Fruit Ninja At Home and On The Go

While I'm not a huge fan of ninjas, I do enjoy a well sliced piece of fruit.  The mobile app game and Kinect downloadable Fruit Ninja gives you the maximum amount of the healthy snack with minimum interaction from the ninja.

I would typically begin this type of review with a background of the story, but this game doesn't really have one.  This arcade style game depends solely on your desire to reach that coveted spot of "Highest Score".  Fruit is tossed up onto the screen and its the player's job to cut it in half all while avoiding bombs that either reduce points or flat out make you lose.  Classic mode can go on forever, but you are given a three strike policy for missing fruit and the added danger of slashing a bomb which ends the game.  Arcade mode challenges you to get the highest score inside of 60 seconds, encouraging you to string together as many combos as possible while avoiding bombs that lower your score.  Hitting special, super charged bananas will help you by increasing the amount of fruit, allowing for temporary double points, or making things move ultra slow.  Zen mode increases the times to 90 seconds and gives you nothing but fruit.  Combos are the only way to boost your score so Zen relies pretty heavily on timing. 

Luckily there is not one but two different ways to get your hands on the game.  First, it is available for Android and iOS for a measly 99 cents.  Seriously, it is well worth that miniscule price.  An even better upgrade is available for download in the Xbox LIVE Marketplace for 800 points.  This game allows you to utilize the Kinect and actually hack your way through fruit like a real ninja obviously would.  The Kinect version takes it one step further and has DLC packs that include new backgrounds and fancy blades as well as a co-op mode so you can murder fruit with that special someone.

When comparing the two games side by side, its hard to say which is more fun.  Even though they are nearly identical, the Xbox version allows for some pretty hilarious arm flailing, which may be more fun for those around you.  But after about an hour of this, I started to feel the burn.  Unfortunately, I am awful at listening to my body and played for another hour.  Not until the next morning did I realize what a bad idea that was.  The lesson here is that this game is so fun that it is easy to miss out on how tired your body is.  One thing that is lacking on the Xbox version, and understandably so, is the precision.  Fruit Ninja's mobile app is really precise and responsive to finger controls, while the Xbox would periodically slice a bomb on accident while I was shifting my weight.  In all fairness, I am a very hippy girl so I forgive my Xbox for thinking I had another limb.  The mobile app clearly doesn't have the whole "tired arms" problem; it can easily be enjoyed for hours on end.

Imagine doing this while standing.  In your living room.  While looking at fruit.

So with all that said, I recommend that you buy both versions of Fruit Ninja.  It is really fun and entertaining for a group or to play by yourself while waiting in the car.  Lets face it, those flying fruits deserve what's coming to them.