Over the past few months, iPhone gamers have all been wondering what in the world happened to Sega. They released Super Monkey Ball [App Store], then Columns Deluxe [App Store] not too long after, and then just disappeared until tonight when Sonic the Hedgehog [App Store] was finally released--Surprising us all.

There have been some good ports for the iPhone and some bad ports for the iPhone. Sonic the Hedgehog safely lies somewhere in the middle. The default display mode for the game stretches the screen to fit the aspect ratio of the iPhone and overlays a transparent D-Pad on one side and matching transparent button to jump on the other. This not only makes the game look slightly blurry, but in my testing with an iPhone 3G resulted in frame rates which are less than desirable for a game that is all about going fast.

Fortunately, Sega included a second view style in to the game that does away with the transparent controls and instead centers the screen in its original resolution of 320x224 for a crysttal clear representation of the original. In the smaller screen size, the framerate, while improved, still isn't perfect. There is still noticeable slowdown when Sonic gets hit and loses all his rings, but it's quite playable. Disabling the game's sound also increases performance, but I don't think this is something you should ever have to do. If you have a 2nd generation iPod touch, you're in luck because the game runs noticeably better than on the older iPhone hardware.

The simple controls of all Sonic games translate well to the iPhone, and since all you really ever need to be doing is running forward or jumping, none of the problems exist with the virtual D-Pad that other games which require more precise controls have.

Also, I was surprised to find that if you quit Sonic the Hedgehog mid-level, the game remembers exactly where you were and you're given the opportunity to continue the next time you start the game.

Here is a gameplay video that shows both full screen and original screen sizes in action:

[ Full HD version | Low Bandwidth version ]

It seems fairly obvious that Sonic the Hedgehog is little more than the Genesis ROM wrapped in an official Sega emulator. If this is the case, I think I speak for all iPhone gamers interested in classic titles when I say: Sega, please, release more games. You're sitting on a gold mine here. Optimize the emulator a little more so it runs well on the iPhone then do absolutely nothing but release every good game from the Genesis library you still hold publishing rights to. Thanks in advance!

App Store Link: Sonic the Hedgehog, $5.99

Big Head Games, who brought us International Snooker and cave-flyer Retro, in conjunction with Dark Horse Comics, has just released survival shooter The Terminator [App Store] for the iPhone and iPod touch to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the classic dystopian future thriller Terminator.

You play a young Kyle Reese sent on a mission that will unravel a sequence of events which will pave the way to finding and saving John Connor, the only hope for Mankind in its desperate struggle against the machine intelligence, SkyNet.

The game features two play modes.  Quick Play challenges you to use the weapons at your disposal (pistols, assault rifles, Gatling guns, bazookas, etc.) to destroy as many terminators as possible.  Story Mode places you in the first episode of a back-story that leads up to where the movie takes over, with a series of specific missions to complete on the game's wasteland battlefield.

Readers were excited by The Terminator at first glance, as it appears, on the surface, to be quite similar to the highly popular survival shooter iDracula [App Store].  But, having spent some time with the game, I can say that Big Head's movie-themed release really doesn't hold a candle to Chillingo's Transylvanian shooter.

The main problem is that the game is far too easy.  By default, the player controls character movement with an onscreen left thumb stick and auto aiming is engaged and activated with a press to the right thumb button.  Disabling the auto aiming feature, which presents a right thumb stick for aiming, hardly increases the game's difficulty.  It's simply too easy to blast through the light waves of advancing enemies and complete the included five missions.  Readers echoed this sentiment in our forums.  And, while there appears to be a future installment is on the way, that doesn't excuse the initial release of its shallow gameplay.

For even the most dedicated Terminator fans, we'd have to recommend a pass on The Terminator. The developer has posted a gameplay video if you'd like to see it for yourself.

App Store Link: The Terminator, $0.99 (introductory price)

I didn't think it was possible, but Self Aware Games has breathed new life in to the tilt and roll genre on the iPhone with their new game Taxiball [App Store].

Featuring stylish pixel art, an entirely vocal soundtrack of human beatboxing, achievements, online leaderboards and a friends list to compare scores, Taxiball is an extremely fun game that all of us here are enjoying.

Oddly enough for me Taxiball is a very unexpected walk down memory lane. The graphics remind me of Ghostbusters for the Sega Master System, the music smells of Where In The World Is Carmen Sandiego? and the gameplay (as the name implies) is reminscent of Crazy Taxi.

The game starts with a tutorial that covers everything you need to know to get rolling, and as the above screenshot shows, the whole thing is told in rhyme. Self Aware Games also takes it one step farther and includes an instant save system so you never lose any progress when you need to quit the game to take a call. (A feature every game needs in my opinion.)

This developer video shows the game:

But, don't take it from me, try it out for yourself! Taxiball Free [App Store] comes with the complete tutorial, and the first city of "N00bsville" to play through. Also, if you decide to upgrade to the full version, your progress, scores, awards, and friends list all transfer over.

Self Aware Games is participating in the discussion thread, answering questions and describing the later levels:

Every level starts with the timer at 1:00, and every fare gives you the same amount of bonus time. Things get tricker mostly in that the levels get denser and more complicated - so there's a lot more potential for finding shortcuts or alternate routes to your destination.
....
In "Gates of Wrath," the whole level's structured like a Russian doll - there's an inner section, and every time you drop off a fare, you open a gate to the "shell" surrounding it. Part of the strategy is figuring out what the best way to go is - do you open up all the gates in a given shell, or do you start delivering the fares in the outer shells before you've opened up all the gates?

App Store Link: Taxiball, $1.99 and Taxiball Free, Free

Psychosis Studio has just released 3D Tunnel Vision [App Store] for the iPhone and iPod touch.

A number of "tunnel games" have recently appeared in the App Store and those we've checked out really haven't impressed us.  3D Tunnel Vision, on the other hand, is actually a rather fun, simple game for those with coordination enough to fancy a high speed run down an obstacle-filled tunnel.

3D Tunnel Vision features several game modes to choose from.  Arcade mode is a five life, level-to-level run through 10 progressively harder tunnels filled with narrow passages, rotating obstacles, and slowly opening gates.  Mines mode presents one long tunnel littered with floating mines--how long can you last?  Survival mode gives you only one life to see how far through the levels you can go.  And any tunnels unlocked in Arcade mode can be individually played in Replay mode.

The game features both a tilt and a joystick mode, the latter offering control of your craft by touching any point on the screen and dragging in the desired direction.  I find the latter to be the far superior method of control.

While it's not terribly difficult to make it through all 10 tunnels, making use of available speed boosts which are collected along the way (and refraining from using the collectible slow-downs) adds challenge as your skill increases, and the Mines mode brings a nice variation to the core gameplay.  3D Tunnel Vision is a fairly simple iPhone maze racer, but at its $0.99 limited time introductory price, it might just be worth your while.

See our brief gameplay video to get a feel for the action.

[ Full HD version | Low Bandwidth version ]

App Store Link: 3D Tunnel Vision, $0.99 (limited time)

Gameloft recently posted a preview video of its upcoming iPhone port of their Sims-like mobile title New York Nights: Success in the City.

In the rather well reviewed mobile title, as Gamespot describes it...

...you assume the identity of a sim-like character that goes through the course of a daily 12:00pm-to-4:00am grind. During this time, you must improve yourself, advance your career, and find love, all before running through Mom and Dad's money. Should you fail, it's back to Alabama, a fate worse than any traditional "game over" screen. New York Nights gives you a remarkable amount to do, and it gives you an intuitive interface with which to do it. An enthralling, eminently accessible game...

New York Nights is a highly addictive game that will appeal to fans of The Sims. It succeeds for all the reasons its progenitors do, but in addition, the game includes a cast of well-developed characters, each with his or her own distinct personality. While New York Nights isn't the most innovative game, it executes extremely well on an established formula. New York Nights isn't The Sims' poor cousin; it's its distinguished brother-in-law.

See Gameloft's trailer of the iPhone version of New York Nights.

While no price has been set, as yet, the game is set to debut in the App Store by month's end.  Stay tuned for a much closer look once it goes live.

I'm not sure when Pinball became the next big genre of iPhone gaming, but we keep hearing about new Pinball games all the time.

Matmi's upcoming Monster Pinball game, however, looks like it will deliver a not-so-typical pinball experience.

What stands out initially is the art style of the game which looks beautiful. Matmi claims that Monster Pinball is a "totally original pinball extravaganza, taking the core principles of pinball to a new level."

Features include

• 6 fun packed tables, all interconnected, with varied and unique goals
• 60fps giving extra smooth gameplay
• Realistic Physics engine developed for this game
• Accelerometer tilt function
• Hotball feature – Score double points when active
• Stunning graphics and animations
• Unique sound effects in stereo
• Pause, Save and Resume
• Local and Online scoreboards
• Created specifically for the iPhone/iPod Touch
• Created by the wonderful minds of Matmi

The 6 tables are connected and some are harder to reach than others. Each table includes a unique goal according to the developer. The gameplay video gives you an idea of the action:

Additional screenshots:

Gameloft is aggressively pricing their games with additional sales on some of their most recent titles.

• Assassin's Creed ($9.99 -> $5.99). Fans of Gameloft's Hero of Sparta will probably like this ambitious iPhone title. While the DS version had mixed reviews, the iPhone version has been well received by the community with an average 4.5 star rating in the App Store.
• Siberian Strike ($2.99 -> $0.99). On sale for a limited time, this vertical scrolling shooter offers some solid shoot-'em-up action. Big Albie provides a review of the title and considers this a must get at its current $0.99 price.
  

  Aside from the loose tilt controls, Siberian Strike has little downside. You can probably finish the game in a few hours if you’re a hardcore gamer because the levels aren’t very long. But, you will certainly get your money’s worth in terms of the content that is packed into this fun shooter.

Kris Jones of Pocket Monkey Games is a one-man studio who decided to take his passion for game design and technology to start making his first iPhone game back in March. He has since seen early success with his first release Sparta [App Store] (now in the Top 50 Paid apps) which will allow him to continue to work full-time in iPhone gaming.

Jones told us that he first started visiting TouchArcade as a regular visitor, keeping up with latest iPhone gaming news, but later became an active community member to engage with the community and to get direct feedback on the game's direction.

I wanted to take a very active and direct role in communication with the community, primarily through forum discussion in TouchArcade. Unlike in "traditional" business, these active forums allow for instant communication and feedback, which creates better overall games.

Jones generated quite a following as his game progressed.

As a one man studio, however, Jones was realistic about what he could offer in the 1.0 version of the game and laid out a plan for constant free updates with a ramped pricing scheme:

I decided that I wanted to create version of Sparta that rewarded early adopters, rather than create this massive game all at once and charged a higher price for it.

Version 1.0 is a survival hack and slash. The player must survive hordes of of enemies until they eventually die. This version was priced at $.99.

Version 1.5 includes a currency system, a story mode, an assortment of new weapons and levels, coming with a $1.99 price tag.

Version 2.0 (to be priced at $2.99) is even said to include online multiplayer mode. The App Store's easy update system as well as the low pricing structure is allowing small game developers to produce early and iterate their product often. While this can result in a backlash if the 1.0 version is poorly received, the sense of community and direct developer feedback can generate some strong loyalties as we've seen with Bolt Creative's Pocket God.

Pocket Monkey Games' Sparta game is a side-scrolling hack and slasher with a wonderful art style. The game has drawn some obvious comparisons to Zombieville in gameplay. While early reactions from the community have been generally positive, we believe the gameplay feels a bit incomplete at this early stage -- that's perhaps not surprising, of course. A gameplay video is available.

If you're looking for an inexpensive game that may grow in value over time, this is one to consider investing in.

App Store Link: Sparta, $0.99

Fans of The Quest [App Store] RPG will be pleased to find that the Islands of Ice and Fire expansion pack was released into the app store last night.

The Quest - Islands of Ice and Fire is an expansion to The Quest, a beautifully handdrawn, engaging and sinister world full of mystery, magic and provocative challenges. After enabling the expansion, you can continue to play The Quest with your existing character(s) to explore new areas and quests. However, if you don't have The Quest, you can also play the expansion as a standalone game.

The expansion offers the following features:

• Over 30 hours of additional gameplay
• New monsters with graphics/abilities/properties
• New weapon type: crossbow and its ammo, crossbow bolt
• New, superiorly enchantable armors and weapons
• A brand new spell with its own effect
• A lethal disease - keep yourself away from that one!
• Many new quests, NPCs and high level shops
• New books to learn skills from

Those unfamiliar with the game series should try the Lite version [App Store] of the original The Quest.

App Store Link: The Quest - Islands of Ice and Fire, $3.99, The Quest Lite, Free, The Quest $5.99

When Apple revealed that iPhone 3.0 would offer in-app commerce back in March, they enlisted a couple of developers to demonstrate how that would be accomplished. Ngmoco delivered a demo of a new first person shooter called LiveFire which allowed the player to purchase an in-game rocket launcher. The feedback was swift with many readers being concerned about the potential abuse of such a system. Ngmoco responded that the given example was not necessarily reflective of what would be offered in the shipping product.

Ngmoco has just posted a new blog entry with an update to the progress they've made on their game as well as the issue of in-app commerce. The game is said to have progressed greatly since the early version. The game now contains multiple weapons, maps, an identity system, ranking and matchmaking, a "great new look and a whole lot more".

The game also contains a login system which provides each user with a unique identity:

Your in-game identity starts with your account name, and is further defined by your cumulative performance stats (kills, exp…) and Rank. Your stats and Rank, when compared with other players’ stats and rank, determine a relative skill level used by our matchmaker to ensure players are matched up with other players of similar skill whenever possible.

Each player has a visual representation of their stats in a "Combat Card" which provides a summary of their unique stats.

Each individual can also choose their own armor set which is reflected in the in-game avatar (representation of yourself). Certain colors may only be available for certain ranks giving others an easy way to identify skilled players. Beyond this, however, Ngmoco reports they are experimenting with purchasable armor that lets you customize your own appearance even further.

These purchasable armor let players choose an appearance that better suits the identity they want to project (a heavy armored dude, amphibious suit, stealth, etc). The armor sets have different silhouettes and material schemes than base armor. We’re working with some of the artists form the original Halo™ team and the results have been very encouraging.

Such purely cosmetic changes would of course, not change much in the way of game balance, but Ngmoco does say they are experimenting with other armor combinations that do affect in-game performance.

The company is cautious to say they may or may not ship with these possibilities, but are considering modifying additional factors in purchasable armor:

This feature is in the early stages of testing for balance and is something we may or may not ship with, but the design idea is to differentiate the armors sets by speed, protection, physics and other properties that align with the concept of a given armor. So a heavily armored combat suit would take more damage than base armor, but would also come with slower movement. The intent is to give each a bonus and a trade-off, rather than a complete upgrade, to keep things in balance with the base armor set.

More details about the game are said to be coming soon as well as a name change. LiveFire was said to have just been a "working title" and they are revisiting the name.

Armor Games has released an iPhone version of their popular Flash game Shift that offers a very neat gameplay mechanic.

The game is a puzzle platformer that requires you to run, jump and "shift" your way through levels. Shifting involves flipping yourself around and inverting the screen. It's hard to describe but the first time you do it is one of those "woah" moments.

The iPhone version's controls work very well with left and right on screen buttons. Jumping is accomplished by holding both buttons down and "shift"-ing requires a separate button. The Lite version offers a pretty substantial trial of the full version of the game which only costs $0.99. Meanwhile, you can also play the Flash version of the game here.

Anyone with any interest in puzzlers or platforms needs to give this game a try. The full $0.99 version offers 25 additional iPhone specific levels over the Flash version, which seems to be rather short. A video of the Flash version is available if you must see the game before you try it.

App Store Link: Shift, $0.99, Shift Lite, Free

In June, iPhone gamers will have both E3 Expo and Apple's Worldwide Developer's Conference (WWDC) to look forward to. While, WWDC will likely be more directly iPhone relevant, TouchArcade.com will be present at both conferences reporting on the latest in iPhone and iPod Touch gaming.

Our last expo visit to GDC brought you the first looks of titles such as UniWar, Freeballin', Touch Pet Dogs, Dexter, Glyder, Zenonia and much more.

We expect the combination of E3 and WWDC to be much larger in terms of iPhone gaming announcements from both established companies as well as indie developers. We are happy to set up meetings with any iPhone gaming developer. Please contact us at tips@toucharcade.com to set up a time and place. Meanwhile, if you feel you have a particularly notable never-seen-before iPhone or iPod Touch game to demo in time for WWDC, we may have a special press opportunity for you (contact us here).

E3 Expo takes place from June 2-4th in Los Angeles, CA and Apple's Worldwide Developer's Conference from June 8th-12th in San Francisco, CA.

Those looking to see what they will be spending their money on in the coming weeks to months should enjoy these previews:

Sims 3 Trailer

Some impressive looking trailer from EA's upcoming Sims 3 for iPhone:

Star Defense

Challenge mode demonstrated in Ngmoco's Star Defense. Coming in May.

The Deep Pinball

From the developers of Wild West Pinball comes a brand new pinball game The Deep Pinball. Wild West Pinball has been praised as having some of the best pinball physics in the App Store, so this new title shouldn't disappoint.

Chests with treasures, sunk ships, underwater hunting, missions and many other reviving active interest things will meet the gamer throughout the whole acting. Deep Docyard is always at your disposal, where you can fill up your tanks, do repair-works if needed…

Click on thumbnails for larger views:

Seeing so many iPhone games, it's strange to see which ones gain traction and which don't. Here are Lite versions for a couple that we particularly liked but didn't seem to draw a large following.

• Ignite Lite - We described this as a lovely platformer that made great use of the iPhone's touch screen.

  The overall art style, music and atmosphere of Ignite really make it stand out. The game is surprisingly compelling and one we highly recommend.

  See our review and gameplay video.

• Popper Lite! - Matching games are becoming a harder sell given the sheer volume of them in the App Store. A Clever Twist's Popper!, however, stood out as one we quite enjoyed.

  The basic mechanic in the game is to launch a colored pill from the bottom of the screen towards the top. If you manage to hit like-colored pills, those pills match and fall of the screen. You continue this process until you clear the board.

  Overall, a fun game that I ended up spending more time playing then I had intended.

  See our previous review and video.

Archers, Catapults and Dragons, Oh My!

Solus Games sent us a heads up concerning its upcoming 3D real time strategy game Stragea, in the vein of Warcraft and Total Annihilation.

Solus Games is proud to release Stragea, the first and only 3D real-time strategy game for iPhone and iPod Touch. Stragea features a classic cast of medieval 3D warriors that are like figures come to life. You are the mighty Archon who must lead the Red Cloth to victory in the Battle for Rohan over the Blue Vain and Yellow Wood Clans. Build and defend your base with static and mobile defenses, but when the time is right mobilize your army to defeat your rivals. Whether you are a hardcore RTS fan or simply want something more than just another tower defense game, this is the game for you. See if you can balance defense, production, upgrades, and offense to defeat your enemies and win the battle of Rohan!

Features listed by the developer:

• High-performance 3D graphics
• Intuitive and fluid controls and gameplay
• Challenging enemy AI
• 8 Campaign missions with 3 difficulty setting for a total of 24 Campaign Levels
• Battle Mode with 1v1 and 1v2, 3 selectable maps, and Fog Of War visibility settings

See the developer's preview video.

Stragea will be submitted to the App Store in the next day or two and will hopefully be available for download within a week. Solus has not specified a price, as yet.