With the return and resurgence of retro games through handheld devices like the iPhone, you will be forgiven for thinking Mr. Bounce, by Spaces of Play, to be a simple Breakout clone. That it upsets the formula in both gameplay and aesthetics is both surprising and appreciated.

Players start with a bouncing ball that you must keep in play with a paddle. Clear a stage by hitting all the shapes. Then it tweaks the gameplay a little: you can adjust the height of the bounce, a dotted trajectory line to helps with aiming (this is very useful in the more difficult stages), and you get a slowdown ability to help you line up that last shape. All of these changes give players far more control in how their ball moves, alleviating the frustration and tedium usually associated with these kinds of games.

But there’s more -- soon, the game introduces barriers, moving walls, movable blocks, wind, and other elements that will keep you alert. If you get complacent, you’ll miss the ball hitting something and flying out of control. The game rewards good play with extra balls, and even has a scoring system -- hit shapes of the same color consecutively to score more points.

The aesthetic are minimalistic vector graphics, with an upbeat electro soundtrack that changes across every 5 levels. There are 25 levels in all, which is a little on the short side. Spaces of Play seems to acknowledge this, with Mr. Bounce priced at a mere $1.99 on the App Store. We’d just be willing to pay for more.

Mr. Bounce gets our AppSmile 4-Dimple rating: