Angry Birds [App Store]
Current Version: 1.2.0
Our Review
Forum Thread

The newest update for Angry Birds is nearly worthy of being a standalone sequel, with 42 new levels across two new graphically unique worlds to play through. Crystal has been been added for leaderboard and achievement support for high score/points junkies, and changes have even been made to older levels, mostly in the form of bug fixes, but with some small graphical enhancements thrown in there as well. I fell in love with Angry Birds when I first reviewed it, so you can bet that I'll be cranking up the game as soon as I get the chance.

Bird Strike [App Store]
Current Version: 1.2
Our Review
Forum Thread

Bird Strike was only released about a month ago, so it's a nice surprise to see an entirely new game mode (in the form of "Endless Climb mode") make its way into the game. The new mode really raises the value of the game, but the price hasn't been raised to correspond with the update, so if you haven't bought the game yet, now is a great time to do so. Those who've owned the game for a while and expressed complaints about 3GS performance and a nasty leaderboard duplication bug can breathe a sigh of relief as well, as Prodigy Design has addressed these issues with this update as well.

Call of Duty: World at War: Zombies [App Store]
Current Version: 1.2.0
Our Coverage
Forum Thread

It's been a long wait since Call of Duty: Zombies' initial mid-November launch, but a second map, Verrück, has finally been added for purchase in a massive update. Along with this update and new map comes nine new weapons (including FG-42, Gewehr-43, PPsh-41, M1 Garand, and the Springfield), 13 new achievements for Nacht der Untoten, 10 new achievements for Verrück, engine optimizations to make the game run more smoothly, leaderboard enhancements to track a wider variety of in-game stats, more customizable controls, a tutorial adjustment, network reliability enhancements, a "multiplayer point display" to track other players' in-game progression, and even French-localized text. The new map and all the goodies that comes along with it will set you back $5.

Doodle Bomb [App Store]
Current Version: 1.2
Our Review
Forum Thread

Doodle Bomb's newest update brings 10 new master missions and five new standard missions for players to play through, along with a new anti-gravity control that lets players reach new places and even roll bombs along ceilings. The master missions have been unlocked for everyone, so you won't have to meet a certain Bomb Badge requirement to play them now, and a new "variable bomb tilt" feature should provide something fresh for those who've conquered the game.

Ghosts'n Zombies [App Store]
Current Version: 1.1
Our Review
Forum Thread

This update isn't a large as many of the others on this list, but it's notable for removing the AdMob banner ad that we complained about in our review. A couple of bug fixes have also been instituted in the 1.1 update, as has the newest version of OpenFeint. We commend the developers for listening to feedback and taking action on the problems that players were having with the game, and now that this update is out, I don't feel like there's much getting in the way of a hearty recommendation from us for this game.

Hook Champ [App Store]
Current Version: 1.40
Our Review
Forum Thread

Mingore's John Gore has finally been added as a playable character in this newest update to the legendary swinging game, and he even comes with a usable machine gun (with unlimited ammo!). New levels have been created for playthrough with John, and a brand new control method has also been added and set as the default control scheme, but veterans of the game still have the option to switch back to the "classic" control scheme if they so wish. Naturally, a variety of bug fixes have been tossed in as well, so this might be an update that brings a lot of people back to the game for more.

Parachute Ninja [App Store]
Current Version: 1.1
Our Review
Forum Thread

Parachute Ninja's 1.1 update is a small one, but it fixes what might've been a make-or-break issue that I had with the game when I reviewed it: the tilt auto-calibration that activates with the parachute. This issue really frustrated me during my playthrough of the game, but now that I know I can turn it off, Im extremely likely to return to this beautiful platformer for more.

Sunday Lawn [App Store]
Current Version: 1.10
Forum Thread

Sunday Lawn has never been a big seller for Donut Games, but I've always liked it quite a bit. This new update should've been called 3.0 instead of 1.10, because it literally triples the value of this game. A challenge mode (much like the main game in Comet Racer) has been added, as has a fun little minigame called "Sweet Dreams" in which you must keep Charlie asleep by bouncing sheep over fences. Global leaderboards have been added, and the game finally allows you to start the app with your own music playing to replace the in-game music- a feature that all App Store developers should implement. If you've never tried out Sunday Lawn, go purchase it now, because it's finally on par with all their other awesome games.

Trenches [App Store]
Current Version: 1.2.6
Our Coverage
Forum Thread

I'll admit it: when Trenches was first released, I hated it. I beat the entire game on its normal difficulty setting in less than 20 minutes, a task I completed by simply tapping the "spawn infantry" button over and over until the game abruptly ended. We didn't give much coverage to the game due to its broken nature upon launch, but now that several updates have been implemented, I returned to Trenches to discover a truly fun, well-balanced game. The newest 1.2.6 update is nothing more than a bunch of bug fixes and further (necessary) unit balancing, but it also addresses the crashing that annoyed tons of people before now. Other past updates, however, have added new modes, length and variety to the campaign, and even improved control methods, morphing what was at first a broken novelty into a legitimately great game. If you're like me and took a pass on Trenches before, it's definitely worth revisiting now.

If you're a long-time gamer, there's a good chance you've heard of David Crane.

Widely considered to be one of the most influential video game creators to have ever laid down code, Crane is responsible for some truly groundbreaking classics. Among his more notable creations are Pitfall! (the first platform game), Pitfall II: Lost Caverns, Ghostbusters and Little Computer People. Another of his creations you may have heard of is a little game publishing and development house known as Activision. Very recently, he was honored by the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences who, later this month, will present him with its first Pioneer Award, which recognizes videogaming visionaries who paved the way in the industry's early days.

Last week, Crane issued a press release announcing the creation of a new game studio, AppStar Games, a joint venture with noted game developer Garry Kitchen. AppStar will focus on "small footprint" games for connected devices, the iPhone being among the studio's targeted platforms.

“Garry and I have worked together on a number of successful ventures over the years, generating hundreds of millions of dollars for investors and stakeholders. We’re very excited about the dramatic shift that is occurring in the game industry with the advent of direct-to- consumer distribution of our titles. AppStar Games is committed to taking a leadership role in that transition by delivering the highest quality product in the marketplace”, said Crane, CTO of AppStar.

Crane and Kitchen leave behind Skyworks Interactive, which they co-founded in 1995, that has been focused heavily on the iPhone platform since the App Store opened in 2008, with a notable number of releases including the very successful Arcade Bowling and Arcade Hoops Basketball.

AppStar Games expects to publish its first game titles in Q2 of this year, but is priming the pump with a few reference app releases that — while not actually games — may be of extreme interest to retro gaming fans.

AppStar has just released the second app in Crane's Technical Wizardry Series, entitled Dragster Magic [App Store]. It details the extremely obscure technical tricks that were used to make Activision's first game release, Dragster for the Atari 2600 / VCS, possible. This comes on the heels of the release of the initial volume of the series, 2600 Magic [App Store], which seeks to explain the highly bizarre (by today's standards) internal video circuitry of the Atari 2600 console. Both titles are comprised mainly of text and static graphics, but there are animations and interactive elements in some areas. Crane designed and programmed both iPhone releases himself, and more volumes are on the way.

We're quite anxious to see what the new studio has in store. Stay tuned.

Halfbrick Studios has been quietly releasing underrated games since its establishment in 2001. With games on Xbox Live Indie Games, PSP Minis, WiiWare, and the DS (among many others), Halfbrick knows their way around quite a few different systems. Now, Halfbrick's own Phil Larsen has confirmed with us that the Australian-based studio is ready to officially announce the first of "a whole heap" of iPhone games: Blast Off.

Blast Off is an arcade-style puzzle game in which the goal is to rescue stranded astronauts and carry them through a warpgate to safety. Gravity from nearby planets will affect your rocket's flight path, and the trick to figuring out the best solutions to these puzzles is using this to your advantage.

Here's a trailer for the game:

Blast Off got plenty of favorable coverage when it was released for the PSP minis service, with IGN calling it "the best PSP mini yet." New features aplenty will be added for the iPhone version, including global leaderboards and a brand new "Endless Mode."

We think that Halfbrick has a lot of promise as a studio, especially if one takes a look at their past releases and future games. If you own a PSP, check out this trailer for one of their PSP Minis releases, an excellent little game called Rocket Racing:

While Rocket Racing hasn't been confirmed as one of the "heap" of games being created for the iPhone by the developer, it serves as a good example of their talent as a studio and their knack for creating high quality, smaller games.

Retro gaming fans can add another item to their "things in life to be excited for" list, as we just got word that Manomio, who brought us the C64 for iPhone [App Store] emulator, is currently working on bringing an Amiga emulator to the App Store.

Retro Gamer magazine recently talked with the developer and Manomio CTO Stuart Carnie, who indicates that games will likely be distributed as individual, packaged apps to keep the Amiga operating system hidden, allowing the player to focus only on the games themselves. There's not much information right now as to just which Amiga games we'll be seeing on the iPhone, but Retro Gamer indicates that, among the games on the way, is Archer MacLean's classic fighter International Karate +.

"We've ported an Amiga system and have secured some great games," says Stuart. "It runs at full speed on a 3GS and similar hardware and at a respectable frame rate for the 3G devices. IK+ plays very well."

For readers unfamiliar with the Amiga, it is a 16-bit computer released by Commodore in 1985. A far more complex system than the C64, the Amiga featured a powerful central processor, various custom co-processors, and a multitasking operating system that enabled audiovisual feats previously unseen in a consumer system at that point in time. While it did not see enormous popularity in the United States, it was wildly popular in Europe and is considered by many to be one of the very best game platforms ever created. (And it's a platform I happen to hold quite close to my own heart.)

The Amiga was so capable a game machine back in 1985 that even today's gamers without any particular retro inclination should enjoy the vast majority of titles with which Manomio is about to gift us.

Have a look at this nice sampling of 100 Amiga games in 10 minutes.

UPDATE: We sought further details of the upcoming Amiga emulator from Manomio upon hearing the initial report. Carnie kindly got back to us and, while not ready to discuss further IP at the moment, provided us with a few details about the emulation core they're using.

In order to get the speed we needed, I spent about 6 weeks and wrote a 68000 CPU core in about 60+% ARM assembly. Surprisingly, certain games (IK+) run respectively on a 3G device, which means it should do well on a 2nd gen touch device too, given the 25% faster clock speed. The 3GS has a far superior memory architecture to the older devices – it can really push bytes around and fast…

He indicates that they've been testing a number of scrollers, including Xenon II, Turrican, Ghosts 'n Goblins and R-Type (not that these are necessarily among the IP they have secured for release in the App Store), all of which "are just perfectly smooth."

You can be sure we will bring additional information on Manomio's latest as we receive it. I can't wait to see what's in store for iPhone gamers from the world of Amiga gaming.

Kotaku got the scoop this afternoon on a surprising development in the Pocket God [App Store] universe: A comic book series is coming.

The Pocket God comic is a collaboration between Bolt Creative and indie comic company Ape Entertainment and will initially be released as a digital four issue mini-series with print issues and a trade paperback coming later. Both companies are excited at the prospect of the comic book, as Bolt Creative is bringing an army of over 2 million fans to the table, while Ape Entertainment and publisher iVerse Media could potentially expose tons more people to the pygmies of Pocket God that may not be iPhone gamers.

Pocket God has been an amazing success since its release nearly a year ago. Initially, there was so little to do in Pocket God that we were reluctant to cover it, or even label it a "game". 30 episodes later and the amount of interaction players now have with the pygmies is amazing, with multiple islands, environmental objects to interact with, mini games and even an in-game store that offers customization such as theme packs and even additional pygmy dances.

All that's left now is to see how they work the "You KNOW You Like Pocket God" catch phrase in to the comic books, and what kind of story they can spin in a comic based on a game with no plot to speak of. For more information, check out the interview with developer Dave Castelnuovo of Bolt Creative and David Hedgecock of Ape Entertainment on Comic Book Resources.

Macworld Expo 2010 kicks off this week and TouchArcade will be in attendance. If you are a developer and want to meet up to show us your games, feel free to contact us at tips@toucharcade.com.

We will also be attending GDC 2010 from March 9-13, 2010 also in San Francisco, CA and PAX East 2010 from March 26th-28th in Boston, MA. Feel free to start contacting us (email) to meet at those events as well. We welcome all developers to reach out and get in touch. If you have nothing specific to show, we'll also be around at the various organized social events and can be contacted via Twitter (@arnoldkim at Macworld, @arnoldkim / @hodapp / @blakespot at GDC, and @hodapp at Pax East).

Meanwhile, IUGO is again organizing a party for GDC, so at a minimum we'll see you there.

Just a quick update here on one of my favorite iPhone developers, Peter Hirschberg, author of the retro-inspired Vector Tanks and Adventure [App Store], and owner of the Luna City Arcade which is, without a doubt, the most amazing arcade ever assembled (if his office isn't cool enough for you).

Peter has recently setup his own studio, BlipTime Studios, and through it has released an update to Vector Tanks known as Vector Tanks (Classic Version) [App Store] at $0.99.  As one might suspect, denoting the current game as "classic" indeed betokens the near-term arrival of a rather revamped take on the original, to be known as Vector Tanks Extreme. Peter is splitting the game into two versions to provide, as he tells it, a version that delivers the "retro-simplicity" of the original, along with a version that's "a Vector Tanks experience WAY over the top for those seeking a bit more of a challenge."

Vector Tanks (Classic Version) appeared in the App Store in mid-January, with a version 1.3.2 update that appeared last week.  The updated classic version delivers the following changes to the original Chillingo release, as Peter details:

• New enemy tank added! The H6 "Heavy Sixer". Capable of driving directly over obstacles and having a fully turret-mounted cannon, this is a much more deadly foe than the regular tanks!
• Big fixes in responsiveness of the controls!
• Removed in-game music
• Now publishing the game directly through my own game company, BlipTime Studios ™
• Price reduction to $.99 (was $2.99)
• Rebranded as Vector Tanks Classic

Unfortunately for owners of the original, published by Chillingo, the updated BlipTime Studios' classic version cannot be downloaded as a free update. As Peter explains,

…I apologize that there isn't a way to upgrade. I worked with Apple to try and establish and upgrade path for my current customers but the final answer from Apple was that once you change the account under which an app is published, it will always appear as a "new" app and upgrading is NOT possible. I sincerely apologize. I did try and I know it sort of stinks. My hope is that the reduced price will serve as a good-faith gesture to my current customers who wish to pick up this updated version of Vector Tanks.

…though Peter hints that, in celebration of the release of Vector Tanks Extreme (which is expected sometime this month), iPhone gamers might just get an opportunity to grab the classic version at a price that's a bit less than $0.99 for a week or so, to even the score on the Chillingo situation…

I've been playing a few early betas of Vector Tanks Extreme for some time now and, I must say, Peter's use of the term "bloodbath" to describe the gameplay of the new title is an apt one. This one demands some real dual-track savvy.

Peter indicates that both Vector Tanks (Classic Version) and Vector Tanks Extreme will run natively on the iPad when it makes its 1024×768-pixel debut. He's already got Extreme running in the Xcode iPad simulator and promises it looks "glowy gorgeous."

We plan to take a close look at Vector Tanks Extreme when it goes live in the App Store and share details of the formation of BlipTime Studios through an interview with Peter that will accompany the review. Stay tuned.

App Store Link: Vector Tanks (Classic Version), $0.99

Updates are an integral part of the App Store and its economy. They allow developers to (instead of rushing out new games) draw fresh eyes to their old games by providing more content, crucial bug fixes, and general improvements. Updates are, however, as numerous as they are important, and it's sometimes difficult to find much to say about an update other than "new levels, hooray!"

With this in mind, we've decided to take steps to "update" our coverage of updates with a comprehensive article summarizing the most important updates. Worry not, these lists will not drone on about minor bug fixes and the like; only games that have been updated in at least somewhat substantial ways will be covered.

Battle of Puppets
Current Version: 1.1
[App Store]
[Our Review]

Battle of Puppets really stepped up to the plate to address player complaints, adding in a new tutorial and a complete hint system to help out new players. Other changes include increased performance on all hardware versions and a bunch of random bug-smashing.

TileStorm
Current Version: 1.0.2
[App Store]
[Our Review]

This update has been long-coming, but a lot of user-friendly options have finally been added to TileStorm to make it less of a hassle to navigate the menus. There's now a pause menu, the ability to restart a level without having to exit it and reselect it, and a "back" button was added to the level select screen. The other big fix in this update is the inclusion of the ability to "surrender" up to 10 times throughout the game. This counts the level that you surrendered on as a completed level (sort of) so you can unlock more levels and come back to the difficult levels later.

Parcel Panic – Post Car Racer 3D
Current Version: 1.2
[App Store]
[Our Review]

OpenFeint has been added, and along with that, of course, comes online leaderboards and achievements. Other issues addressed include the ability to add boxes during free ride and some slight texture work to improve the game visually.

Bust-A-Move
Current Version: 2.1.0
[App Store]
[Our Coverage]

OpenFeint 2.4 has now been included in Bust-A-Move, so high-score chasers and achievement lovers can rejoice! Facebook and Twitter connectivity was also added in this update for the social networking addicts out there.

Words With Friends
Current Version: 3.06
[App Store]
[Our Review]

Along with a bunch of various bug fixes, an entirely new dictionary has been integrated into Words With Friends. The dictionary is being touted as "a big improvement" from the developer, and will probably ease a lot of frustrations that people had with earlier versions.

Little Metal Ball
Current Version: 1.2
[App Store]
[Our Review]

A bug in the spotlight levels that was wreaking havoc on iPhone 3Gs has been issued here, but the biggest reason that this update is worth talking about is the substantial performance improvements that you'll notice while playing the game. I really enjoyed Little Metal Ball and made that clear in my review, but it doesn't seem like many of our readers ever really latched onto the game (especially given the low number of comments on that review). I'd like to seriously recommend that anyone who likes Labyrinth-style games check this out, because it's a ton of fun and deserves some love.

Ravensword: The Fallen King
Current Version: 1.2
[App Store]
[Our Review]

This isn't exactly a major update for Ravensword, but I'm sure that plenty of users will appreciate the integration of Crystal for online leaderboards and achievement support. Being a single-player game, Ravensword could benefit from a little bit of community integration, so I'm pretty happy about this particular update.

Battle For Wesnoth
Current Version: 1.3
[App Store]
[Our Review]

Kyle Poole just keeps on delivering with episodic content updates for Battle of Wesnoth, and the newly-added Episode 3 reportedly will clock in at over 10 hours of gameplay for those who delve into it. Not only has an entirely new campaign been added, but a whole slew of bug fixes (including one that reduces memory requirements to make the game more stable) and OpenFeint 2.4 with achievemens has been integrated. That, my friends, is how to do episodic updates. Bravo, Mr. Poole.

Diner Dash
Current Version: 2.0
[App Store]
[Our Coverage]

In an unexpected show of love for one of their original hit games, PlayFirst has delivered an update for Diner Dash that promises enhanced graphics (with a focus on larger sprites to make control easier), difficulty adjustments, and 10 new levels. Facebook connectivity has also been added, just in case there's a single person on your friends list who cares about your progress in an iPhone game.

There's a bucket full of games that had their prices slashed this weekend for various reasons. As always, standard App Store disclaimer is in effect in that these prices were all current at the time of this posting. Since sales are often very limited, if you've been waiting for any of these games to see a price drop, you may not want to wait very long before picking them up.

Assassin's Creed II Discovery, $9.99 → $6.99 – A fast paced side scrolling platformer that is highly reminiscent of Prince of Persia. We thought it was cool in our review, although to really enjoy it you need to play the game on third generation hardware, as the framerate on previous-generation devices left much to be desired.

Ravensword: The Fallen King, $6.99 → $4.99 – This impressive open-world RPG was developed by a two man team and features hours of gameplay. We liked the game in our review, and since then the game has been updated to include even more content.

Chop Chopa Ninja, $1.99 → 99¢ – Play as a ninja in this side scrolling beat-em up to rescue a princess. Instead of using on-screen controls, a series of gestures that are taught in the tutorial control the movements of your ninja. For more information check out our post on the game.

Chronicles of Inotia: Legend of Feanor, $2.99 → 99¢ – The first Chronicles of Inotia holds the claim to fame of being the first touch action RPG available on the platform. Released all the way back in 2008, Inotia has since seen a sequel that we enjoyed.

Crayon Physics Deluxe, $4.99 → 99¢ – A really fun physics game released in early 2009 that asks players to solve various puzzles by drawing crayon lines with their finger to create objects in game. You need to pick this up if you like physics games.

Heavy Mach 2, $2.99 → 99¢ – A top down mech game we enjoyed in our review. The sequel is an odd departure from the original which was a side scroller, and both games are worth checking out if you're in to vehicular combat.

iZombieland, $2.99 → 99¢ – One of the few movie tie-in games on the App Store that's actually worth playing. iZombieland loosely follows the movie Zombieland with a side-scrolling Splatterhouse-style beat em up. For more information, check out our review.

Theseus, $3.99 → 99¢ – A puzzle game that places players in a maze where they must escape a minotaur. The catch? The minotaur happens to move twice as fast as you do, but has predictable movements and mastering the game involves learning how the minotaur handles your actions. This was a forum favorite when it was released, and we liked it when we took a look at it.

Underworlds, $2.99 → 99¢ – Still one of my favorite hack and slash RPG's, Underworlds has had tons of content added to it since our initial review of the game. On sale for the Super Bowl, or, apparently, for a week following the Super Bowl if the Colts win.

Car Mania, 99¢ → Free – A traffic management game we had some minor issues with in our review, but you can't really go wrong with a free game– Especially when it comes packed with full OpenFeint integration to pad your OpenFeint score.

Daniel Zandelin, who is apparently a big fan of Mario Kart DS

Donut Games is the developer/publisher of well over a dozen iPhone games including fan-favorites like Rat On A Scooter XL, Comet Racer, and Cows in Space. Officially titled "Swedish Game Development Group AB," Donut Games has all of their games available in flash form on their website, where they can be played for free. With a arcade-like menu and three-star rating system for the levels in all their games, Donut Games has earned a large fanbase by consistently providing simple, quick experiences that draw players in for more, usually with a focus on increasing high scores.

I got the chance to find out a little bit more about one of the important faces behind the company, Daniel Zandelin, one of the founders of Donut Games.

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