Pet Sematary hits the iPhone

With Halloween coming up, we're seeing several ghoulish games appear in the iPhone App Store, including one from Paramount Digital Entertainment that's rather loosely based on Stephen King's "Pet Sematary," which was made into a successful film in 1989 (a sequel followed and according to IMDB, the movie will be remade in 2010).

The iPhone iPhone/iPod Touch version of "Pet Sematary" costs only $.99 and falls into the top-down, tap-to-kill genre of arcade games, which may just find some life on Apple's mobile platform.

Truth is, I expected the game to suck but it's not half bad and is kind of addicting. As the game description says, "Players in Pet Sematary take on the role of a lone hero uninterested in becoming cat food." You're supposed to selectively eliminate zombie children, dogs, cats, and birds by tapping them one to four times as they dart down the streets. However, if you accidentally kill the innocent townsfolk, your health is diminished and you lose points.

Each level lasts less than a minute and naturally things get more difficult as the game progresses, with more and more baddies invading the screen at the same time. In-game pickups score you bonus points, replenish your health, and provide temporary weapon upgrades. Also, if you want, you can have your scores automatically posted to your Facebook account, which should really impress your friends.