Hands on with Radio Hitz! on mobile
Don't mess with the radio

Gameloft has practically mastered the art of miniature innovation, taking creative measures with simple one-button titles that do much to move mobile gaming forward. Radio Hitz! continues that tradition, offering a casual trivia game with a surprisingly sophisticated twist. Thousands of tunes streamed from servers and micro-transactions move this casual game from just another mobile trick to a cutting edge glimpse of where mobile games are headed.
Radio Hitz! plays out like a game show in which you answer pop music trivia questions. A short clip from a song plays and you answer a question regarding the name of the tune or artist from multiple choices. In some ways, it takes after the cheesy musical gameshow Name That Tune.
It's simple in form, then, but don't let that fool you into thinking the game is easy.
Radio Hitz! spans four decades of music beginning in the 1970s, all the way up to today's chart-toppers. In total, 1,500 songs parsed out in 4,500 clips have been prepped for the game. Interestingly enough, these aren't included with the game; instead, you connect to a server that streams tracks to your phone at the start of each game. This requires you to connect to the internet, but it's an innovative way of working around the small file size required of mobile games.
The game will also play host to another innovative push: micro-transactions. Additional packs of 150 song tracks will be made available shortly after the game's release in North America.
Four modes divvy up the trivia: Game Show, Free Play, Scenario, and multiplayer matches. As described above, Game Show has you buzzing in to answer trivia related to various songs. Round one pits you against three computer-controlled characters; however, the two with the lowest scores at the end of the first round get dropped. The remaining two players then take turns in round two answering song clips. Succeed in the second round and you move to solo play in round three. Here you're expected to answer ten questions and not foul out by getting five wrong.
Free Play follows the same format as Game Show mode, although you're not bothered by scores or elimination. You simply answer questions and listen to tunes without risk of being dropped from the play session.
Scenario, meanwhile, hones in on each decade and genre of music for quick rounds of trivia. Complete a set of easy listening trivia and you open up a new set of scenarios in pop or dance.
That just leaves the multiplayer option. This is also being planned, although I wasn't able to test it out in the build I played.
Before I go, I ought to point out that answering all the trivia Radio Hitz! throws at you doesn't come without reward. Special items and achievements give you an opportunity to customize any of two dozen different characters to your liking. Complete a series of 1980s questions, for example, and you unlock parachute pants or some other type of wacky period clothing.
It's a neat inclusion and if it appeals you'll be glad to learn of the game's planned summer release. Which means US gamers won't have to wait long to fulfil their dream of answering '80s music trivia in neon spandex.