Brawlers of various incarnations have always found a home on the App Store. Their charm is simple: You get to punch/stab or otherwise beat up a near endless variety of foes over and over again. It's immediate and it's effective, and barring horrible controls you're going to get some sort of enjoyment out of it.

The Gods: Rebellion follows the God of War formula, almost to the letter (albeit with a Chinese mythos instead of a Greek one) making it a familiar - if uninspired - experience from Calvi Games and Chillingo.

Given the relative complexity of some brawlers, it's nice to see Rebellion taking its time in introducing each new button and how it affects the flow of combat before throwing you in to a full-scale boss battle. From there on out the player can choose to upgrade their basic skills, gaining new combos in the process, and with enough points powerful new abilities can be unlocked for devastating area based damage.

If anything lets down the game it's the extremely linear sequence of 'death rooms' that have become an annoying trademark of the genre. This is offset by a good mix of enemies, each with their own quirks and special attacks to avoid, forcing you to approach each area with a modicum of caution. Still, it's the boss fights you'll be craving and Rebellion is happy to oblige.

While the Unreal Engine has many benefits (not the least of which is the potential for stunning visuals), the game holds back on the animations, losing a sense of impact in the strikes from your character and the enemies. Overall it's a sharp, vibrant world, but the occasional character lock-up due to being stuck in an animation can be frustrating.

As brawlers go, The Gods: Rebellion doesn't try to break the mold, but what it does get right is the flow of varied combat situations that string you along to the next epic boss battle. Worth picking up if you're after a mindless action romp.