When I first went through the tutorial for the Six-String Free app (the free version of the full-price one), I immediately felt the need to grab a pen and paper, because there were a lot of rules to memorize. But then when I ran through a practice game, it was much easier than I thought. The actions you take are pretty logical and self-explanatory.
Six-String Free is in the same family as the Tap Tap Revenge games, though it doesn’t revolve around the beat the same way as the Tap Tap games do. Still, you choose a song, listen to it while flying neon bubbles fire away at you fast and furious, and it’s your job to nip them in the bud at the right moment — and they fly by quickly! Even in the easy round, it’s a race.
One thing that was a definite bummer about this app was that there is only one song on which you can play the game, and it’s Scorpions “Raised on Rock.” But just as I was wishing for at least one, or maybe two, more songs, I got an offer for two free downloads; something that hadn’t previously crossed my screen. This wound up also being an offer I found hard to come by again, which I thought was kind of mysterious. Even more annoying, once I completed the free downloads, I had to master one or more levels in practice mode to “unlock” each track.
Clearly, the whole point of this free version is to entice you to go for the upgrade—when you click on music store, that’s what comes up—though I would like this app more if they didn’t make that so painfully obvious. It increases your awareness of the marketing of the whole thing, which is just a turnoff.
Despite the negatives, this app was fun to play. Other highlights are the “Shred-o-Meter,” which gages your shred cred, and if you log in, you can challenge friends and post your scores.
