Gamestop-owned Kongregate games has gotten into the mobile gaming space recently, and the latest published by the online gaming portal, Sheep Happens, has a lot going for it.

Sheep Happens throws just about everything at players, like wacky characters, missions to complete, and plenty of power-ups to earn and/or purchase. While the humor is a bit over the top, the gameplay finds a pretty decent balance between difficult and engaging gameplay fairly early on. For players willing to spend some time and/or a little bit of cash, the later game ramps up nicely, making Sheep Happens a nice diversion for those of us who haven’t gotten sick of the endless runner.

Players run as Perseus in the first Olympics, and he gets help from Hermes who gives him some winged shoes and a magic cloak that gives Perseus an advantage on the track. They’ll tap the screen to make Perseus jump, with longer holds making him jump higher. Holding the tap even longer will have Perseus glide a bit–as long as he hasn’t lost his cloak. Hermes is somewhat of a shyster, though, and Perseus can beat Hermes up with a tap on the evil

The point is to get as far as possible, jumping over hurdles, bouncing off of sheep and other runners, and collecting coins that hover in the air along the way. Power-ups on offer include extra life slots, a flying bull to ride on at the starting line, shorter cool downs on losing the gliding cloak, and more. Each can be purchased with in-game currency, which can also be purchased for real money.

The artwork and general theme of the game is a bit over the top, and while it seems fun at first, the constant grinning got on my nerves. There’s enough stuff in the mix, however, that I could ignore it for the most part while enjoying the rest of the game. The constant flow of jumping, gliding, and bouncing off other runners and sheep is a pleasure, and the mission-style gameplay assured I always had something to focus on. In addition, upgrades are permanent, so I never felt cheated when I spent in-game currency on a power-up.

I enjoyed racing against other Game Center friends, who fill out the racing roster (along with other historical figures, mummies, and–yeah–sheep). It’s a joy to pass up a buddy who trips over a hurdle that I just expertly glided over. The difficulty of the early levels make playing Sheep Happens a challenge in a good way, and doing better than our acquaintances is always a nice perk. There’s enough stuff in here, including boss battles and a mini-game, to feel like something new, but there’s not too much in the way of ground-breaking or unique endless runner mechanics, either.

Sheep Happens is free, so there’s not much to lose in downloading and playing it, besides a bit of time. Ultimately, how much time players invest will depend on their tolerance for yet another endless runner, as well as their ability to ignore the “trying too hard” humor in evidence.

Game Name: : Sheep Happens The Good: It’s a solid enough endless runner that fans of the genre will enjoy here, plus a few extra mechanics to keep most players engaged. The Bad: The humor, especially visually, tries too hard, while the game play is essentially like most other mission-based endless runners. The Verdict Sheep Happens is a solid endless runner with a few extra features that help it stand out from the pack. It’s worth a free download due to that alone, and the in-app purchases aren’t egregious to warn players away from. Buy from: App Store

[rating=game3]