Freeverse's Upcoming 'Top Gun' and 'Flick NBA Basketball'
posted by Blake Patterson on March 26th, 2009 11:40 AM EDT in GDC 2009, Upcoming GamesTouch Arcade had the chance to sit down with Freeverse at GDC and discuss two notable upcoming iPhone titles. The publisher demonstrated the Paramout / Freeverse title Top Gun and Flick NBA Basketball, an official NBA license.
Top Gun
Top Gun, based on the 1986 movie, is a 3D aerial racing shooter in which the player takes the role of an Navy training recruit in the Top Gun flying ace program. In the game, movie main characters Maverick and Iceman are instructors who lead the trainee through various flying scenarios, offering cutscene advice in a manner similar to the company's Days of Thunder.
The player uses accelerometer-based controls to pilot both an F-22 Raptor air superiority fighter and a B-2 Spirit stealth bomber through various training scenarios. The game features a number of flight environments, including desert canyons, the aircraft carrier USS Kittyhawk, cityscapes, and island chains–10 different environments in all. And, while training is the mission at hand in all of these settings, as fate would have it, enemy migs have a tendency to intrude, and must be dealt with.
Features:
- New texture format yielding increase in iPhone 3D performance
- Normal mapping allowing for realistic and flexible lightsourcing / shadows
- Time of day changes — real time lighting (shadow / sunlight / etc)
- Ten environments including canyon settings, USS Kittyhawk (carrier), cityscapes, island chains, southwest terrains, etc.
- Lock onto four enemies at a time
- Weapons: vulcan cannon, sidewinder missiles
- Ground-based anti-aircraft turrets
- 50 frames per second gameplay on 2G iPod touch
We spent some time with the title and found the game to be very impressive. The 3D animation is glass smooth and the accelerometer controls are highly responsive and feel "just right." Anyone who enjoys a quality non-simulation flying game is in for a treat.
[ Full HD version | Low Bandwidth version ]
Top Gun will be making it's App Store debut "very soon."
Flick NBA Basketball
An upcoming title of a different sort is the company's Flick NBA Basketball. Not a full-court basketball title, Flick NBA Basketball is basically an iPhone adaptation of the All Star Challenge. The player takes the role of a big name NBA player–the strongest player from every team is represented in realistic 3D models–and takes on various skill challenges such as the 3-point challenge, half-court long shot, ball spin, and horse (draw your moves on the court and watch it all played out in 3D).
While the 1.0 title will focus on shooting, Freeverse indicates that future updates will expand the title in various ways.
Flick NBA Basketball will be available in time for (or during) the playoffs, which begin April 19.
Wow! First Days of Thunder and now Top Gun? Here's hoping they continue the trend with Cocktail! I mean, c'mon – accelerometer controls people!
Kokomo, here we come!
Yay! Freeverse is my favorite.
Top Gun doesn't look to be that appealing to me. It looks really good and everything, but Galaxy Of Fire's already been released in Asia, and it looks like it's going to be released really soon in the US and Europe. Having seen the crazy raved reviews from hkiphone, I'm not sure how they're going to compete? Maybe I'm just ranting
Can't wait for Flick NBA Basketball though! It's a race between that and NBA Live from EA!
OMG!!! Thats just freaking awesome. Soon as this is out, I'm getting it.
okey i mean no offence here but i feel like the demo is not real iphone game
look closer in video. looks like its not game play but a video playing and the persone playing is just faking moves
Are you joking? We actually played the game. We filmed that video
arn
I've also played the game, and everything in the video is real.
@aareag
I've looked closely at the video. It seems like actual gameplay to me. Why do people still feel the need to call "fake" on what is actually clearly possible, and quite frankly doable on this platform?
Looking forward to riding into the danger zone, Freeverse
Hang on…this is a game based upon the movie "Top Gun," but instead of a real Navy aircraft such as the F/A-18, you fly two Air Force aircraft? That makes no sense at all. The Air Force doesn't even have a "Top Gun" program – the Navy does.
Tog Gun looks like another disgused rail shooter.
@Lex I don't think many people realize that. If they do, I really don't think they care. I sure as hell don't as long as the game is fun.
@ lex. That doent even matter hell i'd love to fly the F-22 just cause its amazing but if it is a top gun game you HAVE to have the f-14. Made the movie to me one of my top favorite planes
Top Gun looks great, could be the fun flight game that I have been waiting for.
@ Stephen: Agreed 100%. F-22's? I mean, WTF?
I bet there's not even an authentic soundtrack. What's the point in calling it Top Gun then?
The game features the Top Gun movie anthem tune, but the rest of the audio track is original.
3 things I don't like about "Top Gun".
1. Agreed, not F-14? What are they thinking? Another "Top Gun" movie in F-22? At least give me a F-18! Oh, btw, for USAAF, that is the Red Flag
2. The whole "Danger Zone" labels are obscure. It makes the whole game a little too "simplified".
3. Looks like to bogey can fly through the terrain, secret advanced drones I suppose.
The graphics and sense of speed are superb, though.
What's with all the Danger Zone lettering everywhere? I don't get it. What are they for and why are they there?
The game looks kinda cool but all that obscuring the screen would stop me from getting the game. Did he also say you can't crash into the ground? Maybe i missed something but if true then what's the point?
sign me,
looking for a good dogfight game…
how about a WWI one? (a good one that is)
@Ballpeen I guess you've never watched the movie, since they play the song Danger Zone about every five minutes. I think its clever
Nice! Why aren't there more games like this out by now. Flying/dog fight games seems like a natural for the platform with its accelerometer controls. We have enough car games.
I think you can tell there are quite a few youngun's here.
The moment I heard mention of Space Harrier and Afterburner right at the end, it made me grin. I'll be buying Top Gun if it's *anything* like Afterburner, and it sure looks like it.
Hmmm.. Top Gun sounds cool. Love the Danger Zone riff (which fans of the movie will no-doubt be able to place) ..but no F-14's? Sure, I guess they're trying to make themselves look modern, but I think they should have stuck with a pure fighter selection. (I like the B-2, but not sure how it will play.)
Well, I'm sure someone will do an F-14 based game sometime. That and the F-15 were always gorgeous planes (as were most of that generation.) Bet there will be proper F-5 Tigers masquerading as Migs when that happens too. Yeah. Nice.