the second level, there is a job that your character must receive in order to move on in the game. When the player clicks the job description the game will get stuck in a never ending cutscene that can only be skipped. If the player skips it, they are all left to wander around wondering what to do. There is no way around it.


Overall, Flashback is an excellent game, but the faulty controls, bugs and lack of any guidance makes the game unplayable for newcomers. Unless you have played this game in the past, I suggest leaving it there.