Hamtaro (iOS game)

Hamtaro (iOS game)
Developer:	Egg Ball Games
Publisher:	Egg Ball Games
Platform:	iOS
Release Dates:	NA: April 12th, 2011 EU: April 2011

Hamtaro was an iOS app released in 2011 by Egg Ball Games. It was removed from the App Store in 2014.

Gameplay

The game has been described as a mix between a "match-3" puzzle game and a "time management" strategy game; somewhat like a combination of Bejeweled and Diner Dash. Below the puzzle playfield, Ham-Hams will begin rushing in, requesting a certain object. The player must swipe the rows of tiles to match three of the desired object; the objects will be placed in a bag, which can then be dragged to the Ham-Ham, completing their request. If a Ham-Ham's request is not completed in a set amount of time, they will become disappointed, and the player will lose a life. When all three lives are lost, the game is over.

Another feature of the game are the Golden Acorns. If one is fed to a Ham-Ham, they can use a special ability to wipe out tiles on the screen. Occasionally in later levels, the playfield can also "crack". In these instances, a small minigame is played where Panda repairs the playfield with wooden boards. Various unlockables can be earned by achieving high scores, including iPhone and iPad-tailored Hamtaro-themed wallpapers.

Additional content was planned for the app, with the end of both the world select and wallpaper areas featuring "coming soon" screens (the former of which indicating Dexter would be the next character). However, this content would never be added to the game.

Levels

• Flowers/Garden (Pashmina's world)
• Hats/Bedroom (Cappy's world)
• Cake/Kitchen (Sandy's world)
• Beach (Boss's world)

Hamtaro, Bijou and Oxnard, while appearing in-game, do not have dedicated worlds. Text found in the game's code (the "all_hams.xml" file) indicates that all fifteen main Ham-Hams were planned to properly appear in the game, but only the aforementioned seven hamsters are present.

Trivia

• While no longer available on the App Store, an ".ipa" file of the iPad version of the game was uploaded online in September 2022. Installing this IPA onto a jailbroken iPad will allow the game to run; though due to it being a 32-bit app, it must be installed on an older version of iOS.
• To unlock the beach-themed world, the player was required to link a Facebook account. This connectivity no longer works; though it is possible to circumvent the requirement by editing a line of code in the save file.
• Two additional minigames (in the style of the Panda wood-fixing game) were planned to be included in development, but didn't make the final cut. These include:
  • A game where Stan must wake up Brandy to scare away a cat
  • A game where you must scare away a crab that is trying to destroy Boss and Penelope's sandcastle

Gallery

Screenshots

Screenshots of the removed minigames

Artwork

App icon

Unlockable wallpaper (Pashmina)

Unlockable wallpaper (Cappy)

Unlockable wallpaper (Sandy)

Unlockable wallpaper (Flora)

External links

• Launch Trailer (UK)
• "Hamtaro Post-Mortem" detailing the game's development