Armado is a port of an existing Mac and PC game which the company has “completely reworked” which we reported just the other day. The game is a platformer in which the main character runs, rolls, jumps and smashes his way around enemies and obstacles.
IUGO has released the second episode of their popular iPhone game Toy Bot Diaries. We at Touch Arcade were huge fans of the first episode.
Your favorite robot is BACK! Join Toy Bot in his latest and greatest adventure: Toy Bot Diaries Entry 2. Toy Bot begins where he left off, climbing out of the dingy sewers and into a whole new world of challenges in the sky. Entry 2 gives you more levels, more content, more graphics and maximum fun! See why Toy Bot has been called one of the best games exclusive to the iPhone. If you liked Entry 1, you’ll LOVE Toy Bot Diaries Entry 2!
We found the first episode to be a particularly polished and immersive experience and we still highly recommend it.
If you like shooters, you should just get this game.
It’s funny how we frequently get more excited about the simple games than the high profile efforts. In the end, however, it’s all about the gameplay.
John Kooistra’s Defend! [App Store] is a $0.99 iPhone shooter with relatively simple graphics and no sound. The controls of the game, however, are remarkably well suited to the platform and already feels like a “classic” iPhone game.
You are defender of a planet with a population of 6.7 billion people. You job is to fight off an oncoming barrage of enemies. Each enemy that gets past you takes out millions of lives.
Controls are dead simple. You continuously fire straight up, and tilting the iPhone left and right adjusts your aim. The game also cleverly shifts orientation between levels, requiring you to turn your iPhone around or into landscape position. The video shows it best:
Progressive levels are increasingly challenging and provides a good amount of gameplay. Normally, we frown upon games without sound, but for $0.99 and an otherwise fun game, we can overlook it.
We reviewed Oliver Pasqualini’s cave-flyer G Force [App Store] a few weeks back and liked what we saw but found the game severely crippled by an odd “extended hang time” physics / control quirk. This is just a quick update to let everyone know that Oliver has not only ironed out the issues with the game’s control system in the 1.1 update but has also dropped the App Store price from $3.99 to $1.99.
We can now strongly recommend G Force as a title well worth its price that every iPhone gamer would do well not to miss.
In 1987, Casady & Greene published a game by Patrick Buckland known as Crystal Quest for the Apple Macintosh. Ths first game to support color on the Mac, Crystal Quest was a simple affair where the player used the mouse to move a sphere around the playfield, dodging enemies and collecting crystals in order to unlock an exit gate a the bottom of the screen. While a very basic game, it worked very well with the mouse and offered some rather frantic gameplay in the higher levels. Anyone who used a Mac extensively in the late ’80s surely encountered this title and it likely holds a special place in his or her heart. Crystal Quest was later ported to the Apple IIgs, Commodore Amiga, Nintendo GameBoy, and Palm OS devices. Much more recently, an updated take on the original appeared in the Xbox Live Arcade, published by Buckland’s own Stainless Games (who announced iPhone support back in July).
And thanks to Hands-On Mobile’s recent App Store release [link], the iPhone can be added to the list of ports of of this classic action game.
Quite similar to the Xbox Live remake, Crystal Quest for the iPhone offers both a modern play mode, featuring updated graphics and audio as well as mild gameplay enhancements, and a classic play mode that stays true to the original’s simple color graphics and controls. The most notable gameplay enhancement in the modern mode is the ability to shoot at enemies in any direction by tapping in the enemy’s vicinity. The classic mode only allows shots to be fired in the direction that the sphere is traveling, like the original mouse-controlled game. The game’s option screen allows the choice of accelerometer or swipe control (or both) as well as sensitivity settings for each.
While the mouse is probably the perfect control mechanism for this game, the iPhone’s control systems do a decent job of approximating the feel of the original, especially the swipe control mode (which is shown in our demo video).
True fans of the original should find the $4.99 iPhone version much to their liking. Those unfamiliar with the game: don’t be fooled by the easy first levels–the pace quickly heightens and before long will be more than you can handle. Crystal Quest is a classic that is worthy of a look.
Crystal Quest is a remake of the 1987 classic Mac action game, very similar to the recent Xbox Live remake from Stainless Games. It’s simple “pick up the gem” action, but the pace quickly becomes frantic. Fans of the original should love this outing.
Resolution Interactive’s futuristic flying checkpoint racer Clusterball Arcade [App Store] has been reduced to $6.99 (down from $9.99) in the iTunes App Store for a “limited time.”
Clusterball Arcade is an extension of an existing PC game called Clusterball which appears to be a multi-player sport. The iPhone version, however, is a one-man game against the clock and the scoreboard.
You are the pilot of a ship which you must glide over ramps, collect balls and score goals while attempting to complete the course within the allotted time. Despite the sports theme, the iPhone version of the game is more of a checkpoint racer with various obstacles and bonuses available along the way.
We reviewed the game a few weeks back and noted some serious memory usage issues. The developer has since worked to address these in the current 1.0.1 release.
Dave Frampton of Majic Jungle Software has just submitted a notable update to his unique, relaxing iPhone game DuckDuckDuck to the iTunes App Store [link].
Rubber duckies float in a pond with beautiful highly realistic interactive water, rain and snow showers, reflected clouds and relaxing ambient sounds.
This is the most realistic water available on the iPhone. With amazing reflection, refraction, animation and interaction, you won’t believe your eyes.
But it isn’t just pretty, it’s a game too. The goal is to swim all of your ducks to matching colored whirl pools. Tilt to swim your ducks. Ducks can nudge other ducks off whirl pools, but don’t tilt too far or they will swim away!
DuckDuckDuck v2.0 features:
The most realistic water simulation on the iPhone.
Reflected clouds drift by with occasional showers of rain or snow.
Two modes of play - time challenge or just for fun.
Saves when you exit.
‘Just for fun’ gives many options for graphics and game play.
Multi-touch realistic water interaction with sounds.
Every duck, whirl pool, rain drop, or touch influences the surface of the water.
‘Time Challenge’ gives time goals to meet, as well as the chance to better your previous times.
Relaxing ambient sound effects with bird songs, water, wind chimes and rainfall sounds.
Dave posted a new gameplay video demonstrating the updated title, which should be available in the App Store in the next few days.
iPhone developer f-gap recently released Space Rage 3D [App Store], a space dogfighting game, through the iTunes App Store.
Space Rage is a fast paced, realistic 3D space battle game that is totally unscripted. Fight in space against enemy ships, destroying as many as possible. The more you destroy the higher your level.
Fly around in any direction using the accelerometer, evade enemy fire and turn and destroy your pursuers! How you fight is up to you! The on screen buttons allow you to fire, control your thrusters and roll your ship.
The initial release of this game received some strong criticism from our forum members, spawning a lengthy discussion of the game’s shortcomings. The developer has been an active member of this disucssion and, based on this constructive criticism, has completely reworked the title, which is now available for download in the App Store.
The updated release now features:
More ship models
More variation with ships
Lots of changes to the gameplay
Distinct levels
Improved HUD
Sounds
The developer has posted a video of the updated game in action.
IUGO Mobile Entertainment released Zombie Attack! [App Store] tonight. Zombie Attack! is the third title from IUGO after Toy Boy Diaries 1 and Shaky Summit.
Priced at only $0.99, Zombie Attack! is billed as an “addictive 3D tower defense game with a scary twist.”
Your mission: play as a survivor from the ultimate Zombie Apocalypse, protect your shack and stay alive. Choose from an array of zombie-blasting weapons including, flame throwers and cannons. Kill zombies, earn points and cash to upgrade your weapons and bolster your fire power. Easy tilt and touch-screen controls make ZA! an instant iPhone exclusive favorite.
Tower Defense is a genre of strategy game in which your goal is to stop the enemies from crossing the map by building up your tower defenses. IUGO’s entry into this arena appears to take an original approach to the standard formula. Forum member NotYoudescribes his first impressions:
It’s not at all a normal tower defense game. It is tower defense, technically, but it’s a whole different take on it. Instead of just placing towers strategically, you have to actually run around and plant them. If a zombie is in your way, you might not be able to get where you want. This way there’s a lot more action to the game and it’s not purely strategy.
TrickySoftware’s Armado platformer is now available [App Store] for $4.99. 
We reviewed
In 1987, 
Resolution Interactive’s futuristic flying checkpoint racer Clusterball Arcade [
Dave Frampton of 
iPhone developer 
