For some of you, Peggle needs no introduction. The seminal casual game finally makes it's way to the iPhone and iPod Touch, and in either a very daft or extremely well thought out move, it's the lowest priced version to date. If you've been under a rock for the past few years, the game has proven wildly popular - first appearing on the desktop, then Xbox 360, then the iPod classic/nano, and most recently, the Nintendo DS. Needless to say, as fans of the desktop version, we immediately picked up a copy. So is it still as good?

If you've already played one version of the game and fancy it as a huge time waster in your pocket, you can skip through the rest of the review and buy the game straight away - you will find it as outstanding as ever. If you've never played Peggle before, read on!

When first developing the game, PopCap wanted to create something that resembled a Japanese pachinko machine. Through a long and iterative process, they eventually created Peggle, although it's gameplay is very different to a game of pachinko. There's elements of breakout, pinball and a whole heap of special effects that weave together to create an integrated whole.

The basics: 10 masters, each have their own unique ability. Some have abilities that aren't so good for huge scoring (we'll come back to that) but are better to teach you the nuances of the game - some have powers that can be devastating when used right. The best master by far is Renfield, with his spooky ball power up - a ball that goes down the play area twice, in most cases netting a bucket load of points. Hitting the green pegs on the level triggers the master's power up, and although there are only two per level, they can make a huge dent in the field.

Each of these characters have different styles, that's for sure; but they all have a common goal. The main goal is to eliminate all the orange pegs from the board, with 10 balls. When you touch a peg, it disappears (unlike a pachinko machine), adding an additional layer of skill to the game. In many cases you'll have to pull off ridiculously long and brilliant shots in order to clear out the orange pegs. Each one that lights up adds a bar to the 'Fever Meter', which also serves as a points multiplier - so that you'll score more points as the level decreases in available targets.

Upon hitting the last peg, you'll trigger what's known as an 'Extreme Fever', which has to be the most joyous and awesome moments in video gaming. The ball bucket disappears from the screen, 'Ode to Joy' starts playing, and landing the ball in any of the 5 drop zones nets you a big point bonus, fireworks, and rainbow trails everywhere. The game makes such a huge fuss over this last peg clearance that it's hard not to start grinning. Additionally, if you clear all of the other pegs on the board you'll achieve 'Ultra Extreme Fever', which guarantees a 100,000 bonus at the end of the level.

Peggle is big on point scoring. In addition to each peg having a point value, you'll also get style shots - based on pulling off awesome tricks. You'll get bonuses for just about everything - hitting two green pegs in one ball, landing a ball into the free ball bucket by only hitting one peg, hitting two non blue pegs in succession when they are a distance apart, and so on. You may think that getting 25,000 points for pulling off a long shot is absurd, but that's the nature of the game - big, stylish point scoring. There's many different style shots, and what's good is that game utilises the game improvements from Peggle Nights - you can get 'off the wall' bonuses, and Kat Tut/Warren's abilities have been enhanced to match what you get in the desktop expansion. Otherwise, it's the same levels from the original desktop deluxe version.

You can save your best and most awesome shots to show off, simply by tapping the green camera button at the end of your shot, and choosing an appropriate name. This was one of our favourite features on the desktop edition. All of the modes from the desktop version are present - you'll run through Adventure first, to unlock the Challenges - Quick Play is available immediately, but only allows you to play levels you've completed, and the Duel mode is also included - you can play a computer opponent or one of your buddies. Acing all the levels earns you a trophy (as well as a blue ribbon next to each in the level selection), as does completing all of the challenges and the adventure mode. A new addition to the game is that of a fun looking trophy room that shows off your progress.

There's a couple of flaws in the game that will probably be easy to fix. One is that the music doesn't play during a level - you can play your own, but right now only 'Ode to Joy' plays when you hit a fever. The other is that the game is somewhat laggy, and certainly the Zen Shot does look like it's freezing your iPhone. These issues are relatively minor though, as the game has just about everything we'd expect PopCap to include in it.

Overall, Peggle on iPhone is really an outstanding game. The whole of the deluxe version has been crammed into this little device, and while we don't think it's as fluid as using a mouse, the control scheme is perfectly adequate - especially the new double tap zoom feature. When you take into account that it retails for one fifth the price of the desktop edition, it's extremely good value too - do not hesitate to pick this one up.

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