Guess Who? Mobile

As nippers 20 years ago, the long summer holidays were a magical time. With the final days of the school term slowly passing out of kids' memories the land over, minds would wonder at the endless possibilities and amazing adventures on the horizon.

But not everyday could be a three-and-a-half-a-side footy match. Sooner or later the British weather would turn, bringing rain, and someone's brand new jumper would be left as a lone goal post getting soggy in the summer downpour. Retreating to the shelter of home, the board games would emerge as a desperate attempt to keep us out of trouble.

Once all the fun games were played – the Hungry Hippos satiated, the Kerplunk marbles gone missing – the duller selection of titles would be turned to like the last kid to be picked for teams. And it was into this latter camp that, for us, Guess Who? fell.

So while it's not surprising that LemonQuest has created a java version of the game – boardgames of yesteryear are rich pickings for mobile developers – we suspected something drastic would need to be introduced to bring Guess Who? up to the standards of entertainment today.

Unfortunately, the game is pretty much perfectly true to its heritage and, apart from a two-player Bluetooth game and an Advanced Mode, there's not a lot here to write about when you get back to class.

For the uninitiated, Guess Who? is a two-player boardgame where your goal is to work out what character card your opponent is holding by asking simple yes or no questions, such as does the character have blond hair, or glasses. After each answer, you flick down appropriate tiles on your board that represent the characters in the game according to their features. This continues until you've narrowed down the possibilities enough to take a guess. It's a process of elimination based on your opponent's answers.

In order to extend the amusement in the mobile game's single-player mode, Guess Who? Mobile has three difficulty settings, which require you to win one round, three rounds or five rounds ahead of the computer player. The gameplay doesn't change – it just takes longer to win. Much longer.

If your stamina holds, after conquering this Normal mode, you gain access to Advanced Mode. This is the same game, but now you and your opponent both hold two character cards, instead of one. This does add some spice to the offering, but the satisfaction in winning is not nearly enough reward for the sheer amount of tedious play you'll have to endure to get there.

While the two-player game will be more enjoyable as nearly all games are, there's just not much satisfaction in simply guessing against a computer. The visuals aren't bad and the tinkly music is harmless enough, but unless Guess Who? Mobile pops up at a very low price tag, you'd be far better off with something like Monopoly Tycoon or Game of Life. They provide a far more substantial distraction from the British weather.

Sure, if Guess Who? happens to hold a cherished place in your heart or there's a certain someone who still owes you a rematch, you'll find a faithful and pleasantly presented version here. Just don't expect to find many other people to play with once the rain stops.