Rob-O-Tap attempts to invert the core control system entirely, but even then it doesn't feel particularly fresh.
Wires crossed
Rather than tapping to make your flying robot jump (or float) over obstacles, Rob-O-Tap has you tapping to move the obstacles out of the way of your flying robot.
Our cute automaton flies along a fixed path, but various barriers - both physical and electrical - stand in its way.
Every time you tap the screen, the objects on screen switch to their alternate state, which will either allow the robot through or else place it in direct danger.
It's the speed at which you have to handle these switches, as well as their erratic sequencing and your character's distractingly shifting flight path that provide the challenge here.
Tapped out
The trouble is, as we mentioned at the outset, this switch in approach doesn't really make Rob-O-Tap feel significantly fresher than the last generic endless runner you played.
In fact, without direct control over your character, it's arguable that it feels slightly less tactile and less involving than the last endless runner you played.
Credit should go to the developer for Rob-O-Tap's attractive, chunky 3D visuals, and for at least attempting something new in this oversaturated genre.
But really, if switching the core control system around isn't enough to reinvigorate our appreciation for the endless runner - and it isn't - we're not sure that anything will. Hopefully some plucky developer can prove us wrong.
