Get pumped: A native mobile take on the Final Fantasy Tactics franchise is heading to Android and iOS, Square Enix has revealed via a Japanese language teaser site dedicated to the game and pre-registration for it. Get sad: according to the signage on the site, it'll be a Mobage release, which pretty much promises that it'll be filled with various free-to-play hooks, twists, and shenanigans.

Final Fantasy dot net has a breakdown of what you can learn from the page:

Square Enix has opened a new Japanese website and pre-registration for a new smartphone title called Final Fantasy Tactics S. This “social” game, something of a spinoff of the Ivalice Alliance, will feature designs originally created by Ryoma Ito. The game will also include races, jobs, and monsters featured in 2008′s Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift for the Nintendo DS.

It'll be interesting to see where Square Enix decides to weave the social hooks into the Tactics experience. Considering it's a turn-based strategy series, there'll be a lot of good places to sneak them in. Just imagine the possibilities! Timers, and slot machine mechanics, and IAP weaponry oh my!

No release date or territories have been announced. We'll keep our eyes out for any more intel, though.

[via FinalFantasy.net]

If you're a Powerman 5000 fan or just dig robots with clockwork parts, Diesel Tactics seems like a game to throw onto your Watch List. At the top-level, it's an asynchronous turn-based strategy game that tasks you with banging diverse groups of unit types into each other until someone wins. Basically it's Hero Academy, except with a steampunk-y twist. The art for this in particular is radical, distorting World War I and World War II imagery through its stylistic lens as it does.

Here's a few shots, actually, if you haven't been following the game's thread on our message board. There's a lot more available on the game's web site:

Interestingly, Diesel Tactics will be incorporating a mission system into battle. These missions will "determine the victory conditions of a game," which makes us think that T-Go Co Games is maybe eschewing the traditional "kill everything" objective as the only route to a win in favor of stuff that, maybe, requires a bit more finesse. We're eager to hear some more about this.

Diesel Tactics doesn't have a firm release date, but it is slated to hit Android as well as iOS. Follow in it the TouchArcade app [Free], if you'd like.

We're guessing this news is going to make a Boston-bound Eli happy. Wizards of the Coast have just revealed Magic 2014: Duels of the Planeswalkers is indeed coming, and it'll be at PAX East this week. The game, which is set for release across iPad, Android, XBLA, PSN and Steam, will feature 10 new decks, 15 new encounters, 10 new puzzle challenges, and a new game mode. It'll also give players a first look at 2014 Core, which is cool.

Everybody attending PAX East is invited to check out the upcoming game. Wizards will be dishing out opportunities to "earn exclusive Chandra-themed items" on the floor, too, in addition to other stuff like compete against pros.

The Duels series is great for rookies and Magic veterans alike. Magic 2013 was the first version of the game that saw a release on iPad, and it was an excellent port. We imagine 2014 will just build on this foundation.

Heads up: NimbleQuest is hitting this coming March 28 across iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and even the Mac App Store, creator NimbleBit told to us this afternoon. A new teaser trailer has been released in celebration of this news, showing off all the cool stuff you can do in the Snake meets RPG game. Make sure to check the vid out -- especially if you managed to miss our exclusive web preview of the game over the weekend.

We've been playing NimbleQuest for quite awhile, and while it's definitely a different kind of game from the creators of Pocket Planes and Tiny Tower, it's still an awesome one. The action-y mechanics feel great, the skill progression system is fair, and the characters have ton of charm. You'll probably dig it.

Of course, NimbleQuest will release as a free app. An Android version of the game is slated to hit later this April.

After an awful lot of teasing, Team Meat has revealed what Mew-Genics is all about. In brief, it's a crazy cat lady simulator that'll task you with breeding cats and dealing with the unique consequences of owning a home with a few too many felines. Team Meat's Edmund McMillen talks about the game's inspirations on the official Team Meat blog:

"I think most would describe Mew-Genics as a cross between The Sims and Pokemon with a sprinkling of Animal Crossing and a dash of Tamagotchi, but at its core the game really isn't like anything we've seen before.

Mew-Genics revolves around Cats, obviously. We knew tending to these cats in a simulated "cat lady" environment would be the foundation of our design, but the core of what we are trying to do is make a game that feels alive, a game that creates stories as you play where consequences actually mean something ..."

Also, on the blog, Team Meat reveals a few little details about how the game's systems will work together. He talks about a time when one of his cats starts associating pain with food due to an unfortunate attack. Cats also have traits like, say, narcolepsy, and they can also catch and transmit diseases. In the story McMillen tells, it ends as Animal Control arrests him for letting a cat run away.

Mew-Genics certainly sounds awesome. As for when it's coming to iPhone and iPad ... it'll be this year. No firm date has been set yet.

Buckle up: Real Racing 3 is coming to iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad this coming February 28. Interestingly, the Android version of the game is also expected to hit the same day across Google Play and the Amazon Appstore. So, there's that.

If you're not in the loop, Real Racing 3 certainly has the look of a next-level racing simulation game -- real cars, accurate physics, photorealistic tracks, and online multiplayer, this thing appears to have it all. No wonder it's one of our users' most anticipated games of 2013.

We'll be going hands-on with it soon, so stay tuned if you're thinking about clicking the download button as soon as possible on the 28th.

[via TouchGen]

When a new update to Minecraft - Pocket Edition [$6.99] hits, we can't help but wonder how many potential players aren't playing this game. Minecraft is baffling for some folks; it's not the best at expressing what it is and what you can do in it. And even when you do figure out that punching blocks yields resources, you've still got to figure out the whole living through the first night thing. And crafting. There's a lot for the uninitiated to learn.

Try telling a friend about how to play Minecraft. Provided they haven't seen it before, you'll probably blow their mind. They'll stop you and say, "uh what" a lot. And you'll forget to mention a few things. There's a lot of rules, stuff to build, and a lot of weird concepts to talk about, after all.

We maybe missed the boat a little bit, but we wanted to go ahead and just handle this issue in our own little way in light the game's latest update. In this guide, we'll be going over the basics of surviving and thriving in your first 20 or so minutes in Pocket Edition on Survival Mode. We won't hit everything, of course, but we're pretty sure that by following these tips, you'll get a handle on how to roll in the game.

(more...)

Blitz Brigade is the name of Gameloft's next online third-person shooter, and we've got some footage of the game just below. The video positions it firmly as a Team Fortress 2 knock-off, complete with zany music, a cheerful art style, and strong characterizations for each of the game's classes. The action, on the other hand, is looking a little more traditional as far as competitive shooters go.

In case you were wondering, this is a free-to-play joint that will also incorporate some sort of single-player component in addition to its multiple competitive modes. Gameloft says it'll release more info closer to Blitz's release date, which, by the way, is "soon." Buckle up. Or something.

Neat: Ubisoft finally got around to alerting people to Far Cry The Outpost [Free], an official Far Cry 3 companion app that's been kinda hiding on the App Store since the freeze. With the app, you can decode your weapon mods and swap your multiplayer load-outs on the fly. You also get access to the game's stat-tracking functionality, allowing you to see exactly how much time you've been piddling away in the game's competitive modes.

Basically, The Outpost is just like ever other multiplayer-focused companion app we've stumbled across so far. That's not necessarily a bad thing if you're rolling deep in the game's competitive modes and decoding mods like a demon.

The app is free and available now. There's also a Google Play version, too, if you've got an Android phone handy.

Here's some pre-CES news for your eyeholes: PC and console peripheral maker Mad Catz has a new initiative called "GameSmart" that'll add Mac and mobile support to a fresh run of some of its more popular peripherals via Bluetooth pairing.

You can peep a few of the devices that'll see GameSmart integration on the initiative's official web site. Of note, there's a wireless gamepad, as well as a couple of those RAT mice that people seem to like so much.

"Designed to work seamlessly and wirelessly with a wide array of devices and platforms, GameSmart Technology is the next generation for gamers wanting controller and console-like accessory functionality for their tablets and mobile and smart devices," the web site says. Easy setup and "longer" battery life are being promised, too.

GameSmart sounds promising, but, mobile-wise, there's probably going to be a bottleneck as far as game integration goes. Developers will have to add support for these devices into their games, and well, we know how that usually goes.

Another thing: we've yet to catch a specific iOS mention from Mad Catz -- even the initiative's promo image neglects to show an iPad or an iPhone. It'll be interesting to see if Mad Catz sticks strictly with Windows and Android.

Engadget reports that more peripherals will be unveiled at CES and the hardware "will launch shortly after" they're unveiled. We're definitely open to seeing more.

[via Engadget]

Morning Star is ambitious, if anything. This morning, Industrial Toys unveiled its first game, Morning Star, to the world. It's a sci-fi shooter set to hit in spring 2013 across iPhone and iPad and, possibly, Android. But it's not just a sci-fi shooter. According to Industrial Toys, it's a "re-imagining of the sci-fi shooter for touch." Also, it's being made specifically for people who play video games regularly.

Morning Star puts you in the space boots of a dude named Charlie Campbell in the year 2132. The game begins with Campbell stumbling onto what its believed to be an alien SOS on Saturn's moon, Titan. It isn't an SOS. It's a world-destroying teleportation thing that blows up the sun and whisks Campbell away to a planet ruled by an angry alien that kinda looks like that one guy from Mortal Kombat 2 but with cooler armor.

A cool premise coupled with the promise of neat scenarios and solid controls is what is making us excited about Morning Star. Plus, it appears to be a looker, right? We'll see for sure in 2013, though we'd imagine we'll have more to share with you on this game in the near future.

Here's something pretty interesting. Long-time mobile game developer Gamevil, who have been a major player in Asian markets for the past decade but really cemented their Western expansion selling games on iOS the past several years, has launched their highly anticipated fifth entry in the Zenonia RPG series on Android's Google Play marketplace ahead of the iOS App Store. Zenonia 5: Wheel of Destiny landed at the end of last month and seems to have been quite well-received from the Android gaming community, and quite popular too based on its chart ranking.

If you weren't aware, the Zenonia series originally started as a regular mobile phone title in European and South Korean markets back in 2008, but was subsequently ported to iOS and made its US debut in May of 2009 on the App Store. It was needlessly complex and pretty grind-y, which is typical of KRPGs, but at that time there really was nothing quite as deep as Zenonia available on the iPhone. The game proved popular and has been a key factor in Gamevil's rise in the mobile marketplace.

Since those early days, Gamevil has gone on to develop and publish dozens of titles on iOS, Android and other mobile platforms. Their aggressive switchover to free-to-play models for the majority of their releases has allowed Gamevil games to reach an even larger audience, especially on Android. We've often pondered covering Android games here on TouchArcade, but for the most part there are very few Android-exclusive games worth getting excited over and the majority of the other releases are all games that have been out on iOS for weeks and even months already.

Zenonia 5 though, with its huge fan base and well-known brand is a pretty significant title to be on Android and not yet be on iOS. Of course I could just be reading too much into this and the reason is simply because the release window approached the holiday season and Gamevil didn't want to mess with Apple's approval process and the impending iTunes Christmas shutdown, something you don't really have to worry about on Google's shop. Or it could really be for any other reason or just no reason at all. At any rate, if you're waiting for Zenonia 5 on iOS it should be coming in early January according to Gamevil, and if you've got an Android device you can grab it for free right now from the Google Play link below.

Google Play Store Link: Zenonia 5: Wheel of Destiny, Free

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is now available in the New Zealand App Store, and it should be available later tonight in the US as the title continues worming its way around the globe. As you probably expected, this is a port of Vice City. Minus a few touch enhancements, this is the same game you played back in 2002 -- the same 80's-themed, open-world shooter you fell in love with as you cruised a color-infused Miami and jammed to Flock of Seagulls in a stolen car.

Vice City follows Tommy Vercetti, a mafia hitman and ex-convict. In the opening moments, Tommy finds himself in the middle of a drug deal gone bad. People die in a sneak attack, and Tommy loses both the money and drugs. The story revolves around Tommy trying to get the people responsible for setting him up. As the player, you'll meet a lot of horrible people, probably accidentally kill thousands more, steal a bunch of cars, and listen to some really neat music along the way.

The game's setting, Miami in 1986, is outrageously colorful. You'll see a lot of bright whites, blues, and pinks as you cruise the open-world city, either on a mission or just farting around causing trouble. Miami in Vice City isn't serious; its vibe is light and its people are ridiculous. This tone extends into the missions and writing. Even though a lot of bad things happen, you rarely feel weighed down.

On touch devices, you control Tommy with virtual buttons and a roving virtual stick. It isn't the best solution in the world, but it works OK. Punch, car jack, and sprint are presented on the right half of the screen. Movement is available on the left. When you jump into a car, the controls change. A two-button directional pad replaces the stick, and car-specific actions like hand brake pop up on the right.

We haven't noticed many notable mobile-specific features. Our gut says that the textures on the buildings in particular have been cleaned up a bit. Also, the frame rate seems a little bit smoother, maybe on par with the PC and Mac versions.

We've been playing on an iPad mini, and it runs perfectly. We tried it out on an iPhone 5, too, and got tricked into thinking it wasn't a native app because of the letterboxed opening cinematic. But the actual game supports widescreen.

In the TA Plays, Eli and I play through the opening of the game and the first mission, which should give you a taste of what to expect from the game as well as its characters and the writing. There's some salty language in there, so take that as a fair warning.

We're pretty happy with how Vice City turned out, which is similar to how we felt about Grand Theft Auto III's mobile treatment. We're going to spend a lot more time with this and get a review out to you in the near future. That said, you're probably going to dig this, especially if you dug GTA III on iPhone and iPad.

Pudding Monsters is the name of the next iOS and Android game from ZeptoLab, the creator of Cut the Rope and Cut the Rope Experiments. In Pudding Monsters, you'll be tasked with combining the game's gelatinous monsters in order to make bigger, stronger monsters. Not all the monsters you'll combine are equal -- some will have special abilities. The slime monster, for instance, "leaves a trail of goo" as it moves around the 2D game board.

From what we gather, Zepto wants to keep Pudding Monsters as accessible as possible as it continues to build its casual audience.

Zepto isn't dishing out anymore specifics about the game's mechanics, but we'll have plenty to talk about when it hits this December 20 across iOS and Android.

Curiosity: What's Inside The Cube, the new name for Peter Molyneux and 22 Cans' "puzzle game" Curiosity, is actually coming out. In fact, it'll be out pretty soon. 22 Cans tells us that it should see a release on November 7th, a wee bit shy of its initially planned launch.

So, what is this thing? Thing might be the best word -- billed as an experiment, it's an app that revolves around a black cube made up of "millions" of tiny little cubes. As the player, you'll be able to tap away at these cubes. The goal is to reveal its secret, but the catch is that only one person will be able to discover it. Kinda weird.

Curiosity will be free and will see a release across Android on the same day.