If you're a fan of Another World [$3.99] and just so happen to own an iCade, iCade Jr., iCade 8-Bitty, or the numerous other peripherals that work off the iCade-style Bluetooth keyboard emulation, you're in luck. Aside from adding a whole bunch of new language options and some better iOS 6 support, Another World now fully supports the iCade.

Another World is about as classic as you can get when it comes to an adventure game. We lay out the premise in our glowing review:

Another World (which was also known as Out of this World in certain markets) is a cinematic platform adventure originally released on the Amiga back in 1991. The game tells the story of physicist Lester Chaykin. As is illustrated in the game's introductory sequence, Lester returns to his underground laboratory one stormy night to continue work on a particle acceleration experiment. Shortly after the experiment is underway, a bolt of lightning strikes the laboratory, sending millions of volts into the accelerator and resulting in the freak teleportation of Lester to a far-away alien planet.

After close run-ins with razor slugs and a particularly intimidating muscular beast, Lester is taken prisoner by the humanoid aliens indigenous to the strange world. With help from a friendly, captive alien, Lester endeavors to escape from the underground prison to which he was taken, a feat which proves to be extremely challenging given the dangerous environments and creatures (and puzzles) that lie ahead.

Aside from being an amazing port, and an all-around fantastic game, iCade support just adds one more thing to the list of reasons for why you should give this game a shot if you haven't already.

Yesterday, a game that was developed in 1982 for arcade hardware, but never officially released, quietly landed in the App Store. Gridlee [Free] is a simple game where you maneuver a little green fellow about a grid that stretches off into the distance, blasting upwards at bouncy red figures that try and squash you. That's Gridlee, but that's not the crux of the matter with this app.

As developer David Loureiro explains, Gridlee was developed for the Bally/Sente SAC I cartridge-based arcade machine. It has been brought to iOS devices by way of an emulation wrapper...namely MAME4iOS.

(more...)

Have you been asking Santa for an arcade cabinet for the past 30 years and every Christmas you wake to look under the tree just to be disappointed yet again? Maybe that's just me, but if you have a similar longing for some button mashing action then I have something that just might ease the pain a bit.

Thinkgeek, the folks responsible for playing us for fools with their awesome iPad arcade cabinet April Fool's joke, and then making it all better by turning it into a real thing called the iCade the following year, has released yet another model of iCade in 2012. It's called the iCade Jr. and it's a miniaturized, adorable-ized version of the regular iCade for your iPhone or iPod touch. It works just like the big version, connecting via Bluetooth to one of hundreds of available games in the App Store that have iCade support built in.

It seems like more of a novelty type thing rather than a hardcore gaming controller, but at its current sale price of $9.99, which is 80% off the regular price of $49.99, it fits perfectly into the novelty item budget zone.

The product description specifically notes that the iCade Jr. is built for a secure fit with an iPhone 4/4S or 4th generation iPod touch, but it will work with the taller iPhone 5 if you leave the top lid flipped open. Not ideal, but I'll take it, and more than likely this will just be my new home for my now retired iPhone 4S. It's just so cute, I have to have one. And ten bucks is super impulse-buy friendly.

Not to try and strain your wallet any further, but I should mention that the iCade Jr. sale is just one part of a massive Winter Clearance sale that Thinkgeek is throwing, and if you're going to order an iCade anyway you might as well flip through all the other cool things they've got on sale. I mean, you might as well just look, right?

Link to Thinkgeek Website: iCade Jr. Mini Arcade Cabinet for iPhone, $9.99

Late last month, Rantmedia Games leveled up the state of retro in the App Store with the release of Vectrex Regeneration [Free], their effort to bring the authentic Vectrex experience to iOS gamers. We took a close look at this vectorscopic one-stop-shop, and found that they had largely succeeded, but with a few rough edges just out the gate.

I'm happy to report that the folks over at Rantmedia have been listening to feedback and quick to respond to issue reports and general suggestions. The first update to Vectrex Regeneration, since it debuted, has gone live and addresses a number of issues voiced in my review:

• Earlier devices supported — The original iPad and the iPhone 3GS are now supported, with performance improvements on the iPhone 4.
• Wireless controller improvements — In the initial release, there was a problem with non-diagonal directional control, which is now fixed.
• Joystick sensitivity — Joystick sensitivity settings are now saved per-game, rather than the previous same-setting-for-all situation.
• Black screen — A fix for certain (jailbroken...) devices experiencing a black screen on startup.
• MineStorm — Garbled lines appearing on level 2 have been addressed.
• Box art & instructions — Minor corrections to box art and instructions have been made.

This update notably improves this already-excellent virtual game console, which should not be missed by anyone with any kind of fondness for retro gaming.

Interest in the retro gaming scene has really expanded in the last few years, thanks in no small part to the proliferation of capable mobile devices such as the iPhone and iPad and the App Store behind them. As such, retro-minded iOS gamers have a wide range of games to choose from, such as retro-inspired new releases, retro remakes, as well as the actual games of olde brough forth through faithful emulation. It is in the last arena that, early this year, Rantmedia Games decided to toss its hat, sharing word of their upcoming Vectrex Regeneration, a one-stop-shop for fans of the much vaunted, early '80s Vectrex console.

We have been following Rantmedia's progress closely since then, and are pleased to have finally had an opportunity to put their Vectrex emulation / game library through its paces. Vectrex Regeneration [Free], a universal app for the iPad (2 and up) and iPhone (4 and up), is now live in the App Store, and here's the low-down.

First, some needed history. Released in late 1982 by General Consumer Electric (GCE), the Vectrex is a highly unique game system. Unlike every other console of the time, the Vectrex features an integrated CRT display -- but not of the standard, horizontal-scan variety. The Vectrex utilizes a vector monitor, which is similar to an oscilloscope and draws its graphics on the screen in a fashion similar to the display process of a laser light show. It's the only console from gaming's past defined by a complete lack of jaggies.

(more...)

Early last year, Thinkgeek and ION combined forces to turn what was originally a clever April Fool's joke into a real-life thing called the iCade. The fully-functioning mock arcade cabinet that housed your iPad released the following May, and we thought it was a pretty interesting piece of kit when we reviewed it. Since then, iCade has really been the only 3rd-party Bluetooth control option that's gained any sort of traction at all on iOS, despite it still being pretty niche.

At the beginning of this year at CES 2012, ION and Thinkgeek announced a trio of new iCade units: a new, trimmed-down version of the original, a handheld version for the iPhone, and an iCade Jr. which was just a really tiny, shrunk down version of the original iCade that was also for use with your iPhone or iPod touch.

They weren't done, though, as the very next month they announced a fourth version of the iCade, this one they were calling the iCade 8-Bitty. It was essentially an NES-style wireless controller that could connect to your iOS device and control any iCade-compatible game on the App Store, just like the other iCade units.

Today, Thinkgeek has announced that the iCade 8-Bitty is finally available in their online shop at a price of $29.99. I've got to be honest, I'm a little bit tired of all the various controller options for iOS, and I'd much rather just focus on games that harness the inherent abilities of the device. However, I think there's a huge novelty value to these iCade units, and for $30 bucks I could see myself keeping an 8-Bitty around just for kicks.

Head on over to Thinkgeek to order up an iCade 8-Bitty if it strikes your fancy, and while you're over there be sure to check out the sales they're currently running on the other iCade devices. The original iCade is now 10% off at $89.99 (though I've seen them much cheaper at various places around the 'net), and the newer iCade Mobile which is an almost Sony PSP-like unit that your iPhone sits cradled in and works in both portrait and landscape, is a whopping 64% off at $24.99, down from its original $69.99 price point.

Way back in 1991, a little UK shareware studio called Team 17 released a top-down, space-themed shooter for the Amiga platform. Dark and highly atmospheric -- downright scary, actually -- Alien Breed and the enhanced Special Edition '92 version that followed, were soon hailed as bringing some of the best shooter action that Amiga gamers had ever seen. So popular were they that, to date, eight sequels have followed, half of those for modern consoles. And now, Alien Breed [$0.99] has come to the iOS platform.

Alien Breed drops you, the player, into a classic space marine type scenario. The year is 2191 and the galaxy is at the brink of war. You've just finished six months of dead-boring patrol duty around the Intex Network and were glad to be heading home. That is, before orders arrived to check out a remote Space Research Center which had gone silent on the Federation wavebands. As you approach ISRC-4 near the red giant Gianor, you notice an eerie silence surrounding the station. Something is obviously very wrong…

(more...)

As we mentioned earlier this month, Team 17 will soon be releasing an iOS conversion of their highly acclaimed, Alien-inspired top-down shooter Alien Breed into the App Store. Originally released in 1991 on the Amiga, the game places you in a multi-levels space station overrun with hideous xenomorphs, on a solo mission to wipe out the alien intruders and, ultimately, survive.

We're happy to report that Team 17 has provided us with the release version of the iOS title a few weeks before it's set to go live and I've begun putting it through it's paces. And, while we'll save a truly in-depth look for our review, which will be published as soon as the game hits the App Store, I can share some initial impressions (and screenshots) with those who've been waiting for this one.

The original Alien Breed was followed up by the extremely popular Alien Breed Special Edition '92, an expanded version of the original that sat on the UK charts for over a year. The new iOS version includes the full original title, the special edition, and a new four-level campaign that, while shorter than the two original scenarios, provides content that's new to even seasoned veterans of the originals. Additional content is planned for release down the road, as well.

(more...)

I’ve got to say, as intriguing as the thought of controller peripherals for the iPhone was a few years ago, I’ve really grown to dislike all of these new controller solutions that seem to pop up every month or so. I think the iCade offers a neat experience and has amassed a respectable library of supported games so far, so it’s somewhat exempt from these feelings.

Beyond that though, I’ve come to realize that the exact reason I love gaming on my iPhone so much is that it’s an all-in-one device I have on me at all times. I’ve struggled since the original Game Boy to find that perfect case to house my handheld and all its games and accessories in one tiny on-the-go package.

Well, the iPhone is that dream realized in a way that’s better than I could have ever imagined, and I don’t want to sully that with the additional hassle of toting around some peripheral. iOS comes equipped with its own set of unique control possibilities with its touchscreen and gyroscope, and if your game requires traditional buttons to truly shine then I feel like you’re kind of missing the entire point.

However, I think they might be onto something with the upcoming iMpulse controller. Rather than being some kind of harness you stick your device in like many of the controllers we’ve seen thus far, it’s simply a very tiny Bluetooth controller, about the size of a large keychain. In fact, it actually IS a keychain, and like your iPhone, chances are high that you’ll always have it on you. Here’s a quick video of it in action.

I do have reservations about the iMpulse though, first the fact that it seems to only come equipped with half the buttons of an iCade, and second that it’s strictly an analog stick-like slider for directional control rather than a traditional d-pad. However it’s compatible with any iCade game right out of the box and best of all it will retail for just $20. At that price and with a respectable list of supported games it’s a little easier to justify an “impulse” buy for something like this.

The iMpulse controller is slated to hit later this year, and you can currently pre-order the initial run of black and silver ones over at the iMpulse website. We’ll be looking to get our hands on one soon and will report back with out impressions.

Since he started making games for iOS, indie developer Jeff Minter of Llamasoft has really been cranking them out. The guy has been making games -- and, rather unique games, I might add -- for over 30 years, but I don't believe he's ever dished out one after another faster than he's doing for Apple's platform. And that's really good news for iOS gamers because all of his iOS titles are rather well done and worth playing. His latest title, Five A Day [link], which just landed in the App Store, comes close on the heels of Gridrunner for iOS, his excellent remake of his original 1982 VIC-20 game and one of the best shooters on the platform.

When we first reported that Minter was developing for iOS, about two and a half years ago, we mentioned a Time Pilot-style game that he was working on, set to be his first iOS release. Well, time passed, Minotaur Rescue arrived, and we never saw anything else about that supposed first iOS release. That is to say, not until now.

Five A Day is a shooter (with bananas), but it's equally an ethereal experience of sorts. It's a kind of spacey, zen sort of thing. It's a little hard to describe, so I'll let the author.

...it should’ve just progressed into a good old banana-oriented shooter as originally intended but by accident it sort of went all New Age and ambient. While still actually retaining the characteristic of actually being any good, of course. It didn’t just turn into a useless ageing hippy of a game that lies around smoking weed and listening to Steve Hillage and burbling on about auras and crystals without ever doing anything useful. Redolent it may be of joss sticks and wind chimes but it’s still jolly good fun and will kick your arse quite handily on the higher levels, just you wait and see.

(more...)

Today at GDC I spent some time with retro strongman Dan Bliss of BinarySquare, who showed us his latest creation, Puzzle Bebop.

Puzzle Bebop is wonderfully pixellated falling block, match-four puzzle game wrapped in virtual CRT scan-lines, with chippy 8-bit audio to boot. As falling block games go, the core game mission is nothing too new. It's in the control system where the real innovation of this game lies.

(more...)