Tuck in your squirrel scrotum and scurry up that tree!

Nuts!, developed by Limbic, is a fun, 360 degree twist to your typical “distance” game. Running full speed up a tree to collect coins, power boosts, and items from your picnic basket that was stolen from you and your loved one.

Story of the game is based around you, playing as a squirrel, and your girlfriend having a nice romantic picnic and just as she discovers the engagement ring within the picnic basket, a large bird swoops down, talons out and snatches………………….. the picnic basket. You thought I was going to say the female squirrel didn’t you? ADMIT IT! The bird then flys to the top of a tree, dropping items from the basket along the way. Your mission if you ever plan to get laid again by your sexy nutbutter lovin’ girlfriend is to reclaim the items from the picnic basket and of course the ring! So up the tree you go.

Now this isn’t your typical run in a straight line and move left and right to collect things and avoid obstacles. With your device firmly in hand (recommend a tablet), you tilt from side to side to have the squirrel run around the trunk of the tree. Camera view is always on the squirrel, so you see the tree and the background spin around as the squirrel makes his way up the tree. Only obstacles to avoid are branches. Hit too many branches and you die. There are hearts to collect occasionally to help with regaining your health, but its harder than you think to avoid those branches.

As you climb, you are trying to collect the 10 items that were in your picnic basket. Each item set at a higher elevation on the tree. As you get better and better at the game, you obviously survive longer and can travel greater distances. Eventually you’ll have climbed high enough that you’ve collected all 10 of the items and the reward for doing so is the unlocking of the female purple squirrel. You’ve basically “beat” the game at this point as the game is all about seeing how high up the tree you can get. And as the male squirrel did all the work (as usual) and collected everything, why not switch over to that fat purple bitch and make her run for awhile.

Besides the 10 picnic items, there are coins to collect to purchase and upgrade items in the store. Such as upgrading the value of the coins so you can buy more stuff faster. Then my personal favorite are the 3 fireball acorns. Red, green and blue. Each of which you can upgrade to appear more frequently on the tree, increase your speed, and have the fireball action last longer. I personally recommend focusing on the red acorn upgrades first as they appear the most often out of the three and typically seem to appear within your path, unlike the green and blue acorns tend to be on the opposite side of the tree from wherever you are and you have to circle around back to grab them.

The game is free and well worth downloading if you enjoy those “how far can you get” distance games. What I enjoy most about the game is that its tied to the iOS Game Center, so you can compete with your friends. And while you’re running up the tree, all your friends have a little flag with their name on it, stuck in the side of the tree at their best distance. Which only adds to the fun when your little furball goes ripping right past your friend’s flag and you yell out “Suck my nuts bitch!” and keep on running.

Final Rating: 8/10

CBR Break Down:
Console Played On: iPad 2
Available On:  iOS App Store
Gamer Score Earned: 875m
Price Bought at: FREE
Current Price: FREE on iTunes
Recommend Purchase Price: FREE
Why you should download it: You enjoy the “distance” type games 
Why you shouldn’t download it:  The idea of a squirrel falling out of a tree makes you cry.