Elaborately crafted pans, zooms and touch-controlled dialogue trick out this tale of the origins of the magic mirror and the evil queen’s enmity.
It’s all the fault of the eighth dwarf, Grimly, who winds up trapped himself in the mirror by his student sorceress Hilda. The spark of jealousy Hilda feels when handsome prince Erik falls in love with her stepsister Rose Red fans itself into rage against the royal couple’s daughter. All of the 31 story scenes pan both automatically and manually (some up to 360 degrees) for a 3-D effect and can also be magnified by tapping an icon. The richly dressed figures floating in each scene look over one another’s shoulders with frozen stares and move with awkward twitches and jerks. Tapping them repeatedly, though, calls up changing sets of comments and exclamations, from Grimly’s “This is my most prized possession. Seriously, I can get any answer,” to Hilda’s “Oh no, I need a serious fashion makeover.” A tap after this last transforms her dress into a gown that looks “seriously” susceptible to a wardrobe malfunction. Other touch-activated effects range from controllable lights and a recurring roaring bear to showers of sparkles.
Good for a few chortles, particularly from fans of cheesier video games. (iPad storybook app. 7-10)
