Pottery HD for iPad- app review

Pottery HD is a unique virtual clay pottery app that can really only be done on the iPad. It shows what an enterprising developer can do with a large multitouch interface. This game is fun and relaxing.

When the game first launches, I was caught a little off guard as I had no idea what to do. You have a “Create” button and that is it. So, I started to create, experimenting with the controls. You can make the clay taller and shorter, wider and thinner. That’s about it. So, I made a pot and fired it up in the kiln. When it was done, it gave me an option to sell it. I thought to myself, “Who is going to buy it?”. As it turns out, no one regretfully as it is all virtual. Once I sold my pottery I earned some virtual money. At the main menu a new feature appeared, “Shop”. Now I had access to paints and brushes. I had a new feature appear as well, “Inbox”. So it appears that as you play the game you are given different objectives; unique pieces of pottery to make. You can reference the photo given to you and once you make it, you can send it off to the virtual requestor. You can play Pottery HD independent of the virtual quests and just have fun adding lots of different pottery creations to your collection. If you like, you can even share these creations with friends via email.

I have had a lot of fun with this game, however, I left it me wanting so much more. For example, I would like a way to regulate the spinning of the pottery wheel; it stays at a constant speed. Also, you can’t add or remove clay either. It would be great to add globs of clay to truly make your pottery any size you want, but instead, you are limited by the vertical size of the screen. The biggest enhancement I would like to see is the ability to share online. The marketplace is limited to a virtual settings, you can’t see other users creations. This is such a wasted opportunity in my opinion.

Overall I really enjoyed Pottery HD, but it’s glaring lack of features and options lend me to recommending only for the most casual of users.

[$4.99- iTunes Link]

Pros

• Pottery looks beautiful
• Sensation of actually making pottery
• the Inbox adds hours of creative fun if you are stumped on what to make

Cons

• Not completely fleshed out with features (missing ability to control clay wheel rotation)
• No Internet- based way to trade with others