The setting and characters in Murder Files (formerly Blue Toad Murder Files) [$2.99] are bursting at the seams with English flavour, so when I first heard about the game, I wondered if it would have a similar feel to the Sherlock Holmes stories I've loved since I was a kid. Nope; not at all. Once I started playing, however, I found it to be very reminiscent of another, completely different style of detective story I also enjoyed in my earlier years. I remember devouring the type of books where a couple neighborhood whiz-kids on summer vacation would decide to start an amateur detective agency. During their search for, say, old Mrs. Johnson's missing cat, they'd uncover million dollar jewel heist or some such, foil the culprit, and maybe even make the front page of the school newspaper.
The recent iOS port of Murder Files--originally released for the Playstation 3 in 2009--features that same sort of fanciful storytelling and over-the-top mysteries. Despite the alarming body count that accumulates as the story progresses, the game maintains a lighthearted and cartoonish feel. You play as one of four detectives (including, appropriately, two whiz-kids on summer vacation) from the Blue Toad Detective Agency, sent to the small town of Little Riddle for some R&R between cases. But before you can even unpack your bags, you witness the cold blooded murder of one of the town's prominent citizens. A conspiracy unfolds, and you must put your sleuthing skills to work to unravel the mystery.
Cavern [$2.99] is a pretty traditional, top-down rogue-like. You might recall the name. It made an impression on folks back when it was released in 2011. Frustrating, game-ending bugs ultimately held it back, though, despite its neat ideas, great touch interface, and hip combat. Most of those issues have now been fixed. A flurry of recent updates, including a big 2.0 update, have made it pretty playable. We've been enjoying it so much, in fact, that we thought we'd share a run in the game with you.
Earlier this afternoon, I decided to school Jared in the art of perma-death in Cavern, which, in hindsight, was a pretty easy thing to do because all I had to do was die. But it sure was nice to walk around in the randomized dungeons of this game again and grab all sorts of loot. Poison, on the other hand, not so much fun.
If you're in the market for an iOS rogue-like game, you need to grab this. Just check out that video and see if it clicks with you.
After a soft launch period that began in February, Gameloft's free-to-play class-based shooter Blitz Brigade [Free] has now been officially launched in the App Store. Originally announced in January, Blitz Brigade feels like the lovechild of Team Fortress 2 and Battlefield Heroes. It's a lighthearted kind of game, as opposed to the gritty, realistic nature of most shooters nowadays. Despite not being an entirely original concept, I'm actually surprised with how much fun Blitz Brigade has been so far.
As you'd expect, it's pretty freemium'd out, but not really in a gross or unfair way. It looks like you'll be able to earn everything the game has to offer just by playing, or if you're impatient or otherwise just don't mind dropping a few dollars on in-game currency you can purchase packs of gems to spend on basically anything in the game. The part that's annoying is that Gameloft takes every chance possible to let you know you could be spending that gem currency, so it's pretty in your face, but at least it doesn't appear to gate any of the content from you outright.
It's sad that so much time need to be dedicated to explaining how a game's pay model works, but that stuff aside Blitz Brigade is pretty darn cool. It looks nice, it plays well, and it's fun. The main dish is of course its online multiplayer, but there's also a good deal of single player missions to work your way through that'll pretty much walk you through all the different aspects of the game and its characters. The online connection has been a bit iffy but seems solid for the most part. If you've played any other Gameloft shooter you pretty much know what to expect.
I'll be spending the weekend playing some more of Blitz Brigade to dig in further, but I have to admit I'm pleasantly surprised with it so far, and our forum goers seem to be digging it as well. It's free so give it a look if you've been waiting for this type of shooter to hit your iOS device.
While the folks over at Big Bucket Software are busy cranking away at their next project, they've decided to show a little love to their previous iOS release The Incident [$0.99] and drop its price down to 99¢. What is The Incident? Well, imagine on any random day you're outside standing on the sidewalk. All of a sudden, stuff just starts falling from the sky. And by stuff, I mean just a bunch of weird stuff. Like refridgerators, cars, foam fingers from sporting events, garden gnomes… if you can think of it, it's probably falling from the sky in The Incident.
Your job is to avoid getting smashed by this stuff, but also continually stay on top of what eventually becomes a rapidly rising junk pile. What results is a fun and challenging arcade game that has stayed on my device since its original release nearly 3 years ago.
Check out our original review for more, but keep in mind that over the years The Incident has been updated pretty frequently to keep with the times. First it received an endless survival mode, iCloud progress syncing, iPad Retina Display support, and most recently iPhone 5 widescreen support. It really is one of those cool little games that's always fun to fire up and play, so if you don't own it yet then definitely consider grabbing it during this 99¢ sale.
Heads up: SEGA is doing a sale on three of its more notable recent releases on the App Store. From now until later this weekend, you can grab After Burner Climax [$2.99], Crazy Taxi [$4.99], and House of the Dead: Overkill [$4.99] for a couple bucks off their usual listing price. So, if you want to do something with either zombies, taxis, or jets feel free to go nuts.
Here's one of those handy before and now lists:
After Burner Climax - $2.99 -> $.99
Crazy Taxi -$4.99 -> $.99
House of the Dead: Overkill - The Lost Reels - $4.99 -> $2.99
Each of these games suffer from some of the usual issues that come from ports of games that were originally on machines with buttons (or steering wheels ... or joysticks), but generally speaking, they've been received well by folks.
Surprise! Sid Meier's Ace Patrol [Free], that turn-based WWI aerial combat game we talked about not too long ago, is now available on the US App Store for the low price of $0. What you get with that initial download is the first handful of missions in the British campaign, one of the four campaigns in the game. For a price, you can grab the rest of that one as well as the other campaigns.
There's some other IAP goodies being offered, too, including new skins and fighters, as well as a get-out-of-jail card, in case your fighter gets captured. I'm beyond tired of describing free-to-play systems, so check out our video to see them in action. Speaking of that, here it is:
Like most of Sid Meier's stuff, Ace Patrol is pretty rad. We've been digging it so far, free-to-play and all. Give it a look.
Firaxis is best known for their excellent strategy game work on PC and consoles. At PAX East they announced their ambition to take the iOS world by storm with the release of XCOM: Enemy Unknown this summer. With much less fanfare comes Haunted Hollow, a sleepy, unassuming little turn-based strategy title. Behind its chibi-monsters and freemium veneer, Haunted Hollow [Free] is a digital board game that successfully marries the accessible strategy pedigree of its creators with the realities of iOS (pricing and playtime).
Your Victorian mansion sits atop a rise overlooking a small village. Heir of untold funds from wealthy ancestors you spend your time creating monsters to scare the villagers below. But what is that, another mad scientist on the neighboring bluff? In Haunted Hollow you are competing with a fellow monster maker to be the first to haunt every home in the village. To do this you will need to build up your mansion room by room and then summon monsters to do your bidding. Monsters like ghosts focus on scaring homes while those like the werewolf are used to fight other monsters.
The roguelike is a timeless video game genre and helped shape the RPGs and dungeon crawlers we've known and loved for decades. But I've never played one that was a side-scroller. Not until WazHack [Free] anyway. Warwick Allison's WazHack has been around on desktop and Android for about a year, and has now made its way to iOS. I've only just barely scratched the surface of the game, but I'm already hooked.
The funny thing about WazHack is that it being a side-scroller doesn't really change its roguelike feel. You still explore a large, randomly generated dungeon; battle monsters in turn-based fashion; and collect all sorts of sweet loot like items, spells and weapons. Your overall goal is to plunge down to the bottom of the dungeon, retrieve the Amulet of Zaw (hey, that's Waz backwards!), and make your way back up and out alive.
Best of all is that WazHack is free to download and play (or free to play on the official website). Once you get to a certain depth in the dungeon, you'll be prompted to purchase a character class to unlock the full dungeon and continue on. There are four character classes (Knight, Wizard, Sorcerer and Huntsman with male and female versions of each) and each class goes for 99¢ as an IAP.
I like this system, as you can play as each of the different classes up to the cutoff depth as many times as you need, and then you can decide to buy whichever ones you really want. The free portion of the dungeon is more than enough to help you decide if WazHack is something you'd like to drop some money on, too.
I have a feeling there's lots more that I'll be discovering about WazHack in the days to come, but I was having such a good time and the players in our forums have been having such a good time that I felt the need to share it with you right away. But seriously, this thing is deep. With over 300 types of items and more than 130 types of monsters, not to mention the various unique attributes of each of the different classes, both male and female, and randomly generated dungeons, WazHack should be a very different experience every time you play.
Check out an older trailer from the desktop version to see it in action.
Something worth noting is that a couple of minor bugs are in this release version of WazHack. From the App Store description:
* Keyboard input on iPhone does not allow pop-down. This will be fixed very soon (1.1.5).
* Multiplayer does not work except by very circuitous means. This will take a little longer to get working - I may use GameCenter for this, but I would prefer that cross-platform multiplayer works, which will take longer.
Nothing major, but good to be aware of at least.
So, go check out WazHack, it's available right now and it's awesome. You can thank me later.
Heard about Tetris Blitz yet? In a nutshell, it's an arcade take on the title that has you dropping blocks and creating lines in a two-minute rush to get the sickest of sick scores. As you can imagine, it's flashier than regular Tetris. Provided you've got the coin to buy them, you can deploy power-ups that jumble, explode, or even remove blocks. And if you're making lines fast enough, you can activate a frenzy mode that, basically, turns most of the board into TNT. It's sorta like Bejeweled Blitz, except with Tetris. Simple enough.
Tetris Blitz hit the Canadian App Store today as part of seems to be a soft launch for the game. Eli and I took a look at it, mainly because we've been hearing a lot of junk about its free-to-play-ness.
As you'll see, it's loaded with ads, as well as those weird "take a survey" or "sign up for such and such" opportunities. You can also buy the game's currency for real money, and if you're feeling froggy, buy a couple of spins on the game's slot machine mechanic, which hands out random power-ups and coin allotments.
Surprisingly, Blitz isn't as aggressive as we though it would be. The game doesn't beat you over the head about what you can buy, at least. But, some of the power-ups do give players better pieces, which could certainly up their score pretty artificially.
One thing for sure, though: this game actually plays pretty good as far as Tetris games on iPhone and iPads, go. A neat prediction mechanic outlines where you can drop a piece, so all you have to do is tap instead of endlessly rotate your piece and follow it down. It's a neat touch. Also, there's the whole Tetris thing: this game, despite how old it is, continues to hold up as a great puzzle game.
Blitz should be out in the coming weeks. We'll keep our eyes on changes, as there will presumably be a few during this launch phase. Check out our video if you want to see it in action, by the way.
While most fans of Square Enix should be rightfully concerned with some of the recentFinal Fantasy mobile offerings, one area competently executed are their ports of preexisting console FF offerings. Final Fantasy V [$15.99], the latest port to grace iOS, thankfully continues the trend of offering improved versions of the classic RPG series. Offering one of the better implementations of the main series’ job system, FFV is a great game in its own right, successfully makes the transition to iOS and should be added to the collection of any nostalgic RPG collector.
Originally released in 1992, Final Fantasy V wouldn’t grace the US until its inclusion in the PSX Fantasy Fantasy Anthology in 1999 (and wouldn’t see a mobile release until the 2006 GBA Version). It’s a shame that US FF fans had to wait so long, because Final Fantasy V was a pretty good entry in the series. The overall story, which centered on a sealed evil looking to destroy the elemental crystals holding its bond in place, features a lot of themes and character development that would be utilized in later entries in the series.
There’re a lot of folks that have probably played FFV in some previous iteration and are wondering what the differences are between this iOS version and previous ones. Content-wise, FFV for iOS features the same additions as found in the GBA version. This means that players will find an additional end-game dungeon as well as four extra job classes that weren't in the original. While the additional content is purely optional, the additional job classes add some variety for players that haven't experienced the GBA remake.
The one area that does change significantly in this iOS port is the art style. Instead of using the classic, highly pixelated models of the original, FFV on iOS has a very smoothed art style, with the game looking closer to the recently released Final Fantasy Dimensions. In addition, the game features more artwork from original artist Yoshitaka Amano at a much higher resolution than previous versions. While I welcome the additional Amano art, I'm on the fence about the rest of the visual improvements. There's a lot of nostalgia and charm lost in the move away from the pixel graphics and the current look feels a little bland.
The rest of the additions, meanwhile, are positive in my book. The music, which is classic Nobuo Uematsu, has been remastered beyond the chiptunes of old but still retains everything that made the original soundtrack great. FFV for iOS also includes an auto-battle mode, which speeds up the wait time between turns and automatically uses the previous commands issued for every character. This one little addition does a lot towards speeding up the grind, which is always a concern with these early RPGs. Little additions such as the ability to pinch-zoom the in-game map are also nice touches.
It's always hard to review these classic FF titles on iOS because they're always essentially ports of ports of the originals. Just as was the case with the previously released iOS ports, Final Fantasy V is a no-brainer if you're an RPG fan and have not had the pleasure of playing it. The story, job system, and classic Final Fantasy gameplay are strong in this title and showcase the golden age of Squaresoft 16-bit RPGs.
At the same time, the changes to the visual engine and minor gameplay tweaks probably aren't enough to justify a purchase for fans that have already completed the game (especially on GBA). Although, there's still enough nostalgic appeal that odds are you'll probably buy it anyways.
We've been following along with the development of iMech Online [Free] since its first unveiling at WWDC last year, and over the weekend the game quietly launched for free in the App Store. Actually, to back up a bit, iMech was a game originally released way back in 2009 and was among the first iOS games to feature full competitive online multiplayer for up to 8 players. It was extremely impressive for the time, and iMech accumulated a dedicated fanbase of online players.
As can happen, the original development team broke apart and eventually iMech was removed from the App Store and its servers were shut down. A phoenix rose from the ashes in a sense, though, as some of the original team banded together and purchased the iMech IP and set forth to revamp and rerelease the game. And that's where we're at now with the release of iMech Online.
It's free to download and try iMech Online, and there's really no reason why you shouldn't. It has a fairly robust selection of mechs to choose from as well as a ton of customization options so you can trick them out with special abilities and weapons. It's a free-to-play title, though, so expect to need to grind away to earn some of this stuff or pony up some real dough to do it more quickly.
However, the game's new developer Mobula has tried to ensure there's nothing that's "pay-to-win" about their upgrade system, so even if you are new to the game and not quite fully-equipped just yet you can still match up well with those who are. Also they're using a League of Legends-inspired rotating system which gives you a selection of different mechs to try out each week, so you can check them out before committing to investing time or currency into them.
So far I've only spent a small amount of time with iMech Online, but it feels like there's a lot of potential here. I like the amount of different mechs and customization options, but with just one arena and a simple deathmatch game type it feels very basic. We'll see how it continues to evolve, but for free I think it's definitely worth the time to check out. Also, there's a discussion thread in our forums if you want to drop your own thoughts or suggestions on iMech Online, or just find some folks to frag.
Because we're always scanning the scene for games with sickest of sick tricks, Eli and I decided to give Djinn Works's Stick Stunt Biker 2 [Free] a shot. By titling alone, you probably already know what to expect. Yes, it's a stick figure game. Yes, it's physics-based. And yes, it has sick tricks. But here's something you might not know: it also doesn't have a rigid progression structure. Once you get access to a world, you can play every level in it, regardless if you manage to get one or even zero stars in a given level. Each win or loss is met by a loading screen that instantly sucks you into the next level, which is a nice pacing touch. A lot of these games make you retry and retry the same stuff over and over again, which for us tends to cause a lot of fatigue.
In this look, you'll notice that we can't quite pull of a sick trick. I swear, I could almost write a guide about how NOT to play this game. I'm pretty bad at it. Oh god, is this becoming a theme in TA Plays? It is, isn't it.
Anyway, you can grab Stick Stunt Biker 2 right now if you'd like. And if you still dig these kinds of physics games, you should consider doing so. The rapid-fire progression is a nice touch, plus the physics keep your bike really rounded to the ground. It just doesn't feel as loose and insane as its brethren, which is cool.
Remember Fall Down? It's a super simple arcade game that revolves around dropping a ball down a series of gaps between ledges. Think Doodle Jump, but flip the mechanics on their heads. Recent release FallDown! 2 [Free] takes this formula and spices it up a bit with a bunch of power-ups, a forever-falling laser beam of death, and some insane colors. People seem to really be digging this new treatment, too, as the game has rocketed up the charts and is currently sitting pretty at number one in Top Free.
Eli and I gave it a spin this afternoon and came away pretty impressed with the lack of free-to-play grossness. The actual game part is pretty rad, too. Its breeziness as well as accessibility are great features.
Eli used to play this on his old Calculator For Smart People, so we talked a lot about that in our elongated look at this chart topper. If you ever wanted to see it in action, here's your chance.
Fights in Star Command [$2.99] feel like sci-fi slugfests. Two interstellar pugilists meet and one meets its fiery doom under barrage after barrage of vicious, cutting plasma blasts. And that's just ship-to-ship combat. While fire is raining down all over the place, your crew is fighting off on-board enemies intent on destroying the innards of your ship. Even if you're a great player, you will lose people and your ship will be a fiery wreck after the battle. That's just how Star Command is.
What we're trying to get at is simple: this is a brutal game full of a lot of bad stuff that can happen. The majority of you were probably prepared for this, but for those of you who weren't and are struggling, we've prepared some tips and tricks that'll make your space adventure just a wee bit easier. We're cool like that. Here's five tips that we've discovered are key to staying alive long enough to smell the sweet smell of victory. And tokens. And space.
The Nightjar [$4.99] is a fantastic fabrication of horror, creating a vision of terror from the wonderful and disturbed recesses of the subconscious. Your eyes are rendered useless and your ears become sight. Focusing on finite and nearly faint ‘beeps’ of access panels to exit doors, the paces of creatures, and the echoes of a dead and void space station made my body have claustrophobic reactions and my thoughts feel with the dread of a disgustingly loud and crunchy demise. As Somethin' Else's spiritual successor to Papa Sangre [$4.99], The Nightjar is impressive in design and even more in the execution of an auditory warp into darkness.
Left behind to survive on the derelict spacecraft, your goal is to escape its metallic remains. Nightjar has a unique pacing that immediately builds tension as you internally battle the ship’s on-board computer (an eerie homage to ‘Mother’ from Alien) and your guide (voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch). Each contradicts the other, making trust rest with the voice that saves you from the most recent dire circumstance. Sound becomes equal parts enemy and ally.
The controls are minimal using two light bridges expressing your steps and a rotating dial as your compass. As my brain rewired and adjusted to not using the sense of sight, I failed a small number of early acts before I confidently connected to the UI. Nightjar's refinement is displayed when the controls are synchronized with 3D audio from the Papa Engine. As direction is navigated by sounds, going towards something perceived as awful is often done. However, the closer to danger one may come, also yields the true path to your exit as a new sound may be introduced, better defining the correct direction. This made me move with purpose, but not too fast, as every step is wonderfully pivotal by syncing ambience to situational awareness. Utilizing the instructions of the ubiquitous guide, I filtered my projected madness from the atmosphere, and eventually, pinpointing the lifesaving “ding”.
If a deadly apparition feels like its nipping at your feet, it is. Crystal-clear is every sound and yet, The Nightjar often placed my bravery into question as I continually second-guessed myself in moments that needed complete poise and some common sense. When watching a horror-flick, common sense can be constantly absent as supporting characters are either too patient or overly edgy at the incorrect moment. The Nightjar gives you a construct but it doesn’t necessarily have to be obeyed. When death is close, there is no shame in running; or if the exit appears to be near a threat, trying another approach may prove better.
Though a short experience, besting 2 hours, there are several challenging stages in Nightjar's second half that can surely extend your length of play. Coupled with a few generic twists, there’s enough variance in the plot to see The Nightjar through to completion. It is a fresh survival horror app that will test your nerve and synesthesia while leaving a strong sense of fulfillment. The Nightjar is a definite bird to catch so check out our forums and see what the community is saying about the experience.
The setting and characters in Murder Files (formerly Blue Toad Murder Files) [$2.99] are bursting at the seams with English flavour, so when I first heard about the game, I wondered if it would have a similar feel to the Sherlock Holmes stories I've loved since I was a kid. Nope; not at all. Once I started playing, however, I found it to be very reminiscent of another, completely different style of detective story I also enjoyed in my earlier years. I remember devouring the type of books where a couple neighborhood whiz-kids on summer vacation would decide to start an amateur detective agency. During their search for, say, old Mrs. Johnson's missing cat, they'd uncover million dollar jewel heist or some such, foil the culprit, and maybe even make the front page of the school newspaper.
