Other App development - Jezzball / Qix clone theme?

Hey,

I've been developing an iPhone app since August 2012 thats similar to Jezzball / Qix and have finally got to the stage were I need to consider look and feel so I thought of coming to the vibrant community of bit-techers to get some opinions!

I’m torn between going for a minimalist sort of feel versus a very busy and vibrant view. I feel that because the game is fairly simple, that a clean interface would be ideal but then of course, going for a more maximalist approach might give off more of a ‘wow’ factor? Having said that, the ‘wow’ factor has a risk of being more of a distraction instead of complementing the gameplay (since the gameplay is fairly straightforward were the player is looking at a fixed plane). There’s also the case for a game with a story vs. no story. I think for this sort of game, a story isn’t really necessary so long as the game is fun – think Tetris, no story but epic gameplay.

With all that said, what sort of styles attract you to mobile games? Is it cartoony / neon / clean interfaces / next-gen graphics etc? What sort of theme would you like to see for a 2013 reboot of Jezzball / Qix?

Replies are much appreciated!

P