The Shakedown is Either Stupidly Brilliant or Brilliantly Stupid

Cookie clickers. I’m not a fan. But even if you are, it seems like there are only so many variations – clicking, sliding, tapping — that you can find.

The Shakedown puts a new twist on the formula – shaking – and replaces “cookies” with something far more appealing: stealing from your friends.

Players start The Shakedown with 10,000 points, and can only earn more by stealing points from their friends? How do they do this? BY SHAKING, OF COURSE.

The faster you shake your phone, the more points you can steal. It’s kind of ingenious. Or idiotic. We honestly can’t tell.

The game is free, but you can buy a 99 cent “shield” to keep friends from stealing your points for 8 hours. Of my few friends playing the game right now, the only one with any points has ponied up for the purchase, so there’s definitely some strategy in spending.

Having only launched today, though, you may find that you don’t have too many friends playing. And even if you do, they may have zero points (like all of my shield-less friends do).

Still – I’m going to say this one is worth the download, if only to see which of your friends get in on the action. Grab it from the App Store. Then add me so I can steal all your points. (username: jimmycanuck)

Jim Squires

• 

Jim Squires is the Editor-in-Chief of Gamezebo. Everything you see passes his eyes first, so we like to think of him as "the gatekeeper of cool stuff." He likes good games, great writing, and just can't say no to a hamburger. Also, he is not a bear.