It's been about a year since decades-old studio Elite Systems brought their ZX Spectrum: Elite Collection [iPhone, iPad] and the first wave of its retro titles to the App Store. Since then 150 titles have become available through their Spectrum emulator, giving retro fans much old school gaming goodness to play with.
Since then, Elite has been hard at work engineering a completely new system through which to bring an even broader range of retro classic to iOS gamers. I recently had a conversation with Elite co-founder Steve Wilcox who filled me in on some of the titles that are on the way in the coming Elite Collection of 8-bit home computer games, as well as details surrounding their newly completed proprietary technology that went into it. The new system is a facilitator, of sorts, that was designed in such a way as to not incorporate, reference, or in any way rely upon third-party property and that is able to deliver, to iOS, games that originated on platforms other than just the ZX Spectrum in near-100% original form.
Elite has been busy licensing classics from a wide range of developers and it sounds like iOS gamers are in for a trove of titles to be delivered through the studio's new system. The first stage in the deployment consists of nine games developed across North America, the UK, and Germany.
In June of last year, Revolutionary Concepts and Tangible Games brought us Banzai Rabbit [99¢/HD], a modern take on the Frogger formula with slick 3D graphics and a bunch of new gameplay elements. We thought they did great justice to the classic arcade game in our Banzai Rabbit review (and even more so after they nerfed the difficulty a bit), and put a fresh new perspective on the gameplay while keeping the core Frogger mechanics intact.
Fast forward to just this last month, and Revolutionary Concepts struck a partnership with Konami to bring Gesundheit! [99¢/HD] to the App Store, with the help of artist Matt Hammill offering his whimsical style to the graphics in the game. Now, Revolutionary Concepts has announced that they’re once again partnering up with Konami, Tangible Games, Matt Hammill, and even esteemed composer Alex Khaskin to honor this year’s 30th anniversary of Frogger with the upcoming Frogger Decades.
It’s somewhat ironic that Revolutionary Concepts is being handed the keys to the Frogger IP from Konami. In fact, Banzai Rabbit was originally known as Frogman, but due to concern about the possibility of infringing on the Frogger IP the main character in the game traded in his warts for floppy ears and a cotton tail. But, Konami was impressed with the studio’s ability to pay homage to classic franchises as they had with Karate Champ [99¢/HD], Road Blaster [$1.99/HD], and Cobra Command [99¢]. Now, more than a year later and Revolutionary Concepts is bringing yet another modern take on Frogger, this time with Konami’s full blessing.
Frogger Decades begins when Frogger heads out to catch a few flies for lunch, and while out and about his friends leave a note on his door with directions to a party they’re throwing for him in celebration of his big 30th birthday. But, the evil Doc Croc gets his hands on the map first and changes up the route to the party, forcing Frogger to traverse through 5 dangerous locations and 10 huge levels in order to finally end up at the party. The story is told in-between levels using fantastic cutscenes drawn by Matt Hammill which are just oozing with personality.
Like Banzai Rabbit, the core Frogger mechanics are kept intact in Frogger Decades, but expanded upon and taken in new directions. You’ll still be hopping around on a grid-like play field, but rather than the single screen of the original that had you continuously moving your frogs back and forth, the levels in Frogger Decades are lengthy vertical affairs, filled with all sorts of interesting terrain and plenty of enemies out to get you. Poor Frogger, if only he’d known about the safe and direct path his friends had originally laid out for him!
Controls are either swipe gestures or a virtual d-pad and buttons, and both work pretty well, though so far I’m preferring the swipe-based controls. In addition to just hopping around, Frogger has several special moves, like flicking out his tongue to collect flies or move objects and various kinds of jumps which help him make it through the challenging terrain in the game. If you’ve played Banzai Rabbit, many of Frogger’s moves will feel pretty familiar.
You’re also under time constraints in each level, so you’ll need to keep moving rather than just admiring the gorgeous 3D scenery. Thankfully there are plenty of checkpoints along the way, so dying at the hand of an enemy or hazard, or not moving quick enough before the level scrolls past your position isn’t too much of a hindrance as you’ll just get sent back to your checkpoint. Frogger Decades has been a difficult ride during my time with the game thus far, but it’s a nice kind of challenge that pushes you to keep at it and rewards you for thinking on your feet and acting quickly.
Update: Revolutionary Concepts has sent over the official trailer for Frogger Decades, posted below, and a discussion about the game has sparked up in our forums so be sure to stop by.
I’m really enjoying what I’ve played so far of Frogger Decades, and look forward to continuing on through the rest of the game. If you’re liking what you’re seeing and reading here as well, then you’ll be able to get your own hands on Frogger Decades when it launches as a Universal app this coming Thursday at an introductory price of $1.99.
We've recently been given an exclusive heads-up on two interesting looking upcoming titles from Digital Concepts, who brought us the early iOS pick-up RPG Loot Master [iPhone] as well as the space age tower defense title Starfall [iPhone, iPad].
The first bit of news Digital Concepts' Douglass Beck shared with us should be of interest to all the Minecraft junkies out there. Doug is working on a game that started out as something of a "pet project," but is now evolving nicely and should make it to both App Stores (Mac first, then iOS) sometime down the road. The as-yet-unnamed title is a single- and multi-player Minecraft-like game that is already quite functional in its early state of development.
That's about all we can share right now in the way of media and details on the studio's Minecraft-alike, but we'll bring more before the game goes live. (more...)
When Mighty Fin [$0.99] first hit the App Store back in June, it was a fun but flawed experience. The levels were bleak and a bit samey, the music was repetitive and the endless levels were dull, dull dull (something that was fixed in the game's first big update). Still, we enjoyed what there was of it at the time, so learning that Launching Pad Games is releasing a major update this week that addresses literally every remaining concern we had is, well, pretty awesome.
The game is going Universal, so all you iPad owners can finally get in on the fun. Mighty Fin looks fantastic on the big screen, and its one-touch control works just as well on whichever device you choose. New music has been added for each area, all in keeping with the game's original sound. Oh, and I should probably mention that the game's level count will literally double when the update hits, and the new levels are super cool. Interest piqued?
Where the game's first eight areas were largely dark and gloomy, this new batch is exploding with color. I suspect Shady Sal slipped Fin some high-grade hallucinogens to brighten his vacation up, because the little dude ends up swimming through places with names like Candy County, Ninjaville and Tomorrow Town. Ninjaville looks like something right out of Hokusai's The Great Wave off Kanagawa. It's glorious. And no worries about the game being too easy -- these levels are vicious. Regular mode is tough enough, and Survival is downright killer.
Seriously, if you haven't picked Mighty Fin up yet, you should mark this Thursday, August 18 on your calendar. If you have it, pull it out again. If new levels alone aren't enough to reignite your interest, then think of the costumes -- 32 new ways to dress Fin up. Could we ask for anything more?
The third episode of Agharta Studios’ conceptually brilliant and artistically inspired adventure game series, 1112, has been submitted to Apple and if all goes as planned it should be available on the App Store this coming Tuesday the 23rd. Regardless, it’s out the door and essentially finished after a year or so in development, which is an incredible about of time for a touch game.
Agharta sends word that this episode, naturally, introduces new characters and locations to explore. More importantly, it features several fresh multi-touch “experiences” or puzzles, as well as an intense soundtrack. To get a taste of the latter, just watch this: (more...)
Do you know what Julius Styles: The International is? Don’t look at me because I don’t. My best guess is that it’s an isometric character-driven action game with a few puzzles and a few rote stealth sequences. But I suppose it could also be a hunting game that mixes in a dialogue tree here and there. I’m not joking. Look at this latest trailer, which shows the titular character with a dead mountain goat slung over his shoulder and a bow in his other arm. Also, take note of the comic book-inspired narrative underpinnings. It's silly and vague, but also awesome. I haven't been this confused and excited since those early middle school years.
One of the oddest things about this trailer (other than the goat bit) is that Julius Styles does not sound like Wesley Snipes. We were under the impression that the man would voice the character he’s based on, but perhaps that’s not the case? Maybe this is where the whole spy angle comes in. That would make sense, right?
Regardless, Julius Styles is definitely a game we’ll continue following as it hurdles to a mid-August release on iOS. If it’s any bit what we think it is, though, we’ll be surprised.
I'm not sure what it is about evil seafood from space. I thought Velocispider [99¢] did a great job addressing that danger with its deadly mecha-squiddies, but it looks like Two Lives Left is set to hammer the message home in the newly announced Crabitron -- you can't trust crustaceans. But you can play one, if you're patient.
Two Lives Left is the studio responsible for the excellent Wheeler's Treasure [$2.99] and Pilot Winds [Free] if you're trying to place the name. Here's what they have to say about the game:
Presenting CRABITRON, an iPad game where you take control of a Giant Space Crab. Use your humongous claws to terrorize the universe. Smash, crush and pull spaceships apart to eat their space captains! Deflect missiles, absorb lasers and even fight the devious Space Sharks of the Seafood Nebula. Find awesome and creative ways to use your claws to satisfy your ever increasing appetite... for destruction!
Sounds awesome, right? Ripping stuff apart -- I can get behind that.
I had a chance to get my hands on the game for a very brief preview, and I don't think we'll be disappointed. The controls are perfect - you pinch your finger and thumb together (like a claw, natch) to control each of the Giant Space Crab's claws. You drag your claws around the screen to grab ships that pass by, and pinch your fingers closed to crush them. Then you shovel them into your mouth, because Giant Space Crabs have giant appetites. You also need to deflect projectiles back at the pesky humans who are coming to kill you.
It's early days still, so while I'd love to be able to tell you a lot more, you're just going to have to wait. How long? Two Lives Left ain't telling. Hopefully the brand-spanking-new trailer will tide you over, and we'll be back with more details when we have them.
All of my two-wheel racing experience resides in that one Moto GP game that came on the Xbox Live demo disc. Because I couldn’t compete, I drove backwards around the tracks while making funny noises over the microphone. I’m not so sure that I’ll be able to rekindle those times in Polish developer Vivid Games’ Speedway GP 2011 for iOS, but it sure does look like a sharp title that strokes all the right notes of a proper simulation racing game.
That was all build-up to get to the point of telling you that Vivid shot us over some fresh images of the racing title. Also, I wanted to give you a release date: August 25th for the iPhone, iPod Touch, and the iPad.
As its namesake implies, Speedway GP 2011 is a BSI Speeday game, kinda like how Madden is an NFL game. It’ll launch with, as you see, some pretty hot visuals and, of course, realistic physics. The craziest thing I’ve learned so far while checking out the pre-release intel is that these racers don’t use brakes, nor will you be able to. Yeah, I know. Wild!
Speedway GP 2011 will also launch with 11 stadiums, a “full roster of statistics” and real-time stat-tracking of the Speedway Grand Prix. There’s another app on the App Store that appears to have your back on that, too, if you’re especially interested.
Stay tuned for some more in-depth coverage as the game races (huh, huh!?) to the App Store a little later next month.
If you'd told me that an iOS game about a pig with seasonal allergies and the monsters that love to eat his boogers would top my list of most charming games on the platform, I'd have laughed in your face. Then I had a chance to get hands-on with Gesundheit! just a few days before its release. Whaddya know, mucus can be charming after all.
I'm not a big fan of gross-out humor, but that's only a small part of what makes Gesundheit! stand out. For starters, it's completely gorgeous. The hand-drawn art style you can see in the screenshots is consistent throughout every level, cutscene and map. The game also sounds fantastic. The music might just rival Bumpy Road for twee charm, and I mean that in the best possible way.
Of course the gameplay is really where it's at. Gesundheit! is a top-down action puzzler. The goal is to lure all the booger-eating monsters into traps without getting caught -- and if they see you, they'll come for you. You move your hay-fever plagued pig around by tapping where you want to him go, and control his sneezes with a billiards-style pull and release. This launches a snot ball, which monsters just can't resist. The whole thing seems super precise, which is helpful when you're running for your little piggy life.
I've only had a chance to play a handful of levels, but the combination of game mechanics works very well so far. There are puzzle aspects, while you figure out how to get the monsters to the trap and how to collect all the starfruit on the way. You also need to be stealthy, keeping out of site of monsters, sneezing and darting quickly out of sight. And you'll need good aim to bounce your snot-balls precisely where you want them. New elements, like teleportation pads and mosquito monsters, are introduced regularly to keep things tricky. I can't wait to see the rest of it.
Gesundheit! has come nearly out of nowhere, being revealed by Konami behind closed doors just last week at San Diego Comic-Con. But it's not exactly brand new. Back in 2008, Gesundheit! emerged at the Independent Games Festival as a student showcase finalist. It went pretty viral as a PC demo, but a full release never made it out the door. When Revolutionary Concepts started working with artist Matt Hammill, they found out about his pet project and collaborated with him to bring it to iOS. Looks like the results are worth the wait -- this game feels right at home on a touch screen.
Gesundheit! will be released this Thursday for the introductory price of $0.99 on iPhone and iPod touch, and $1.99 on iPad (3rd gen devices and iOS 3.2 or higher). We'll bring you a full review of this sneezerific charmer once it's out. In the meantime you can join the anticipation in our discussion thread.
One of my very favorite games of the distant past is good ole' Lunar Lander. There's a certain beauty to the simple proposition there -- it's just gravity and you. Lunar Lander, which got its start back in 1969, kicked off the cave-flyer genre that boasts many great games under its banner. iOS developer Polygon Play recently offered us an exclusive look at their upcoming iPad title, Lander Hero, that will join those proud ranks later this year.
Lander Hero brings a twist on the standard formula by incorporating puzzle-solving elements into the cave-flyer experience. The goal of the game is to navigate each labyrinthine level, from start point to end pad, collecting stars as you go -- you need to have grabbed at least 50% of the stars on any level in order to advance to the next. Along the way, you will encounter a number of obstacles that must be negotiated. These include moving boulders, I-beams, (tip: flammable) crates, force fields, bombs and the like. For example, a certain pathway cannot be travelled until you nudge a boulder rolling along a beam until its weight tips it out of your way. In addition to these challenges, your ship's fuel and damage levels are always working against you. Power-ups hidden about the caverns of each level must be found and collected to keep your ship in shape.
The game offers several different configurations of the on-screen touch controls, which are thrust-left, thrust-right, and thrust-down. In the beta build I'm playing with, clustered, one-hand controls are the default, but I find a two-handed button arrangement -- thrust-left/right at the lower left, thrust-down at the lower right -- much more to my liking. Having such simple controls, as cave-flyers often do, Lander Hero works just fine with the iPad's touchscreen.
Lander Hero really shines in the graphics department. The stylized rocky landscapes are bright, colorfully textured, and slide by as smooth as glass on the iPad 2 as you guide your ship along the twists and turns of each cavern. The whole scene, along with your cartoony ship and the little bespectacled scientist inside (there's apparently a backstory there), lend the game a whimsical feel. And the physics system, so critical in titles of the sort, is spot-on.
I've really enjoyed playing through the 13 finished levels in this beta, and am anxious to move through the rest of the 40+ levels (across two different worlds) that the initial App Store release will bring. The game is iPad-only, but the developer tells me he's considering bringing it to the iPhone, down the road. I'll be sure to let all the cave-flyer fans out there know when Lander Hero hits the App Store, sometime in late September.
For quite some time now wehavebeentrackingManomio's upcoming iAmiga emulation system for iOS, designed as a sort of wrapper or delivery vehicle to bring licensed Amiga games to the App Store. At the end of last year, we posted an exclusive preview of the in-development system, including a demo video showing a number of classic test titles running quite well on an iPhone 4. One of the titles we played with back then was Cinemaware's classic 1986 strategy game, Defender of the Crown. I'm happy to report that this well-loved, fully-licensed title will be the first iAmiga-powered game to land in the App Store, and that Manomio CEO Stuart Carnie was kind enough to grant us exclusive access to a near-release build of the game.
First, let me say a little bit about the game, for those that may be unfamiliar. Defender of the Crown is a strategy game set in medieval England. The player takes on the role of any of four Saxon knights in a bid to defeat the Norman invaders and fill the vacant throne of England. The original game manual, which is packed with historical information, tells the story well. (more...)
If you're anything like me, you've been wondering, "When in the world is Rocketcat Games going to release something that doesn't rely on a swinging mechanic?" Don't get me wrong, HookChamp, Super QuickHook, and Hook Worlds are all fantastic games, but I doubt I'm alone in looking forward to what Rocketcat would release outside of the hook and swing world. We're getting a first real glimpse at their next game today, Mage Gauntlet, which seems to be a beautifully pixelated homage to the classic action RPG games of yore.
Check out some screenshots:
The real awesomeness is contained inside of the trailer:
Details are a little vague right now, but Mage Gauntlet is built around a "more action, less grinding" quest philosophy centralized around the main character, Lexi. You're looking to become a wizard's apprentice, and your journey starts out with a quest to prove yourself. Equipped with a magical gauntlet, Lexi is able to absorb and launch magical energy. The spell system involves destroying "certain objects" to power-up your gauntlet with a completely randomized spell. You can hold four at a time, and these are accessible through a menu.
There's a full loot and leveling system complete with character customization through three different stats that you can build your character with. 50 levels will be included with release, along with an unlockable additional game mode. More levels and modes are planned after release. Oh, and there's boss fights, loads of different enemies, and lots of secrets and achievements. Scoreboards aren't initially included, but the future game modes I mentioned will introduce them.
Mage Gauntlet will be priced at $2.99, with an initial $1.99 sale. Like other RocketCat games, early buyers will get a pack of hats to customize your character with as well as a in-game pet that follows you around. We'll be following the release of this game closely, and hope to have a full preview in the next couple weeks.
Long-time hirsute, psychedelic game writer Jeff Minter of Llamasoft has released two iOS games, and they're two of the best games in the App Store: Minotron: 2112 [link] and Minotaur Rescue [link]. His third iOS game, a Universal (iPhone and iPad) release called Deflex, is on the way, and I've been frustrating myself having fun with a pre-release he recently sent over, for the past couple of days.
Deflex is a dexterity puzzle game, of sorts. It is an iOS adaptation of a 1982 Llamasoft release for the Sinclair machines, VIC-20, and Atari 8-bits, itself inspired by an earlier, simpler Commodore PET title. Gameplay is tricky to describe, and trickier to master. Or so it seems -- I'm rather a ways from mastering it, myself.
The game takes you through level after level (52 in all) of different characters -- oxen, bulls, smileys, telephones -- arrayed about various wall configurations. You control a ball that appears at level's start, bouncing slowly back and forth along a linear path. The object of the game is to absorb the on-screen characters with your ball. It's the manner in which you get your ball over to all the characters that's the thing about this game.
At the bottom of the screen sit two buttons, one in each corner. These are your only controls. Each button drops a "bat" onto the screen at the exact position of your ball. These bats are mirrors, deflectors. The left button drops a " / " bat, while the right drops a horizontally opposed " \ " one. You can drop as many bats as you like, but I'd caution towards judicious deployment, and you'll see why.
The instant the bat is dropped, two things happen. First, the ball hits it and its course deflects 90-degrees, heading off in a direction dependent upon the direction of its path prior to impact. Second, the bat flips to the opposite type (" / " turns to " \ " and vice versa), adding a sort of mind-bending, deeper complexity to the challenge of strategically clearing the levels. And it's definitely an exercise in strategy, here -- the hurried sort. Because, in order to get the ball to each item on the screen, a clever arrangement of bats must be laid down. Too many bats can lead to chaos, and some levels reward you for lean placement. But you can't take too long about it, because time spent zipping through empty space is time where your score multiplier is dwindling. If it gets too low...your ball disintegrates.
There is some behavioral variety to the on-screen character objects. Many just sit there. Some move towards you. Some (like jiggly bananas) dart away from you. It's a bit chaotic. And the elimination of each character triggers the next note in a haunting piano melody. The whole things delivers a tangible, very bizarre game mood. Standard Minter fare, really.
The first few times I played the game I was utterly lost at sea. After a while, I began to understand what was happening. And now, I feel I have some degree of skill at the game, but I've got a ways to go before I'm at the top of the leaderboards. Well, there are no leaderboards at the moment, but they're on the way. OpenFeint and Game Center integration will be worked in before release, and there'll be 53 score tables in all.
Minter is known for putting out titles that are distinctly "different." (Have a look at Space Giraffe.) Deflex is no exception. The game gets huge points for challenge, uniqueness, and also drippy visual eye-candy. The psychedelia is, as expected, in full effect here.
We'll let you know when Deflex hits the app store. In the mean time I'll be honing my skills in an effort to rule the leaderboards. Well, here's hoping, anyway....
At WWDC, I had a chance to sit down with David Whatley, who brought us GeoDefense and GeoDefense Swarm, to discuss what he's got in store for us iOS gamers.
Whatley's path-based tower defense title GeoDefense is unquestionably the iOS tower defense game I've spent the most time with. There's definite appeal in its minimal, neon glowing graphics and relentless action. During our meeting, the author showed me an in-progress build of sequel GeoDefense 2, which is a tower defense game -- with a twist.
In the simplest terms, GeoDefense 2 is a tower defense puzzle game. The game features a pre-laid track along which the encroaching enemies file through, but each level starts off with a number of towers already in place. Your task is to arrange the towers about the playfield in the most strategically sound fashion, but there's a catch: you can only move towers across straight track segments and empty space; towers can't be moved over each other or over track corner segments. This arrangement lends something of a sliding puzzle feel to the strategerie of the game. To make matters either better or worse (we'll see...), new turrets appear with each wave.
Tower defense is a now crowded genre in the App Store, and a notable variation on the formula is welcome. I was very much intrigued by what Whatley showed me of GeoDefense 2, and am anxious to give it a go in its final, release form.
In addition to his GeoDefense sequel, which will be published through his studio Critical Thought, Whatley gave us an exclusive look at his upcoming title, Tiny Heroes, to be published by the other studio with which he is involved, Simutronics. In short, it's Plants vs. Zombies meets Dungeon Keeper.
In Tiny Heroes, you play the dungeon. The objective of the game is to defend your treasures by placing the defenses you've chosen about your dungeon corridors. Waves of classic heroes of various sorts and abilities -- thieves, knights, clerics, wizards, rangers, etc. -- begin to invade your dungeons in an effort to make off with the booty.
The defenses available are a bit more varied than those of the typical tower defense game. There are crossbows, crush chambers, pop-up pikes, allied monsters, bombs, and the like. The incoming heroes vary in their ability to deal with the different defenses; the thieves can sometimes disarm bombs, for instance.
For the creative defense gamer, a forge area in the game allows players to craft their own custom towers. Tiny Heroes will take advantage of the Retina display where available and the graphics look sharp. The iPhone version is set for an August 1st submission to Apple, with an iPad version to follow, in time.
This review is going to get a little wordy. Not only am I telling you all about Great Little War Game, a fantastic turn-based strategy game from Rubicon, I also get to tell you all about the upcoming 1.4 update. So if you're short on time and you want the summary, let me just say that this is a game you need to own if you like turn-based strategy, and the update is going to make it better than ever.
I'll call Great Little War Game "great" without hesitation, but I'd hardly call it "little" - not with 20 campaign levels, a 10 level IAP expansion, and tons of maps for pass-and-play multiplayer and AI skirmishes. This isn't a game that's over quickly - the levels take time and multiplayer matches can turn into all-out war.
The campaign gives you a thorough introduction to the game's many units, from the humble Engineer to mighty tanks, warships and aircraft. Early on, you learn the simple controls - tap to select and move, hold to see range and movement - and then then you'll learn to capture the enemy's resources and base. You'll also need to pick up vital strategies like holding high terrain, defending your resources and picking the right spot to lay an ambush.
You're set against enemy forces controlled by an AI that poses a challenge without becoming frustrating. In each level, you're facing ongoing assaults by the enemy while you try to achieve a goal. Sometimes you need to capture the enemy base. Other times you're left to hold out against a superior foe or to struggle to build up your resources before being overwhelmed. Your performance is ranked on how quickly you succeed.
Great Little War Game isn't just an impressive strategy game; it's also pretty darn funny. The cut scenes between levels feature your army's Generalissimo and his terribly courageous approach to warmongering. I've never seen someone lead so bravely from the (distant) rear. Unit voices, animations and descriptions also offer up some laughs.
I've had a chance to go hands-on with the upcoming 1.4 update. It's going to be submitted Friday, so hopefully we'll see it soon. The biggest change is the addition of difficulty modes. You'll start on Basic difficulty, and there are three higher modes to unlock by beating the campaign with each. Damage increases for both sides as you play on higher difficulties, so you'll need to be very careful about keeping your army safely out of range while picking off the enemy. The AI also gets more cash to spend, and it's a little smarter in all modes, so skilled players are going to be challenged.
Great Little War Game is also getting a cosmetic bump, with improvements to lighting and water, multisampling and bump maps. It looks very nice - still cartoony, but much more polished. Despite the nice new look, 1.4 feels snappier than ever on my 3GS. As for the one thing some of you have been holding out for - the game's 16 achievements now sync to Game Center. Three new skirmish maps have been added (including a sweet little nod to this site). On top of all that, there's a new 15 level campaign, Holiday from Hell, available for in-app purchase.
Rubicon's always been very responsive to their fans, adding fixes and updates based on feedback. They've adopted a lot of ideas from users on our forums, so if you've got any suggestions, make sure to stop in.
One technical note: the game only supports third-generation devices and newer. Also, be sure to grab the right version. With an HD version, a standard version, and a lite version for each, things can get a little confusing. The HD is Universal with Retina graphics, while the standard version has neither feature. I do like the recent trend of releasing a second version that's a Universal HD, but restricting Retina graphics to that version is less awesome.
Great Little War Game is the kind of game you can really sink your teeth into, which is rare enough. So I'm delighted to discover that it's also rich in features, good looking and full of humor. With the 1.4 update, it's going to be even more of a must-buy. I've got my fingers crossed for asynchronous multiplayer, a feature Rubicon hopes to include some time in the future, but in the meantime there's quite the bounty to enjoy.
It's been about a year since decades-old studio Elite Systems brought their ZX Spectrum: Elite Collection [iPhone, iPad] and the first wave of its retro titles to the App Store. Since then 150 titles have become available through their Spectrum emulator, giving retro fans much old school gaming goodness to play with.
