SubscribeThere’s are a total of seven Snake clones, based on the classic video game, in the App Store. Which is the best one? Which one recreates the classic version the best? That’s what we’ll be taking a look at, and picking a winner; to see which of the seven available games is the best snake clone. Wikipedia describes the original classic:
Snake is a video game that came out in the late 1970s and has maintained popularity since then, becoming somewhat of a classic. The player controls a long, thin creature, resembling a snake, which roams around on a bordered plane, picking up food (or some other item), trying to avoid hitting its own tail or the “walls” that surround the playing area. Each time the snake eats a piece of food, its tail grows longer, making the game increasingly difficult. The user controls the direction of the snake’s head (up, down, left, or right), and the snake’s body follows. The player cannot stop the snake from moving while the game is in progress.
Here are the games we’ll be looking at:
- Anaconda (Free)
- iSnake ($0.99)
- Nibbles ($0.99)
- Omnomnom ($1.99)
- Serpents ($0.99 | Free Lite Version)
- Snake ($0.99)
- TiltSnake (Free)
Anaconda
- Watch gameplay video
- Rating:
- Price: Free (Get It)
- Version: 1.1
- Developer: Silver Mana Software
Anaconda is one of the more faithful versions of the original Snake. There is no sound or music (coming soon in an update according to the developer), and the background is a simple wavy sand texture, but the control and feel of the game is spot on.
Control is done simply by tapping in the direction you want the snake to go, and the on-screen action is quick to respond to taps.
The game is over if you run into your own body or run into the wall. The high score list has the Top 3 scores, showing how many times you’ve ate the fruit before game over. The size, speed, and pacing are all perfect (since the 1.1 update fixed the pacing.)
iSnake
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- Rating:
Of all the snake clones in this comparison, iSnake is easily the best looking of them all. Control is done by tilting the device (from a flat position) to the direction you want the snake to go. It actually works pretty good, and mistakes are at a minimum.
The speed and pacing is just right, although it is bigger than the other games. The game ends when you run into your own body, or into an object. You can exit one side of the screen and come out on the other end. There’s no music, and the only sound it has is when you pick up food.
An extra toy is thrown in when the game over screen comes up, you can add your initials to the high score list. Then you can close it and the snake’s body (which is made up of brightly colored green balls) is broken up and bounces around the screen based on how you’re tilting the device. So the longer you made the snake’s body, the more balls you get to play with. It’s a neat little addition.
Nibbles
- Watch gameplay video
- Rating:
- Price: $0.99 (Get It)
- Version: 1.0.2
- Developer:
Nibbles has you facing off against an orange snake (your snake is green.) Control is done by tilting in the direction you want your snake to go. Unfortunately, it’s terribly implemented and is more an exercise in frustration than fun. The game is over when you touch either your own body, your opponent’s body, or the walls. Once that happens, the game pauses, and you have to press the screen to start a new game.
Most games last 5 to 10 seconds, and rarely last longer than 20 seconds. This may be a good thing, except most of the time you’ll end the game in frustration. There’s no sound, or music. The graphics is fairly decent, but nothing to really talk about.
Omnomnom
- Watch gameplay video
- Rating:
- Price: $2.99 (Get It)
- Version: 1.0
- Developer:
Omnomnom is the most unique of the seven snake games in this comparison. It features a visual style that mimics the looks of a monochrome cell phone Control is done via an on-screen arrows, that looks similar to the keypads you’d see on old cell phones. Overall I was impressed with the responsive of the controls, and the pacing of the game.
You can choose from 3 difficulty modes when starting a new game, and start with 4 different sizes; Small, Medium, Large, and Progressive. There are settings to turn on/off sound, and enable or disable walls. The original visual style, Classic, is mentioned above, but you can also choose a Jungle style which is just as unique and looks good. There’s a high score board to list your best scores. The sound effects, while sparse, sounds good. There’s no music.
Serpents
- Watch gameplay video
- Rating:
- Price: $2.99 (Get It)
- Version: 1.0
- Developer:
Unlike the other snake clones, Serpents deviates from the standard formula a bit. Instead of chasing down food in a straight line, you guide your snake against up to 3 other snakes in circles and curves. As time goes on, your snake and the other snakes gets longer and longer. As it does, it becomes more challenging to avoid the other snakes, the wall, or your own body. Once you hit any of those three, it’s game over. Once game over, you’re given the option to return to the main menu, or keep watching to see which color snake wins.
The settings allow you to change the difficulty from Easy, Medium, and Hard. You can also turn on and off the sound, and enable/disable up to three computer opponents. Your snake is the yellow one, while opponents are red, green, and blue. Instructions are also provided in-game.
The pacing is incredibly slow and boring, and overall just not very fun. While the controls are good for the most part, the sluggish speed of the game deprives any challenge out of controlling the game. You guide your snake simply by tilting the device, but the low sensitivity means that you’ll have to tilt it very far to get any amount of turn out of your snake. The graphic quality is very basic, and while there’s no sound, the best part of Serpents is the New Age soundtrack.
Snake
- Watch gameplay video
- Rating:
- Price: $0.99 (Get It)
- Version: 2.0
- Developer: Soda
Snake has a Nokia-like feel to it, with three difficulty mode to choose from. Worm (easy), Snake (medium), and Python (hard). Control is done via tapping in the direction you want your snake to go in. Instructions are provided in-game, as well. The easy mode’s pacing is too slow, but it’s good for beginners, while medium is the sweet spot. Hard mode is a fun challenge, as your snake moves at a very rapid pace, and really tests your timing.
The graphics are basic, but smooth-looking. Sound only occurs when you eat a food pellet, and there’s no music. One thing that stands out with Snake is that the iPhone vibrates when you eat a food pellet.
Tiltsnake
- Watch gameplay video
- Rating:
- Price: Free (Get It)
- Version: 1.1
- Developer: Chocolate Technologies
Tiltsnake originally featured tilt controls to move the snake, but has since switched over to a swipe method because the tilt was terribly ineffective. Therefore, you should see it as Swipesnake. Although I had issues with trying to go right with a swipe to the right. It’s not as sensitive and responsive as swiping to the left.
As you eat food pellets, you increase in levels, and with each level your snake moves faster and faster. Game over is when you run into your own body, at which point your score is recorded in the high score board.
The graphics are fairly good, but nothing stands out. There’s no sound, nor music in the game.
Choosing the Winner
So which is the best snake clone? The one I’ve found to be the most fun, and kept coming back to is Anaconda. The pacing is perfect, the controls are excellent, and it’s quick to get into and enjoy. The fact that it is free is just icing on the cake.
iSnake is close behind it. The good looks, and the solid controls make it just as fun. If Anaconda weren’t free, iSnake would be the winner in this comparison. At $0.99, it’s still a good deal and lots of fun.
In order, the snake clones would go like this:
- 1st Place: Anaconda (Free)
- 2nd Place: iSnake ($0.99)
- 3rd Place: Omnomnom ($1.99)
- 4th Place: Snake ($0.99)
- 5th Place: Tiltsnake (Free)
- 6th Place: Serpents ($0.99)
- 7th Place: Nibbles ($0.99)
love anaconda, I got itbwhen it first came out!
I’ve had iSnake on my phone for ages. I loved it even while my 7-year old was kicking my butt at it :-)
I’m so glad it’s in the App Store and happily (and instantly!) paid the 99 cents. That, my friends, is a steal.
videoflyer: It was previously $2.99, but at $0.99 it’s definitely a fantastic deal. I’m surprised they were able to make the tilt controls so solid. It’s what makes the game as fun as it is.
I’d like to mention the latest Snake clone…
Rattlesnake was launched on the App Store at the beginning of October.
A cool mix of retro-fun, with some innovative updates.
Full disclosure: I’m the author :-)
If you’re interested in a Snake game, I hope you’ll check it out.
http://www.binarydisco.com/rattlesnake.html
[...] clone, Sleek ($1.99), being available in the App Store. Since we compared all the Snake clones in Battle of the Snake Clones and crowned Anaconda ($0.99) the winner, the App Store has seen two more added to the mix, Sleek [...]