Rayman Jungle Run [$2.99] is now my favorite iOS auto-runner. Granted, I wasn't the biggest fan of the genre, especially those with procedural, unending levels. Luckily, Rayman Jungle Run offers 40 distinct levels that require players to jump, hair-copter float, wall run, and punch or kick their way to the goal.

Each of these four overarching worlds tacks on an ability, and three of these worlds play out with tap-anywhere controls. However, the punch mechanic, used only in the final world, is relegated to a virtual button on the lower right.

Getting to the 40 goals is the easy part and adds up to less than an hour of pure gameplay. Getting 100 Lums per level, though, requires hours of practice. Each perfect level earns players a red gem-tooth, and five teeth unlock one crazy-hard race per chapter.

No Lums are in these Land of the Dead levels; it's all about reaching the end for the final tooth and getting the fastest time to place on the leaderboard. Speaking of leaderboards, none of the other stages are timed for online racing, which almost seems like a missed opportunity.

Other than meeting achievement goals, going for 100 Lums in stages unlocks an image gallery full of characters from Rayman Origins. This feels rather bittersweet, as seeing the characters creates nostalgia but serves to remind players what's missing from the Origins universe. How would this auto-runner incorporate bosses? I don't know, but I think the brilliant minds behind Rayman could have found an innovative way.

A few extra music tracks also wouldn't hurt, as they played randomly and grew a little stale after the first hour of playing. These tracks are probably enough for casual plays, but not for those who play over and over to perfect every level. That said, the overall lack of new assets made more sense when I realized Pix'n Love Rush creator Pastagames actually developed Rayman Jungle Run and not the original Ubisoft team.

Fanboy-like complaints aside, Rayman Jungle Run is the most thrilling, gorgeous, charming, and responsive auto-runner I've ever experienced. The stages whip and zip like a rollercoaster set at a perfect speed, which allowed me to take in each colorful character and background.

Each level, while less than a minute long, felt large. In whatever direction Rayman was running, jumping, or floating, I felt like I was exploring nearly every inch.

I don't believe collecting all 3,600 Lums in one play without dying is reasonable replayability, but I will happily pay for more levels to explore. Sadly, the title screen lacks a DLC button to hint of any forthcoming content.

For people who've never experienced Rayman or those who have strayed from the series, this is an excellent (re)introduction. For those who've played Origins, this may feel a bit mechanically and aesthetically familiar. In the case of Rayman Jungle Run, familiarity isn't a bad thing, especially when it stems from creator Michel Ancel.

ThinkGeek and manufacturer ION's dreamy handheld controller add-on for iPhone and iPod Touch, the iCade Mobile, is now a thing you can buy on the Internet. It's $70, and it's still available despite appearing earlier this weekend. The final build looks identical to the one we saw at CES earlier this year -- it's still nice and glossy, supports eight buttons and a d-pad, and allows you to flip your device in its cradle if a game is only playable in portrait mode.

Mobile works with any iCade supported game and it's compatible with a host of devices, both new and old. iPod Touch 3rd and 4th generation, as well as iPhone 3, 3G, 3GS, 4, and 4S can all be jammed into the peripheral.

We've got a list of good iCade supported games on our site, but do note that most of these games don't support Mobile's specific layout of physical buttons. This will change if Mobile is adopted at the rate iCade proper was.

[via Joystiq]

On April Fool's Day, Team Meat teased that its upcoming Super Meat Boy game for iPhone and iPad game will use new art, new sound, and new mechanics. In other words, it's not going to be a port of Super Meat Boy. Speaking with The Verge today, Team Meat revealed that it wants Meat Boy iOS to be twitch-based platformer like its big brother, but plans to tone down the memorization part of that original experience for the mobile crowd.

"[The original] Meat Boy was a twitch-based game about memorizing things," said Edmund McMillen of Team Meat said. "[iOS] Meat Boy is the opposite. That's the foundation of its design. But it's also on a touch device, so there's that as well. We want to make a twitch-based platformer that's not about memorization."

With a fuller picture of what this game is now in our minds, we're imagining that this version of will have the spirit of the original Meat Boy, minus some of the pain. It sounds almost... enjoyable. We're scared. Should we be scared?

[via The Verge]

Surprise! Grand Theft Auto 3, which saw a release this December 14 at $4.99, is now just $2.99 in celebration of the holidays. If you were one of those day-one guys saying he'd wait until a price drop before taking the plunge... well, here you go.

This is part of a larger Rockstar holiday sale, by the way. Until the after New Years, you can also grab the studio's decidedly more mobile-friendly Grand Theft Auto joint, Chinatown Wars, at $5.99 instead of its usual $9.99. Beaterator, a music creation game, is also on sale. It's now $1.99 rather than its everyday $2.99. Deals!

Since Grand Theft Auto 3 is so fresh and all, swing by our review if you're on the fence. Spoiler: it's GTA 3 -- a fun, exciting open-world game that brimming with all the things we take for granted in a GTA -- but with virtual controls.

Final Fantasy Tactics [$11.99] on iPhone and iPod Touch has inspired numerous, uh, passionate e-commentaries since its release earlier this year. One of the components we've seen the most bickering about has been addressed: Tactics' latest update zeroes in on the port's decidedly unspectacular visuals on retina devices and supports the screen.

To be clear, the text is still tiny on iPhone 4S, for example, but it's apparently much less blurry overall. Also, the UI is noticeably sharper, and various assets like facial graphics and icons have been updated to mesh with the retina support. This update also rolls in some nebulous "bug fixes."

Off-topic, here, but we definitely want to note that Tactics is available at the lowest price it has ever been since its August release: as of December 19, it's $11.99 instead of $15.99. Still steep in comparison to other App Store games, but better.

If you already own the game and choose to update, note that you'll lose your auto-save data in the process because, reasons.

Microsoft, via Xbox Live evangelist Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb, has just announced the immediate release of the company's first Xbox Live iOS app, My Xbox Live [Free]. It's a free app that basically acts as a mobile companion to some of the more important aspects of the service. You can read and send messages to anyone on your Friend's List, manage that list or invite new people onto it, edit your profile, gander at all of your hard-earned achievements, or even mess with your Avatar's apparel.

Our time with My Xbox Live has been pretty limited so far, but we're pretty pleased with its presentation and how silky smooth the menu-to-menu navigation is on our iPhone 4S. What's especially tickling us is how it plays all those wonderful little dashboard sounds we've come to love, too.

If you're into the idea of having a mobile version of your Live dashboard in your pocket, this is probably something you need to check out. The zero dollar thing makes that pretty easy to do. Also, it's Universal.

All new and completely separate versions of PopCap Games's Bejeweled Blitz and Bejeweled are coming to the App Store today. Unfortunately, this morning presumably marks the last time you'll ever be able to buy Bejeweled 2 + Blitz [$.99], as it has been targeted for a good old-fashioned EA-style yank in light of the release of these two newer, and seemingly much more fleshed out versions of these two games.

The new version of Bejeweled, simply called Bejeweled, will feature retina display support in addition to higher resolution assets. Three game modes -- Classic, Zen, Diamond Mine -- and all the achievements, stats, and scores tracking services we presume a Bejeweled player could possibly care about will also be included in the $.99 package. Oh, and PopCap is promising that the game will "continually evolve with a range of new and exciting features."

The new version of Blitz, unlike the new Bejeweled, will be a free-to-play take on the bite-sized variant of Bejeweled. Retina display support has been confirmed, as well as "full Facebook integration," and a new user-interface. It seems like "coins" will be its in-game currency, which you'll probably be able to buy via IAP.

Pictured: Old Bejeweled.

A lot of Internet savvy people aren't, uh, so happy with this move and we can see the reason why. It certainly has that cold boardroom kind of feel to it. At the same time, these new games don't strike us as any less of the game that Bejeweled 2 + Blitz was. They'll probably be better judging by the features list.

We'll definitely be giving these a look and we'll get back to you. And, by the way, Bejeweled 2 + Blitz is still up on the App Store. If you're an old purchaser, you won't need back up the .IPA file if you ever want to re-sync it to your device -- you'll apparently be able to re-download this at will via your iTunes history.

The wait for Grand Theft Auto 3 on iOS and Android is almost over. On its blog a few minutes ago, Rockstar revealed that the 10 Year Anniversary Edition port of the game-changing open-world title will hit the App Store and Android Marketplace on December 15th at an agreeable price point of $4.99. A new trailer giving you another taste of what's to come is expected to release next week, but we've got some new screens right now to hold you over.

Oh! And in other related-and-cool news, GTA 3 will support more than just iPad 2, iPhone 4S, or a beefy Android device at launch. Single core phones and devices are now game. Here's an updated list of what will be supported at launch:

(more...)

I'd imagine the dudes over at Rocketcat Games are a little tuckered out at the moment. On the same night its glorious action RPG Mage Gauntlet [$1.99] hit worldwide, Rocketcat also dropped a bunch of tweaks and improvements into its "Hook" line-up of games. And you thought you were productive when you managed to clean the house and polish off that proposal.

Here's a run-down of the changes according to the patch notes: Hook Worlds [$.99] now supports flip-screen on retina devices, Super Quick Hook [$2.99] now supports retina display visuals and multi-tasking, and Hook Champ [$2.99] now boasts crisp retina support as well flip-screen, multi-tasking, and better OpenFeint functionality. All three games also have an updated in-game news catalog for your pleasure, too.

We're all pretty big on the Hook games and we're stoked to see that each is boasting a new, more refined look on our fresh devices. Ironically, we're little too engrossed with Mage Gauntlet to put a tremendous amount of time back into Hook, but hey, the game's look nicer. That's neat.

I've been chastised in the past for using phrases like "Unless you grew up under a rock, you've probably heard of...", but in this case, if you haven't heard of FarmVille, you've probably never used the internet. Or you're Amish. Possibly both. At any rate, while there's nothing new about the whole land management genre, we can definitely give FarmVille a nod for making it popular on a massive scale -- and not with just gamers, either. Facepalm all you want, but when your mom tells you that she totally built out her English Countyside, you have to admit that games like this have changed the gaming landscape in a major way (although good or bad, we can't quite agree on.)

Tiny Farm [Free]  is the latest offering in this popular genre, and I'm just gonna say it right off the bat so I don't feel like I'm holding back: It looks a billion times better than FarmVille. It trades in the deformed character style that makes you feel like you've stumbled into an avatar generator for a clean cartoon look, and I admit it made me like the game ten times more right off the bat. The cute little sounds the animals make when they get all swoony over you for feeding them in pretty great, too.

(more...)

9 to 5 Mac is reporting that GameStop, the US-based video game retailer famed for its glut of “used” goods, is set to begin carrying the iPhone, the iPod Touch, and the iPad in all of its storefronts soon. The company has been testing the tablet and other iDevice waters in at least 20 stores since earlier this summer, while its online arm has been been advertising trade-ins of used iOS devices -- including old scroll-wheel iPods -- for a good clip, so this decision isn't totally out of left field. Company president Tony Bartel has also stated in the past that a nationwide roll-out of the initiative was set to happen in 2011.

9 to 5 was hearing these tidings from various sources coming from the company’s recent function in Las Vegas, Nevada where this announcement was supposedly made. No information regarding timing, trade-in values, or how it’ll handle the sell of used iPhones -- which you know, are phones -- has slipped out, unfortunately. (more...)

Capcom is in the middle of throwing a wave-based sale. Did you know that? I didn’t either until I took a gander at our deals message board earlier this afternoon. With that thread’s help I discovered that the second wave, which ends this September and starts this Friday alongside everyone else’s sales, boasts a stunning total of two games. The catch is that both of which demand your attention if you’re a Resident Evil freak:

• Resident Evil Mercenaries VS - $4.99 → $.99
• Resident Evil 4: Platinum - $4.99 → $.99

Straight-up, Mercenaries VS isn’t that great of a multiplayer shooter. The touch controls are pretty good, but the visual quality and the franchise’s meat turret controls don’t bode well for a competitive romp. With that said, I can see fans of the series really getting into the action, the same as they probably would with the iOS version of Resident Evil 4, which in my opinion, is a’ight -- especially at a buck.

Like word games? Great! Graeme Devine’s studio, GRL Games, is launching a new front-facing camera-enabled game this coming September 1 across the iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch. It’s titled Word Chat, and it’ll release with a total four modes, one of which is an online mode that’ll let you chat face-to-face with your pals similarly to how GRL Games’ last title, Full Deck Hold 'Em [$2.99], allowed.

The online mode you’ll see just below is pretty simple. In 100 second timed rounds, you and your bud are tasked with spelling as many words as you can out of an endless set of tiles. As more words are forged, the tiles are removed and the highest score wins.

The other modes are basic solitaire modes designed for challenge as well as learning. In one, you’ll be given 200 titles and an infinite amount of time to come to grips with the game’s mechanic. In another, you’ll get 200 tiles and the aforementioned timer. The last mode is an infinite mode in which you can juice the game for more time after using every fourth letter.

We’re just now getting this into our hands, and will report back to you. If you have faith in Devine like we do, though, this seems like a no-brainer.

After being an Android exclusive for half a year, Pachinko Frenzy [Free], the latest from ngmoco, has arrived on iOS hoping to whet the appetite of Pachinko addicts everywhere. While that itch is certainly scratched with this game, Pachinko Frenzy’s freemium underpinnings unfortunately detract from the overall gameplay to the point where only the most hardcore of Pachinko fans will continue to play the game for longer than a few sessions.

For those unfamiliar with the early 20th century Japanese gaming device, we gave a good explanation of it in our review of the 2009 Pachinko [$0.99] iOS game. Essentially, small metal spheres are launched into the Pachinko machine with the goal of hitting as many stationary pins as possible, racking up points and generating more balls. Pachinko Frenzy takes this further by incorporating mini-games that can be earned when every pin on the board is lit up.

Mini-games range from trying to keep a single ball live for as long as possible, to trying to hit as many consecutive pins on one ball, and more. Do well in these mini-games and prizes can be earned, including collective trophies that can unlock new boards when enough of them are collected. Overall, Pachinko Frenzy does a good job emulating a standard Pachinko board, assuming you aren’t put off by the excessive anime motif. Just make sure that you have the latest generation of iOS devices, as Pachinko Frenzy isn’t compatible with anything earlier (and does occasionally slow down on the iPhone 4, no less).

Where the game starts to falter, unfortunately, is in its freemium implementation. The game starts out with only one board unlocked, and you can only unlock additional boards by “selling” 1000 balls or by collecting all the trophies associated with a locked board. Acquiring 1000 balls appears to be an exercise in futility, as you start out with 50, and it’s extremely slow going trying to earn more than that (unless you’re some kind of Pachinko Savant). The developers predicted this, and included the option to purchase additional balls as IAP, but as of this writing, IAP hasn’t been implemented yet. This leads to trophy collection as the only other alternative to unlocking the additional boards, which is definitely possible but would take an extremely long time. Odds are most players would probably lose interest in the one board before any additional ones could be unlocked.

One of the goals of Pachinko is to feed the addiction of possible reward by playing a game based mostly on random chance. If you’re looking for a time-waster that accomplishes that, or you’re a fan of Pachinko, you can’t go wrong with Pachinko Frenzy. However, don’t think you’re going to be unlocking new boards any time soon, unless you put in a good deal of time or money (once IAP goes live).

Of late, PopCap Games has been crossing its T’s and dotting it’s I’s. Just a few weeks ago, the publisher dropped a retina display support update into its monstrous hit, Peggle [$2.99]. Around roughly the same time, Plants vs. Zombies [$2.99 /HD] received the Zen Garden in a free update, bringing it on par with the other versions out there. Now, PVZ can boast retina display support, too. In a free update that just dropped, PVZ can be seen in all its fantastic, HD-y glory for those playing on an iPhone 4.

If PopCap was a person this kind of housecleaning behavior could be seen as a sign that it’s preparing for something new. Lord knows you won't catch me picking up quarters off my floor or dusting my molding unless I'm moving out an old couch and putting a new one in.

Is it plausible that we’re on the cusp of receiving a fresh game from the studio? Undoubtedly, it’s working on stuff. Games are kinda how a studio makes money, you know? I just wonder how soon we'll see something since both of these games are essentially in totally finished states, finally.

In the not-so-distant past, the media spotted a bunch of out-there PopCap Games trademarks. The one that caught my eye the hardest was Yeti Train, but there’s also Popcorn Dragon, Robodojo, and Vacation Quest.