Back in January at a Capcom preview event, I was able to get some hands-on time with Resident Evil Mercenaries VS [$2.99], a new multiplayer focused entry in the Resident Evil mobile series. During that preview, I could see that there was some potential fun that could be had battling it out with other players Resident Evil style, but was left with many reservations. The game’s performance was pretty atrocious, and it was slated to only ship with 2 playable characters and 1 multiplayer map. Even with the potential of the actual gameplay, these shortcomings left me doubting how the game would turn out.
Yesterday, Resident Evil Mercenaries VS was released in the App Store, a little more than a month after originally planned. The good news is that the extra development time went to fixing some of the problems I saw in the preview version, tightening up the performance a great deal and adding a 3rd playable character and 2 additional multiplayer maps to the game. The bad news is that even those additions can’t really overcome the poor presentation and mundane gameplay of the title. (more...)
Professional wrestling is fake, but it has one thing going for it: its steroid-engorged entertainment is unique content. The same can’t be said for WWE Superstars Sling Shot [$1.99]. It’s one of the most aggressive Angry Birds clones out there, substituting barrel-chested men for exotic birds, and steel girders and massive dumpsters in place of concrete slabs.
What makes it a recommendable purchase and soothes some of the scorn it deserves for copping from Rovio Mobile is, strangely, what sells the TV shows -- all those oddities of the brand that cut through the canvas-draped treachery: the stars, the attitude, and the sheer amount of content contained within.
It's starting to look like those of you who guessed that N.O.V.A. Elite was going to be a 100% multiplayer game when it was first announcedjust might be right, judging by the recently released gameplay trailer. Of course Gameloft could just be focusing on the multiplayer aspect of the game and it could come with a full single player campaign as well, but we'll have to wait and see.
Anyway, give the trailer a look:
What will be very interesting to see is how Gameloft prices this game if it is 100% multiplayer based. They've shown interest in dabbling in free to play games for a while now, and a game like this needs a vibrant online player base to be fun. There's no better way to get a massive pool of player than releasing a game for free. Sure, this is 110% speculation on my part, but you've got to admit it at least makes a little sense given how well ngmoco has done with Eliminate [Free] that Gameloft might try to do the same.
Either way, N.O.V.A. Elite is apparently "coming soon" which in Gameloft-speak could mean as early as next Thursday.
Remember the iCade? It was originally unveiled at CES earlier this year and promised to offer a classic arcade machine experience for your iPad. What made the whole thing even more interesting was that the iCade's creators, Ion, apparently had Atari onboard for the project as well. With the launch of Atari's Greatest Hits last week, it seems Atari has held up their end of the bargain, now all Ion needs to do is release the iCade.
It would appear all things are proceeding as planned for the launch of the iCade as 9to5Mac spotted the device sailing through the FCC approval process. Swing on by the FCC site to see all kinds of photos, and the iCade's manual which actually instructs owners of the device to go download Atari's Greatest Hits [Free] as part of the setup process.
If you want the $99 retro controller, there's two ways to get one- First off, you can head over to ThinkGeek where you can sign up to be notified for the device to be in stock. Alternatively, GameStop is offering pre-orders which seems like a better route than signing up for a mailing list if you want to get one when the iCade launches on 5/31.
Papa Sangre [$4.99] studio Somethin’ Else has a couple of projects in the works: Papa Sangre 2 and another audio-exclusive joint called “The Nightjar.” The latter, it appears, has been submitted to Apple and is currently going through the certification process.
Word of both projects first surfaced, to my knowledge, in an Independent Online article dealing with the forthcoming emergence of 3D sound in all kinds of media, from books, to advertisements, and of course, games. It’s in this article that this tantalizing bit of news can be gleaned: Nightjar is based in space.
Other details about Nightjar are hard to obtain and the game’s official Twitter account isn’t helping us to paint a clearer picture of the title. Tweets like “morale aboard this vessel is LOW,” are commonplace and teasing something I can’t understand.
Of note, this account is specifically called the Night Owl Computer. Sometimes, it spits out personal messages, as if the AI has self-actualized. “I am currently 13 mths 10 wks 26 days of knotted-light travel time from Earth (2381:099:2L).” This account also re-tweets messages from The Night Watch, a supposed escort vessel. Equally weird stuff there, but much more casual in tone.
So, at the moment, your guess about what the Nightjar is, is as good as ours. We’re in contact with Somethin’ Else about all of this, so hopefully we’ll be able to give you some solid details in the near future. For right now, though, I guess we’ll be playing this game alongside the developers. Anyone see anything important on these accounts? Or is this just all too vague to get a grasp on? I vote on the latter, but hey, I'm a meat head.
Alright, so full disclosure here- Dragon's Den is a guilty pleasure of mine. If you haven't heard of it before (and understandably so), here's the format of the show in a nutshell: Aspiring entrepreneurs pitch their inventions, business ideas, and money-making schemes to a panel of venture capitalists (or "Dragons" as they're referred to). These pitches can be centralized around everything from an already successful business looking to take things to the next level, to barely functional prototypes, to simple patented ideas. The one thing these people share in common is they lack the funding and direction to (potentially) make their business wildly profitable.
What makes the show entertaining is the interaction between these entrepreneurs and the dragons sitting across from them and the negotiations they come to regarding what percentage of their business they're going to give up in exchange for the investment. Of course it's often even more amusing when entrepreneurs fail entirely and are ripped apart by the dragons.
The thing is, I have no clue how they're going to turn this show into a fun video game. On any level. From the look of the above teaser trailer, it seems as if you play the role of the dragons and decide what to invest in. If you haven't seen the show, watch this video and see if you can discern any potential gameplay elements from there.
Either way, I'm totally stoked for this game. I just hope I can play as Peter Jones or Theo Paphitis, because I'm going to make it rain.
You and I have one chance to live our lives. All our choices, all the accomplishments and defeats and discoveries, are permanent: We can’t hammer a “restart” button whenever we get into an argument or mess up, just as we can’t click “continue” or “new game.”
This is the reason why games like One Chance and One Single Life [Free] exist. Living with choice is powerful, especially when there are no nets.
Where the flash game One Chance gives you six days to live your life as the creator of a virus that’s eradicating the human population, One Single Life for iPod Touch gives you one chance to make a series of jumps. Death is eternal, the thrills momentary.
The crux of One Single Life is this: you get one single life to make an absurd building-to-building jump. If you make the jump, you continue on to the next jump, but when you miss its not just “game over" -- it’s game complete.
The popular “irreverent trivia” game You Don’t Know Jack is now available on the App Store for your iPhone/iPod touch [$2.99/Lite] or iPad [$4.99/Lite]. The series began back in 1995 on PC and has since seen a multitude of iterations across computers, game consoles, the web, physical board games, and even a short lived television show. The iOS version of You Don’t Know Jack is based on the 2011 franchise reboot that hit major gaming consoles earlier this year.
If you’re familiar with that version then you’ll be instantly familiar with the game on iOS, and aside from a few missing features and no multiplayer mode it’s a very competent mobile version of the console game. Even if you’re completely unfamiliar with the series, You Don’t Know Jack is a fun and intellectual trivia game mixed with silly pop culture references and humor.
Unlike previous games in the series that presented a random selection of questions, this version of You Don’t Know Jack contains 20 different episodes each filled with 10 questions in a predetermined order. The first 5 questions in an episode are considered Round 1 and are worth face value. The next 5 are Round 2 and are worth double the points. After the 10 questions are completed, Round 3 consists of a special Jack Attack game before giving you your final score for the episode.
It was nearly a year and a half ago that 2D Boy announced that their critically acclaimed indie title World of Goo would be coming to the iPhone. After more than a year of waiting, Word of Goo finally did hit the App Store, but for the iPad rather than the iPhone or iPod touch. The game was absolutely fantastic on the iPad though, earning 5 stars in our review and garnering our iPad Game of the Year award for 2010. World of Goo was a great success on the iPad too, but despite this 2D Boy still wasn’t sure that the game would ever reach its originally intended platform of the iPhone.
In late February, 2D Boy confirmed that World of Goo was indeed officially coming to the iPhone and iPod touch. Today this long-awaited version of World of Goo is finally available in the App Store at a special introductory price of 99¢ for the first 24 hours. What’s more is that owners of the iPad version World of Goo HD will get a free update that makes the game universal, so if you own an iPhone or iPod touch you’ll already be able to play it on those devices in addition to your iPad.
One of our very favorite dual-stick shooters, Bug Heroes [Free], has just received its most significant update yet. Bug Heroes is a blend of dual-stick shooting and tower defense, and pulls the mixing of these genres off beautifully as we noted in our original review. After the 1.1 update in early February which added universal iPad support and Game Center, today Bug Heroes has been updated to version 2.0 which adds more new features than you can shake a stick at, and to celebrate the game will be free for the next few days.
You can check out the extensive log of changes in the Bug Heroes app description, which include a ton of bug fixes and balance tweaks, but the main attraction in this latest update is the addition of 6 new playable characters downloadable via IAP. These include a Fly Bandit, a Worm Demolitions Expert, a Stick Bug Wizard, a Ladybug Fencer, a Termite Builder, and a Grasshopper Monk. Each of the new characters bring their own unique style, equipment, and abilities which offer new ways to play through the game.
There’s certainly no shortage of endless high score games in the App Store. Whether you’re seeing how high you can jump in the sky, how far you can fall down, or how long you can run to the right, you’re pretty much covered on the iOS platform (though curiously, I can’t think of one single game where you run to the left, but I digress). The newly released Squid Drop [99¢] from developer Nor Eagle is of the falling downwards sort, and although the concept is dead simple I’ve actually been enjoying it quite a bit due to its variety, excellent control, and adorable main character.
In Squid Drop, you’ll move your squid left and right by sliding your finger across the screen, avoiding hazards as he dives deep below the sea. Since you’re diving down, your score is calculated in negative numbers which can be sent to an in-game online leaderboard. Occasional bubbles can be collected which temporarily protect you from all objects in the game while simultaneously doubling the score you earn. There’s also coins which can be picked up for an additional bump in your score, though making a dash for coins can often result in an accidental death, so there’s a certain risk associated with your greed.
It's Wednesday again, which means one thing around these parts: New Zealand game release extravaganza. If this is your first New Zealand Wednesday, here's how it works- When a developer sets a specific release date for their game, it becomes available for download in that region when that date hits. All of these games were set for release on 4/14, and since it's already 4/14 in some areas of the world, these games are already available for download there. This gives us a rare sneak peek at what is coming, unlike the usual "Oh hey, this is on the App Store now!" that we get the rest of the week. All of these games will be available at 11:00 PM EST, or potentially earlier if you buy your iOS games from Asian or European App Stores.
Anyway, here is what is coming out this evening that we're looking forward to:
The iOS equivalent of video game crack, Game Dev Story [$3.99/Lite], unexpectedly took the App Store world by storm last fall when it released. This quirky simulation game let you build your very own video game company, releasing titles of your choosing for a wide selection of consoles along a timeline that is strikingly similar to the actual history of video games for the past few decades. Chances are you know all this already, as Game Dev Story has earned accolades from seemingly every corner of the internet, including our own glowing review from last October.
Today Game Dev Story received a new update that adds Game Center leaderboards and achievements to the game. There are now online leaderboards for total game sales, total console sales, total capital for the 20 year span of the normal game, and additional leaderboards that track game sales for every single console in the game. The leaderboards are already chock full of some absolutely insane scores, but it’s still pretty fun to see where you stack up in the various areas of the game.
Consider this a small bit of news for a huge shooter on the App Store. As of now, you can begin downloading a brand new map pack in Modern Combat 2: Black Pegasus [$6.99 / HD / Free], an FPS that takes a lot of its cues from Modern Warfare.
The pack, which weighs in at $1.99 via in-App purchase, will give you a total of three maps. As you’d figure, none are particularly inspired, but with names like The “Shanty Town,” the “Bunker,” and the “Battlefield,” I find it hard to believe the crowd eating these up at the moment care about the by-the-books approach taken here.
I have no idea if the Guinness Book of World Records is anywhere near among kids these days as it was when I was younger but back in my day, that was prime Christmas or birthday gift material. I totally missed the memo for this, but I guess they've even dropped the "Book of" from their title and now they're just "Guinness World Records". There have been a number of other changes over the years chronicled by Wikipedia, beginning with the pub argument that spawned the book all the way back in 1951 to recent TV shows, and video games. Guinness World Records: Gamers Edition Arcade [99¢] is one of those games, and might just be your one way ticket into the record books.
Included are 5 mediocre mini-games. Hoover's Hot-Air Escape puts you in charge of piloting a hot air balloon and tilting your device to avoid obstacles. In Mental Gears you need to swipe to rotate gears into proper alignment. Rupee Roulette is a tilt-based reaction game where you sort gems in to appropriately colored chests. Chest of Destruction is a simple tap-based bomb diffusing game and Monkey Country is a basic whack-a-mole type game.
Back in January at a Capcom preview event, I was able to get some hands-on time with Resident Evil Mercenaries VS [$2.99], a new multiplayer focused entry in the Resident Evil mobile series. During that preview, I could see that there was some potential fun that could be had battling it out with other players Resident Evil style, but was left with many reservations. The game’s performance was pretty atrocious, and it was slated to only ship with 2 playable characters and 1 multiplayer map. Even with the potential of the actual gameplay, these shortcomings left me doubting how the game would turn out.
Professional wrestling is fake, but it has one thing going for it: its steroid-engorged entertainment is unique content. The same can’t be said for WWE Superstars Sling Shot [$
Of note, this account is specifically called the Night Owl Computer. Sometimes, it spits out personal messages, as if the AI has self-actualized. “I am currently 13 mths 10 wks 26 days of knotted-light travel time from Earth (2381:099:2L).” This account also re-tweets messages 
You and I have one chance to live our lives. All our choices, all the accomplishments and defeats and discoveries, are permanent: We can’t hammer a “restart” button whenever we get into an argument or mess up, just as we can’t click “continue” or “new game.”
It was nearly 
One of our very favorite dual-stick shooters, Bug Heroes [
Consider this a small bit of news for a huge shooter on the App Store. As of now, you can begin downloading a brand new map pack in Modern Combat 2: Black Pegasus [$
I have no idea if the Guinness Book of World Records is anywhere near among kids these days as it was when I was younger but back in my day, that was prime Christmas or birthday gift material. I totally missed the memo for this, but I guess they've even dropped the "Book of" from their title and now they're just "Guinness World Records". There have been a number of other changes over the years 
