App-lesauce iPhone App Reviews

The response to the iDig It! review was pretty good, but the search terms that brought people here had to do with strategy guides and achievement items. So here it is, my first ever attempt at writing a FAQ/strategy guide:

iDig It!
Let's start with the Digger and its upgrades:

Hull
100 health - Iron -standard
150 health - Steel - $100
200 health hardened steel $500
250 health titanium $1,000
300 health carbon fiber - $2000
400 health carbon nanotubes - $5000
600 health depleted uranium - $10000

Coolant
air cooled 200 degrees standard
Water cooled 300 degrees - $100
Dual Fan 400 degrees - $500
Triple Fan 600 degrees - $1,000
Freon 800 degrees - $2000
Liquid Sodium 1000 degrees $5000
Liquid Nitrogen 1200 degrees $10000

Drill
Steel - 2 feet/second standard
Carbon Steel - 4 ft/s - 100
Titanium 5 ft/s - $500
Quartz 6 ft/s - $1000
Tungsten Carbide 8 ft/s - $2000
Diamond 10 ft/s - $5000
Diamond Nanorods 24 ft/s - $10000


Radar
Blind - 15 ft standard
Myopic - 20 ft - $100
Nearsighted - 30 ft - $500
20/20 - 40 ft - $1000
Eagle eye 45 ft - $2000
Insightful 50 ft - $5000
Clairvoyant 60 ft - $10000


Fuel Tank
Tiny 15 gallons standard
Small 30 gallons - $100
Medium 60 gallons - $500
Large 80 gallons - $1000
Huge 100 gallons - $2000
Cavernous 150 gallons - $5,000
Titanic 200 gallons - $10,000

Cargo
Tiny 4 slots standard
small 6 slots - $100
medium 8 slots - $500
Large 12 slots - $1000
Huge 16 slots - $2,000
Cavernous 20 slots - $5000
Titanic 24 slots - $10000

Dynamite - $1000
Extra Fuel Tank - $2000
Extra Life - $5000

And now the Diggins and their value:

Ores
Small iron Ore $35
Medium Iron Ore $45
Large Iron Ore $50

Small copper Ore $50
Medium copper ore $55
Large Copper ore $60

Small Bronze Ore $60
Medium Bronze Ore $65
Large bronze Ore $75

Small Silver Ore $100
Medium Silver Ore $125
Large Silver Ore $150

Small Gold Ore $200
Medium Gold Ore $250
Large Gold Ore $300

Surprisium $3000

Junk
White Soda Can $1000
Bottle Cap $1,000
Red Soda Can $1000
Tire $1000
Key $1500
Lock $1500
Barrel of Waste $2000

Crystals
Green Crystals $100
Tan Crystal $200
Red Crystal $300
Purple Crystal $400
Pink Crystal $500
Orange Crystal $600
Blue Crystal $750
Rainbow Crystal $1000

Coins
Wheat Penny $1500
Hay Penny $1500
Mercury Dime $2000
The other dime $2000
Silver Dollar $3000
Susan B Anthony Dollar $3000

Gems
Uncut Emerald $300
Small Emerald $450
Large Emerald $500

Uncut Ruby $500
Small Ruby $800
Large Ruby $1000

Uncut Diamond $1500
Small Diamond $2000
Large Diamond $3000

Fossil Snail $1000
Fossil Legbone $3000
Fossil Scallop $2000
Unicorn Horn $3000
Large Amber $5000
Stegosaurus skull $8000
Human Skull $5000

Stopwatch $2000
Silver Ring $3000

I am missing the Gold Ring and Small Amber. When I find them I will post their values in an update.

Now for the achievements:

Gopher Chaser - Dig 100 blocks of Dirt
Groundhog - Dig 500 blocks of dirt
Bulldozer - Dig 1,000 blocks of Dirt
Earth Mover - dig 2.000 blocks of dirt
Terraformer - Dig 5,000 Blocks of Dirt
Gold Miner - Dig 100 Gold Ore
Silver Miner - Dig 100 Silver Ore
Steel Worker - Dig 100 Iron Ore
Tinsmith - Dig 100 tin ore
Coin Collector - One of Each Coin Found
Treasure Hunter - Collect all Trinkets
Heavy Metal - Master in all types of ore
Junk Collector - Recover all junk items
Locksmith - Find one key and one padlock
Hazmat - Retrieve 3 barrels of waste
Paleontologist - Dig one of each fossil
Element of Surprise - Discover Surprisium
Find Yourself - dig yourself up (find and extra life)
Combo King - Combo x20
Center of the Earth - Jules Verne would be proud
(The center of the earth is located at 2080 feet deep. You break through at 2040 feet. Be sure to bring plenty of dynamite as there are nothing but rocks for the last 40-60 feet.)

Gameplay Strategy (Campaign and Freeform)

You need to have a strategy before you start digging. Digging random paths chasing veins of diggins will get you lost and out of fuel before you know it. I like to go to each edge of the screen and dig down two squares and then dig across until the two tunnels are connected. Then I dig three squares down and repeat the process. I try not to vary too much up or down, just maintain the connecting of the two vertical tunnels at either end. Collecting diggins on the way across is fine, but leave any that you might see one or two squares deep. Once a few horizontal tunnels are connected, go back and dig out the buried diggins. Don't collect them yet, though. When you have as many diggins as possible exposed, go to the surface to refuel Then come back and collect your diggins one after another. Be careful not to dig any empty dirt spaces, as every consecutive diggin will increase your multiplier by one. This means huge points when you get deeper into the map.
Speaking of points, you get 10 points for every square of dirt you dig and 10 points for every 10 feet deep the diggin is. It does not matter which diggin you find. For example, a diggin located 1000 feet deep gets you 10,000 points. Now you see how the multipliers can drastically affect your score. If the diggin is located at 1000 feet and happens to be the twentieth one in a row you have collected, you will score 200,000 points for one diggin! Returning to the surface to refuel and sell your diggins does not interrupt the combo chain, only digging an empty square of dirt.

Bits of Wisdom

Do not refuel your digger if you plan on upgrading the fuel tank. Purchasing the fuel tank automatically refills your tank. Gas is $100 for fifteen gallons, so fuel efficiency is key.
The same goes for your hull. Do not repair your digger if you are going to upgrade your hull.
When tunneling horizontally, and you just have to get that diggin underneath you, be sure to dig across one more square so that you can continue at the same depth you started at.

That's all I have now. When I find the two missing items, I will update this guide with their correct values.