The iPhone is a popular gadget, there is no doubt about it. As with all popular gadgets, people tend to get a little overenthusiastic. This enthusiasm can take multiple forms—like waiting in line for days to get the product, dressing up like the gadget for Halloween, selling cheap knockoffs or completely ridiculous accessories, or even building their own from scratchThe 10 images featured after the jump illustrate this phenomenon as it relates to the iPhone, and the video above shows just how much the new fangled iPhone technology can piss off a strung out old hippie.
via http://gizmodo.com/349001/10-examples-of-the-iphone-making-people-crazy
It's been a busy 24 hours in the App Store. A number of anticipated releases have been released into the app store including Fishing Cactus' maze / puzzle game Equilibrio [App Store].
The $3.99 title is a gravity-based game in which your job is get your ball to the end goal by navigating ramps, trampolines, spikes, and more. While the premise of the game may seem familiar, the game incorporates a number of twists to keep it interesting.
There are 5 types of balls each with different properties and gameplay characteristics. These include rubber, glass, steel, stone and paper. Levels include obstacles such as spikes and acid that destroy the balls on contact. Tilting your iPhone will allow you to build up momentum to jump obstacles and avoid danger. Part of the challenge, however, is also avoiding shattering your ball, so proper control becomes a major issue and you can't just speed through each level.
The game offers 3 play modes including Conquest, Challenge and Random Level challenge.
Conquest - complete all levels in sequence, though you can skip levels to avoid frustration
Challenge - Play 5 of the levels with specific rules (within a time limit, don't lose more than 2 lives, play against a ghost ball)
Random - a level is give to you at random
This gameplay video shows some of the early levels:
The challenge mode with its unique level goals offers you longer-term replayability in quick 5-level sessions. Individual levels, unfortunately, have a rather poor high score system. As it stands, it's very hard to tell which levels you could improve on. While individual scores are kept for each level, they are relatively hard to access.
Overall, the game is very well produced and is easily one of the better "tilt/ball" control games in the App Store. Like all of those games, however, there is a distinct level of frustration that can accompany them. Equilibrio, however, does offer level skips and "solution" replays to allow you to bypass being completely stuck at any stage of the game.
Yesterday we reported that a lite version of Namco's Galaga REMIX appeared in the App Store [link], ahead of the full, paid release. Early this morning the full Galaga REMIX [link] joined the lite version in the App Store.
"Galaga Remix" offers play of both the original 1980’s arcade game, and an enhanced remix version with extra features including intense boss battles, 9 power-ups types, and a variety of background images illustrating your fighter’s journey from Earth to the Galaga system.
Namco's preview video shows the REMIX side of the game.
Last week we spoke with Namco's mobile group who shared details of the iPhone version.
Vega Mobile's Qbix is basically Q*Bert in the forest. Gone are Coily, Ugg, and Wrong-Way, replaced by various enemy plants and woodland creatures that strive to do in our hopping, hero squirrel.
The game is played using touch control (directional swipes) and features 32 levels. And although we've heard that an official Q*Bert game is coming, Qbix is a good option for those needing an 80s retro isometric fix.
Though more nature than Day-Glo, Qbix delivers something close to the feel of the original.
Sticky Studios' Sheep Abduction is a lot more coherent (and fun) than the game's bizarre premise.
Planet Zurq 340 is dying! They need a single drop of water to save their planet. Luckily, they've found a planet with lots of water: Earth! Since Zurqs are very polite they need to ask permission from the local inhabitants: humans. In order to establish contact with Earth, crop circles need to be created. Sheep seem to be the ideal candidate to chew crops. So…In order to save the planet, you will need to move around sheep to their destination!
Premise aside, Sheep Abduction is quite a polished game that's both enjoyable and challenging. The alien craft can only pick up sheep of a particular color at a time, after having grabbed a floating, color-specific "beam enhancer." Grab the enhancer, grab the sheep, and get them to the target area before the timer runs out. Chaotic, goofy, and enjoyable. And while the game's price has danced about quite a bit since launch, it's currently well priced at $1.99.
Mini Golf Ace from three-2-one GmbH is an 18 hole mini golf game that's rather sparse on scenery but solid on gameplay. You and up to four friends have six tries each to negotiate the course obstacles and get the ball into the hole. The game features touch / drag controls for aiming and swinging and accelerometer controls for setting camera angle.
While the visuals are nothing close to realistic, the game is a fun, pick-up session of mini golf.
posted April 8th, 2009 11:34 AM EDT by arn in Upcoming Games
Konami announced today that they will be bringing Silent Scope to the iPhone and iPod Touch.
Based on the popular arcade game originally released in 1999, players take on the role of the world's top sniper and must defeat terrorists to save the American First Family, including the President of the United States, who have been abducted by terrorists in Chicago.
The game is said to be designed to take "full advantage" of the iPhone's multi-touch user interface and feature tap-to shoot controls.
Here is a video of the Playstation 2 version of Silent Scope for those unfamiliar with the game:
The game is a rail shooter and can be played in Arcade Mode and Training Mode. The Arcade Mode features up to three stages of gameplay: Story, Shooting Range, and Time Attack. The game is "coming soon" to the App Store.
Konami's Metal Gear Solid Touch received some criticism about the iPhone-simplified gameplay, though Silent Scope sniper mechanic already seems well suited to the iPhone.
The $0.99 game throws you into a randomly generated three dimensional maze (with ladders) and your job is simply to get out as quickly as possible. You are optionally allowed to use a compass and breadcrumbs to mark your way, but these speed up the timer. Your best times required to escape each maze is kept in a high score table.
The developer describes the game as having "fantastic lighting effects, beautiful graphics, and a sublime soundscape combine to create a mysterious atmosphere". And it's true. The atmosphere of the game adds a lot to the overall experience.
The game allows you to pick from 5 different sizes of maps from "Tiny" to "Insane". "Tiny" and "Small" are relatively easy but once you try "Normal", a distinct sense of claustrophobia sets in as you unsuccessfully attempt to navigate the maze.
This gameplay video is me trying to make my way out of a "Normal" maze.
At its core, the game is quite simple: it's just a maze game. And if you think that's a boring prospect, you probably shouldn't get this game. That said, Realmaze 3D is surprisingly well implemented and for only $0.99 delivers a great version of a simple concept.
The $7.99 game offers a truly remarkable package from the creative team who also developed Motocross Madness, ATV Offroad Fury, and MX Unleashed for other platforms. This iPhone game offers a laundry list of features:
Tracks designed by Motocross champion Stephane Roncada
3 Modes of Play: Time Trials, Practice and Racing
4 Camera views
8 preset control schemes
12 different tracks
15 different bikes with 15 different skins
"Secret jump combinations"
The original developer gameplay video shows off a race with accelerometer controls:
When playing the actual game, the first thing that you notice is the high production quality of the entire game. 2XL Games offers a number of calibration options as well as 8 different control schemes. This includes accelerometer, slider or joypad steering as well as left/right handed combinations.
The game comes with 12 tracks (many locked) that can be played in Practice, Time Trial or Race modes. Locked tracks can be unlocked when placing 1st or 2nd in a race. Whips and backflips can be performed and a reference to "secret jump combinations" is mentioned in the app store description.
We recorded this video to show off the control schemes, track choices and a bit of the gameplay:
Early reactions to the game have been very positive, though some have voiced concern about a lack of "career" mode in the game. We'll offer a more in-depth look at the game after we've had more time with it.
Majic Jungle Software has just released Chopper Lite [App Store], a limited, free version of their paid app Chopper [App Store], which itself is at a limited time, 80% off price of $0.99.
Frampton's Chopper was inspired by the the classic game Choplifter from the 80's. In Chopper, players guide an accelerometer-controlled helicopter to complete missions which involve rescuing civilians while fighting off tanks and bazooka wielding men. While the paid app features 20 levels across four different difficulty settings, Chopper Lite includes the first five levels, payable at the two easiest difficulty settings only.
Chopper was one of the early App Store sucess stories and is part of Majic Jungle's 5 Fingers Games Bundle [App Store] (five games from five developers for $4.99).
Mobile publisher Handmark has provided us with a series of screenshots from an upcoming Wipeout-like anti-gravity racing game for the iPhone developed by Pazzazz, who brought us Hellfire [link] and GTS World Racing [link]. The game is still in development and some of the graphics aren't yet final, but these shots provide an overall glimpse of what's to come.
We should have more details surrounding this title in the next few weeks.
1st Person Perspective 'Space Trader: Moon Madness' Now Available
Hermitworks long-awaited Space Trader is now available [App Store] for a very reasonable $0.99.
While the game is set in first-person perspective view based on the Quake 3 engine, it is not a shooter. The core game resembles a much enhanced version of Dope Wars where you buy and sell items from individuals between locations in an effort to make a profit. The values of these commodities can change from place to place and over time based on market events. Opportunities also present themselves in the form of missions as you interact with individuals you run across in your trading.
The goal of the game is to make as much money within a given amount of time ("180 days"). Traveling to the different planets (there are 3 in the initial version) can take anywhere from 8 to 25 days, so you need to plan ahead to maximize your profits.
The game's offers dual control pads for navigation: left side controls movement, right side controls view. Space Trader has the advantage of not having to deal with combat situations (yet) so these controls seem to work quite well for exploration.
Hermitworks is considering future expansion of the game, including additional missions, achievement system and combat.
Given the high quality of production and novel use of the Quake 3 engine, it seems Space Trader is an easy pick-up at $0.99 if you have any interest in this commodity-trading genre.
