Sometimes game reviews shouldn’t be based on first impressions.

For example, take my experience with NANO, a musically inspired app available for the iPhone and iPod Touch from Rustcycle.

Upon downloading the game, I wanted to launch it, of course.‚  As I clicked the app icon for the first time, the loading screen popped up.‚  And it sat there… and sat there.‚  And sat there some more.

Yup, that’s right.‚  It froze on its first launch.

Some reviewers may have given up right then and there, but I was still intrigued by NANO’s clean, black and white loading screen and the interesting (albeit small) reputation that it had built.‚  Luckily, the second attempt of booting the app was a success and, for the most part, so was the game.

NANO’s opening screen is simple.‚  You have three options: start a new game, resume an old game or learn about the rules of NANO.‚  I suggest learning the rules first.

The object of the game (if there really is an object) is to guide the benign particles (recognizable by their blue, green and white colors) to the grey Assembler nodes. In order to direct the particles where to go, you must make a path using the “magnetic flow lines” by using your finger to paint their alignment. The Assembler nodes will acknowledge your progress by slightly changing color as the benign particles start pouring into it.

However, watch out for the malign particles, which are red, orange and yellow.‚  If any of these particles enter the Assembler node, all of the progress you may have made will go to waste.

The key to enjoying NANO is to have the sound on.‚  Without the sound, NANO will seem quite dry.‚  However, with sound, NANO really starts to make sense.‚  As you guide the benign particles to the Assembler nodes, the pitches and tones of the music begin to change.‚  The quicker you can activate the nodes, the more interesting and complex the music will get.

NANO has very little structure or guidelines.‚  For the most part, the game is open to interpretation.‚  There is no progression through levels, per se.‚  Instead, players sort of do the same thing over and over again, though the levels do progress in difficulty and there are 255 overall.

As frustrating as this might sound, NANO actually is quite relaxing.‚  Along with the music, the smooth motion of the particles and the soft glowing of the Assembler nodes really makes the game quite enjoyable.‚  Rarely will you notice how similar each of the stages are because NANO isn’t about the stages; it’s about the experience.

Ever since I downloaded NANO, I have found myself playing it after a hard day of class.‚  It has really become a sort of an electronic stress ball for me.

With that said, NANO does have it’s share of flaws, too.

The app still has trouble loading on occasion, either by taking a long time or just freezing the entire device.‚  I have also noticed that if you get a text message during the loading process, your iPhone will most likely freeze.

Although NANO has great, relaxing music, I would have really liked to see (or hear, in this case) more variety in the tones within the game.‚  If Rustcycle could have added more tones and songs as you cleared stages, I think it would have been a great improvement to the game.

Overall, I thought NANO was pretty good.‚  I admit that I was quite skeptical of this app upon hearing about it, but it really proved my gut wrong.‚  Sure, the game freezes when loading every once and a while, but that is really its only (real) negative aspect.‚  I think NANO is a good investment for those stressed-out iPhone and iPod Touch owners who are looking for a 5-10 minute escape every once and a while.‚  Plus, with a $0.99 price, it is worth purchasing just out of pure intrigue.

Nano isn’t perfect, but it sure is delightful to have, especially for less than a buck.

The world’s thinnest little laptop is getting a little protection.

NLU Products, the developer of scratch-proof, transparent skins for mobile devices, announced tuesday that BodyGuardz clear film covers are now available for the MacBook Air.

The BodyGuardz clear film offers protection from scratches and outside elements.

We first encountered these types of products in our first issue and we’ve been pretty impressed with the results — as long as they are installed correctly.

“Once again, BodyGuardz provides the best way to protect the great design and functionality of Apple’s MacBook Air,” said Whitney Feller, marketing manager of NLU Products.

BodyGuardz protectors are made from the same material that is used to protect the front of automobiles from stones and other abrasive elements, NLU said in a statement Tuesday. The products are designed to be optically clear but can be a bitch to install if you don’t do it right.

NLU also makes protectors for over 1,000 different brands of computers, phones, PDAs, media players, gaming devices, and cameras. Their best-selling items right now include protection for for Blackberry Curve (8300), Apple iPod Touch, Blackberry Pearl (8120/8230), Apple iPod Nano 3G, and Apple MacBook 13″.

The BodyGuardz MacBook air kit goes for $49.95 and can be ordered online.

I saw Shield Zone’s Invisible Shield at Mac World in Boston, and obtained the iPod Nano version, with a cut out for the scroll wheel. It’s basically three pieces of plastic, the front cover, back, and a little circle for the center of the wheel. It is shipped with a vial of applicator solution, and directions for attaching it to the iPod. The company offers a lifetime warranty, and if you ever need to send in your iPod to apple you’ll need to use it. The plastic is hard to get off the iPod once it’s on, so once removed, the device will have to go to Shield Zone for a replacement.
The product is marketed as the same material used to protect the blades of helicopters. It doesn’t seem to scratch or tear, though it will not protect your iPod, or other device from dents or dings if you drop it or are to careless with it. You can safely put your iPod in your pocket with your keys with no worry about it being scratched or nicked. And you don’t have to worry about those pesky fingerprints, if you see any just wipe them off with a cloth.

The application/installation is a time consuming process. Expect to set aside a couple hours for the hands on part. Then, give it 24 hours for the iPod to dry after your done.

There are two problems I had with getting the Invisible Shield onto my iPod. One of them was the sides on the Nano. The instructions Shield Zone gives you says to soak the Invisible Shield in soap water before you start. This makes the plastic less sticky so you can align it. Unfortunately this also makes it harder to stick around the corners correctly. The plastic tries to stay straight, and you end out having to find the point where it’s sticky enough to attach but not sticky enough that it attaches at the first spot it touches, which may not be aligned correctly. This may take a few tries to get right, reapplying soapy water to the edge each time it gets too dry.

The other issue I had with application was the air bubbles. They take a lot of time to get out, and I found some appear after it finishes drying. The instructions say to use a credit card to rub out the air bubbles. This mostly works, though similar to the sides issue, the timing is key. If you do it immediately after applying the Shield, it will be to loose and you end out stretching, and moving the shield around without moving the bubbles anywhere. If you wait too long, you won’t be able to get the bubbles out with out ripping the whole piece off and starting over.

The Invisible Shield will not remove, or hide scratches that already exist. It actually seems to make them show up more. If you have already beat up your iPod, you will probably want to get a scratch removal kit before you start. If you do not, you’ll end up with an iPod that has marks you’ll still see and not be able to do anything about.

Overall the Invisible Shield is worth the money, and will protect your investment. This is especially true with the first generation Nano’s which many people scratched up so much they can’t see the screen. Also, unlike a lot of the cases I’ve seen for the iPods, the Invisible Shield attaches to the system itself, and nothing can get under it. This prevents dust from causing the shield itself to scratch the iPod.

So if you want to protect your new iPod from getting beat up, give Invisible Shield a try.