I’m not sure what made developers band together and decide, “Hey, the last Thursday in August is when we’re all going to release our games," but it has happened. There’s a ton coming out tonight, including some big name games, some interesting looking indie titles and a lot in between. I know first hand how hard it can be to wait until 11:00 PM Eastern to roll around for those of us in North America for these games to finally be released… So how about this, since the rest of the world gets their games first, let’s all do something the rest of the world can’t do… Like watching horrible 80’s movies such as The Wizard via Netflix streaming, or consume excessive amounts of high fructose corn syrup, or do both at the same time.
So queue up your terrible 80’s flick of choice and check out this list:
4Towers Onslaught: Episodic TD, $1.99 – Forum Thread – I’m interested to see how the whole episodic side of things plays out with this title. Its initial release seems to only come with four towers (hence the name), and familiar looking graphics to fans of Geometry Wars and geoDefense.
Contre Jour, 99¢ / Universal HD – Forum Thread – This game shares some similar ideas with Bumpy Road in that you play it by interacting with the environment instead of directly controlling your character. We saw it at E3 and were totally impressed. Contre Jour is just dripping with visual style, and seems to be an excellent example of how crazy iOS game pricing is as I’d totally pick this up for 800 Microsoft Points without thinking twice on XBLA. C’est la vie.
Demolition Master HD, $1.99 / HD – Forum Thread – This game looks an awful lot like IUGO’s Implode!, but in 3D. I had a ton of fun with Implode! and I’m excited to see if Demolition Master utilizes 3D in an interesting way to add an additional dynamic to these types of puzzles.
Dust Those Bunnies!, 99¢ / HD – Forum Thread – The sweeping-centric gameplay mechanic of Dust Those Bunnies does seem a little on the simple side, but I’m really digging the film grain old school black and white art style of the game. Hopefully there’s more to it than just eye candy.
Dragon Fantasy, $2.99 – Forum Thread – We peeped this game back at E3, and really liked what we saw. Basically, it’s a modern day take on retro RPG’s complete with huge pixels, ridiculous plot line, and tons of monsters to battle. Check out the above video which explains what it’s all about.
Edge Extended, 99¢ – Forum Thread – The original Edge is still one of my personal favorites, and I’m stoked beyond belief that a pseudo-sequel is (almost) here. It’s universal, comes with 44 new levels, 23 new music tracks, and new gameplay mechanics. What’s not to love about that?
HECTOR: Ep2 – Senseless Acts of Justice, $4.99 / HD – Forum Thread – I’m incredibly happy that Telltale scooped up the Hector series to make sure additional episodes see the light of day. If you like raunchy point and click adventure games, it’s hard to find better (modern) ones than this… Although just be prepared for some ridiculously obscure solutions to puzzles.
Infinity Field, 99¢ / HD – Forum Thread – We really liked this game when it launched on the iPad way back when, and as of tonight it’s finally available for the smaller screen of the iPhone and iPod touch. If you’re crazy about fast-paced Geometry Wars-style dual stick shooters, this is a solid purchase.
Minigame Paradise, 99¢ – Forum Thread – Com2uS seems to be carving a nice niche for themselves in the App Store releasing these insane mega-Korean compilations of mini games between both Minigame Paradise and the previously-released Puzzle Family. The difference with this one is that all the mini games are accessible without needing to buy any IAP currency, which seemed to be the main complaint with Puzzle Family.
Monster Mouth DDS, Free – Forum Thread – This game seems to have the same kind of gameplay found in the various “pretend you’re a medical professional with a basic tool set that seems to do everything" games, but entirely focused around dentistry. If only getting a cavity filled was as simple as this game makes it seem.
NOM 5, Free – Forum Thread – I’ve got no idea what you do in Gamevil’s latest game, but judging by the above trailer, I can’t wait to try it. It’s got a serious Captain N (anyone remember that?) vibe to it combined with the art style from that ancient Nintendo DS game Rub Rabbits, and hey, it’s free.
Peggle HD, $2.99 – Forum Thread – What’s better than Peggle? Re-buying Peggle for every platform you own. I think this will be my fourth purchase of Peggle since its initial Steam release and I couldn’t be happier to keep giving PopCap my money because Peggle is fantastic.
(Video from Xbox version!)
Quarrel Deluxe, $4.99 / Lite – Forum Thread – This word-battler was tons of fun on the Xbox, and I’m thinking it’ll be just as good on iOS devices. Mulitple game modes provide tons of replay value, and there’s even both Game Center and Twitter integration to brag about your best words.
Radballs, $2.99 – Forum Thread – We’re not normally too excited about matching games these days, since it seems like everything has been done in one way or another… But, Radballs…. The Radballs trailer is seriously the Citizen Kane of iOS game trailers.
Ramses II, $2.99 / HD – Forum Thread – This is the perfect kind of board game to bring to iOS devices. The physical version of Ramses II has tons of easy to lose pieces of plastic, which are now all consolidated into a single app. For more details on the game, check out the exhaustive listing over on Board Game Geek.
Restaurant City Gourmet Edition, Free – Forum Thread – EA’s latest foray into the world of free to play puts you in charge of operating your own restaurant. Hey, at least it isn’t another farming game, right?
Speedway GP 2011, $2.99 / Lite – Forum Thread – I’m still trying to wrap my head around this whole Speedway phenomenon. Apparently they race without brakes on their bikes? That seems like an absolutely horrible idea, but, hey, now you can play the official iOS game.
Sprinkle: Water splashing fire fighting fun!, 99¢ – Forum Thread – Alright, this game looks awesome. Using a hose-spraying mechanic that somehow really reminds me of some of the water-centric puzzle elements in Super Mario Sunshine you need to put out fires and save the day. The water looks really good, and I can’t wait to give this one a try.
SPY Mouse, 99¢ – Forum Thread – After what seems like an eternity, SPY Mouse is finally upon us. Firemint takes the line drawing gameplay they mastered in Flight Control and applies it to a character-driven stealth-centric adventure where you need to steal cheese from cats. Trust me, it’s awesome.
Treemaker, 99¢ – Forum Thread – Swinging around and planting trees seems to be the name of the game here, and really, I’ve always got room on my phone for another physics game– Especially when it’s got an art style as cool looking at this one.
