Back when Supermono released EpicWin [$2.99], its to-do list RPG, we spent some time contemplating whether adding game mechanics to productivity apps would really help people be more productive. That's the question that rests at the heart of all discussions about "gamification"—do carefully tuned game mechanics drive us to perform tasks we might otherwise ignore? Has Farmville claimed so many man-hours because it's fun, or because it's designed to feed on impulses that could be better used for good?
Don't count it as a blow against gamification, but, personally, EpicWin never quite clicked. I found the experience bars and loot rewards intriguing, but the work I had to put into maintaining my tasks outweighed the benefits. More recently I've found myself back in the world of gamified productivity with the help of a to-do app that doesn't look game-like on the surface at all: Realmac Software's Clear [99¢]. Beneath all its lovely minimalistic design you'll find the potential for a compelling game experience. With today's update, Clear realizes some of that potential—and it brings a few easter eggs for the discerning iOS gamer along for the ride.
If you follow me on Twitter, which you totally should, you'll know that I've been having what amounts to a full-blown love affair with a 2011 Prius for the past six months or so. The car is great, gets fabulous milage, is chock full of gadgetry, and really, is only lacking in one department. See, the Prius is a really quiet car. So quiet, that it's even been the center of jokes on The Office. And, sometimes, you really just want to hear the throaty growl of a V8 engine.
In a nutshell, you download this 99¢ app, plug it into your car stereo, crank it up, and throw your iPhone into a cup holder. Then, with some reasonable precision, it makes your car, truck, minivan, or whatever else you drive sound just like a sports car. The initial purchase comes with a generic V8 sounding engine, and additional engine sounds can be unlocked via IAP. It'll even throw in burnout, braking, and drifting noises.
I imagine XLR8 would work better if you had an actual mount for your phone, as getting jostled around in the cup holder sometimes confuses it. Regardless, driving around in your non-sportscar with some fairly realistic engine noises of an Italian super car? Totally worth it.
Trilobyte's The 7th Guest [iPhone / iPad] is a game with a ton of history that is near and dear to our hearts here at TouchArcade. With that being said, it is an incredibly difficult game. When it was first released, in an era without instant access to sites like GameFAQs I remember being stumped on puzzles for days, or even weeks. Trilobyte decided to make things a little easier for gamers who find themselves stuck while playing 7th Guest by releasing The 7th Guest: Book of Secrets [99¢] a companion app which offers hints, solutions, and a full walkthrough of the puzzles in the game.
Now, I'm not entirely sure why you'd flip out a buck for this considering there are numerous free walkthroughs online. I suppose maybe if you mainly use your iPod touch and/or iPad offline, or you were roaming internationally with your iPhone and didn't want to pay international data rates... But regardless the release of this companion app has given me a good reason to say check out our 7th Guest review, and consider giving the game a shot if you want to see what the CD-ROM glory days were all about. It has even been updated since then to fix some issues mentioned in the review.
Yesterday I stumbled across ESP Training [99¢] on Kotaku and have since had a lot of fun fooling around with the test at bars with friends, then I discovered the even better free app, Fake ESP [Free]. While not technically a game, these two apps can be a great time, especially if your friends are fans of Ghostbusters.
The cards included in these apps are actually Zener cards, designed in the early 1930's to test for clairvoyance and telepathy. Consisting of 25 cards, 5 of each design, the subject is asked to determine which card is being held up without any visual or vocal queues. With the iPhone, this is accomplished by placing your iPhone screen down, and assuming your extra-sensory perception is in order, you should be able to determine the correct card with greater than 20% accuracy.
Dr. Peter Venkman administers this very test at the beginning of Ghostbusters:
While ESP Training actually is a serious app which graphs your progress, Fake ESP is the same test with a much more fun fake mode. In fake mode, the next card which is displayed is controlled by which area of the bottom of the screen you touch. When you're doing this, it's probably a good idea to miss a few every once in a while to try to make it not too obvious that you're faking it.
If you're a long-time gamer, there's a good chance you've heard of David Crane.
Widely considered to be one of the most influential video game creators to have ever laid down code, Crane is responsible for some truly groundbreaking classics. Among his more notable creations are Pitfall! (the first platform game), Pitfall II: Lost Caverns, Ghostbusters and Little Computer People. Another of his creations you may have heard of is a little game publishing and development house known as Activision. Very recently, he was honored by the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences who, later this month, will present him with its first Pioneer Award, which recognizes videogaming visionaries who paved the way in the industry's early days.
Last week, Crane issued a press release announcing the creation of a new game studio, AppStar Games, a joint venture with noted game developer Garry Kitchen. AppStar will focus on "small footprint" games for connected devices, the iPhone being among the studio's targeted platforms.
“Garry and I have worked together on a number of successful ventures over the years, generating hundreds of millions of dollars for investors and stakeholders. We’re very excited about the dramatic shift that is occurring in the game industry with the advent of direct-to- consumer distribution of our titles. AppStar Games is committed to taking a leadership role in that transition by delivering the highest quality product in the marketplace”, said Crane, CTO of AppStar.
AppStar Games expects to publish its first game titles in Q2 of this year, but is priming the pump with a few reference app releases that -- while not actually games -- may be of extreme interest to retro gaming fans.
AppStar has just released the second app in Crane's Technical Wizardry Series, entitled Dragster Magic [App Store]. It details the extremely obscure technical tricks that were used to make Activision's first game release, Dragster for the Atari 2600 / VCS, possible. This comes on the heels of the release of the initial volume of the series, 2600 Magic [App Store], which seeks to explain the highly bizarre (by today's standards) internal video circuitry of the Atari 2600 console. Both titles are comprised mainly of text and static graphics, but there are animations and interactive elements in some areas. Crane designed and programmed both iPhone releases himself, and more volumes are on the way.
We're quite anxious to see what the new studio has in store. Stay tuned.
Back when Supermono released EpicWin [$2.99], its to-do list RPG, we spent some time contemplating whether adding game mechanics to productivity apps would really help people be more productive. That's the question that rests at the heart of all discussions about "gamification"—do carefully tuned game mechanics drive us to perform tasks we might otherwise ignore? Has Farmville claimed so many man-hours because it's fun, or because it's designed to feed on impulses that could be better used for good?
Yesterday I stumbled across ESP Training [
