Those lanes really tie the room together, dude.
 
Casual games are great for mobile gaming, and, as the Big Lebowski showed us, bowling is one of the most casual games around. But, can a game be too casual? Flick Bowling brings the Dude’s favorite pastime to the App Store, and while the game rolls a strike on looks, it drops the ball on gameplay.

You can play as one of six cartoony, 3D bowlers solo, against a friend or against the computer. From the colorful character models to the shiny lanes, Flick Bowling is beautiful to look at. Like a freshly waxed lane, it's a think of beauty. Sound effects aren’t nearly as effective: ambient alley noises sound good, but the sounds of your ball rolling and hitting the pins are a little flat.

Flick Bowling suffers from some annoying UI issues. Setting up your roll involves sliding your player to the right or left side of the lane, and then flicking your finger to roll the ball (sadly, you can’t hook the ball with the accelerometer). But once your player is in position, you can’t change your mind and move him again. Worse, there’s no way to save a game in progress; and you can't pause. If you go to the main menu while you’re playing, you can’t return to your game -- you have to start over.

The bowling is enjoyable, but there’s just not enough variety and depth to the experience. You can pick a different ball each turn, but the differences are purely cosmetic -- all balls roll the same. Pin physics are simplistic; they stop moving too soon, and colliding pins that should knock each other over, usually don’t. The game offers only one alley and game type; different environments and challenges -- even a round of midnight rock n’ bowl -- would add much-needed spice.