Terry Paton is a graphic designer and creates Flash games in his spare time. I discovered his site a couple of weeks ago by trolling through del.icio.us and found a couple of games that I plan to review and feature here. His game development talents show promise and he has a knack for creating both appealing graphics and gameplay.

Soul Master is a decent game and one that fits with the current Halloween theme. The object of the game is to free enough souls within the time limit to make it to the next hell level. There are ten (10) hells to complete, each requiring more souls to advance than the previous one.

Using the arrow keys for control, maneuver the soul reaper around the play field to grab a soul as they fly from bottom to top. Simply coming in contact with a soul will grab it. Once you have a soul, deliver it to its resting place at the tombstone. You may carry only one soul at a time.

Flying the reaper costs time, which is represented by the hourglass. Time is only reduced when flying or by colliding with walls. Deliver souls and collect power-ups for additional time and bonus points.

Analysis: As with many of his games, Soul Master is not without a few problems. Collision detection sometimes fails between soul and reaper, and the reaper seems to get stuck occasionally. Sound effects are done well with the exception of the power-ups, which are disproportionately louder than the rest. I particularly liked the samples of his own voice when capturing and releasing souls. The gameplay, though fun, is a bit limited and lacks depth. I would have liked to see: fewer power-ups, which tends to make the game a bit too easy; soul spawning in areas other than the tombstone; and a variety of enemies in later levels that provide additional hazards to navigate around.

Overall, a decent effort and a welcome addition to the Halloween series of games. Click.