At the top level, Star Command is a sci-fi simulation game that focuses on the real guts of an interstellar ship -- you know, the people, the facilities, and the technology that makes travel and battle possible. As far as feel goes, it's something of sci-fi slugfest where you find yourself limping out of every battle in a charred ship that's being staffed by a skeleton crew because everyone either (a) got sucked out of the hull, (b) got incinerated by phasers, or (c) died in a fire. I'm not really sure that this is the feel that creator War Balloon was ultimately looking for, but this is how it came across to us for the first couple of hours. And, spoiler, this is a pretty cool thing.

We didn't know this when we first booted it up, but Star Command is story-driven. You play as a commander of a ship in Star Command, a "Star Trek"-inspired Federation of sorts. In the opening moments, you're tasked with responding to various threats in our system under their watchful eye. After a brief tutorial, things get real when you discover a busted up ship which explodes as soon as you get there. Star Command gets on the honker and blames you for the explosion, saying you fired on the thing. From here, the adventure takes on a different tone entirely. You're now the commander of a rogue ship in a big galaxy with an assortment of alien species and various tricks, traps, rewards, and oddities.

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If you're not tired of the whole zombie thing yet, maybe consider giving Van Der Veer's War of the Zombie a look. From the looks of it, it's a mash-up of simulation with over-the-top strategy that tasks you with (presumably) saving the globe from the undead. In the clip of the game we've got below, you'll see how you'll be able to outfit a squad of dudes with various modern weaponry, order missiles from a cruiser, and then engage in a real-time point-and-click-y battle against a roving horde (while calling in missiles). It's a juicy display of a game that could be cool, no doubt.

According to Van Der Veer's Facebook page, War of the Zombie is in active beta right now and it's slated to release wide at some point in May 2013. We'll keep our eyes on this one, and hopefully get our hands on it soon! Here's some screens:

Masters of the pixelated career simulation Kairosoft are back at it again on iOS with their just-released Sushi Spinnery [$3.99] which dropped on the App Store early this morning.

As you might be able to guess if you're familiar with Kairosoft's ways, Sushi Spinnery is all about running a sushi restaurant. In fact, a main feature of your restaurant is a motorized "sushi boat" which spins around and offers customers a selection of your delectable menu items from the convenience of the rotating conveyor belt. It's the future of eating!

It appears that Sushi Spinnery is your standard Kairosoft fare, which is always great from a gameplay standpoint but brings a few recurring disappointments like lack of iPhone 5 widescreen support, no Game Center, and kind of half-hearted iPad support, though the title is Universal.

Still though, Kairosoft games are some of the most engaging simulations around, and if you're a fan of their brand of games then you'll likely enjoy this latest release, which has been out on Android for nearly a year. Stop by our forums for even more Sushi Spinnery impressions from our community.

Of late, we've been thinking a lot about how sickness travels from person-to-person and that kinda got us back into the Plague Inc [$0.99] mood. Released back in May 2012, Plague Inc is a simulation game that puts you in the shoes of a deadly plague's manager. Basically, you make a plague, mutate specific parts of that plague, and then watch it spread across the world. If you're a good enough disease designer, you'll annihilate the entire planet. If you suck, the world will scramble together a cure before the curtains close.

It might be a slow game, but it's an intensely interesting one, as you've got to quickly and constantly make decisions based on where you plague is, where it needs to go, and what kind of folks it needs to infect. People have been loving this game and creator Ndemic Creations has done an awesome job with releasing a ton of post-release support.

Jared and I spent some more time with it the other afternoon. Check it out, if you haven't yet:

Plague Inc is available as a paid app and you can get a bunch of new mutations and two new modes via IAP.

Heads up: there's now more new stuff to do in Middle Manager of Justice [Free], if you're still up for it. A recent update has added some new mechanics, as well as a new character into the whimsical free-to-play simulation.

One of these new things is called "Most Wanted Thugs." That's a fancy phrase that seems to mean "harder thugs," specifically made for pro-level players who are tearing through the game's basic enemies like no-scope e-sports athletes. The encounters are randomized and these dudes drop rare loot, too. The update also adds in meteorites which are drops that can be equipped to "give your hero special bonuses." When combined, you get more powerful ones.

Lastly, a new hero has introduced: Gloomerang. According to the patch notes, which are available on AppShopper and more succinctly on the Double Fine message board, notes that she's got a lot of group-oriented attacks.

Middle Manager of Justice is a pretty neat game if you can get beyond the free-to-play part or deal with it. You can check out our review here, or hey, download the game for the generous price of zero bucks.

Subset Games is still thinking about doing a tablet port of FTL: Faster Than Light, the studio's Justin Ma confirmed to Shacknews the other day. Interestingly, part of Subset's "looking into it" process involves, maybe, finding another studio to do the port. Whatever it takes, right?

We received a similar response back in October when we were all sorts of hot for FTL and probed Subset about the possibility. It's clear that Subset wants to take this slow and do it right, and even then the port is not a lock. That's an important thing to keep in mind -- there's lots of moving parts in FTL, some of which will take some substantial tweaking to work on touch. We're thinking an iPad port will need some kind of auto-pause or slowdown effect for crew movement at the least.

"We would like to get it onto tablets at some point in the future," Ma told us. "I can't say whether it's feasible or not, but we will look into it eventually."

FTL, if you don't know, is a space survival simulation that focuses on the crew and the innards of a space ship instead of raw, action-y combat. For the most part, it's all about crisis management. Surprisingly, sealing up and fixing a fiery, shield-less, and weaponless ship is just as frantically awesome as shooting laser beams at dudes in real-time. You should check it out on PC or Mac, if you've got the gear.

When we wrote an article about a possible port in October, tons of folks added the game to their Watch List, which is why we figured ANY sort of update, including vague, would be appreciated.

[via Shacknews]

AnonA is the next game from Be-Rad Entertainment, the studio behind Lame Castle and that WarGames matching game. Created at a NASA game jam, it's a resource-slash-building game that has you making infrastructure on uninhabited moons. The premise revolves around the idea of harvesting moon minerals and using them to "print" buildings. Think 3D printing, but in space. It's neat stuff.

Brad from Be-Rad breaks it down in the video and also shares some of the technology he plans to throw into the game when it's a little bit closer to release:

AnonA is about five months out, and we'll be keeping our eyes on it.

In an interview over at Polygon, Minecraft developer Mojang discusses a new service they've got in the works called Minecraft Realms, which is coming to the desktop and Minecraft: Pocket Edition [$6.99 / Free] versions of their popular sandbox game. The aim of Minecraft Realms is to streamline the creation and hosting of worlds for online multiplayer, as well as a reliable system for enabling or disabling mods, and make these tasks simple for non computer savvy folks to do.

Since nearly the very beginning of Minecraft's launch, two of the biggest customer support issues have involved troubles hosting worlds on outside servers and running mods that could possibly conflict with each other and create issues in or break the game. Minecraft Realms should offer a "one click solution" for the people who need assistance with these things. Mojang has been working on an official mod API that they hope to release at some point, and this can be used to create a library of officially supported mods which can be enabled through the Minecraft Realms service with the assurance that it won't cause problems with the game.

The Minecraft Realms service is currently in closed alpha, and should launch in the desktop Minecraft sometime before summer. There will be a monthly fee somewhere between $10 and $15 dollars to use the service, and like the game itself Mojang hopes to frequently add new features to the service and flesh it out over time.

Even more exciting is that Minecraft Realms will be heading to the mobile Pocket Edition too. It'll likely cost less money on mobile, but offer a similar functionality to the desktop version. Mojang is also toying with the idea of having the mobile and desktop versions interact with each other in various ways, which would be incredible, but right now it's a huge technical hurdle. Not out of the question, though.

You can look forward to Minecraft Realms hitting before the summer, so be sure to check out the original interview at Polygon for even more insight into the upcoming service and we'll definitely give you a heads up when the update rolls out to Minecraft: Pocket Edition on mobile.

[Polygon]

Neat: one of those massive, game-changing kind of updates is coming to Pixel People [Free] at some point during this week, if plans stick. A total of 55 new jobs and nine new genes are being added, allowing you to discover and create a bunch of new pixel people. More than a dozen new missions and a solid dozen animals are being added, too.

Around 40 missions are coming as well, giving users a solid goal to shoot for as they build, clone more dudes, and then build some more. From what we understand, a good bit of these missions will lean on your animals, which by the way, are being re-tooled for ease of play. Starting with this update, you'll be able to adopt an animal whenever if you've got the coin to spare and you'll be able to keep track of them all through their respective cards.

Interestingly, some balance tweaks and core play changes are coming along, too. Build times will "reduced," coin exchange and rewards will now scale, and the gene pool is getting a face lift (in addition to some other, smaller stuff and "bug fixes).

Pixel People is a pretty rad game, so consider giving it a look. We've got some hot screens above of some of the new stuff you'll be seeing pretty shortly, if you've got your finger on the update trigger.

It was nearly a year ago that we first heard about Deepworld [Free], a 2D Minecraft-like building and crafting game set in a very cool steampunk world. Deepworld launched on the iPad this past December, and although there are tons of these sandbox-style games all vying for your gaming attention, we thought that Deepworld was one of the better ones and worth your time to check out, especially since it's a free download.

That recommendation was limited to iPad owners though, so if you're rocking an iPhone or iPod touch only then you were out of luck. Until last week that is, when Deepworld was updated to be Universal. Now smaller-screened iOS gamers can finally explore the interesting worlds of Deepworld.

That's not all, though, as since we last talked about Deepworld in December the game has been updated numerous times, adding all sorts of new functionality and content as well as tweaking and smoothing out the entire experience. You can get all the nitty gritty details in the App Store update descriptions, but if you tried Deepworld initially and it didn't click with you then, it's worth giving another look now. Also, join in with the community at the official Deepworld forums or the game discussion thread in our very own forums.

Back at E3 last June, Harvest Moon creator Yasuhiro Wada and publisher Natsume made some waves with the reveal of their joint venture, a game called Project Happiness. Slated to hit at some point this year, Project Happiness tasks you with running a shop in a really small village. Interestingly, it's more about the people you meet and their stories than it is about hardcore shopkeeper simulation, which sounds like a pretty cool twist.

Today, we've got some more news to share on this one: Natsume and Wada have announced that the game's name is now Hometown Story and it's totally coming to "mobile" in addition to 3DS in North America.

A new trailer has been released, too, and it kinda shows off the emotional stuff that Wada is trying to pull off with this. It's definitely interesting.

Hometown Story is still slated to hit at some nebulous point in 2013. Heads on swivels, folks. Heads on swivels.

Last week, we detailed a massive update for Majic Jungle's Minecraft-y world building simulation The Blockheads [Free] which would fundamentally change the way the game and its free-to-play model worked. Like many free-to-play games, The Blockheads is outfitted with various cooldown timers and a premium currency system which you can use to speed them up.

The thing which was different about The Blockheads compared to similar titles is that the timers would only count down while the game was open and running, which was inconvenient to say the least. Initially this was to encourage players to warp in a second character, and while one was busy with timer-based tasks you could use the other to continue on with your progress.

That's not really the way it worked out, though, as Majic Jungle looked at their data and realized the majority of players were never getting to the point of introducing additional characters, and in fact were hitting game-stopping timer walls where they were left with nothing to do but sit there and stare at the game until the counters finished.

This wasn't how the game was intended to be, so with today's update you can now queue up your tasks and exit the game and they will continue to count down while you're gone. It's also cheaper to warp in another character to help out with your various endeavors, and the maximum number of total characters available in a single world has been increased from 3 to 4.

While the change in timer behavior is the big news in this update, version 1.2 of The Blockheads is chock full of tons of other new stuff too. Sharks and fish have invaded the oceans, and you can build yourself a fishing pole to get out there and catch some of them. You can also craft your Blockhead a tin foil hat, which will give him or her their own free will, meaning they'll run around your world collecting resources, mining or exploring while you're away.

There are plenty more details on what's new in this update in the App Store description, but if you tried out The Blockheads initially and were turned off by how the timer system worked, then now is the time to give it another chance. Or if you're like me and just plain put up with the waiting because you enjoyed the game so much, today's update should make for a much more enjoyable experience all around. Be sure to check it out.

If you've been diligently living an entire second life inside The Blockheads [Free] like I have, then you're really going to be excited about its forthcoming version 1.2 update. The Blockheads takes the whole Minecraft building/exploring/crafting formula and mixes in a dash of The Sims with the ability to have multiple characters with various attributes that needed to be managed. It also bested Minecraft in the interface department, simplifying things with a 2D plane instead of a fully 3D world and using a brilliant touch control scheme and easy to navigate menu system. The Blockheads feels perfect on iOS devices.

It's also a free-to-play title, and uses a premium in-app currency and different levels of timers in a similar fashion to the hundreds of other free-to-play games out there. One big difference though, and something that a lot of players weren't crazy about, is that the timers in The Blockheads would only tick down while you were actually playing the game. Most other free-to-play games allow you to play for a few minutes, queue up a bunch of actions, and then leave the app and go about your business while the timers ticked away, usually reminding you via push notification when one had expired.

The main reason the game was designed this way was to encourage people to warp in a second character. It's not something you can do right off the bat, but eventually you progress far enough with your single character that you're able to add a second character to your world. This is one of the main features of the game, as you can have up to three characters in a world at once and you just kind of play god and tell them what you want them to do. It also heavily mitigates the timers, as similar to using multiple cars in Real Racing 3 [Free] you can queue up a bunch of stuff for one character to do and while they're busy you can go off and play with your other characters.

Well, the problem is that many people either didn't realize, didn't have enough of the proper in-game items, or just plain didn't want to warp in a second character. Because of that, there are many players out there who are queueing up a bunch of tasks for their character and then are forced into sitting there and staring at them until they're done. This isn't what developer David Frampton had intended.

So with version 1.2 of The Blockheads, a fundamental change will take place. When you exit the game, whatever tasks you have queued up will continue on, and when your Blockhead is done they'll simply pause until you come back and give them something else to do. They'll also stop what they're doing if they become too hungry or tired, so you'll need to be mindful of that at least. But this means that no longer will you need to just leave your device lying somewhere with the game running so your Blockhead could finish whatever they were up to. Instead you can play a different game or app while the timers run in the background. Actually, to be clear the game itself doesn't run in the background, so don't fear for your battery life. Instead it quickly simulates the time that's passed (among other things) when you start up the game again.

What other things, you ask? That's actually the next big fundamental change coming to The Blockheads in the version 1.2 update. Now you'll be able to craft tin-foil hats that free your Blockheads from your omnipotent control over them, and while they're wearing one they'll act on their own exploring, mining, gathering resources, or whatever other activities pop into their wee AI brain. I can't wait to set a Blockhead loose in a cave somewhere and come back to find out what they've explored or done on their own.

Among the tweak to how timers work and the ability for Blockheads to have free will, there are tons of other new things coming in this update. For one you'll now be able to warp in an extra Blockhead for a total of four, and the cost for warping one in has been reduced to half what it was before. Fish now live in bodies of water and you can craft a fishing pole to catch them for food. Sharks also live in the water, and if you encounter one and are able to defeat it you'll get a bounty of meat and a shark jaw trophy that you can hang on your wall at home. The size of the trophy correlates to the size of the shark you killed too, which is a cool touch, and you might even come across a clothing item or two in the shark's stomach from a Blockhead who wasn't so fortunate.

There are many many more details too, like tweaks to how queueing up items and actions work and lots of performance improvements and fixes. Too many to name in this already too long post, but rest assured the flow of The Blockheads should be better than it's ever been once version 1.2 hits. As mentioned, the update is submitted and in Apple's hands now, and assuming everything goes smoothly with the approval then we should be seeing it hit sometime in the next week or two.

For now be sure to stop by our forums or the official Blockheads forums for some discussion, or read up on some tips to help you get started if you're new to the game. We'll let you know when version 1.2 of The Blockheads hits the App Store.

If there were some sort of award for "game I've spent the most time playing since release" then I'm almost positive True Skate [$1.99] would be the winner. Since its release last October, and our subsequent review, I believe I've played True Skate every single day in at least some capacity. It's just the kind of game that I can't help but jump into whenever I have a free moment.

Last month we detailed a new skatepark that developer True Axis had in the works for True Skate, and as of today that update has gone live in the App Store. The new park is called Inbound and is available as a 99¢ in-app purchase. It's an indoor skatepark and it's absolutely massive, filled with all manner of different ramps, ledges and rails. The possibilities seem endless, and Inbound should keep True Skate'rs busy for a very, very long time.

The other big feature in this new update is the ability to customize your board. You can dive into your device's photo collection and choose a picture to apply to the bottom of the board and even to the grip tape on the top. It's great to finally be able to see something other than the default board, but my one gripe is that the system is very basic.

There doesn't seem to be a way to adjust the size or position of the images you use, so you're stuck with however the game ends up placing it on the board. I've been able to find images that look cool anyway, so it's not a huge deal, but it would be a nice option to have. Also, the customization uses a similar system to the Slow Motion mode that was introduced in a previous update where customizing your board will cost you the True Credits that you earn through playing or by buying as IAP packs. Otherwise, if you wish, you can purchase unlimited customization for a one-time 99¢ IAP.

There are a bunch of other welcome new options in this update too. Setting a respawn point is now much easier to do right from the main game screen, and the physics engine now recognizes and locks into blunt slides on ledges much better. You now have the option to change the opacity of the HUD as well as turn off all the trick and scoring text that pops up on the screen for a much cleaner interface. I love that change a lot. There are also new missions and a new leaderboard for the new park, among many other tiny tweaks and fixes that make True Skate a better overall game.

You can join in on some discussion in our forums, and if you're a massive True Skate fan like I am then you'll want to check out this new update right away. True Axis says more updates are planned too, and I can't wait to see what's next.

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.