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New Harmonix game, Phase, swings onto iPod

It's rhythm-action, obviously

New Harmonix game, Phase, swings onto iPod
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You know, while we're completely and utterly aware of the fact the iPod isn't about to establish itself as the portable gaming platform of choice any time soon, it's nevertheless mildly exciting to see things like Phase, an original music game, being released on the format.

Why? Well, because Phase is the work of Harmonix. And that's the developer responsible for FreQuency, Amplitude, Guitar Hero and the forthcoming Rock Band. In other words, a big league player who's decided to toy around on iPod, which can only bolster the reputation of Apple's personal music player with regards to gaming.

Enough analysis, though. The game is a simple yet promising affair that turns any song on your iPod into a playable level. So you press and glide the iPod's Click Wheel along with the rhythm of the music, with different songs providing different challenges.

Two modes – Quick Spin and Marathon – offer instant gratification and multi-song, increasingly tough journey experiences, respectively, while the action takes place in a variety of locations, featuring vibrant urban-based scenery, underwater settings, alien planets and more.

Phase is available now from iTunes and you'll need to make sure you have a compatible iPod (such as the 3rd generation nano) to play it. We'll have a review of it soon, but for now we could always point you in the direction of Musika, another rhythm-action title for iPod we assessed earlier today.

Joao Diniz Sanches
Joao Diniz Sanches
With three boys under the age of 10, former Edge editor Joao has given up his dream of making it to F1 and instead spends his time being shot at with Nerf darts. When in work mode, he looks after editorial projects associated with the Pocket Gamer and Steel Media brands.