posted May 18th, 2012 5:45 PM EDT by Brad Nicholson in Podcast
On this week's episode of The TouchArcade Show, Eli and I try to persuade Jared to buy Blizzard Entertainment's Diablo 3. We also dive into what makes the game click with us comment on how its release has ground the gaming industry to a stop. Later, we manage to dive into iPhone and iPad. In our games section, we discuss Cuboid and Extinction Squad. In our front page section, we talk about how traditional industry guys never seem to have success on the App Store and get out our mallets for a proper legal discussion.
If you'd like to listen, awesome! Click one of the links below. Additionally, you can subscribe to The TouchArcade Show on iTunes and Zune Marketplace. Those links are just below, too. The latter is the easiest way to listen to us, as you'll get new episodes the second they're released.
posted May 18th, 2012 2:27 PM EDT by Eli Hodapp in Featured, News
The TouchArcade App [ Free ] has been out for a couple weeks now, and it seems like everyone is really digging it. Currently we're working on a quick 1.1 update which will address some tweaks, fixes, and suggestions that have been posted in our forums. After that, it's full-steam ahead on releasing a universal update. Spoilers: I've already got a beta version of it on my iPad, and it's going to be really nice.
But anyway, one of the best features you might not be using in the TouchArcade app is setting up watch lists to stay on top of upcoming games we've posted about. Flipping the little binoculars switch on these games will add them to your watch list, and you'll be notified when we post additional articles on them as well as when they're actually released. Going back through historical stories to fill up your watch list is a bit of a hassle, so here's a list of games I'm looking forward to that you could think about adding.
All you've got to do is tap each link, and then flip the binocular toggle on top:
Audiosuft Air - The Audiosurf series of games were a huge hit on the PC, and it seems like a natural fit on the iPhone. It's currently scheduled to be released sometime this year.
Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition - If you listen to the podcast, you'll know we're always going on about how much we want old school RPGs on our iPads, and there's few finer old school RPGs than Baldur's Gate- Especially a totally touch-centric port.
Bladeslinger - A "western-themed Infinity Blade" as it's known around my house. The game has been delayed like crazy, but last we heard is still supposed to be released this month.
Defender Chronicles II - The original Defender Chronicles was a huge hit in our community, so naturally, folks are incredibly excited about the upcoming sequel. (Including me, I can't wait.)
Drifter - Space trading games and me go together like peas and carrots. Drifter is looking really promising.
Galactic Keep - I feel like Gilded Skull Games has been teasing us with this game for eternity, and last we heard, it's still coming. I'm still loving the art style and dice-centric gameplay ideas.
Infinity Blade Dungeons - It's the new Infinity Blade, there's no way this game won't be huge, especially with the recent release of Diablo III and Dungeons' dungeon crawling gameplay.
Linux Tycoon - There have been tons of "tycoon" style games released over the years, but none are as delightfully nerdy as Linux Tycoon. Last we heard, it's coming very soon.
Pocket Heroes - Dungeons and Dragons combined with Words With Friends style asynchronous multiplayer? That "Take My Money" meme is totally appropriate here.
RealMyst - I'm still blown away that this exists. 20-ish years ago, my computer could barely play the pre-rendered version of Myst. Soon we'll be playing it rendered in real time on our phones.
Star Command - Kairosoft-style simulation combined with a gloriously Star-Trek-y setting. They've also released the best trailer I've seen recently, which is embedded above.
The Other Brothers - An adventure game with platforming elements and some really awesome pixel art. We can't wait.
WarGames - I'm a massive fan of Dungeon Raid [$2.99 / Free ] and WarGames is designed with vaguely similar gameplay in mind. Oh, and it's dripping with WarGames style from the actual movie.
How do you feel about endangered species? Does your heart ache for the poor creatures that, through no fault of their own, are being driven to extinction? If so, you might want to join up with Adult Swim and PikPok'sExtinction Squad [ $0.99 ], the bloodiest game about conservation I've ever seen.
As the story goes, the surprisingly well-preserved Chuck Darwin, father of evolution, has found a lost colony of dodos. Seems like a miracle, but then the terrible truth is revealed: the scent of dodos causes other animals to jump to their deaths. Animals are killing themselves by the thousands, so Chuck pulls together his extinction squad to save 'em. Running back and forth with a jump net, the squad bounces the suicidal animals to safety, earning points, coins and the occasional surprise in the process.
All you need to do is swipe your finger back and forth along the bottom of the screen, directing the squad back and forth. You need to position them under falling animals, beneath coins and powerups, and away from falling bombs—a single encounter with a bomb means game over. Adventure mode is all about survival, and Countdown mode is a time trial, but both just ask you to swipe back and forth, nothing more. This makes for a very simple game, but it isn't the sort of simple that gets boring quickl. PikPok is pretty great at making crazy-fun simple games, the kind that Adult Swim likes to publish, and Extinction Squad is no exception.
There's the absurdity, for one. You travel around the world with these adorably designed and well-animated people and animals. Every animal you miss splatters into bloody chunks on the ground. Sometimes you juggle pandas, and sometimes you need to bounce a whale. Simply put, this game is over-the-top in all the best ways. With bright colors everywhere and a ton of Australianisms, the whole game commits to a level of absurdity that most developers can't match.
Then there's the compulsion. Every time you play, you're not only saving animals (fun in and of itself) and working on high scores, you're also collecting. As in Jetpack Joyride [ Free ], there are coins to collect and tokens for the post-game lucky spin. Also familiar is the selection of three meta-goals you're faced with each time you play, like reaching certain scores in a single streak or saving all the animals that fall within a certain span of time. These elements give players a lot of reasons to just keep playing, with that one last turn turning into a dozen.
The coins you collect can go toward upgrading your powerups and unlocking new, higher-scoring areas. As the game normally plays, you need to save 30 animals in one area without dying, then 40 in the next, then 45 in the one after that, and so on. When you go through all the available areas the game loops but the goal keeps rising. Having access to the later areas means higher overall scores, though the game takes just as long to get obscenely difficult.
A word about IAP in Extinction Squad before we continue: yes, you can absolutely do everything without ever spending an additional dime. With lucky spins and occasional coin powerups and the awards you get from completing goals, you'll unlock all the areas pretty quickly. If you buy coins, however, you'll be able to unlock them more quickly, level up your powerups sooner, and—most damningly—extend your plays further. You can pay coins to continue after dying, and that coin value increases each time you use it in a single run. Pay the toll and you can pick up from the start of the current stage with your score intact. So yes, IAP can give you an advantage on the leaderboards, a sad addition to an otherwise excellent game.
If you're not fussed about IAP, there is so much to love here. Skill can play a huge part in your success, with bonuses for accuracy and with the serious reflexes needed to dodge bombs as the game goes on. There are random events that add a lot of variety, and stats to keep track of just how good you are at saving animals. And the game just oozes character.
Everything considered, Extinction Squad is a ridiculously fun diversion, a great way to while away the minutes. I wouldn't put too much effort into climbing the leaderboards, knowing that someone with deeper pockets could easily outmatch me with less skill, but just for fun? Sure, I'm happy to give this game my time. If fun, charm and character are all that matter to you, then you should definitely pick it up. And bounce by our discussion thread to let us know what you think when you do.
Wings of Valor [ $1.99 ], the “Wings of Fury” spiritual remake by Idea Spoon, is a rare gem in the app store - a game that might not sell you on its screenshots alone, but is an automatic purchase for gamers “in the know.” Based on a classic game for the Amiga/PC/Apple II, Wings of Valor has a familiar, nostalgic feel to it, with all the best parts of an arcade shooter and a surprisingly complex strategy sim.
The base gameplay is straightforward and simplistic, as illustrated by the image-only help file. Take off from your carrier, and destroy your targets. Targets range from islands, to other planes, to ships, and you’re given an entire (unlockable) arsenal for dealing with the threats. For people such as myself, who never played the original, it may take you a few tries to even get off the ground. For instance: mashing the engine button over and over to get it started (just like a real old plane!), or trying to fly off the right side of the carrier and taking a bath instead. Missions are relatively quick, and can easily be squeezed into a bus ride, a work break, or any spare 5-10 minute period of time.
Once you get in the air, the game plays like a dream. Lovingly handcrafted visuals and spot on controls make you wonder why the side-scrolling fighter pilot genre died off so long ago. Aerial combat is a joy, pure and simple: the banks, the arcs, the turns, it all manages to feel “simulationy” and “arcadey” at the same time. Touch controls suffer somewhat from the usual lack of physical feedback, but not as much as you would think with this sort of game.
Dogfighting lacks a bit of challenge, as the enemy AI seems all too easily confused when you turn around directly behind them and light up their tail. Strafing runs are exciting, and can prove to be a test on resources - are you more of a T-16 piloting, womp-rat bullseyeing sharpshooter, or a light-up-the-jungle, empty the plane sort of carpet-bomber? The game plays into both strategies, but the latter sort will have to get very used to landings/takeoffs while they return to their ships to replenish their arsenal.
The camera work is spot on, zooming in as you approach the ground, adding to the feeling of speed. The music is old-timey, “Welcome to the world of tomorrow!” radio static fanfare, and adds to the retro feel. Sound effects are sufficiently explodey and ratatatty, and the particle effects are excellent, whether it's planes smoking and plummeting to the earth or water kicking up as you bring death to dozens of unseen ocean critters. It is incredibly difficult to believe that the entire game was put together by a single person.
With plenty of challenges, unlockables, an upcoming iPad version, and promised updates to the visuals and AI, Wings of Valor makes for a very attractive package at $1.99. For people who have boldly proclaimed the death of classic gaming at the hands of iOS, I can only gesture wildly in this direction - here is a game with no IAP, no freemium model, just classic, old-school gameplay at its finest. Whether you’re a fan of the genre or completely new to this style of game, here is a something that is very worth your time.
The first time you have a bogey on your six, you tear off straight upward at top speed, and see the stars for just a second before stalling out, turning back towards your prey, spitting hot death, you'll get it. Get it?
Usually when we call a game a sandbox, we're referring to some kind of open world game where you can wander, free of restraints, and do anything you can think of. The Sandbox [ Free ] isn't quite that kind of game. Instead it straddles the border between game and art project, rewarding players for creativity while giving them near-infinite possibilities.
You don't play a character in The Sandbox, you play a god. You can paint with pixels of stone, draw towers of earth and set them to grow. You can draw just about any non-living thing you can imagine, paint it into a scene, and then bring it to life with the forces at your command. You have electricity at your fingertips, steam and oil in your grasp, and much more. It's less a sandbox than a blank canvas, waiting to be filled.
There are two ways to play (with) The Sandbox: Free Mode and Story Mode. Story Mode is misnamed; there is no story, just a complex, goal-driven training ground. The game walks you through each element so you can learn how it interacts with the others, teaching you tricks like how to use heat and electricity to boil water, or how to grow a forest using soil, seeds and rain.
A disproportionate amount of Story Mode is spent on working out the finer details of the freemium model, unfortunately. The elements can be unlocked via IAP or mana earned in game, but the latter option is complicated. The Sandbox doesn't give out enough mana in Story Mode to unlock the elements when you need them, but if you switch over to Free Mode and earn some achievements you'll be awarded more. It seems like it might be possible to unlock all the elements for free with enough careful planning and time. Otherwise you can purchase mana, or a launch pack with everything for $6.99. It's an unnecessarily complicated system that draws attention to the man behind the curtain when you should be focused on learning the ropes.
However you do it, once you work through all 24 Story Mode levels you'll have the full stable of elements and climate options at your command. That's when things get really fun, when you move into Free Mode and start creating. You can essentially paint any sort of pixel environment you want, with a huge selection of unlockable backdrops and the freedom to combine elements to do just about anything. Players are only just starting to explore the potential of the game—if you want to be inspired you can paw through the gallery of shared worlds and play with any that you like.
All this freedom comes at a cost, though. The game has a few bugs, like level conditions that trigger incorrectly and Game Center achievements that don't seem to work. But the part that counts, the ways the elements interact with one another, that part works beautifully. The elements may not always have the properties you might expect, but they can do quite a lot. It would be a dream come true to play a game with this complexity in worlds like those of Minecraft, where you could work some serious feats of 3D engineering.
The Sandbox isn't that kind of sandbox, sadly, but it's still fun to play in just two dimensions. Build a world, populate it with flowers and trees, then burn it to the ground. Experiment with the debilitating effects of acid rain. Or build complex Rube Goldberg machines that really work. The sky isn't quite the limit, but The Sandbox is well on the way. And with a planned Universal update in the works, its canvas is set to grow. So go, make something amazing—then stop by our discussion thread to share your creation with the world.
If there was a list of things that I never expected to be talking about today, Duke Nukem 3D [ Free ] getting an update would probably be right near the top. But that’s just what has happened as MachineWorks has issued a new update for 3D Realms' classic first-person shooter that looks to address the long-derided virtual controls in the game.
For a quick backstory, Duke Nukem 3D launched in the App Store way back in August of 2009. Id Software’s Wolfenstein 3D [$1.99 / Free ] had hit iOS several months earlier and received critical acclaim, mostly centered around how well their controls worked. With a Doom [ $4.99 ] iOS port also on the horizon, having Duke Nukem on my iPhone seemed like the greatest news in history for a long-time FPS fan like me.
However, the initial version of Duke had possibly the worst controls I’ve ever encountered. I mean downright unplayable. To the developer’s credit they quickly issued an update about a month later with a bunch of new control options, but sadly it did little to help. Sure, some people could find a scheme that was workable for them with some heavy tweaking of options, but the controls still felt pretty bad and have remained that way ever since.
Until today that is, closing in on 3 years after the last update to Duke Nukem. Surprising to say the least, but unfortunately it’s also a good news/bad news situation. The good news is that the controls are actually quite decent now, offering an improved (but still lackluster) dual-stick option as well as a very good "drag anywhere to aim" scheme which really nails it. It may have taken a long time (that’s an understatement) but I can finally enjoy Duke Nukem 3D on my iPhone. Also, it appears that the visuals have been cleaned up considerably, and actually look quite good for a 16 year old game.
Now for the bad news. The update is full of bugs, one of which can render your controls unusable. You can avoid causing this by going into the control options before loading or starting a new game and selecting and then deselecting the dual-stick controls, but that will erase whatever custom scheme you might have previously created by dragging the virtual buttons around the screen. Basically, it’s not much of a solution.
In addition, there’s also a bug that silences the sounds from the game which I’ve only been able to fix by saving my game and killing it from the multi-tasking screen and then starting it up again. Also, for some reason the end-level stats screen is upside down and they've disabled the mirror reflection effect in the game. Finally, advertisements have been inserted into Duke Nukem 3D which will pop down when you first start the game and when wake your device from sleep with the game running. Lame.
As delighted as I was to see a surprise update to one of my all-time favorite games, unfortunately this latest update for Duke Nukem 3D is a complete mess. If they can sort out the bugs then I really believe the new controls are a huge improvement, and bring the game more in line with the newer FPS games on the App Store. However, given the lack of attention paid to the game the past few years that seems like a pretty big “if”, especially since the iPad version Duke Nukem 3D SE [ $0.99 (HD)] hasn’t been updated at all. Also, I’m not crazy about ads being put into a game that I previously paid for.
At any rate, Duke Nukem 3D is currently free right now, so if you didn’t have it already you might as well grab it just in case they do sort out the bugs. If you could manage just fine with the controls the way they were before, then you’ll probably want to hold out on this update altogether until (and if) they can fix this situation.
You should get to know Cuboid [Free]. It's a chill, isometric puzzle game that tasks you with sliding and positioning rectangular pegs so they can fit into square holes. It hit PSN back in 2008, and now a free take on the experience is available on iPhone and iPad as of this morning. It looks just as good as the original, and in some ways, feels better, but it's also not as atmospheric thanks to bolted on free-to-play functionality.
We've only spent a few minutes thus far, but we've noticed horrible low-resolution ads and peeped the title's in-game currency, which you can use to progress. You can turn off the ads, but it appears as though you're stuck with the currency.
We'll have a lot more on Cuboid at a later date, but our qualm with the game stems from the fact that Cuboid was a better game without this stuff. F2P systems just don't gel with it mechanically, and they also get in the way of the game's laid-back atmosphere, which was a big draw in the original version.
But since its free and all, go ahead and give it a look if you have the time. The puzzle action is still as stellar as ever, despite the new system surrounding it. Who knows. It might hook you long enough to see the expansions developer HeroCraft plans to release for it.
Joystiq just posted a brand new gameplay video of the upcoming Infinity Blade Dungeons. If Diablo III has you itchin' for some similar dungeon crawling action on the iPad, you'll want to watch this video right now:
Also in the video is a curious looking blacksmithing mini game, and if you watch what seems to be a boss fight of some kind towards the end you'll notice what looks like a gesture-based attack to throw your weapon around. Unfortunately, no other details are available just yet, but I've got a good feeling about this. Something tells me if videos like this are dribbling out, we might be closer to a release than we may realize. (Or, at least, that's what I want to believe.)
Update:IGN has a brief hands-on and some screenshots:
Chillingo's Feed Me Oil [Free / Free (HD)] hit the App Store around a year ago, and our review shows, we had a great time with it. In essence, the game is a physics puzzler only this time around, the physics gimmick you're forced to harness hinges on fluid dynamics.
Every level features two things: A spigot where oil shoots from, and an area (usually designed as a mouth of a strange creature) where you've got to get the oil to. Completing each level involves getting the oil from the spigot to the goal area utilizing widgets you can drag into the game area. For instance, oil flows off simple platforms, it can be curved by magnets, and even blown in a different direction by fans.
Feed Me Oil was shockingly popular when it first hit last summer, so there's a decent chance you already have it. If this is the first you've heard of it though, make sure you don't miss this freebie.
I love the App Store. On a single platform, I can draw from a well of my favorite classics like Doom [ $4.99 ], and try out thousands games like N.O.V.A. 3 [ $6.99 ] that take their inspiration from popular console and PC games but offer an experience tailor-made for tablets and smartphones. But what I enjoy most about the App Store is the chance to drop a buck or two on quirky titles you don't see on any other platform. Take Rocket Fox [ Free ], for example, a new puzzle/platformer game starring a fox named Guy who loves fireworks. He loves them so much that he's not content to admire them from afar like your average Fourth-of-July party-goer. No, Guy likes to hop aboard rockets before they blast off and ride them skyward. Of course, what goes up must come down, and that's where you come in.
Each level begins with Guy slipping inside a large flower while a counter ticks down from three. Once the clock strikes zero, the camera flips to an overhead view, the flower bursts open, and Guy, mounted on a rocket, shoots up to the clouds. Seconds later, his rocket blows apart in a torrent of colors, and Guy begins to freefall. From here, you tilt your iPhone to guide Guy away from the hard earth and watery depths, and toward trampoline-like flower pads. Flower pads come in different colors and designs that denote their functions. Red flowers give you a slight boost, blue ones throw you up even higher, and yellow pads give a breathtaking view of surrounding topography. Flowers can only be used once before withering away, leaving you to find the next one by the time Guy starts hurtling back down once again.
Punch Hero's [ Free ] moment of brilliance occurs when it has you against the ropes. You’ll come to a point during the game’s eighteen-bout arcade mode where progression seems well-nigh impossible. Down to a trickle of health, you will think about throwing the towel in, taking an uppercut to the chin so you can earn some gold and turn the thing off.
But you won’t. Instead, you weave under a vicious right hook and in cinematic slow motion land your own devastating punch. Your opponent is dazed. Jab, jab, jab. Right in his big, stupid face. He comes to, and, mad as hell, throws an uppercut. You weave under it and this time, in similarly cinematic slow motion you throw a left hook. The knockout punch. “Oh my God,” you’ll probably say while your cats look on in shame.
This past December PopCap gave their iOS version of Bejeweled 2, which had been around since the early days of the App Store, the heave-ho in favor of a new version of the game simply titled Bejeweled [ $0.99 ] and a second separate app for its spinoff mode Bejeweled Blitz [ Free ].
Both new games were arguably better than their original unified iteration, but for some strange reason Bejeweled Blitz was Universal while Bejeweled proper got left out in the cold in regards to iPad support.
Today PopCap addressed this by releasing Bejeweled HD [ $3.99 (HD)], an iPad-native version of the world’s most popular match-3. While it’s sort of a bummer to not see a Universal version, Bejeweled HD does support the new iPad’s Retina Display and looks simply fantastic in that high of a resolution. It also comes equipped with the very same modes as its smaller iOS counterpart, which you can read all about in our review.
It’s crazy just how much fun Bejeweled still is after all these years. It proves that just utilizing the same mechanics in a game isn’t enough to emulate its success, it’s all about execution. There are a ton of great match-3s in the world (and even more really terrible ones) but there’s really only one Bejeweled, and now iPad owners have a version to call their own.
It was back in October of 2010 that Sega first released Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode I [$3.99 / $4.99 (HD)], a direct sequel to the original 16-bit Sonic trilogy on Genesis and the much ballyhooed return to its classic 2D roots after more than a decade of mostly mediocre Sonic games. While we did enjoy Episode Iin our review, I don’t think it exactly lived up to the expectations set by the rabid Sonic fan base (could anything, though?).
In short, Sonic 4 Episode I brought modern visuals, great level designs, and a Sonic experience that was decidedly better than the majority of recent entries in the series. However, it didn’t quite feel like the Sonic games of old. Sonic’s movement in-game felt both slippery and sluggish, and it seemed much too easy to lose momentum and speed while playing, which isn’t a good thing for a character that has made his name by blasting through levels in a blue blur. Still, with the right expectations Sonic 4 Episode I was a pretty darn fun platformer that worked well on the touch screen, and was a huge step in the right direction for a faltering Sonic franchise.
posted May 16th, 2012 6:00 PM EDT by Brad Nicholson in Podcast
On this week's bonus episode of The TouchArcade Show, Eli and I hit up Zach Gage of Zach Gage fame. You should get to know him. He's the brains behind one of the best words game on the App Store, and he's a super opinionated guy who isn't afraid to have a discussion about games as art or his current level of cleanliness. In fact, we dive into these two topics pretty hard during our conversation, if you haven't guessed already.
This is easily our most laid-back discussion we've ever had on the show, but I think it'll end up giving you a really good idea of who Gage is, how he approaches game development, and how things like his personality and background inform that work. We cover a lot of ground in a really short amount of time in this podcast, and even touch on what Gage is doing right now.
To give it a listen, just click on the links below. If you'd like to get these interviews and our regular show instantly, feel free to subscribe to us on iTunes or the Zune Marketplace.
As much as we may not want to admit it, a game’s style goes a long way—especially in a market as crowded as the App Store. With so many games from so many developers, the right icon and the right visual presentation are often the be all and end all of standing out from the pack. And while those of us who love games know that graphics don’t make for a good game, it’s hard to ignore the allure of stylish games.
That’s why I jumped on Brandnew Boy [ $3.99 ], the latest action RPG from Oozoo. Sporting the Unreal Engine and a beautiful cel-shaded art style rich in color, the game is instantly stunning—especially in motion, where the smooth framerate and fast action prove to make an already-attractive game even more gorgeous. Much of the attention the game has received is because of its presentation.
Thankfully, unlike some pretty-yet-disappointing games out there, Brandnew Boy manages to delight in terms of gameplay, as well. It’s certainly not the best action RPG on the platform, but its unique combat controls and hearty adventure make it worth a spot on your home screen.
On this week's episode of The TouchArcade Show, Eli and I try to persuade Jared to buy Blizzard Entertainment's Diablo 3. We also dive into what makes the game click with us comment on how its release has ground the gaming industry to a stop. Later, we manage to dive into iPhone and iPad. In our games section, we discuss Cuboid and Extinction Squad. In our front page section, we talk about how traditional industry guys never seem to have success on the App Store and get out our mallets for a proper legal discussion.
The TouchArcade App [ 
Wings of Valor [ 
You should get to know 
