Ham On The Run Review – An Endless County Fair For iOS

Ham on the Run from Glu Games brings back the ‘original’ endless runner, a side-scrolling genre forgotten in the age of Temple Run clones. Thankfully, this cute and charming little 2D title is here to remind us what made the genre so fun and appealing in the first place.

Ham on the Run is an endless runner where you simply tap the screen to jump across gaps, collect peppers, and dodge various obstacles. The game is reminiscent of Pig Rush with the style and protagonist, but definitely stands on its own because of the overall package.

Most importantly, the game nails the ‘one more time’ feel only the best endless games can achieve.. As soon as you lose, you will instantly want to run again to better a previous score. The game also takes cues from Jetpack Joyride with a wheel to spin for bonuses at the end of a run, as well as three missions at a time to shoot for.

The game isn’t ground breaking in any regard, but nails every aspect for an engaging and enjoyable overall package. One of the neatest aspects are the chickens scattered about to bounce on: stringing four chicken bounces together unlock a short bonus mode, a nice variation to the gameplay that really helps rack up the high scores.

The art style and soundtrack work well together for a country carnival theme that adds to the overall personality of the game. The pacing is worth commending as well; the game is always flowing to provide challenge and fun at the same time.

Some of the obstacle sequences are tough when jumping off the ground each time, as compared to slightly adjusting the hovering in Jetpack Joyride. The game does feature plenty of power-ups and upgrades to unlock, and provides more incentive to run again beyond the intrinsic replay factor.

Ham on the Run isn’t necessarily new, but that doesn’t make it any less entertaining. The game nails every aspect of an endless runner to give you renewed enjoyment from the genre.