Screw the Dealer Pro: A Poor Excuse for a Paid App
Screw the Dealer is one of those classic card games that didn’t catch on for many people that run in my circles. I had no idea how to play the game, but my mind was open to learning a new game. If you’re not interested in playing card games on your handheld device then I advise you to stop reading this review right this instant. For all you others who are either fans of Screw the Dealer or card games, stick around. We may have found a winner in STDP. Wow, no wonder they added the “Pro” to the title.
Gameplay:
Screw the Dealer Pro pits you against three computer players, with the dealer position rotating during the game. With each round you bid on how many hands you will take, with the dealer getting the last bid (hence, getting screwed). You earn a point for each hand you win, but if you bid correctly, you’ll be awarded 10 points at the end of the round. So
your bid is more important than winning hands.
The trump suit varies for each round, with no trump at all every fifth round. In the full game you start with a 13-card round, and then work your way down to just one card, so bidding gets progressively more difficult as fewer and fewer cards are dealt.
When it comes to the visuals, STDP is quite pleasant, adding cartoony graphics and colors that grace your handheld screen. The card animations are about as good as they’re going to look in a card game app so there’s no complaints there. There isn’t any sound or audio at all in the game but I guess that’s to be expected. What sound effects would they add? Card’s sliding, people talking? You have the option of playing your iPod music but that might inhibit you’re thinking process.
Though this is a “Pro” version of an app, it didn’t have that “paid” app polish that so many great apps have. For instance, the four players you play with are fixed. There’s no way to change your user name or anybody else’s, so you’re stuck with being Colin. Also, there are only two modes of play: regular and quick play. There’s no multiplayer capability or difficulty level switch, which left me dumbfounded. And what makes it worse is that it costs $1.99! It’s lacking too many elements to actually justify purchasing the app.
What We Liked:
+ Good visuals + iPod music friendly + Classic “Screw the Dealer” gameplay + Saves game upon exiting + Decent visibility of cards
What We Disliked:
- No way to toggle dialogue on/off – Only 2 modes – Lacks polish – No audio – Weak tutorial – Inability to adjust user name – No multiplayer – No alternative difficulty option – Awkward lay-out – Way too pricey for it’s quality
Final Verdict:
Card gamers who had high hopes for this game, prepare to be disappointed. Even though it’s a pro version, it feels and plays like a Lite or Free version because of it’s lack of polish, modes, and overall completeness of the game. It has potential but the game developers would have to do a major overhaul and add a number of aspects to this game to justify it’s $1.99 price tag. There is just no way that any card gamer should pay 2 dollars for a game that’s lacking so much. Skip Screw the Dealer Pro and wait till a game developer does this classic card game right.
Related posts:
Category: Games
Maybe as a caption, instead of a “sorry excuse for a paid app”, the caption should just say “Screw this game”
Or perhaps “Screw the purchaser”?
Or “You got screwed”
Or “You’re screwed for buying this”
Or…
hahaha thx for the advice guys…maybe i’ll adjust it =P although im not so sure the game developers would enjoy seeing that…haha
We aim to please! hehe, yeah, you’re probably right, the devs wouldn’t appreciate it…but it’s all in good fun.
When I saw the title for this review I couldn’t resist reading it. For all it’s faults it doesn’t sound anything like as poor an excuse for a paid app as the two worst that I’ve purchased in my 18 months as an iPhone owner. This is where I’ll give a special mention to Logic Lines and Defend Mechopolis. *shudder*
There is also a free version of this app, without the pro, available which is pretty much the same, if you can put up with adverts then I recommend giving that a try. Think I’ll personally stick to the free version though now.