tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26183994505544963102024-03-12T19:50:22.134-07:00TheAppShack - iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch Game ReviewsBringing you the best in iOS news and reviews.Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.comBlogger795125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-84488826970524671532013-07-25T10:04:00.000-07:002013-07-25T10:05:48.625-07:00Futuridium EP [MixedBag Srl] - $1.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ERFl1wTjWn4/UfFZy6LduOI/AAAAAAAAPUw/Wavx_iZDH5U/s1600/Futuridium+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ERFl1wTjWn4/UfFZy6LduOI/AAAAAAAAPUw/Wavx_iZDH5U/s1600/Futuridium+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
3D/behind the back arcade-based shooters aren’t really a thriving genre in the AppStore. But when one does come along, it’s usually worth checking out as there’s not many poorly designed titles in this little ‘underground’ genre of video games. Fractal Combat, No Gravity, Awesome Saucer, After Burner, all of these are definitely showcase titles on the iDevice. Yet, for whatever reason, more developers are not tapping into this widespread player base like you’d expect them to. But the ones that do take on the challenge have shown that they’re incredibly talented, and the release of Futuridium EP by MixedBag is no exception. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gNpXGBxXAPk/UfFZ3ozRhoI/AAAAAAAAPVY/RoQW-x_XIbM/s1600/Futuridium+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gNpXGBxXAPk/UfFZ3ozRhoI/AAAAAAAAPVY/RoQW-x_XIbM/s400/Futuridium+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Futuridium brings back memories of games like Star Fox and Space Harrier but brings a sort of puzzle feeling to the whole game. Each stage puts you up against a different battleship and you’re tasked with taking out blue cubes, turrets and mines in each stage before the core of the battleship is revealed and ready to be destroyed. What makes the game so much more than just your average behind the back space shooter are the scoring and energy mechanics. While you play, your energy gauge will be constantly depleting. If you crash, a large chunk of energy is taken away. Linking together chains of destroyed cubes will raise your energy gauge as well as your score multiplier and, while using the game’s nifty 180 degree flipping mechanic, each stage’s cubes can be linked together in one continuous chain resulting in the possibility of some insane scores. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Izk_m_gPkDs/UfFZ0uel5PI/AAAAAAAAPVA/GBa7PAKjl5U/s1600/Futuridium+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Izk_m_gPkDs/UfFZ0uel5PI/AAAAAAAAPVA/GBa7PAKjl5U/s400/Futuridium+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Now, there are only 13 levels, but don’t let that dissuade you from taking the plunge here. There are 2 difficulties at first, Easy and Normal, but there are also 3 more locked difficulties which can be unlocked once you complete game on the previous difficulty. There’s also a catch with the difficulties. Each one ramps the speed of the gameplay up a notch, and with this also comes more points per object destroyed. So, the higher the difficulty, the higher your score could potentially be. There is also a single level mode where you can play levels that you’ve already reached in the Arcade Mode in order to practice. This does come in handy, especially since the game’s difficulty, even on Normal, is fairly high. But if you’re willing to put some time in, Futuridium EP really opens up as one of the most challenging yet satisfying arcade shooter experiences you’ll have on your mobile device. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rd3WW0VBr5c/UfFZ1CTvBTI/AAAAAAAAPVI/FJe49rTtb-E/s1600/Futuridium+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rd3WW0VBr5c/UfFZ1CTvBTI/AAAAAAAAPVI/FJe49rTtb-E/s400/Futuridium+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The graphics are retro, minimal, slick and chic and definitely draw you into the world of the game. The dubstep and electro tracks selected for the game’s soundtrack are full of energy and definitely fit the adrenaline packed gameplay. There are no power-ups, no shields, it’s basically just you and your reflexes up against the game. Another plus? There’s no IAP in sight, putting everyone on a level playing field right from the get-go. All of this ties in together to form an incredibly immersive, quick moving package that’s a total feast for the eyes, ears and all out twitch reflexes that so many of us wind up seeking out when trying to decide what game we want to play when we’re looking for a challenge. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vnuB3o8ZYnw/UfFZ19eVU5I/AAAAAAAAPVQ/41QVzgaK0r8/s1600/Futuridium+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vnuB3o8ZYnw/UfFZ19eVU5I/AAAAAAAAPVQ/41QVzgaK0r8/s400/Futuridium+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Priced at an incredibly reasonable $1.99, being Universal and including GameCenter support with leaderboards for Hi Score and Cubes Destroyed along with 35 hard to snag achievements and plenty of little Easter eggs for you completionist’s out there to try and find, I really have no qualms highly recommending Futuridium EP. It might just wind up on our end of the year ‘Best Of’ lists for 2013 and I wouldn’t be surprised if it ended up on more than a few other sites Game Of The Year lists. If you’re still not convinced, <a href="http://www.futuridium.com/"><b>you can download the game for free from the developer’s website</b></a> to play on your PC or MAC. If that doesn’t add to the drive to support MixedBag, I don’t know what will. I’m definitely excited to see what comes out of their studio next. If this is any indication of what’s to come, there’s a good chance it’ll blow many gamers away.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/xOThkrBwzRw" width="480"></iframe>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-b3YIqhHfv5s/UfFZ4ho6ibI/AAAAAAAAPVg/VGtsK91whLk/s1600/.5+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-b3YIqhHfv5s/UfFZ4ho6ibI/AAAAAAAAPVg/VGtsK91whLk/s320/.5+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/futuridium-ep/id655533271?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GnAjYDeYIeQ/UfFZ5Uy67_I/AAAAAAAAPVo/unpAeKVF9L8/s320/Futuridium+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-62919968521264262332013-07-24T09:23:00.001-07:002013-07-24T09:23:43.629-07:00R.Type [DotEmu] - $1.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_0VcMjdf2Xs/Ue_-mF5fdPI/AAAAAAAAPTo/rRyoGLsBoxA/s1600/R-Type+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_0VcMjdf2Xs/Ue_-mF5fdPI/AAAAAAAAPTo/rRyoGLsBoxA/s200/R-Type+Icon+Big.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
DotEmu. Over the years they’ve built up a very solid and strong fan-base in the iOS and Android gaming worlds. And now, just the mention of their name will have a lot of gamers screaming ‘instabuy’ and ‘take my money’. Their ports are some of the best in the AppStore and the added little perks and different settings options have secured their place in the porting world as ‘one of the best’. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, check out their work, you won’t regret it. Raiden Legacy, The Last Express, King Of Fighters, Metal Slug and others are just waiting to be snatched up by eager old-school gamers like yourself. Now, if the mention of those titles do bring back unforgettable gaming memories, their latest release will need no introduction. R-Type is a classic in the retro gaming world. Released on just about every single old-school gaming platform there was back in the late 80’s and early 90’s and has also been ported to the PC, XBLA and has spawned numerous sequels. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FHam2AI6WOM/Ue_-nGN-GqI/AAAAAAAAPTs/6dnzOdebjd4/s1600/R-Type+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FHam2AI6WOM/Ue_-nGN-GqI/AAAAAAAAPTs/6dnzOdebjd4/s400/R-Type+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Set in the 22nd century, your mission is to take out the evil Bydo Empire. There’s not much more to it than that. After each stage is beat, the game will count up your score and you’ll go on to the next. What R-Type is probably most famous for is it’s difficulty. It earned a 7th position spot on IGN’s top 10 most difficult games, and while it can be quite easy for someone who’s learned the ins and outs of the game, actually getting to that level will take more than just a couple of deaths to accomplish. While this is now a staple of the SHMUP world, endless replayability because of heightened difficulties and score chasing, don’t let that turn you off if you’re not really a big shoot-em-up gamer. DotEmu has added an Unlimited Mode in this version, allowing for infinite lives so that you can learn the game and make it through no matter your skill level. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-P9axDgbMY34/Ue_-n2tKOXI/AAAAAAAAPT4/bV0eM44QJHY/s1600/R-Type+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-P9axDgbMY34/Ue_-n2tKOXI/AAAAAAAAPT4/bV0eM44QJHY/s400/R-Type+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
There are 8 stages, each with a crazy looking boss at the end. One of my favorite memories of the first time I played R-Type when I was younger was how shocked I was at the boss’s designs and models. This, along with the mesh of organic and synthetic material in the level designs and enemies also give R-Type a distinctive feeling and atmosphere that’s hard to forget. To this day the whole graphic design of the game stands as one of the most original, interesting, innovative and visually appealing in the shmup gaming world. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yCQNHp8Kb5Y/Ue_-oXGGv2I/AAAAAAAAPUA/cFEb-2q4MR8/s1600/R-Type+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-yCQNHp8Kb5Y/Ue_-oXGGv2I/AAAAAAAAPUA/cFEb-2q4MR8/s400/R-Type+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
There are 4 different shot types that you’ll be able to pick up as you progress throughout the game; your original one projectile shot type, a 3 way laser, a beam shot that takes a circular pattern and a ‘wall shot’ which fires out of the top and bottom of your ship and crawls along the walls. While in-game, little robot orbs with feet will be mixed in with the enemies and destroying these will let loose a power-up. If you don’t have a power-up equipped yet, you’ll receive your ‘Force Orb’. This is one aspect of R-Type that really makes it stand out above other shmups of the time period. You can either equip your Force Orb on the front or back of your ship as well as have it maneuver throughout the levels on its own. Mastering the Force Orb is something that you’ll need to do in order to complete the game and adds another layer to form the very cohesive whole that is R-Type. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1I0T_ISxrxk/Ue_-pAVxqgI/AAAAAAAAPUE/0UFJfPxWoFc/s1600/R-Type+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1I0T_ISxrxk/Ue_-pAVxqgI/AAAAAAAAPUE/0UFJfPxWoFc/s400/R-Type+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
There are two control options; Relative Touch and a Virtual Joystick. Both work exceedingly well, and while both have two additional icons, one for controlling an add-on power-up core and another for charging up your charged shot, everything can be moved around anywhere on the screen to fit your play-style and device. You can also turn auto-fire on or off while off will have you mashing on the charge shot icon to fire. There are two options for screen-size, full screen, or boxed and like most other DotEmu ports, you can turn the video filter on or off, making the edges jagged (original look) or smoothed out (more modern look) and add scan-lines to the game as well. Other awesome additions/features are 10 languages, Retina display (as well as on the iPad, since this new R-Type build is Universal), iCade support and an extra Insane difficulty mode that unlocks once you beat the game on Normal difficulty.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-j1obXsgzCSQ/Ue_-phjLV3I/AAAAAAAAPUU/6m6HjKC0g7M/s1600/R-Type+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-j1obXsgzCSQ/Ue_-phjLV3I/AAAAAAAAPUU/6m6HjKC0g7M/s400/R-Type+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
To top it all off, DotEmu has dumped the OpenFeint support that came with the older version and added GameCenter with 11 achievements and 2 leaderboards (one for Normal and one for Insane). All of this packed into a nice little package and with a price point of only $1.99, it’s insane to not recommend this to any and all shooter and retro gaming fans out there. Even if you own the old EA published version, this new version has enough perks to throw down the two bucks. If you’ve never played R-Type before, you’re in for one hell of a treat, as it has been, and always will be, one of my favorite shooters of all time. It’s not one to be missed.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/-C7Slv1zMPI?list=UUiRyNJKUiYdKsxXkt_jMZ-A" width="480"></iframe>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2UCqaM3TmiU/Ue_-rT-k7rI/AAAAAAAAPUg/yBKI_735e0g/s1600/.5+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2UCqaM3TmiU/Ue_-rT-k7rI/AAAAAAAAPUg/yBKI_735e0g/s320/.5+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/r.type/id657336473?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KwtspqWUuLs/Ue_-qEFoILI/AAAAAAAAPUQ/gsXcC6ZBzws/s320/R-Type+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-55165991860778823742013-07-18T08:58:00.000-07:002013-07-18T08:58:17.866-07:00Fallen World [Oddity] - $2.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Qfydzv3Lfvk/UegP3RHLPVI/AAAAAAAAPSc/fLFWqF6eLRs/s1600/Fallen+World+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Qfydzv3Lfvk/UegP3RHLPVI/AAAAAAAAPSc/fLFWqF6eLRs/s1600/Fallen+World+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Beat-em-up titles on the iOS are kind of hit or miss. Very few have really nailed the gameplay, mechanics, controls and action needed to keep fans of the genre satisfied, but those that have did an amazing job. Mutant Fridge Mayhem, Combo Crew and Best Park In The Universe are a few that stand out above the majority of the failings in the AppStore. And now, we’re pretty close to adding another to that incredibly small list; Oddity’s new post-apocalyptic brawler, Fallen World.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
You take control of a cybernetic ninja who’s been tasked with protecting another cyborg that can take down and dismantle the machine army. Yes, it is a little Matrix-y, but for fans of the cyberpunk genre, that is hardly something that’s considered ‘bad’. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5lNh7wgvw1c/UegP4FPNR5I/AAAAAAAAPSk/EkXO0E1MBGw/s1600/Fallen+World+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5lNh7wgvw1c/UegP4FPNR5I/AAAAAAAAPSk/EkXO0E1MBGw/s400/Fallen+World+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Starting off, the tutorial does a great job of quickly and easily understandably explaining everything you’ll need to know about the game. Movement is controlled by tapping where you want to move to while attacking is done automatically by running into enemies. While this might sound like a turn off for beat-em-up and brawler fans, and believe me, it was kind of a turn off at the beginning of the game, but once you get further along [for me, it was when I hit stage 5], the controls really do wind up fitting the game, and having a brawler/beat-em-up that isn’t centered around button mashing is a refreshing addition to the genre. Along with the tap to move and auto attack controls, you’re also given 3 icons along the bottom right side of the screen. The first places a soldier and the second places a ‘Torrent Gun’ both of which are placed where you‘re standing at the time and both of which will help you to attack the onslaught of enemy waves. The third icon is your Wind Blast power. Your Wind Blast does a little bit of damage to the enemies, but its primary use is to clear the area of enemies, giving you a second to breathe. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oOFXydSgEGQ/UegP4rDvhcI/AAAAAAAAPSs/sjVO0RzJOE8/s1600/Fallen+World+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oOFXydSgEGQ/UegP4rDvhcI/AAAAAAAAPSs/sjVO0RzJOE8/s400/Fallen+World+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
In each stage, you’ll need to fight off wave after wave of enemies that are split up into 3 phases. You’ll face off against machines and other cyborgs, each offering up a different type of attack. While this doesn’t really play into any sort of strategy as different weapons are not required to take out different enemies, it does help to keep the gameplay feeling fresh. While there are some enemies that will stand back and attack your soldiers and guns, placing them all over the stages is pretty much what you’ll wind up doing while you run back and forth, replacing downed allies and trying to take out enemies before they reach the center of the stage where the young cyborg you need to protect is housed in a protective shield. Beating down enemies will earn you ‘Purity’, which is used to place soldiers, guns and use your wind power. Whenever you earn enough Purity to activate one of these, the icons light up at the bottom of the screen and a little blue orb will start to orbit around your body. You’re only able to have 3 Purity orbs available at once though, so using them as soon as they appear is a good idea. However, also keeping one around so that you can use your wind attack if things get too hectic around the cyborg you’re protecting. As you progress throughout the game, enemies get more abundant as well as stronger. Luckily, you’ll also be getting stronger as you make your way through the game by spending earned experience points on upgrades and other special abilities. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vQu-f4i1CPU/UegP42iyXEI/AAAAAAAAPSw/Flm_vIIkq_4/s1600/Fallen+World+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vQu-f4i1CPU/UegP42iyXEI/AAAAAAAAPSw/Flm_vIIkq_4/s400/Fallen+World+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
You’ll earn experience in-game by defeating enemies, but will also get a nice little chunk of experience if you can successfully complete each stage. These experience points can be spent in the upgrade shop to make your attack stronger, increase the number of enemies you can hit at one time or increase your movement speed. You’re also able to upgrade your soldiers, guns and wind attack as well as the center cyborg’s special missile strike that triggers automatically, her shield strength and the amount of ‘Purity’ which is earned each time an enemy is taken out. You’re also able to re-play previously beaten levels in case you get stuck and need some extra experience to level up a bit, which is always a nice addition to a game like this, especially given the gaming platform and audience. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vO7qMKgoKq0/UegP5QbmxCI/AAAAAAAAPS4/hmyOYOYBUZw/s1600/Fallen+World+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vO7qMKgoKq0/UegP5QbmxCI/AAAAAAAAPS4/hmyOYOYBUZw/s400/Fallen+World+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The environments do change as you make your way throughout the game which does keep it visually appealing. However, each area is the same size and shape (square) and do not have any sort of environmental hazards or structures that you’ll need to avoid while running around the ‘arena‘. The graphics and animations are solid and very well presented, with the brighter items like your sword, Purity orbs, fire and more standing out against the dark backdrops and atmospheres. The physics work well in conjunction with the controls, though at first, getting comfortable with your character running around like he’s kind of on ice is something that might take a while. Once, or if, you do get comfortable with it, it’s more like controlling a floating character instead of a running one. Tightening up the running physics would probably make the game feel better, but it’s not something that really takes too much away or distracts from the gameplay as a whole. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IUDk5eWsxbs/UegP539mH7I/AAAAAAAAPTA/YSeO5ZpQWDg/s1600/Fallen+World+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IUDk5eWsxbs/UegP539mH7I/AAAAAAAAPTA/YSeO5ZpQWDg/s400/Fallen+World+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
GameCenter is not supported and there are no in-game achievements or leaderboards. There’s no time limits or actual scoring system, but if these were added, as well as GC and leader boards (along with achievements, of course), it could definitely add quite a bit of replay value, difficulty and drive to the gameplay. While we’re bringing up the negatives here, there’s also no auto-rotate for the screen and the game displays ‘up-side-down’ (making you hold your device with the home button on the left side instead of the right). You can turn the music and sound effects on and off separately, and there is an option to clear your saved data, but aside from that, there’s no difficulty settings and no added control options. Priced at $2.99 and being Universal, it does seem a bit bare. However, within the brawler genre on the iOS, this isn’t really a rare thing and the polish and addictive gameplay does help to draw your attention away from it’s shortcomings enough to justify the reasonable price-point. Hopefully more will be added to Fallen World, as it shows an incredible amount of promise and could very well stand out as one of the better titles within the genre. A few little additions would go a very long way here. But as-is, it’s still a game that’s worth recommending. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/NRppu4jzOA0" width="560"></iframe>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tiyCZ6a_c5M/UegP8HE73ZI/AAAAAAAAPTM/sFZTcYkjyKY/s1600/.3+1-2+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tiyCZ6a_c5M/UegP8HE73ZI/AAAAAAAAPTM/sFZTcYkjyKY/s320/.3+1-2+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fallen-world/id664908520?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NhjZx2ewLBU/UegP9Oa9L9I/AAAAAAAAPTU/EmmOuGLBwE4/s320/Fallen+World+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-81764879828402229322013-07-06T05:42:00.000-07:002013-07-06T06:01:17.649-07:00Samurai Shodown II [SNK + DotEmu] - $8.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pqr-dIMlkl8/UdgOvSruAmI/AAAAAAAAPRU/9vRmftxDaZA/s1600/Samurai+Shodown+II+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pqr-dIMlkl8/UdgOvSruAmI/AAAAAAAAPRU/9vRmftxDaZA/s1600/Samurai+Shodown+II+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
When it comes to iOS games, there’s a select few that can be described with the words ’hardcore’ ’insane’ and ’difficult’. Well, last week ushered in a new contender for the ‘hardest game in the AppStore’ title, SNK and DotEmu’s Samurai Shodown II. And while most fighters on the iOS’s touch screen are difficult because they don’t have the tactile feedback that most of these games scream for, they are still playable, manageable and beatable, even more-so if you’ve got an iCade and can play with the tactile feedback that the games were meant to be experienced with. But SSII has ramped up the difficulty so incredibly high, even on it’s lowest difficulty setting, that after 5 hours, countless continues and an immeasurable amount of frustration, I’ve only made it to the 3rd opponent. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-z_MrrbdEqTU/UdgO8nB3KII/AAAAAAAAPRc/C_NzDev8Ioc/s1600/Samurai+Shodown+II+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-z_MrrbdEqTU/UdgO8nB3KII/AAAAAAAAPRc/C_NzDev8Ioc/s400/Samurai+Shodown+II+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
That’s not to say that I dislike this game. The virtual controls are about as good as they can be, considering. If you’re familiar with the controls from Street Fighter or King Of Fighters and are comfortable with them, you’ll feel right at home here. Like any other DotEmu port, you are able to move the controls anywhere on the screen, which helps to make the game play comfortably on most devices. However, on the iPad it can be hard to reach the buttons and parts of the directional stick. Hopefully a resize option will be added, or at the very least, that the controls on the iPad will be adjusted in a future update. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YVZhTB3cjrI/UdgO9GWq7lI/AAAAAAAAPRk/0tZYcrAXjF8/s1600/Samurai+Shodown+II+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YVZhTB3cjrI/UdgO9GWq7lI/AAAAAAAAPRk/0tZYcrAXjF8/s400/Samurai+Shodown+II+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
You’re also able to change the aspect ratio from 4:3 to 16:9 (widescreen) or windowed mode (which has the gameplay area take up about half of the screen, which actually looks very nice if you’re playing on an iPad or iPad Mini). You can also set the video filtering on or off, giving the edges smooth curves or having the original pixilated graphics in all their beautiful glory and set scanlines to 50 or 100%, as well as leaving them completely absent. Along with all of the typical DotEmu settings and preferences you can also choose to play the game on 1 of 8 difficulties. That’s right, at the beginning of each game you’re given the option to change the difficulty setting from 1-8.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QUynCU4hMDY/UdgO9mdlBtI/AAAAAAAAPRs/fX8xjw96BYM/s1600/Samurai+Shodown+II+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QUynCU4hMDY/UdgO9mdlBtI/AAAAAAAAPRs/fX8xjw96BYM/s400/Samurai+Shodown+II+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Now, just because I haven’t made it past the third opponent doesn’t mean that I haven’t been having a blast playing the game. Is it frustrating? Yes. Is the difficulty set too high? Probably. Am I left feeling like I’m getting better with each game that I play? Most definitely. While I do remember playing Samurai Shodown II at the local bowling ally every weekend when I was about 12 and blowing $5 worth of quarters in 20 minutes and being able to almost make it through the entire game, I do not feel that the touch-screen controls are why I’m having such a hard time with this game. Tactile feedback for many gamers is a must when it comes to this genre, but for others, being able to slide your fingers along the smooth surface of the iDevice can make pulling off some of the more complex moves easier than with a physical controller. And, as mentioned already, SSII does have iCade support, so those of you who are lucky enough to own an iCade can have a near perfect arcade experience. But the difficulty settings, even on the lowest option available, could use some tweaking. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6lo0RUFUieU/UdgO-KlSHQI/AAAAAAAAPR0/xewifkI_ke8/s1600/Samurai+Shodown+II+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6lo0RUFUieU/UdgO-KlSHQI/AAAAAAAAPR0/xewifkI_ke8/s400/Samurai+Shodown+II+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Aside from that this port, like all DotEmu ports, is perfect. The framerate is improved from the original and the gameplay is insanely smooth with no hiccups or drops in framerate (unless intentional) to be found. All of the characters from the original arcade title can be found here as well as all of the little mechanics that make the gameplay slightly deeper than most fighters; backward and forward rolling, ducking, small hops and parries/offensive blocking, The fatalities have also been thrown in for good measure. All of this showing that Samurai Shodown II can still hold it’s own among the best of the best fighters in the gaming world almost 20 years since it appeared. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3eke8agmJlc/UdgO-rcHfdI/AAAAAAAAPR8/gZyoR7NsFEY/s1600/Samurai+Shodown+II+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3eke8agmJlc/UdgO-rcHfdI/AAAAAAAAPR8/gZyoR7NsFEY/s400/Samurai+Shodown+II+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Like most iOS ports of classic games, GameCenter leaderboards and achievements have been added and do help to add some drive to the already insanely high replay value of the game with 15 achievements and 3 leaderboards fleshing out the gameplay. While some players might be turned off by the crazy high difficulty or the virtual controls, if you’re familiar with KoF’s controls, you’ll pretty much know what to expect here. I do hope that a transparency gauge is added, because as it is now, the controls begin to fade away after you touch them, and then go back to full view fairly quickly, usually blocking the gameplay area, unless you’re playing in Windowed View. But priced at $8.99, being Universal, including widescreen support, and also having Bluetooth 2-player gameplay, along with being one of the best fighters ever, make Samurai Shodown II a very easy game to recommend.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/rOekBVSAKZo" width="560"></iframe>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xxMpqWvll-Q/UdgO_ucmzTI/AAAAAAAAPSE/l4zmM4zP-Jk/s1600/.4+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xxMpqWvll-Q/UdgO_ucmzTI/AAAAAAAAPSE/l4zmM4zP-Jk/s320/.4+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/samurai-shodown-ii/id660687537?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kxHkU_ubRJI/UdgPAOgAaXI/AAAAAAAAPSM/kxM-ag7hssA/s320/Samurai+Shodown+II+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-45200864659781093352013-07-01T13:11:00.001-07:002013-07-01T13:11:41.095-07:00IssuesHello all...<br />
<br />
Alright, for some reason, only a couple of posts are showing up on our main page. You can access our past reviews by selecting 'older posts' underneath the last posts on this page. I have no idea why Blogger is doing this, I've tried adjusting and/or confirming all of our settings, and the layout is still messed up. I apologize for the inconvenience here, and I'll try and have it fixed ASAP.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-87353754919657628912013-06-28T08:08:00.000-07:002013-07-01T13:08:34.013-07:00Evilot [Syrenaica] - $0.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ocCtuXdPJ84/Uc2mNXRyIiI/AAAAAAAAPI4/Ghs1VRdE2RQ/s175/Evilot+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ocCtuXdPJ84/Uc2mNXRyIiI/AAAAAAAAPI4/Ghs1VRdE2RQ/s175/Evilot+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Since Plants Vs. Zombies hit the AppStore there’s been a whole slew of lane based defense games. There are a few that have stood out among the crowd, Total War Battles: Shogun, Defense Of Fortune: The Savior, Hero TacTics and others are pretty good examples of this. Well, last week another title hit the store, and it’s mechanics and the strategy involved make it another Lane Defense game that’s definitely worth checking out if you’re a fan of the genre; Evilot, from the development team Syrenaica. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6xUHMfU2Y8A/Uc2mOKMBfSI/AAAAAAAAPJA/N9QR9bpODrI/s480/Evilot+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6xUHMfU2Y8A/Uc2mOKMBfSI/AAAAAAAAPJA/N9QR9bpODrI/s400/Evilot+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Evilot puts you in the shoes of the ‘evil’ mastermind, Count Dolfus. With adventurers and knights trying to come and steal away his gold and treasures, he’s forced to use whatever methods he can in order to keep from succeeding. Now, what really makes Evilot interesting is the way that you can combine your defenses in order to level them up. Placing 3 like-defenses on the gameplay area will make them all merge onto the area where your last piece was set. This can be done horizontally as well as vertically and while that in-itself is a pretty cool mechanic, if you’re not careful, you could wind up accidentally placing a defensive piece next to two others in the heat of the moment and wind up letting a group of knights through your barricade. However, once you get use to it, it’s something that definitely winds up setting Evilot apart from most of the games within the genre. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UqT8bGoU_p8/Uc2mOvOgeFI/AAAAAAAAPJI/T3jTwwbqcY0/s480/Evilot+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UqT8bGoU_p8/Uc2mOvOgeFI/AAAAAAAAPJI/T3jTwwbqcY0/s400/Evilot+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
As you progress through the game, you’ll be given more and more defensive pieces to work with. Starting off you’ll only have rats, but as you move on you’ll be given wooden barriers, skeletons, frogs, green blob things and more. While you’re not able to choose which pieces to use in each stage, they are mixed up from stage to stage, and depending on what you’re given, the strategy for each stage changes as well. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The game contains 50 stages spread across 5 different areas with a boss battle at the end of each area. The graphics, while at first kind of seeming a bit dull when compared to other titles within the genre, have really grown on me. The gothic type look and feel of everything is something that’s not seen too often in the gaming world, and here, Syrenaica has done a great job of not going overboard with it, but still keeping it graphically appealing throughout the game. The comic-book type cut-scenes between each territory are very polished and well done, helping to add to the overall feel of the game while also injecting a bit of humor.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1MJLTbteuAQ/Uc2mPi7zmBI/AAAAAAAAPJQ/AhnJyHp6ggk/s480/Evilot+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1MJLTbteuAQ/Uc2mPi7zmBI/AAAAAAAAPJQ/AhnJyHp6ggk/s400/Evilot+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The user interface is simple to use as well. Placement is done by tapping on the piece you want to place on the bottom of the screen and then selecting the tile you want to place it. When a piece is selected, it’s icon at the bottom of the screen will be highlighted in green, making it easy to quickly glance down and know what piece you have selected. Defeating an enemy or having one of your own pieces defeated will drop a ‘card’ which you can pick up by tapping on it and then use again by placing it anywhere in the gameplay area. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f3E7YkSOF_Y/Uc2mQ8D5xWI/AAAAAAAAPJg/_46Q29XW35Y/s480/Evilot+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f3E7YkSOF_Y/Uc2mQ8D5xWI/AAAAAAAAPJg/_46Q29XW35Y/s400/Evilot+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Unfortunately, there is no GameCenter support, so there are no leaderboards or achievements to go after. There are also no in-game achievements, all of which kind of takes away some of the replay value that can be found with other titles that do incorporate these features. But, with the difficulty of the last 30 or so levels, there’s always a nice sense of accomplishment once you do complete a stage and area and this does help drive the game along. It would also be nice to see some sort of additional gameplay mode, maybe something where you control the knights and adventurers and try and steal the treasures, or an endless mode, maybe even a hardcore mode where you can just jump straight in to some insanely hectic gameplay. With these things not found here, Evilot can, at times, feel like it’s lacking the overall fullness that would make it totally stand out within the genre, but the core gameplay is solid and the main campaign that can be found here is definitely worth the $0.99 entry fee. Even if more modes were only made available through IAP, I’d love to see this game grow in the future, and sincerely hope that it does. If you’re still on the fence about purchasing it, there is a <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/evilot-free/id639403770?mt=8"><b>lite version available for free</b></a> in the AppStore. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/7SC9J3Jd9n8" width="420"></iframe>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ry9uE_CRoXw/Uc2mRu10kiI/AAAAAAAAPJo/uBqfC87KdGw/s1051/.4+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ry9uE_CRoXw/Uc2mRu10kiI/AAAAAAAAPJo/uBqfC87KdGw/s320/.4+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/evilot/id638051061?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fRASMGzKBcY/Uc2mSabHNYI/AAAAAAAAPJw/Zl8xq7l4lYI/s320/Evilot+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-53375983296066759942013-06-27T07:39:00.000-07:002013-06-27T07:39:00.265-07:00Whirl The Squirrel [Dioxis Mining] - $0.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Skonyr8N9zE/UcxNB1Q_2hI/AAAAAAAAPHs/Zau1FE808vc/s175/Whirl+The+Squirrel+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Skonyr8N9zE/UcxNB1Q_2hI/AAAAAAAAPHs/Zau1FE808vc/s175/Whirl+The+Squirrel+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
There’s not too many games that can match the pure enjoyment and type of gameplay that Sonic brought the platforming scene back in the day. Cordy did a great job with the acrobatic mechanics, but as far as level memorization, speedy gameplay and the drive to keep playing after you’ve completed the game, it fell a bit short. Rayman Jungle Run was close, but the speedy aspect of it could have been a bit better. Now, as gamers, we’re incredibly lucky when the influence of old-school games is met with some borderline obsession and the talent needed to pull off one hell of a gameplay experience that comes very close to matching the feeling of the game that the influence came from. Enter Whirl The Squirrel, a new platformer/racing game from the minds of Dioxis Mining. And believe me when I say, it’s like the little brother that Sonic always wanted but couldn’t seem to find throughout the years. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xrLEsQ9JQnM/UcxNCuj2MPI/AAAAAAAAPH0/SIWPI94VeQk/s480/Whirl+The+Squirrel+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xrLEsQ9JQnM/UcxNCuj2MPI/AAAAAAAAPH0/SIWPI94VeQk/s400/Whirl+The+Squirrel+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Starting up the game, you’re greeted with a charming intro where Whirl goes to check on his things before bedtime. After hugging them all goodnight a huge tornado came barreling towards his home. For some reason, he locks the doors and goes to bed, pretty much without a care in the world. Waking up, he finds his things strung about outside and realizes that the tornado had partnered up with his ‘nenemies’ and that they were outside trying to collect all of his things. So begins the race to collect all of Whirl’s treasured things.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Now, while it may not sound like much content, there are 18 levels split up between 3 different environments. However, you’ll quickly realize that there’s an incredible amount of replay value, especially if you’re going to try and find all of the ‘hidden areas’ and get a gold time in every stage. Right off the bat, you’ll need to realize that Whirl is not your typical speed-run platformer. Like playing Sonic and trying to get the best time you can, you’ll need to play thorough levels a few times before actually trying to go and beat them. Memorization is a key element here along with quick reflexes and the willingness to play a level more than a couple times. If you go into it treating the game like your typical League Of Evil type game, chances are you’ll get incredibly frustrated and in fact, you might not even give the game the chance it deserves. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7Z5WVrE6dFk/UcxNDAZ8k9I/AAAAAAAAPH8/_BSiMLR6XlA/s480/Whirl+The+Squirrel+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7Z5WVrE6dFk/UcxNDAZ8k9I/AAAAAAAAPH8/_BSiMLR6XlA/s400/Whirl+The+Squirrel+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
In each stage there is an objective that you’ll need to accomplish in order to beat the level. Most of the time, you just need to beat the nenemy who’s trying to collect a thing before you, but in some stages, you’ll need to run multiple laps or even just collect a certain number of flowers in a given time-limit. While the screen-shots make the game look like an ‘auto-run’ platformer, you are given virtual buttons for left and right movement as well as a jump button and while the first couple of stages will have you pretty much just mashing down on the directional buttons once you get further into the game, delicately maneuvering your character while in mid-air will become a huge part of beating the nenemies and flower collecting. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wzEiltH9F-4/UcxNDgru2xI/AAAAAAAAPIE/METOHzM5l3g/s480/Whirl+The+Squirrel+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wzEiltH9F-4/UcxNDgru2xI/AAAAAAAAPIE/METOHzM5l3g/s400/Whirl+The+Squirrel+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The hazards and obstacles which you’ll need to maneuver around and through aren’t, by themselves, too original, but the way that they’re incorporated and laid out in the hand-made levels makes them feel fresh and interesting. While collecting flowers, if you collect enough you’ll get a rocket pack on your back which helps you speed up through the levels. Then some enemies will zap you, slowing you down, others will freeze you and you’ll need to press the jump button multiple times to break free while others come at you in specific patterns and you‘ll need to figure out the timing of your jumps perfectly in order to avoid them. Some hazards will cause your directional buttons to reverse, other objects will send you skyrocketing into the air if you jump while on them and combined with some pretty malicious hazard placement can really ruin your run if you’re not careful. There’s also orangy blob things that take collected flowers away and slow you down and pink crystals which, if you hold down the jump button while racing through them, will send you on a super jump which usually involves you jumping over or through a bunch of hazards, enemies and obstacles.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hBrUotSd4e0/UcxNE0wv1DI/AAAAAAAAPIU/B7_xoZrqw6o/s480/Whirl+The+Squirrel+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hBrUotSd4e0/UcxNE0wv1DI/AAAAAAAAPIU/B7_xoZrqw6o/s400/Whirl+The+Squirrel+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
On top of the racing aspect, all of the hazards, the obstacles and the enemies, there are also secret hidden areas which you can try and find in each stage. Little pink crystals will usually help you find these hidden areas, and they’ll either contain time stopping pick-ups or just take you on a precious time saving shortcut. All-n-all, with all of this combined together, it makes for some hectic, incredibly fast-paced, challenging gameplay that gamers looking for a hardcore gaming experience will just eat up. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IyTW4-Izbq8/UcxNEQsco3I/AAAAAAAAPIM/My59aratP1A/s480/Whirl+The+Squirrel+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IyTW4-Izbq8/UcxNEQsco3I/AAAAAAAAPIM/My59aratP1A/s400/Whirl+The+Squirrel+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The framerate is solid and everything runs incredibly smooth, with no skips or jumps, which is essential in a game like this, and with the 3 leaderboards on top of the gold-times, there’s almost an infinite amount of replay value here. Not to mention the 21 hard to snag achievements. With Whirl The Squirrel priced at a measly $0.99 and containing NO IAPs (!), it’s a game that’s insanely easy to recommend, especially for fans of Sonic who have been looking for another speedy challenge to take on throughout the years. There’s also a 4th world that’s in the works and soon to be fully customizable controls to look forward to in the future. Right now, the only negative things that I can say about the game are that the difficulty level might put some gamers off, and with only 18 stages, even though it will take you quite some time to complete them all, it still might feel a little light in the content department. But aside from that, there’s really not much more that I can say other than PICK. THIS. GAME. UP. NOW. You won’t regret it.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Oh61dkryb8Q" width="420"></iframe>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MNBfx4bUQ_0/UcxNlq_mcxI/AAAAAAAAPIo/fB5vsInSB0Y/s1051/.4+1-2+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MNBfx4bUQ_0/UcxNlq_mcxI/AAAAAAAAPIo/fB5vsInSB0Y/s320/.4+1-2+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/whirl-the-squirrel/id651148714?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="100" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-b9tEHbmExx4/UcxNf3BM6uI/AAAAAAAAPIc/ykarY8KU1aU/s400/Whirl+The+Squirrel+Download.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-47125225394983104042013-06-25T11:41:00.002-07:002013-06-25T11:41:34.822-07:00Crush! [RadianGames] - $0.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1Lo-52U0c9g/UcnjwmpyJPI/AAAAAAAAPGo/QKsWBBxVAnI/s1600/Crush+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1Lo-52U0c9g/UcnjwmpyJPI/AAAAAAAAPGo/QKsWBBxVAnI/s1600/Crush+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
We have a handful of favorite developers here at The App Shack. One of them is the insanely talented studio of RadianGames. With their previous titles; Super Crossfire, Ballistic SE, Fireball SE, Inferno+, Slydris, Bombcats and Gobs Of Fun reaching quite a few iOS gamers with some of which being named as the best of best in their respective genres, RadianGames seems to have decided to go more towards the puzzle genre as of late. Their most recent title, Crush!, fits in the same category as Slydris and their title before Crush!, Bombcats, is another puzzler, focusing more on physics than quick addictive gameplay. But even if you’re not into the puzzling genre, you should keep in mind how amazingly polished RadianGames previous shooter titles have been and know that that professionalism and same production value has been carried over to their puzzle titles. And Crush! is yet another prime example of this.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VDt68mit27M/UcnjxMRe00I/AAAAAAAAPGw/L-gH4mkk7Iw/s1600/Crush+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VDt68mit27M/UcnjxMRe00I/AAAAAAAAPGw/L-gH4mkk7Iw/s400/Crush+01.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Crush!, like Slydris, is a block based puzzler, but of a different nature. Instead of trying to clear multiple lines by moving blocks around one at a time, you’re tasked with removing one of three different colored chunks of blocks from the full ‘stack‘. While the mechanics are far from original, RadianGames have taken the type of gameplay found in titles like Collapse, reMovem, Block Fall and others, and expanded on it quite a bit giving players 3 different game modes and 5 different power-ups as well as some other nifty little mechanics that keep the gameplay fresh and feeling original in an otherwise stale genre.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uav7D3RXyb0/Ucnjxvx51oI/AAAAAAAAPG4/AMSLtATSeL8/s1600/Crush+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uav7D3RXyb0/Ucnjxvx51oI/AAAAAAAAPG4/AMSLtATSeL8/s400/Crush+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
While playing and clearing out groups of blocks each tap that you make moves the whole stack of blocks down further. This, on top of the stack moves down at a constant rate. Both of these speeds increase as you get further into the game, with the speeds displayed on the bottom of the screen. So while you may start out with the stack moving down a couple of spaces every time you remove a group of blocks, it will quickly start moving down to 2 and a half spaces, then 3, and so on, also while speeding up the constant movement. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NGZlgThv4J4/UcnjyKhpaXI/AAAAAAAAPHA/GeiVYRnCXbo/s1600/Crush+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NGZlgThv4J4/UcnjyKhpaXI/AAAAAAAAPHA/GeiVYRnCXbo/s400/Crush+03.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
This comes into play with each one of the 3 different gameplay modes. Think has a very slow constant drop speed while having the stack move down large distances with each tap that takes out a group of blocks. This gives you the time to actually think about which group of blocks you want to take out, but penalizes you for not making good decisions on a regular basis. With the next mode, React, the constant drop speed is fast, but the burst when removing a group of blocks is a lot shorter so that you can make a lot of quick decisions without pushing the stack of blocks into the bottom of the screen right away. Lastly, there’s Crush mode, which is a sort of mixture of the two with the stack moving at a medium constant speed and having a medium drop distance. All of this makes for some pretty varied gameplay across the modes. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3JIxTM6k6Jg/Ucnjyjp5g9I/AAAAAAAAPHI/OAHt0WhlJCE/s1600/Crush+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3JIxTM6k6Jg/Ucnjyjp5g9I/AAAAAAAAPHI/OAHt0WhlJCE/s400/Crush+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
At the beginning of each game you’ll also be able to choose one of five power-ups. Remix mixes up every row of blocks and drops the whole stack of bricks down a bit. Slow briefly slows the stack down, Chop removes the lowest 25 blocks, Solo sets 3 rainbow blocks onto the stack. Rainbow blocks are blocks that can connect groups of blocks. Say you have a group of black blocks touching a rainbow block and on the other side of the rainbow block, a group of white blocks. Touching either the black or white group of blocks will remove all of the colors that are touching the rainbow block. Getting these pieces into the right position is a game opening skill that definitely comes in handy once you learn to work with them. The last two power=ups are Blast and Duet. Blast removes 1 color from the stack and Duet turns the most common color in the stack into the other two. Each power-up is activated once you reach a certain score and if you have a power-up stored, you can use it as a sort of ‘extra life’ that will clear the last couple rows off the stack if it hit’s the bottom. However, this also makes it so that you can not charge up the power-up again for the rest of your game. This is all made even more complex by having a unique ‘wrapping’ feature. This connects both edges of the stack to each other, allowing for more thought out and challenging gameplay. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Oy5csw-XBwU" width="560"></iframe>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
GameCenter support drives the gameplay with 5 leaderboards, one for the amount of blocks you can remove in Think Mode, another for how long you can survive in React Mode, both how long you can survive and how many blocks you can remove in Crush Mode and an experience board for how much experience you’ve earned throughout the whole time you’ve played the game. There are also 10 hard to unlock achievements for you achievement hunters out there. RadianGames have always put out quality games, and Crush! is no exception. Priced at $0.99, if you’re into the genre, this is definitely a game that will have a long life-span on your device. I can only hope that RadianGames will wind up putting out more of these addictive action puzzlers in the future. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-d_moP4rMjC8/Ucnjz4W8hOI/AAAAAAAAPHQ/AVH-XrqObuw/s1600/.4+1-2+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-d_moP4rMjC8/Ucnjz4W8hOI/AAAAAAAAPHQ/AVH-XrqObuw/s320/.4+1-2+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/crush!/id651441436?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WY7JIaT3AyA/Ucnj0wwkqzI/AAAAAAAAPHY/41CEhDyR7xo/s320/Crush+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-62552172741544711472013-06-21T07:09:00.000-07:002013-06-21T07:09:22.829-07:00Agricola [Playdek + Look Out Games] - $6.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cz2jW3Cb1LE/UcRdqge6iFI/AAAAAAAAPEI/VAZn0dEjgDY/s1600/Agricola+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cz2jW3Cb1LE/UcRdqge6iFI/AAAAAAAAPEI/VAZn0dEjgDY/s1600/Agricola+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
If you’re a fan of board or card games, there’s really nothing like playing them on the touch screen. Having everything organized perfectly, wonderful interface, no mess to set up or clean up and, sometimes, even some enhancements to the original games. There are a couple of fantastic development teams creating some wonderful card game experiences on the iOS, but one of our favorites here at The App Shack is Playdek. Their previous titles; Nightfall, Summoner Wars, Fluxx and others are games that will never leave our iDevices. Most recently, working with Look Out Games, they’ve expanded on the card game formula to bring us an interesting and addictive new game; Agricola. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Oht_3FjORLY/UcRdrTmbZmI/AAAAAAAAPEQ/iIq6KNx3TL4/s1600/Agricola+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Oht_3FjORLY/UcRdrTmbZmI/AAAAAAAAPEQ/iIq6KNx3TL4/s400/Agricola+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The background for the gameplay is this: Europe is trying to recover from hard times and you’re placed in the middle of a farming community with your wife. You’ve got to try and build up your land to make a productive farm by growing and harvesting crops, breeding livestock and helping your family to grow. You’re given 14 stages to build up your house, crops, livestock and family as much as you can, earning points for each. While the game sounds pretty simple, there is quite a bit of depth in the gameplay. Starting off with the incredibly well done tutorial is highly recommended. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eVehXCjwg_s/UcRdrxewRlI/AAAAAAAAPEY/b7hbZ0a9CmY/s1600/Agricola+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eVehXCjwg_s/UcRdrxewRlI/AAAAAAAAPEY/b7hbZ0a9CmY/s400/Agricola+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
First off, the number of actions you’re given in each round is dependant on how many family members you have, so it’s always a good idea to try and grow your family right off the bat. To do this, you’ll need to collect the materials required to build another room onto your farmhouse. To acquiring wood, you’ll need to assign one family member to pick up wood from in town. You’ll also need reed to build your room, so using another family member to pick that up from town, you’ll have enough resources to build a room by the end of your second turn. To finally build the room, you’ll need to use a family member to select the ‘Build Room’ option in town. From here, you can get that room build and ready for another family member. However, you should keep in mind that the more family members you have, the more food you’ll need to feed them, but the resources in town also stack upon one another, so say you don’t select an extra food option for a couple of rounds, you’ll be able to select it and receive 2, 3, or more rounds worth of extra food to help you out. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0LKP704cdhw/UcRdsupXqfI/AAAAAAAAPEg/0PjsfyEUh1g/s1600/Agricola+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0LKP704cdhw/UcRdsupXqfI/AAAAAAAAPEg/0PjsfyEUh1g/s400/Agricola+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Also, more food can be cooked/produced by upgrading your fireplaces and stoves, as well as other features in your house. The same goes for other aspects of your home, which you’ll get into while going through the tutorial and just experimenting while playing the game. While it all might sound a bit confusing, the tutorial being split up into different sections makes it very easy to go back and revisit some of the more complicated mechanics in the game, and once you play a couple games you’ll have a pretty decent handle on what’s going on. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The user interface for Agricola is very easy to use and is surprisingly accurate, even on the smaller iPhone/iPod screens. While it can be kind of hard to see exactly what you’re hovering over in town when trying to place a family member on a resource, you can always use the question mark in the top left corner to show you what each resource is, making the selection process a whole lot easier. Graphically, Agricola is pretty basic, though with a card/resource game like this being able to clearly see what you’re doing and what different stats and cards do is of utmost importance, and Playdek has nailed it here. Graphics are crisp, clean and clear and text is very easy to read. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--11qxNl1y90/UcRdtL-MNVI/AAAAAAAAPEo/jIaOYSln0hE/s1600/Agricola+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--11qxNl1y90/UcRdtL-MNVI/AAAAAAAAPEo/jIaOYSln0hE/s400/Agricola+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
As for gameplay modes, you can either play a single player game or play on one device with up to 5 players. You are able to change each of the other 4 players to either an actual person or the game’s AI. Alongside this, you’re also able to play online, through Playdek’s servers, choosing either a Quick Match, where you can select the gameplay settings you’d like and be notified when another player joins, Create Game, where you can invite a friend to play or join up in one of the already created games on the server. This expanded amount of gameplay options gives players quite a bit to explore and will hopefully keep the online gameplay active for some time. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-c9yhHp2yTNQ/UcRdtkMr_5I/AAAAAAAAPEw/QBH76JLdfyU/s1600/Agricola+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-c9yhHp2yTNQ/UcRdtkMr_5I/AAAAAAAAPEw/QBH76JLdfyU/s400/Agricola+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
With Agricola priced at $6.99, it might be a bit steep for the casual iOS gamer, but those who know the depth of mechanics and great support that comes along with any Playdek title or know how much an online component can add to a card/resource game like Agricola, know that the price is beyond justified. GameCenter is also supported with 11 achievements helping to push the gameplay along and give players more than just points to aim for. And while some gamers might not see it, we here at The App Shack can’t help but love this game so much that the chances of it winding up on our end of the year GOTY list are fairly high. We really can not recommend this one enough. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/DcgZFJ_AMo0" width="560"></iframe>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YKJ3imBhyew/UcRduDrHpvI/AAAAAAAAPE4/CfMeVqnOHjs/s1600/.5+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YKJ3imBhyew/UcRduDrHpvI/AAAAAAAAPE4/CfMeVqnOHjs/s320/.5+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/agricola/id561521557?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MCn7YJCU8Q4/UcRdvA_NcHI/AAAAAAAAPFA/FchrSQd6cJo/s320/Agricola+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-74274068478143515672013-06-16T07:12:00.000-07:002013-06-16T07:12:01.863-07:00Kinetic Damage [Benjamin Merchand] - $2.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jJBw75JcPsw/Ub3FE4NjPkI/AAAAAAAAPCk/aRg_cY7OKbo/s1600/Kinetic+Damage+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jJBw75JcPsw/Ub3FE4NjPkI/AAAAAAAAPCk/aRg_cY7OKbo/s1600/Kinetic+Damage+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Fighting games on the touch screen are a bit of a niche genre. While there are tons (and I do mean TONS) of fighting game mongers out there, it’s hard to really get the same feeling of playing a console fighter when you have no tactile feedback from your controller. Because of this, most fighting games have been ‘dumbed down’ so that they are easily playable on the touch screen, usually giving us single buttons that can pull off massive combos instead of having to input a series of moves on a flat surface to achieve the same effect. While this option can also be turned off, the touch screen’s lack of any raised surface so that players can tell where their thumbs are, or give players that sense of total control over their character definitely makes it near impossible to get the same type of gameplay experience on the iOS as with an actual controller. Though this is becoming less and less of an issue with more and more Bluetooth controls hitting the market, it’s still a problem that developers of these games have to struggle with and gamers have to adjust to. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fBgMneGZTMw/Ub3FFm2ZXwI/AAAAAAAAPCs/w54TEDH3Ztg/s1600/Kinetic+Damage+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fBgMneGZTMw/Ub3FFm2ZXwI/AAAAAAAAPCs/w54TEDH3Ztg/s400/Kinetic+Damage+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
While some brawlers have done a very good job of developing the gameplay around the touch screen (Mutant Fridge Mayhem will always be a very good example of this and more recently, Combo Crew and Best Park In The Universe have done a great job as well), the first fighting game that I’ve personally felt completely comfortable with while using the touch screen and not an iCade is Benjamin Marchand’s Kinetic Damage, an incredibly deep and insanely impressive title, especially considering that it’s all been created by the hands of one man, and when you get into the game you’ll see why development of this amazing title took a whopping 4 years to complete. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cHk2WpJFUR4/Ub3FGSWTOyI/AAAAAAAAPC0/qXI-p8o1DIM/s1600/Kinetic+Damage+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cHk2WpJFUR4/Ub3FGSWTOyI/AAAAAAAAPC0/qXI-p8o1DIM/s400/Kinetic+Damage+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Once you start out, you’ll quickly realize how deep the gameplay actually is. You’ll be able to create your own character, selecting how they look, what clothes they’ll wear as well as what color you want everything to be. Along with these purely cosmetic features you’re also able to choose which fighting style you’ll like to use; Jeet Kun Do, Tai Chi Chuan, Shaolin Kung Fu, Ninjutsu, Krav Maga, Taekwondo, Muay Thai or Break. Each of these styles have different stats for Speed, Strength, Range, Critical Hit, Combo, Health, Recovery, Precision, Endurance and Energy. Yeah, pretty intense already, wouldn’t you say? And we haven’t even gotten into the different modes, combos, or incredibly deep AI yet. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cK4MTVoSqnc/Ub3FHRiy_tI/AAAAAAAAPC8/Focg5DIHmdc/s1600/Kinetic+Damage+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cK4MTVoSqnc/Ub3FHRiy_tI/AAAAAAAAPC8/Focg5DIHmdc/s400/Kinetic+Damage+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Once you choose your character and fighting style, you’ll be taken to the main area where you’ll choose your fights. There are 4 options here, Fight Lab, Olympic Resort, Grand Strike Casino and the Dojo. Now, you will need to start off in either the Dojo or Fight Lab as these are the only two areas where you can enter fights without an admission fee. In the Dojo, you’ll be able to hire a partner, which gives you the chance to train another fighter, create an event where you can select the difficulty and type of fighting mode (Tournament - you compete against 7 fighters, Team Spirit - ‘regular fight, where enemies can become friends’, Team Survival, King Of The Hill and a whole lot more [24 different options to be exact]), sparring, where you’ll be able to slowly earn some easy money with no penalties for loosing and the special shop, where you’ll be able to customize and evolve your fighter with the credits that you’ll earn by winning fights, but we’ll come back to that a little later.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gzVFkJqFbl4/Ub3FH9jNEpI/AAAAAAAAPDE/b6--pMj7gPw/s1600/Kinetic+Damage+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gzVFkJqFbl4/Ub3FH9jNEpI/AAAAAAAAPDE/b6--pMj7gPw/s400/Kinetic+Damage+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The Fight Lab area will give you 3 random battles to enter each with a different gameplay style, like Dance, where your character will loose 5% of their HP if they’re not in a randomized stance that changes every 5 seconds, Weak Spots, where each character stars with 30% of their normal HP, Breath Cutter, where attacks reduce the enemies energy regeneration by 18% for 3 seconds and many, many more. Here, you’ll earn money for a win as well as some enhanced stats for your next fight, like +25% precision, +15% critical, ect. But if you loose, you’ll also get the opposite stats for the next fight, like -25% precision or -15% critical. Each of the 3 fights is also set at a random difficulty level with the winnings directly reflecting the difficulty, which means that you’ll earn more currency for harder fights. In Olympic Resort you’ll also have the option of 3 randomized fights to choose from, also varying in difficulty, but here you’ll have the chance to earn quite a bit of coinage or extra boosts, like a random implant (which we’ll talk about when we bring up the shop). Grand Strike Casino has the potential to earn you loads of currency though, with prizes bringing money multipliers to the table it’s probably the best way to earn loads of cash once you’ve got a decent handle on the game. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hhIglwfKRaE/Ub3FKHOb87I/AAAAAAAAPDM/61-zx-Ki5Uk/s1600/Kinetic+Damage+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hhIglwfKRaE/Ub3FKHOb87I/AAAAAAAAPDM/61-zx-Ki5Uk/s400/Kinetic+Damage+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The Special Shop. Something that I’ve been hoping to see in more fighting games since playing Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero. Kinetic Damage has taken this, like most everything else in the game, to the next level. You’re able to purchase 6 combos ranging in price from 500 to 1,500 credits, 8 different implants which permanently upgrade your speed, strength, vitality, endurance, prevision, energy regeneration, recovery and critical. You’re also able to purchase up to 4 special moves (though you’re given one random special right off the bat for free when you create your character). You can also change your characters look, outfit or fighting style here as well. Needless to say, this is where the majority of your currency will be spent. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OiobWee6OAI/Ub3FK4tGQ-I/AAAAAAAAPDU/q3fIk4EHaPM/s1600/Kinetic+Damage+06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OiobWee6OAI/Ub3FK4tGQ-I/AAAAAAAAPDU/q3fIk4EHaPM/s400/Kinetic+Damage+06.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The controls are pretty much what you would expect in a fighting game. A movement joystick on the left side of the screen with 4 buttons on the right, 2 for punches, 2 for kicks. There’s also a special button right next to the movement joystick which, when pressed, changes the punch/kick buttons into special buttons. While Kinetic Damage does incorporate the one touch special moves that other fighter games on the touch screen use, to pull off combos you’ll need to memorize a series of punch/kick inputs. This mix of ‘easy’ and ‘hardcore’ controls works incredibly well within the game. Movements are not needed for combo inputs, however, you will need to time the button taps perfectly in order to pull them off. For this to work as intended, the controls need to be incredibly responsive, and Kinetic Damage nails it.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hii0OvbNU20/Ub3FMB9rPqI/AAAAAAAAPDc/HhP9HNcXiS4/s1600/Kinetic+Damage+07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hii0OvbNU20/Ub3FMB9rPqI/AAAAAAAAPDc/HhP9HNcXiS4/s400/Kinetic+Damage+07.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
As for the opponent AI, it’s got to be one of the most impressive systems I’ve ever come across in a fighting game (note, this is not explained in the game, rather it was explained by the developer on the Touch Arcade forums). Enemies and how they fight are determined by 3 different stats; Aggressivity, Reactivity and Analysis. Each character is crafted from a pool of 6 to 25 personality points which are distributed to their stats using 3 random ‘dice rolls‘. Because of this, the game is able to have multiple behaviors for fighters in the same difficulty and even in the same fighting style. On top of this, the opponents are also able to ‘learn’ mid-fight, able to redistribute their stat points depending on their ‘mind type’ and how you are playing. The end result? There’s between 4,000 and 16,000 different opponents in the game, depending on the difficulty levels that you choose. Impressive, no?</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/afAR5QdErHk" width="420"></iframe>
<br />
Combine all of this with incredibly precise and responsive controls, top notch animations, smooth gameplay that’s focused more on blocking, timing and skill than button mashing, pinpoint hitbox areas and not one little bit of IAP in sight, and what you’ve got could easily be considered the best fighting game on the iOS and arguably one of the best fighting games on any gaming platform to date. Put an insane price of $2.99 on it, and you’ve got a game that fans of the genre would be crazy to pass up. Scratch that, that all gamers would be crazy to pass up. With Multiplayer on the horizon, Kinetic Damage could replace every single fighting game on your device very soon. I really can not recommend this one enough, but if you’re still weary, there’s a lite version that you can check out which contains 2 of the 8 fighting styles and access to the ‘Match’ gameplay mode where you choose between 2 of the 8 areas that are in the full version, and be given 2 random specials for each fight. It’s a great way to get a feel for the game, and since it’s free to try, there’s no sense in not checking it out if you’re still on the fence. My advice? Skip the lite version and get the full. Now. You will not regret it one little bit.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rg11UFXpiYM/Ub3FU7VvBQI/AAAAAAAAPDk/wqmH3Ta7DBg/s1600/.5+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rg11UFXpiYM/Ub3FU7VvBQI/AAAAAAAAPDk/wqmH3Ta7DBg/s320/.5+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/kinetic-damage/id653222766?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5mxuRiqItq4/Ub3FVjz_3UI/AAAAAAAAPDs/krFk3h4N33Y/s320/Kinetic+Damage+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-52687822994795602102013-06-13T09:57:00.000-07:002013-06-13T09:57:08.397-07:00Kingdom Rush: Frontiers [Ironhide Game Studio] - $2.99/$4.99 [HD]<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qHq92J_U5MM/Ubn5SI1lWLI/AAAAAAAAPBU/_iwukI_zsEw/s1600/Kingdom+Rush+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qHq92J_U5MM/Ubn5SI1lWLI/AAAAAAAAPBU/_iwukI_zsEw/s1600/Kingdom+Rush+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Last year the Tower Defense game Kingdom Rush took the iOS strategy gaming world by storm. Fans of the genre couldn’t get enough of it and many consider it the best TD game on the iOS, some even consider it the best on any gaming platform. That’s some insanely high praise right there, especially considering the high number of quality Tower Defense titles that are out there. Now fans of the very well received original can experience the sequel and it’s everything you’d expect a sequel to be. Kingdom Rush Frontiers takes the original’s gameplay and adds quite a bit to it while keeping the basic mechanics and gameplay in-tact.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8xj6lLipRmI/Ubn5TVFUgII/AAAAAAAAPBc/fV29KyeQWDc/s1600/Kingdom+Rush+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8xj6lLipRmI/Ubn5TVFUgII/AAAAAAAAPBc/fV29KyeQWDc/s400/Kingdom+Rush+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
If you’re not familiar with the original Kingdom Rush, it’s a cartoonish/comic looking hardcore Tower-Defense title that strives to put strategy and player involvement over anything else, unlike most TD titles where it’s basically ‘place your towers and watch the level for the outcome’. You’re given 4 types of towers, Archers, Knights, Mages and Cannons, each of which can eventually be upgraded and turned into a ‘super’ tower; Knights can become Assassins, Archers can create a Crossbow Fort, Cannons can become a DWAARP, a Dwarven supertower that slows all enemies down and the Mage tower can be upgraded to an Archmage tower with charged bolts. Each of these ‘super’ towers also has special abilities which can have devastating effects on the opposition. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aqlwlN6aOrw/Ubn5UPc1bhI/AAAAAAAAPBk/-G3hG8rPf0E/s1600/Kingdom+Rush+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aqlwlN6aOrw/Ubn5UPc1bhI/AAAAAAAAPBk/-G3hG8rPf0E/s400/Kingdom+Rush+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
For each of the levels there are 3 different gameplay modes to try and tackle, each also having 3 difficulty levels to choose from. Classic Mode puts you up against the enemies with all of your towers in-tact and the ability to upgrade them to their full potential. You’ll also be able to employ your Hero who can run freely throughout the stage helping you take out baddies whenever needed. This is the main mode, and includes a great storyline along with it. Heroic Mode gives you 1 life (if one enemy breaks through the barrier, you loose) and puts you up against 6 waves of elite enemies while maxing out your towers at a lower level and no hero. The last mode is Iron Mode, putting you through 1 super wave of enemies with 1 life, a set limit to the max level of your towers, no hero and also only gives you 2 towers to work with. With all of this, including Casual, Normal and Veteran difficulties, there’s quite a challenge to be had by gamers of all skill-sets. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-H-HB-_C3G2M/Ubn5UqQA_uI/AAAAAAAAPBs/obOWgRT826s/s1600/Kingdom+Rush+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-H-HB-_C3G2M/Ubn5UqQA_uI/AAAAAAAAPBs/obOWgRT826s/s400/Kingdom+Rush+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Frontiers contains all of this along with new enemies, new terrains and environments, new heroes, new abilities and new super towers. Like the original, you’ll earn gems alongside hero and upgrade points which can be distributed among your towers and to make your hero an even stronger force to be reckoned with. Gems can be spent in the shop to purchase special items like extra health points, dynamite that can take out a very small grouping of enemies, a frozotov which can freeze a small group of enemies, a super bomb that can wipe out every enemy on the screen, a gold bag which gives you more gold for a stage and a chill wand which freezes all the enemies on the screen for a short period of time. You are able to purchase more gems from the game’s IAP shop, but this is not necessary to complete the game. The game is also not directly pushed towards purchasing these gems even though it might feel that way with the heightened difficulty of the gameplay, each stage can be completed without using any extra items. You can also purchase extra heroes from the shop with prices ranging from $2.99 to $4.99 and even a $6.99 hero. Just like gems, these are not required to complete the game, and you are given 3 free heroes to choose from while playing, but they are there if you’re interested in supporting the developers or just getting a stronger hero to help you through the game. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IBlJb83ejXg/Ubn5Vb__XUI/AAAAAAAAPB0/ZLwMjzxGMJQ/s1600/Kingdom+Rush+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IBlJb83ejXg/Ubn5Vb__XUI/AAAAAAAAPB0/ZLwMjzxGMJQ/s400/Kingdom+Rush+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
While there will be some that are turned off the by inclusion of IAPs I feel that I should say this. There still is a lot of strategy involved. Going through a stage and getting your butt kicked and then changing your strategy and playing through the stage again and again is something that’s still here in KR Frontiers, especially if you’re striving to complete the game on Veteran difficulty with a 3 star rating on each stage and completing the extra modes. There’s a crazy amount of gameplay here for the entry price of $2.99 ($4.99 if you want the HD/iPad only version), and that feeling of completing the game perfectly is still a great reward within itself, especially if you do not drop extra money into the game to make it easier. The only reason you should feel the need to purchase any of the IAPs is to support the developer, to make the game easier (which is a tough one to say here, especially since Casual Difficulty is meant for first-timer TD players) or to experience playing the game in a new light with a new hero, kind of like a modified version (which it basically is when you unlock an IAP hero). So unless you’re totally against IAPs in your video games, it shouldn’t be an issue at all here. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QkPFUbTuzVo/Ubn5V70I2bI/AAAAAAAAPB8/WV16cZfHel8/s1600/Kingdom+Rush+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QkPFUbTuzVo/Ubn5V70I2bI/AAAAAAAAPB8/WV16cZfHel8/s400/Kingdom+Rush+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
On top of all of this, there is GameCenter integration with a whopping 72 achievements to try and unlock, and believe me when I say that this will take a while and require some replaying of stages. KR Frontiers has definitely raised the bar for Tower Defense games and is easily one of the best in the genre. Even if you’re not a fan of TD games, this is still one that you should check out, as it might very well make you a fan, or bring you back into the TD gaming scene. I really can’t recommend it enough. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ilshnhXtfKQ" width="560"></iframe>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qWGJO6N6ljg/Ubn5W6AppeI/AAAAAAAAPCE/apzfh4r2r0A/s1600/.5+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qWGJO6N6ljg/Ubn5W6AppeI/AAAAAAAAPCE/apzfh4r2r0A/s320/.5+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/kingdom-rush-frontiers/id598581396?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uONvTPhzAx0/Ubn5XrUju0I/AAAAAAAAPCM/roi2pd2vfR0/s320/Kingdom+Rush+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-8585609745742912222013-06-13T04:52:00.000-07:002013-06-13T06:01:24.791-07:009th Dawn [Valorware + Made With Marmalade] - $2.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ztbWteuGM1g/UbmxZn79orI/AAAAAAAAPAM/xtku1oEOPJA/s1600/9th+Dawn+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ztbWteuGM1g/UbmxZn79orI/AAAAAAAAPAM/xtku1oEOPJA/s1600/9th+Dawn+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
It’s kind of surprising that as popular and loved as Ultima is, that there’s not more iOS games influenced by this genre defining old-school RPG. However this does make finding one all the more special. This is something we’ve just recently had the pleasure of experiencing while diving into Valorware’s 9th Dawn, published by Made With Marmalade. And while some players have already completed the game, others are finding out that taking your time and exploring every single nook and cranny within the game is an incredibly rewarding experience. Especially since the world is so vast and is a complete joy to roam around in.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jGoB0icfnLo/UbmxaAODNLI/AAAAAAAAPAU/EfvrFbHXPsI/s1600/9th+Dawn+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jGoB0icfnLo/UbmxaAODNLI/AAAAAAAAPAU/EfvrFbHXPsI/s400/9th+Dawn+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
9th Dawn gives you the option of playing with 1 of 3 classes; Knight, Archer or Mage, each having drastically different ways of playing as well as different quests, different NPC interactions and loads of loot for all 3. The knight has heavy armor and strong attacks but is pretty slow and pretty inept when it comes to magic. The archer is great for quick movement and medium range attacks while the mage is pretty week when it comes to defense but can dish out a whole slew of magical spells and abilities and is probably the one character with the most depth when it comes to the customization of spells and stats, as well as the most difficult to complete the game with. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6sN0X7tq7Q4/UbmxaD6uLwI/AAAAAAAAPAY/ZZFqehWpm7M/s1600/9th+Dawn+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6sN0X7tq7Q4/UbmxaD6uLwI/AAAAAAAAPAY/ZZFqehWpm7M/s400/9th+Dawn+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Starting off, you awake on the continent of Montelorne with no idea how you got there or where to go. Luckily, there’s an NPC right outside of where you wake up and he gives you some basic directions as well as warnings. Then off you go to explore the world, learn about the lay of the land, the empires, the characters, what makes everyone tick, ect. The one thing that wasn’t really explained too well in the beginning was how to interact with objects. When it comes to characters, a hand icon usually appears right above your attack stick which you can tap to talk to them but, as you’ll soon find out, this icon does not always appear. Going into the first shops, you can’t get close enough to the shopkeepers to trigger the hand icon from appearing and here is where you’ll either figure out on your own, or just avoid the shops for now, that you can tap directly on the NPCs to interact with them. The same goes for everything else in the world of 9th Dawn. Tapping on barrels, enemy’s dropped items/silver, buckets, chests, ect, all of these can be tapped on while some of these things, like dropped items and silver, will trigger the hand icon above your attack button, but that’s about it. I wound up dying 4 times before finding out that I could search through barrels for loot and items because of this. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zo-CFsDu9zY/Ubmxas3LNYI/AAAAAAAAPAk/KDquwsWaX7Q/s1600/9th+Dawn+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zo-CFsDu9zY/Ubmxas3LNYI/AAAAAAAAPAk/KDquwsWaX7Q/s400/9th+Dawn+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
But once all of that becomes apparent, the gameplay really opens up and 9th Dawn turns into the huge, exciting, exploration RPG beast that it’s meant to be. The controls are flawless, using dual sticks for movement and attacking in 360 degree fashion is a huge plus, giving you great control over what your character does and how he does it. The attacking stick can take a little fiddling around to get comfortable with if you’re using the Mage or Archer, as you’ll need to pull the stick in the opposite direction of your enemy. After getting use to it, it does play very nicely but if you’re still having troubles with it, you can switch this in the options menu so that your character fires in the same direction of your stick movement as well. You can also enable aim assist if you’re still having troubles, which is a nice little addition. There are also options for ‘tablet mode’, ‘large thumb pads’, ‘floating stick’ and you can re-position the sticks as well, which makes the gameplay comfortable on any device no matter how you might hold it. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yeugLxW7hRU/Ubmxa6X2EnI/AAAAAAAAPAs/rncBaKXkWl0/s1600/9th+Dawn+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yeugLxW7hRU/Ubmxa6X2EnI/AAAAAAAAPAs/rncBaKXkWl0/s400/9th+Dawn+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
This, combined with the depth of customization makes for one hell of a gameplay experience. Leveling up, like most RPGs, is done by defeating enemies. Once you level up, you're awarded 5 stat points which you can distribute how you see fit to either Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence or Wisdom. You'll also unlock more skills and spells as you level up and progress throughout the game. Being able to assign these to hotslots at either the bottom of the screen, or 'fold-out' slots above the attack stick allows for quick integration of skills and items to the heat of the action while in the midst of gameplay. It all really comes together quite nicely with a fluid and easy to navigate user interface. Quests can also be called up from your Quest Log, found in your inventory, which can also be assigned to a quick-slot for easy reference. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HOnmyz93z-o/UbmxbSi2vVI/AAAAAAAAPA0/L9UBET8Geys/s1600/9th+Dawn+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HOnmyz93z-o/UbmxbSi2vVI/AAAAAAAAPA0/L9UBET8Geys/s400/9th+Dawn+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Aside from the slight tutorial issue, 9th Dawn has been a pure joy to play. There’s always a new place to explore and the graphics and gameplay will take you back to the days of playing Ultima while reminding you how much gaming has grown with the super smooth animations, gameplay and huge open world. Priced at $2.99, 9th Dawn is a steal, especially considering how much gameplay you’ll get out of it and how enjoyable your gameplay experience will be. The few issues I might have with the game are extremely easy to overlook when presented with so much greatness. And considering this is only version 1.0.0, there’s plenty of hope that the game will only get better. If you’re a fan of the genre, I really can’t recommend this one enough, and even if you’re not, 9th Dawn might just make you a fan. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/x-bFYKUNhbs" width="560"></iframe>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iZSD9p5Emqg/UbmxcYxZnGI/AAAAAAAAPA8/pCS36QWCbh8/s1600/.4+1-2+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iZSD9p5Emqg/UbmxcYxZnGI/AAAAAAAAPA8/pCS36QWCbh8/s320/.4+1-2+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/9th-dawn/id627525184?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bM47brDw_hM/UbmxnzrUDhI/AAAAAAAAPBE/YcgZMQ6Kzak/s320/9th+Dawn+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<b>**EDIT**</b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<b>We did originally state that there was no quest log. Thankfully, PSJ3809 over at TouchArcade clued us in as to where the Questlog could be found. We apologize for any mis-understanding. </b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-74029544939681300862013-06-08T09:23:00.000-07:002013-06-08T09:23:02.599-07:00Scurvy Scallywags [Beep Games] - $0.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ve5iMdt47DA/UbNZbCTnM2I/AAAAAAAAO_E/-PQl0qOTVbg/s1600/Scurvy+Scallywags+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ve5iMdt47DA/UbNZbCTnM2I/AAAAAAAAO_E/-PQl0qOTVbg/s1600/Scurvy+Scallywags+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Match-3 RPG’s have gained quite a bit of ground in the AppStore. Games like Puzzle Quest, Puzzle & Dragons, Tower Of Saviors and many more put you in control of adventures or a warrior and have you match tiles to attack, defend, cast spells, ect. While there are plenty of fantasy games within this genre, developers rarely break from this mold. Here’s where Beep Games comes in. Their new title, Scurvy Scallywags, has you playing as a pirate. Not only are you playing as a pirate, but you’re playing as a pirate in an on stage play. Within this, there’s quite a few more branching off that Beep Games has done from the typical ‘tried-n-true’ mechanics that can be found within this fledgling genre. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Orc3ZIkYuik/UbNZbmcx2PI/AAAAAAAAO_M/1P4_osSv2WA/s1600/Scurvy+Scallywags+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Orc3ZIkYuik/UbNZbmcx2PI/AAAAAAAAO_M/1P4_osSv2WA/s400/Scurvy+Scallywags+01.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Scurvy Scallywags starts off with the director telling you that the house is packed and that the future of the theatre is riding on your performance and the play being a huge hit. From here, you get to pick the look of your character. As you progress throughout the game you’ll unlock more costume pieces, some of which have extra stats to boost your character’s strength. You’ll be able to choose different hats, faces, shirts, shoes and weapons and once you unlock a few of the costume pieces with stats attached the customization becomes something that you’ll be messing with quite a bit. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nsONuC-jaIU/UbNZb4x4ehI/AAAAAAAAO_U/vJssmn-dhAU/s1600/Scurvy+Scallywags+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nsONuC-jaIU/UbNZb4x4ehI/AAAAAAAAO_U/vJssmn-dhAU/s400/Scurvy+Scallywags+02.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
After you choose your initial clothing items, the play will begin and you’ll face off against the evil pirate captain who has stolen treasure and hid it around the world. Sailing from island to island you’ll start to do battle with enemies on the laid out tiles. Making matches of 3 or more can earn you gold, attack points or other various items which you can also sell once you complete the stage, helping you to earn more and more cash to put towards power-ups and other items. As you make matches, the board will shift depending on which way you swipe the matching piece into place. If you swipe from right to left, the empty spaces will fill in from the far right side of the screen, swipe top to bottom, and pieces will fall from the top and so on. Enemies will randomly appear on the board as you get further into each stage, and it’s up to you to try and match enough sword tiles that you can fight the enemies without taking damage yourself. Each enemy has a number above their character showing their attack strength. With your attack strength shown in the upper part of the screen, as well as your hit points, experience and earned gold. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uS-QPubrjbk/UbNZccJHApI/AAAAAAAAO_c/_Xo-31bL13Y/s1600/Scurvy+Scallywags+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uS-QPubrjbk/UbNZccJHApI/AAAAAAAAO_c/_Xo-31bL13Y/s400/Scurvy+Scallywags+03.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Defeating an enemy will give you a special treasure. Collect it and you’re given the chance to spin a wheel which can either get you pieces for your ships or bits of gold. While you’re moving the pieces of the board around, as well as yourself while trying to either move towards enemies or away from them, you’ll be able to collect special items like presents which give you another spin on the wheel, band aids which restore HP, or items which are needed to complete objectives. Point being there’s a whole lot going on, and it’s great having this much depth alongside the story and RPG elements. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-m8PC02t8gFQ/UbNZcwWSKnI/AAAAAAAAO_k/4u8COrvHtiU/s1600/Scurvy+Scallywags+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-m8PC02t8gFQ/UbNZcwWSKnI/AAAAAAAAO_k/4u8COrvHtiU/s400/Scurvy+Scallywags+04.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Once you get enough ship pieces, you’re able to build a ship which will give you some extra stats and generally help make life a little easier. Stronger ships are unlocked as you level up. Leveling up also unlocks special abilities which you can use mid-battle, like having an extra fighter to help you take out the enemies, turning all of the most common piece on the board into gold, extra turns that do not effect the movement or attack of the enemy and much, much more. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
If you don’t manage to make it through the game, no worries. Dying does put you back at the beginning, but you’ll keep all of your items, gold, upgrades and clothing, making it easier to get further each time you play. Even after completing the game, each of the game’s island’s produce randomly generated levels giving you pretty much endless replay value. On top of that there’s also a whopping 52 GameCenter achievements to try and unlock. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-El6QeneDJGg/UbNZdFgOJDI/AAAAAAAAO_o/y5v2fXJKfVk/s1600/Scurvy+Scallywags+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-El6QeneDJGg/UbNZdFgOJDI/AAAAAAAAO_o/y5v2fXJKfVk/s400/Scurvy+Scallywags+05.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
With Scurvy Scallywags priced at $0.99, it’s an incredible deal. While the game’s mechanics aren’t incredibly original, there are a lot of them and quite a few do make the game feel very fresh and new. It’s like Beep Games took every Match-3/RPG and meshed all of their mechanics together and wrapped a great story around them, giving the game loads of depth while making it insanely fun. Even if you’re not a fan of the genre, or have lost interest because of all of the ‘clones’ hitting the AppStore over the last year or so, this is one title that might just get you into, or back into, the genre. If you are still a fan of the genre, Scurvy Scallywags is a must own, and easily one of the best within the Match-3/RPG genre. I really can not recommend it enough.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/IXbP-HX3tns" width="485"></iframe>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-s-kcRIHwiQU/UbNZnpd201I/AAAAAAAAO_8/4tC2CiIlICQ/s1600/.5+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-s-kcRIHwiQU/UbNZnpd201I/AAAAAAAAO_8/4tC2CiIlICQ/s320/.5+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/scurvy-scallywags/id593299847?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JOc3palWCTA/UbNZmttHXMI/AAAAAAAAO_0/g7D2IpusA8U/s320/Scurvy+Scallywags+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-22478344257131200202013-06-06T06:47:00.004-07:002013-06-06T06:47:57.081-07:00Warhammer Quest [Rodeo Games] - $4.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-18E3WEH3u2Q/UbCSXy1DraI/AAAAAAAAO98/yCHQMmxUUGk/s1600/WHQ+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-18E3WEH3u2Q/UbCSXy1DraI/AAAAAAAAO98/yCHQMmxUUGk/s1600/WHQ+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The first quarter of this year’s releases on the iOS was surprisingly strong. Our GOTY contender list grew fairly quickly, and we actually questioned if we were being too lenient with our standards. Fortunately, the waves of forgettable games came in, and made our GOTY picks stand out even more. Over the last couple of months there hasn’t been much to talk about in the iOS gaming world. Hyped up games failed to live up to expectations, and IAP driven paidmium titles seemed to flood the AppStore every Wednesday night. Thankfully, there have been a few titles that have stood out, and a couple of those are definitely strong Game Of The Year material. The most recent addition to our GOTY list should be no surprise, especially considering the team behind it; Rodeo Game’s Warhammer Quest. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UMBUeaC-Dw0/UbCSYcOIluI/AAAAAAAAO-E/Bfnq78JVp4U/s1600/WHQ+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UMBUeaC-Dw0/UbCSYcOIluI/AAAAAAAAO-E/Bfnq78JVp4U/s400/WHQ+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
For those of you who are unfamiliar with Warhammer Quest, it’s originally a board game set in the Warhammer Universe and is the successor to the HeroQuest and Advanced HeroQuest games. While Quest was originally released in 1995 and while it was, and still is, very popular with multiple magazines helping to build upon the universe and receiving a number of expansions, Warhammer 40,000 is most likely the game that most fans of the series are familiar with. Since it’s been released and re-released with multiple ‘Edition’s (starting in 1987 with the First Edition, and most recently receiving it’s Sixth Edition in 2012), getting various expansions and even spawned it’s own movie, there’s almost no way to avoid WH40K if you’re into the Warhammer Universe. However, WH: Fantasy Battle, where it all started, is where you should look if you’re most interested in most of the background lore for the games. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2Qy6QL_yNP8/UbCSY60rW6I/AAAAAAAAO-I/GZwizu23U3U/s1600/WHQ+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2Qy6QL_yNP8/UbCSY60rW6I/AAAAAAAAO-I/GZwizu23U3U/s400/WHQ+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Now that we’re done with that little history lesson, Warhammer Quest is set in the ‘Old World’, focusing on a group of adventures who have joined together in order to battle demons and monsters with the hopes of becoming famous, highly respected warriors. Throughout the game, you’ll be given quests and objectives to complete, progressing throughout the story while collecting a massive amount of loot and leveling up your characters with a pretty depthy upgrade system. But at it’s core, it’s a Dungeon Crawler that focuses on loot and rare items, branching out into some great RPG and Adventure gameplay. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5XBTMNCXbqY/UbCSZN3cFsI/AAAAAAAAO-U/kliHpMDS0-I/s1600/WHQ+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5XBTMNCXbqY/UbCSZN3cFsI/AAAAAAAAO-U/kliHpMDS0-I/s400/WHQ+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
If you’re familiar with Rodeo Game’s previous Hunters titles, you should feel right at home with the graphics, animations and UI. The movement has been more streamlined, as you can select movements for your characters before others are finished moving to their selected spots and zooming in/out + maneuvering the camera is a lot tighter, giving you the feeling of having more control over everything. Now aside from the tweaked user interface the first thing that really grabbed my attention when starting Warhammer Quest up was the way that the in-level inventory system is handled. While you’re playing the game in landscape mode, to enter your inventory/equip screen all you need to do is turn your device to portrait mode. Here, you can easily select your characters and change out equipment and items quickly and get back to gameplay in a flash. The whole system is really quite impressive. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-k5wDGJen6TA/UbCSZtBFTmI/AAAAAAAAO-c/MQgIojmbl3k/s1600/WHQ+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-k5wDGJen6TA/UbCSZtBFTmI/AAAAAAAAO-c/MQgIojmbl3k/s400/WHQ+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
As for the gameplay; You’re given a multitude of side-quests that run alongside your ‘main’ quests that progress the story forward. While making your way through the game, you’ll come across various villages, each having their own quests associated with them. These quests are shown on the map in red while white sections are quests that will move you forward and open up more villages and settlements to visit. Each of the dungeons are split up into areas, with each area having a set number of enemies to defeat. The only way to progress through the dungeon is to clear out one area at a time. Once you complete an area, you’ll be able to collect all of the loot you’ve earned. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div>
Some dungeons have multiple paths to explore, giving you more chances to earn some awesome loot and equipment which is a great addition to the game. With the amount of depth in the equipment and spell systems as well as the massive amount of loot available and top notch story-telling; it’s very easy to see that an insane amount of work has gone into making Warhammer Quest a true and faithful adaptation of the board game while streamlining it, taking out all of the tedious card and piece management that slows down the physical version. There’s not one negative thing I can say about WHQ, and Rodeo Games has set a new standard, not only for themselves, but for iOS gaming in general. </div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MyXp5xVqHz0/UbCSaD-7rBI/AAAAAAAAO-k/-AAyzQT3_ks/s1600/WHQ+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MyXp5xVqHz0/UbCSaD-7rBI/AAAAAAAAO-k/-AAyzQT3_ks/s400/WHQ+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
With Warhammer Quest being a true ‘console-like’ gameplay experience on the iOS as well as how expensive the Warhammer board games can get, the price tag of $4.99 is incredibly cheap. For those of you who know how pricy the board games can get, you might even feel inclined to purchase a couple of the IAP characters or Gold Packs right off the bat just to show your support to these amazingly talented developers. This is an easy 5 star game; one that each and every iOS gamer should experience, and is also a very strong contender for iOS Game Of The Year. There’s really not much more that I can say about it other than you shouldn’t think twice about picking Warhammer Quest up. Get it. You won’t regret it one little bit.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/a0C3669FD84" width="560"></iframe>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kpGn8qBn33k/UbCSb1qH5uI/AAAAAAAAO-0/mzYt9fHk4pU/s1600/.5+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kpGn8qBn33k/UbCSb1qH5uI/AAAAAAAAO-0/mzYt9fHk4pU/s320/.5+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/warhammer-quest/id573516833?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-geGaHyG41yk/UbCSa3gb-HI/AAAAAAAAO-s/19Udq8kBpgA/s320/WHQ+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-52472896676883571142013-06-02T08:27:00.000-07:002013-06-02T08:27:25.907-07:00Little Luca [Glowingpine Studios] - $0.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-L-8Ip4HD51I/UatjeC3pfgI/AAAAAAAAO80/_DM8_5gQKqk/s1600/Little+Luca+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-L-8Ip4HD51I/UatjeC3pfgI/AAAAAAAAO80/_DM8_5gQKqk/s1600/Little+Luca+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Physics puzzlers are one of a couple of genres that feel right at home on the mobile device’s touch screen. And while most of them have you using the environment to move objects around, there are a couple that take that sort of gameplay mechanic to another level. Games like Bumpy Road, Solipskier, Lazy Raiders, Night Sky and others do this in such a way that, even though some might not consider it incredibly original, they still do manage to feel fresh, unique and new while playing. And that’s where the new title from Glowingpine Studios, Little Luca, fits in. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Keo_NumqWgc/UatjqusYZMI/AAAAAAAAO9E/8XusGAeaRQA/s1600/Little+Luca+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Keo_NumqWgc/UatjqusYZMI/AAAAAAAAO9E/8XusGAeaRQA/s400/Little+Luca+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
While looking out at the stars one night, Luca notices something strange happening. All of a sudden, the stars start falling out of the sky. Now it’s up to you to collect them all and restore the sky to it’s original beauty by collecting the 3 stars in each stage using the environment to maneuver a little ball around. As with most games, the beginning of the game acts as a soft intro to the gameplay mechanics, with only a couple of objects moving when you ‘activate’ them with the game’s simple one touch controls. As you progress further, more elements are added like whales, airstreams, gravity wells and more making the gameplay incredibly interesting as well as challenging. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LjQHg0JbO9U/UatjrPmBDxI/AAAAAAAAO9M/EMfZi9gL_1E/s1600/Little+Luca+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LjQHg0JbO9U/UatjrPmBDxI/AAAAAAAAO9M/EMfZi9gL_1E/s400/Little+Luca+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
In each level there are certain objects that will activate when you touch the screen. Sometimes it’s a circle that will indent, launching the ball when you let go of the screen, other times it’s a platform that will move, knocking the ball into something else, slowing it’s momentum or even completely changing the direction of the ball. Some airstreams will always be active while others will be ‘dead’ until you touch the screen, activating them and some of them will even be rotating, requiring you to tap the screen at the precise moment to send the ball in the direction that it needs to in order to reach the end of level goal. Whales act as a sort of moving circle most of the time, swimming around in the water ready to launch the ball upward when the time is right. All of this put together has allowed the developers to come up with some incredibly inventive level designs, and even better, they’ve very clearly well thought-out level designs. I couldn’t help but be impressed throughout the game with how perfectly each and every level was put together. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Aq7RAnXA-VU/UatjrnsdJVI/AAAAAAAAO9U/fUhJ30JJLTI/s1600/Little+Luca+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Aq7RAnXA-VU/UatjrnsdJVI/AAAAAAAAO9U/fUhJ30JJLTI/s400/Little+Luca+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Graphically the game is a throwback to the days of retro gaming while still adding the sort of ‘modern retro’ graphics that iOS gamers have come to enjoy. It isn’t so retro that the pixels don’t have character and becoming attached to the little white ball is not hard to do. Throughout the 90 levels there are 3 different worlds, each with their own distinctive environments and while the graphics are inherently minimal because of the retro graphics used, they are also done incredibly well, adding a lot to the vibe throughout the game. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
On top of the challenge of collecting each of the 3 stars in every stage, there is also a nice scoring system that’s based on how many stars you collect and how quickly you do it. This is emphasized with GameCenter’s 4 leaderboards; one for your Total Score and a board for each individual world. And while there are no achievements, this adds to the drive of scoring better, and collecting every star while flying perfectly through each and every level. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GFlEoihGI50/UatjsFLWN3I/AAAAAAAAO9c/vS7I-hONChg/s1600/Little+Luca+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GFlEoihGI50/UatjsFLWN3I/AAAAAAAAO9c/vS7I-hONChg/s400/Little+Luca+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Priced at $0.99, being completely IAP free and not having one little negative thing that I can say about the game, it’s very easy to recommend Little Luca. It’s very clear that a lot of love, effort and time has gone into this incredibly polished physics puzzler. It also brings that ‘something special’ to the table, making it stand out in the sea of physics puzzlers that have infested the AppStore over the last couple of years. More levels are planned in the future, and I sincerely hope that the game sells well enough to make that possible, as finding a game like this, especially within it’s genre, is an insanely rare occurrence. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/rpTH0Me1Wgs" width="560"></iframe>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ku4OXZivI7A/UatjuKsUJgI/AAAAAAAAO9s/KGT-fzDknjw/s1600/.5+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ku4OXZivI7A/UatjuKsUJgI/AAAAAAAAO9s/KGT-fzDknjw/s320/.5+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/little-luca/id634879367?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zhe-IAeIYk0/UatjtImvaNI/AAAAAAAAO9k/kbk6i4pO-FA/s320/Little+Luca+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-64139514093132088332013-05-30T07:46:00.001-07:002013-05-30T07:46:36.567-07:00Combo Crew [The Game Bakers] - $1.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BumAyN3geXI/UadkpH_w2ZI/AAAAAAAAO7s/LMZgEcBENhk/s1600/Combo+Crew+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BumAyN3geXI/UadkpH_w2ZI/AAAAAAAAO7s/LMZgEcBENhk/s1600/Combo+Crew+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
One of my favorite iOS games over the last couple years has been one that not many review sites gave much credit. Mainly because of the included IAP, even though it did nothing to harm the actual gameplay and was completely un-intrusive throughout, The Game Bakers action oriented turn-based RPG, Squids and Squids Wild West are two completely stand out titles on the platform and while they didn’t do too well in sales, it’s hard to deny that they set a new standard for many iOS gamers as to what a great RPG on the touch screen should be. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Since the release of Squids and Squids WW, The Game Bakers have been working on something else completely suited for the touch screen, and while those words usually constitute half-assed gameplay and gimmicky controls there are some rare occasions where ‘from the ground up for the touch screen’ has pushed genres forward, keeping them fresh and incredibly entertaining on a gaming device that’s starting to be taken a little more seriously as a ‘real’ gaming platform as time progresses. Before I go off on a tangent, the name of the game? Combo Crew. A swipe based brawler that’s easy for this reviewer to call ‘one of the best on the platform’.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-22jr-iYe_t8/UadkzNkrKGI/AAAAAAAAO70/cvDtlMnkLqc/s1600/Combo+Crew+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-22jr-iYe_t8/UadkzNkrKGI/AAAAAAAAO70/cvDtlMnkLqc/s400/Combo+Crew+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Combo Crew is a tower based brawler in which you’ll start at the bottom, and have to fight your way to the top in order to take down Mr. Boss. As you progress through the tower, you’ll unlock skills, allowing you to switch out moves to your liking and style of play. The controls are very easy to get use to and actually, are quite a bit more comfortable and natural feeling than any virtual controls I’ve experienced in a brawler. First off, a quick swipe on an enemy will have your character attack them. This also sets them up as your primary target. If you want to change targets, you can either swipe or tap the enemy whom you’d like to focus your attacks on instead of the one that’s currently selected. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
There are some enemies that will block almost every attack you make, this is where your charged attack comes into play. To do this all you need to do is swipe the enemy, but keep your finger down on the screen, letting go after you’ve ‘charged’ your attack, and you’ll knock the enemy, and any enemies who happen to get caught in the crossfire, all the way across the screen. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hfTGZdm3vbw/UadkzsBl-iI/AAAAAAAAO74/gyzAJCXQCF4/s1600/Combo+Crew+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hfTGZdm3vbw/UadkzsBl-iI/AAAAAAAAO74/gyzAJCXQCF4/s400/Combo+Crew+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The special combo attacks are where it gets kind of tricky in regard to how you want to play, how quickly you want your character to attack, the range of attacks you want them to have and so on. Using two fingers to swipe anywhere on the screen, you can swipe left, right, up or down, giving you the option of pulling off 4 different combo moves. As you complete segments of the tower, you’ll be able to purchase and equip different combos with varying length and strikes, allowing you to pick a combo that starts off with a sweep kick for those pesky blocking characters, ends with an uppercut so that you can get that extra mid-air strike in, or combos with a longer/shorter string of attacks depending on how quickly you want to be able to get our of the action, or how quickly you want to build up your multiplier. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jATGUsrIPS4/Uadk0C0EUiI/AAAAAAAAO8E/SaSBnUF-Rzo/s1600/Combo+Crew+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jATGUsrIPS4/Uadk0C0EUiI/AAAAAAAAO8E/SaSBnUF-Rzo/s400/Combo+Crew+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Counter-attacking is also a big part of Combo Crew. While you’re attacking the enemy, there’s almost always going to be multiple enemies on-screen who are not seeing the business end of your fist or foot, and they will decide to come after you. These characters are always shown with a fairly large exclamation point over their heads. In order to counter their attacks, you’ll need to tap anywhere on the screen when the exclamation point is visible. This queues up a counter move that you’ll pull off as soon as you’re done finishing whatever attacking action you’re in the middle of. Here’s where short combo moves come in handy, as some of the longer combos will leave you open to attack for a longer period of time since you can’t stop a combo once you start it. Miss out on the chance to counter, and you’ll loose your multiplier as well as your super combo meter.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Tyb8U1169wo/Uadk0oWWHEI/AAAAAAAAO8M/qYqub0JtAYo/s1600/Combo+Crew+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Tyb8U1169wo/Uadk0oWWHEI/AAAAAAAAO8M/qYqub0JtAYo/s400/Combo+Crew+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Yes, there is a super combo meter. While you’re off kicking some serious butt, a gauge will charge in the upper left corner right beneath your health bar. Once this is filled up, an icon with a fist on it will appear under the bar. You can either choose to tap it straight away, or wait and see if you can pull off some more moves to charge up the bar for a second or third time, strengthening your combo attacks. Once you do tap the fist icon, the background will go black, and everything will stop. This is where you’re given a chance to totally ruin the day of anyone unlucky enough to get caught on the screen. Once the background disappears, you can place your finger on the screen, and quickly swipe through all of the characters multiple times. After a couple of seconds, your super combo meter will start to drain and you’ll go on a complete rampage until it’s drained, quickly following the path of the line you drew with your finger, giving you the chance to rack up a massive multiplier. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bjuo89_kY54/Uadk1C5JCXI/AAAAAAAAO8U/k679zDpkcHg/s1600/Combo+Crew+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bjuo89_kY54/Uadk1C5JCXI/AAAAAAAAO8U/k679zDpkcHg/s400/Combo+Crew+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
There are two gameplay modes; King Of The Tower, where you’ll have the chance to fight through 7 levels of the tower, each with 5 stages to try and perfect by snagging the 3 medals: Complete the stage without getting hit, beat the gold medal score and get the top local score. There is also a sort of Endless Mode called Combo Crew Mode. Here, you’ll be able to fight through stages of enemies that become increasingly difficult. In each stage there are multiple waves that you’ll need to fight off, and once you loose all of your health, it’s Game Over. However, you’re also able to get ‘rescued’ by Facebook friends and other gamers through e-mail addresses. This gives you the chance to get saved by another player to keep on fighting in a co-op mode and better your high-score. While I’m not too sure many gamers will like the idea of people working their way up the leaderboards because they have more friends with the game than them, there are a couple of forum threads, and players on The Game Baker’s Facebook page that are handing out their e-mail addresses, so finding someone to help you out isn’t really something that’s hard to do, and since you’re also able to earn currency by completing objectives and beating stages, there’s still a massive amount of drive to play the Combo Crew Mode if you’re going at it solo. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/LuW2fmz4S3Y" width="560"></iframe>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Starting off the game, you’re given two characters with some pretty different fighting styles. There are also 2 unlockable characters which you can purchase for 20 game pieces each. Game pieces are earned by completing objectives in both gameplay modes. No worries about having to dump another couple of dollars into the game, as it’s completely IAP free, putting everyone at the same playing field from the get go. Each of the characters has 20 available combo moves, giving the game a total of 80 distinct combo moves to try and unlock. On top of this, there’s also boosters that are consumable items that you can purchase in the shop, like a burger that completely refills your health, fries that double your life gauge and completely fill it up, a green chili that fills your super combo gauge and more. There are also permanent upgrades/perks that you can buy as well which will increase your life gauge, add booster slots, increase your damage and more. Needless to say, there’s a lot to unlock in the game. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Graphically, Combo Crew is just as polished as The Game Bakers previous Squids titles. The animations are top notch and the gameplay is incredibly smooth. However, it is kind of lacking in the environment department. There are different looks for each level of the tower, but they don’t do much to make it feel different. If you’re not really paying attention, it can almost feel like you’re playing in one room over and over again throughout most of the game. As long as I am bringing up one of the very few negative things I can say about Combo Crew, I might as well get this out of the way as well; there is no co-op mode through GameCenter. I know that some gamers will be kind of upset by this, but it’s not a deal breaker at all, though I do hope to see it added somehow in the future.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Outside of that, Combo Crew is priced at a measly $1.99. Since the game does not have one little shred of IAP to be found inside of it, and is Universal and is, without a doubt, one of the best beat-em-up/brawler titles available on the iOS, it’s a game that’s pretty much impossible for us not to recommend. If you’re a fan of the genre, Combo Crew is a must get. And with The Game Bakers working on incorporating even more into the game with updates and taking player feedback very seriously, the future for the game looks incredibly bright. You won’t want to miss out on this one. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AddgTDyZNf4/Uadk3dNUcgI/AAAAAAAAO8k/PTE2m7vm6yk/s1600/.4+1-2+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AddgTDyZNf4/Uadk3dNUcgI/AAAAAAAAO8k/PTE2m7vm6yk/s320/.4+1-2+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/combo-crew/id599516631?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BJRyu3uadwY/Uadk1si8dlI/AAAAAAAAO8c/O4WpMW6ZlGc/s320/Combo+Crew+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-40239134202013414782013-05-26T08:56:00.003-07:002013-05-26T09:33:51.384-07:00Best Park In The Universe [Heavy Boat Games + Cartoon Network] - $2.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vnIBtqEdCHg/UaIvkBit4yI/AAAAAAAAO6M/IRH3kuAEBLg/s1600/Best+Park+In+The+Universe+Icon+Large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vnIBtqEdCHg/UaIvkBit4yI/AAAAAAAAO6M/IRH3kuAEBLg/s1600/Best+Park+In+The+Universe+Icon+Large.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
One of our favorite beat-em-ups/brawlers here at The App Shack has got to be Grumpyface Studio’s Mutant Fridge Mayhem. Published by Cartoon Network, it contained the gameplay that previous beat-em-ups promised, but couldn’t deliver. This wasn’t too much of a surprise, as Grumpface’s previous releases (Bring Me Sandwiches!, Wispin and Super Mole Escape) are all top notch titles on the platform. But what Mutant Fridge Mayhem did for us was open our eyes to Adult Swim’s fledging gaming brother and since it’s release, we’ve been keeping a close eye on Cartoon Network’s releases. Earlier this week another brawler came out of the Cartoon Network studio and this time it’s developed by Heavy Boat Games (developers of quite a few Cartoon Network games; Ben 10 Hack, Pickle Farmer, Copa Toon Champions, Toxic Targets and many more, most of which can be played on <a href="http://www.cartoonnetwork.com/games/index.html"><b>Cartoon Network’s website</b></a> - they're also the developers of <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/jumping-finn-turbo-adventure/id555641530?mt=8"><b>Jumping Finn Turbo</b></a>, available in the AppStore) and is set in the world of the popular Regular Show titled Best Park In The Universe. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bC2lqzsMsY0/UaIvvM6KWCI/AAAAAAAAO6Y/vih2sCS6F88/s1600/Best+Park+In+The+Universe+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bC2lqzsMsY0/UaIvvM6KWCI/AAAAAAAAO6Y/vih2sCS6F88/s400/Best+Park+In+The+Universe+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Mr. Maellard and Benson are called away to a Park Management Conference, leaving Mordecai and Rigby in charge of the park. Benson promises that if the park is clean when they return, everyone will get some days off. On the other hand, if they screw up, they’ll get fired. Deciding to impress Benson, Mordecai and Rigby call together the whole gang to upgrade the park. While they’re starting work, a strange man comes up and says that he has what it takes to turn the park into the best park in the Universe. Deciding to trust him, Mordecai and Rigby make the deal. Once they shake the stranger’s hand, a huge portal appears in the sky and ends up swallowing the entire park. Now it’s up to the two mischievous characters to save their friends, the park, and still show Benson and Mr. Maellard that they know what they’re doing. You’ll face off against aliens, monsters and strange park workers while you tag team between Mordecai and Rigby making your way through 15 stages spread across 3 crazy worlds. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GhL3MoY8AdQ/UaIvu0ASqfI/AAAAAAAAO6U/yOAG7keg-MQ/s1600/Best+Park+In+The+Universe+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GhL3MoY8AdQ/UaIvu0ASqfI/AAAAAAAAO6U/yOAG7keg-MQ/s400/Best+Park+In+The+Universe+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Similar to the recent release of another brawler, Combo Crew, Best Park In The Universe uses a series of swipe gestures instead of virtual controls. To move your characters, all you do is tap on the screen where you want to move to while attacks are based on swiping gestures that can be done anywhere on the screen. Swiping left has you attack left, while swiping right attacks right. To change characters, all you need to do is tap the character icons in the top left corner of the screen. Each character also has a special attack which can be used once your special meter is filled up, and is triggered by tapping two fingers on the screen at once. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-efcODTkcmF4/UaIvvMVMxlI/AAAAAAAAO6c/Gb8cQ6goaRw/s1600/Best+Park+In+The+Universe+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-efcODTkcmF4/UaIvvMVMxlI/AAAAAAAAO6c/Gb8cQ6goaRw/s400/Best+Park+In+The+Universe+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
As you make your way through the game, you’ll gain experience by defeating enemies and picking up items that are scattered throughout the stages. Each time you level up, you’ll be given a point which you can use to upgrade your characters. The upgrades are a great addition and done in a branching tree format. Unlocking these upgrades will either increase your characters hit points, the amount of damage you can take, the amount of damage you dish out and add more attacks, allowing you to swipe up and down in the middle of a combo to pull off special moves. By the time you upgrade your characters completely, you’ll have quite a few different swipe combos at your disposal adding some depth and complexity to the gameplay. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-y-NNMJkljp0/UaIvvYmN2ZI/AAAAAAAAO6k/3HRf4CsIJD4/s1600/Best+Park+In+The+Universe+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-y-NNMJkljp0/UaIvvYmN2ZI/AAAAAAAAO6k/3HRf4CsIJD4/s400/Best+Park+In+The+Universe+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The first couple of stages are not very big, but as you progress, the levels do start to open up, with multiple paths to explore, and even though there is only one ‘right’ path to each stage’s exit point, it does help add to the variety within each stage. Also adding to the variety are the world’s backdrops. In the first world, you’ll be fighting your way through the park while the second world has you battling it out beneath the park and the third world is a station in space. Graphically, the game looks almost identical to the cartoon, and the animations are incredibly smooth and quick, complimenting the responsive controls. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-S9gJ75pZ3GE/UaIvvjG-J5I/AAAAAAAAO6w/Zc8voAWFMdM/s1600/Best+Park+In+The+Universe+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-S9gJ75pZ3GE/UaIvvjG-J5I/AAAAAAAAO6w/Zc8voAWFMdM/s400/Best+Park+In+The+Universe+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Although GameCenter is supported, there’s no scoring system, which means that there’s no leaderboards. However, there are 15 achievements to help to drive the game forward. However, unlike most brawlers the lack of leaderboards and a scoring system does not take anything away from the game. While it could help add to the replay value, that’s not the driving force behind the gameplay, which is actually kind of a refreshing change of pace. You’re not required to beat every single enemy in a level in order to progress, and you don’t have to visit every stages branched areas to complete them. It does add a more casual feeling to the game while the gameplay still provides a nice challenge for those who are willing to try and beat down every enemy and visit every area in a level. But I doubt many of us would complain if leaderboards and a scoring system were added in an update.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/kP8Zg8zFs6U" width="560"></iframe>
<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Priced at $2.99, it is a bit ‘high’ compared to other iOS titles, but the amount of polish and entertainment value presented in the game definitely justifies the extra buck or two. Not to mention more characters, another world with 5 more levels, endless levels and multiple modes are planned, we’re incredibly excited to see how this game grows with future updates. If you’re a fan of beat-em-ups/brawlers, don’t let the Cartoon Network publication make you overlook Best Park In The Universe. Alongside Mutant Fridge Mayhem and Combo Crew, it’s very quickly become one of our personal favorites on the platform, and we really can not recommend it more.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-59mw3rA-WN8/UaIxFvUgW9I/AAAAAAAAO7c/i-YXmurngqE/s1600/.5+stars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-59mw3rA-WN8/UaIxFvUgW9I/AAAAAAAAO7c/i-YXmurngqE/s320/.5+stars.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/best-park-in-universe-regular/id633488924?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qOVeZobU6pk/UaIwD49WdAI/AAAAAAAAO7E/Jj5Eyly52rE/s320/Best+Park+In+The+Universe+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-82294025982868909592013-04-20T06:30:00.002-07:002013-04-20T06:30:38.279-07:00Gemini Rue [Wadjet Eye Games + Joshua Nuernberger] - $3.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-moe90zU1mos/UXKX3-o6acI/AAAAAAAAO4w/jD4JI3usE_Y/s1600/Gemini+Rue+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-moe90zU1mos/UXKX3-o6acI/AAAAAAAAO4w/jD4JI3usE_Y/s1600/Gemini+Rue+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
I will admit that I’m not a huge fan of Point & Click games, but there are a few that have grabbed my attention over the years. Of course, the classics; Myst, Riven and The Last Express, but also a few that I had the chance to play primarily because of their appearance in the AppStore; Machinarium, Another World, Yesterday and The Walking Dead. Well, now I can add one more title to this very short list of games that have completely blown me away. Gemini Rue. Originally released for the PC back in 2011, Gemini Rue has made its way to the touch screen and, even on the smaller iPhone/iPod screens, it’s a perfect fit. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Jo6gxQEmiy0/UXKX4m_x85I/AAAAAAAAO44/-UzN_MF-zBk/s1600/Gemini+Rue+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Jo6gxQEmiy0/UXKX4m_x85I/AAAAAAAAO44/-UzN_MF-zBk/s400/Gemini+Rue+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Developed by Joshua Nuernberger and published by Wadjet Eye Games, the same developer/publisher team that released the PC version, the iOS port is basically an exact copy of the original. Aside from the controls, iOS gamers now have the option of playing one of the best Point & Click titles to date. Gemini Rue has won multiple awards, being named Gamespy’s Adventure Game of the Year, Aggies awards for best story, best setting and best independent adventure, as well as winning the AGS Awards for best gameplay, best original story, best player character, best background art, best character art and best sound effects, not to mention being named PC Gamer’s Adventure Game of the Year, all in 2011. If that isn’t enough to push you into dropping the measly $4 for the game, I don’t know what is. Even gamers who are not fans of Point and Click Adventure games have a very high chance of falling completely in love with Gemini Rue. </div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-S6frpPq7hz4/UXKX5YmepLI/AAAAAAAAO5A/qQKBFstSGqo/s1600/Gemini+Rue+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-S6frpPq7hz4/UXKX5YmepLI/AAAAAAAAO5A/qQKBFstSGqo/s400/Gemini+Rue+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
It is surprising that no awards were given for the games soundtrack, as it’s one of the best compositions I’ve heard in a video game. Nathan Allen Pinard composed the BGM, and it’s fantastic, adding immensely to the dark and dreary atmosphere found within the game. The dark buildings and rainy cityscapes definitely add to the tense feeling and cyberpunk themes found throughout the story. Even the brightly lit hospital like areas of the game have a creepy feeling of solitude, even when other characters are present. This also fits in with the plot, as you never know who you can trust or what the NPC’s are going to do or how they’ll react to you, helping to make it feel like you are completely alone in the world of Gemini Rue. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bkfGFem59e0/UXKX55NIPHI/AAAAAAAAO5I/GMpivbsS86k/s1600/Gemini+Rue+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bkfGFem59e0/UXKX55NIPHI/AAAAAAAAO5I/GMpivbsS86k/s400/Gemini+Rue+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The game takes place in the 23rd century in the Gemini System. A system that’s recently been torn apart by war, and is under the control of the Yakuza, referred to as the Boryokudan (meaning ‘Violence Group’, which is what the media and police call the Yakuza). Throughout the game, you’ll control multiple characters; Azriel, an ex-assassin turned lawman who is searching for his brother, Daniel, Azriel’s brother who is also referred to as Alpha-Six and Matthius, one of Azriel’s old friends from when he was an assassin. I won’t get too much into the story, as the plot and how it unfolds is a major part of the game, but essentially, you’ll be searching for Daniel, who’s been kidnapped by the Boryokudan, with Matthius’s help. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-g38F7tN2mUw/UXKX6RkmQGI/AAAAAAAAO5Q/S4sTbR_QnnM/s1600/Gemini+Rue+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-g38F7tN2mUw/UXKX6RkmQGI/AAAAAAAAO5Q/S4sTbR_QnnM/s400/Gemini+Rue+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
One of many notable aspects of the game is how the tutorial is presented. Instead of just having a help section, or giving you a brief ‘how-to’ at the beginning of the game, you’ll learn how to do things as you need to. But these actions are also flawlessly woven into the story, adding another layer of evolution into the game. Another aspect that’s not too common in Point & Click games; gunplay. You’re able to duck behind cover deciding when you want to point your head out so that you can fire. There’s also a breath-holding mechanic that gives you the ability to one-hit-kill enemies with a headshot if pulled off right by shooting when your breath gauge is in the green. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ADcCdPcHtJU/UXKX6-whVAI/AAAAAAAAO5Y/UAc6H1BYL1k/s1600/Gemini+Rue+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ADcCdPcHtJU/UXKX6-whVAI/AAAAAAAAO5Y/UAc6H1BYL1k/s400/Gemini+Rue+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Graphically, Gemini Rue does look a little blurred, but the retro feeling of the graphics mixed with modern graphical techniques is pulled off perfectly giving the game a ton of atmospheric qualities. As we already said, the soundtrack also helps complete the atmosphere giving the game a feeling within the setting that would be a perfect fit for any one of William Gibson or Neal Stephenson’s novels. The animations however, are a tad bit clunky. I can’t help but feel like if the animations were a little smoother, it would have added yet another level of immersion to the gameplay. That isn’t to say that the animations are not noteworthy, because they are still well done, it just so happens that they stand out because the rest of the game is so unbelievably polished. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/JsOr9dx9XnQ" width="480"></iframe>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Aside from the animations, the only other negative thing that I can say about the game is the lack of GameCenter. Achievements would have been a great addition for this mobile port. However, like the animations, this isn’t something that takes away from the game at all. I never found myself saying ‘I’d be more inclined to play this game if it had GameCenter integration’, it just would have been an added little plus if it was included. Being Universal and priced at $3.99, Gemini Rue is a steal (especially taking into account that the PC version is $9.99), and we really can not recommend it enough. I know we say that a lot here, especially lately, but Gemini Rue is one of very few games that has secured it’s spot on our Game Of The Year list. It’s a title that every iOS gamer should experience. We also hope to see more of Wadjet Eye Game’s published titles hit the AppStore in the future, especially if they’re anywhere near the same level as Gemini Rue. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/gemini-rue/id614678683?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gPFPk3nCKUc/UXKX7ab1muI/AAAAAAAAO5g/SqOqLiVYmWc/s320/Gemini+Rue+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-42491296654496878532013-04-18T06:00:00.002-07:002013-04-18T06:00:50.919-07:00Symphony Of The Origin [Kemco + WorldWideSoftware] - $10.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tdMu2eDTJh4/UW_ttL7N8tI/AAAAAAAAO3w/S0aYZVeTFuM/s1600/Symphony+Of+The+Origin+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tdMu2eDTJh4/UW_ttL7N8tI/AAAAAAAAO3w/S0aYZVeTFuM/s1600/Symphony+Of+The+Origin+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
As you probably already know if you’re even an occasional reader here at The App Shack, one of our favorite iOS RPG publishers is Kemco. The previous releases of Alphadia 1+2, Dark Gate, Grinsia, Aeon Avenger, Eve of the Genesis and Fantasy Chronicle are some of our top favorites within the Turn-Based RPG genre. But the game that got all of our love started, Symphony of Eternity, has finally gotten a sequel. Well, prequel if you want to get technical. Symphony of the Origin went live in English language AppStores last week and after spending about 7 hours with it I can easily say that SotO is my second favorite Kemco title, right after Dark Gate. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hkwIpC-Z9n0/UW_tuFwZUfI/AAAAAAAAO34/9WMJgTMwge8/s1600/Symphony+Of+The+Origin+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hkwIpC-Z9n0/UW_tuFwZUfI/AAAAAAAAO34/9WMJgTMwge8/s400/Symphony+Of+The+Origin+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Right off the bat, there are some things that stand out; Symphony of the Origin, like Kemco’s last release Aeon Avengers, is Universal. It also supports the new hardware’s 4 inch widescreen. Now, it’s not too apparent by looking at the screenshots in iTunes, but SotO also has some of the best graphics for a Kemco title to date, that combined with the depth of the equip system, all make this stand out as a step closer for Kemco being on the same level as Square in the RPG world.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The equip/item system is definitely one of the many highlights here. Instead of going from town to town purchasing stronger weapons, you’re given the option to upgrade your current weapons. You can also purchase new weapons and trade them out, but skills are locked to them until you reach a 100% mastered portion, at which time the skill be then be available no matter what weapon you have equipped. There are also 3 parts to every weapon; The main weapon (sword, hammer, bow, ect), hilt/arrows and grip/string/guard, each having different perks and stats and with the ability to interchange them all with one another so long as your character uses that type of weapon (for instance, you can not equip a bow string to a sword or hammer, or a sword guard or hilt to a bow, for obvious reasons). </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GimxFvyIVeo/UW_tukzE66I/AAAAAAAAO4A/40zrNK3W_rA/s1600/Symphony+Of+The+Origin+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GimxFvyIVeo/UW_tukzE66I/AAAAAAAAO4A/40zrNK3W_rA/s400/Symphony+Of+The+Origin+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Another aspect of the game that stands out are the voice samples. During battles, your characters will spit out exclamations as they fight, and a phrase at the end of each battle. For some, this might become annoying, and there is an option to adjust the music, fx and voice volumes individually if that’s the case, but personally, I think it adds to the whole aesthetic of the game. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Last thing, before we get into more of the gameplay; SOP Currency. SOP Currency can be purchased through IAPs. It is not required to purchase items, as all shop items can be purchased with the gold that you’ll earn from battles and treasure chests, but instead, is used as a sort of ‘cheat’ currency. With SOP, you’re able to purchase useful quest items like gold in clumps of 10,000, special herbs, potions, gems, elixirs and more that can all be used to cure and strengthen your team, as well as damage enemies. There are also special locations on the map which you can unlock with SOP Currency, giving you access to a sorcerer’s house who helps you master all of the finishing moves you have yet to learn, and 3 separate dungeon areas, each with their own boss. You can also purchase some special training and characters. In the game, two characters will join up with you for short periods of time. You can unlock them and have them available to you at any point in the game if you purchase them with SOP. You can also get special training and boost up your Merit Points max level limit. We’ll get into what more of this means as we get further on in the review, but the thing that is most important is that you do not need to spend another dime after the original purchase of the game in order to complete it. In fact, as you complete battles, you can convert those won battles to SOP Currency. By the end of the game, even without grinding, you should have enough battles won to convert to SOP Currency to unlock some of the cooler areas and ‘cheats’, which also carry over to a New Game+ if you decide to play through the game a second time. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QnIoJKvxG4E/UW_tvEL97EI/AAAAAAAAO4I/HlxJ7eafl8c/s1600/Symphony+Of+The+Origin+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QnIoJKvxG4E/UW_tvEL97EI/AAAAAAAAO4I/HlxJ7eafl8c/s400/Symphony+Of+The+Origin+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Now, starting off the game, you’ll be able to choose between Normal and Hard Difficulties. If you’re familiar with RPG titles, I’d recommend just going head in on the Hard Difficulty, as ‘Normal’ is more for new-comers to the genre. There’s an NPC in one of the early towns that will let you change from Hard Difficulty to Normal if you’re finding the game too hard. But you can not change from Normal to Hard, so keep that in mind going in to the game. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Story-wise, the game is about humans, elves and dwarves, all living on Earth together, though still separated by geography because of their skills and habits. Humans on the plains, elves in the forests and dwarves in the mountains. Still, their lives are peaceful, and there is no war between the races. Inhuman creatures called ‘Evils of the Earth-depths’, as they reside in the bowels of the Earth, have attacked, trying to take over the Earth’s surface. Your main character, Ryle, is a young knight in training at the time that the human’s castle is attacked. During the attack, Ryle falls through the floor and into a secret area of the castle where a golem is hidden. Once coming within range of the golem, it is activated. Since no one knows exactly why the golem is activated by Ryle, the king decides to keep the two paired together, and sends them to the other races to show the human made golem to them, in search of answers. As you start your journey, more members will join your team while you look for information and try to find out why the evils are attacking and try to force them back into the depths of Earth. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iWfTON_nWI4/UW_twNifLbI/AAAAAAAAO4Q/klOPhm77Rls/s1600/Symphony+Of+The+Origin+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iWfTON_nWI4/UW_twNifLbI/AAAAAAAAO4Q/klOPhm77Rls/s400/Symphony+Of+The+Origin+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
It’s not too original in terms of the plot, but like Kemco’s other published titles, Symphony of the Origin is very well written and translated. There are a few grammatical errors, but you’ll never be stuck wondering what is actually going on within the game. But, like their previous releases, the plot and writing is also one of the biggest things that holds it back from being on the same level as Square’s Final Fantasy, or any of their other RPG, titles. Personally, I love Kemco’s stories, and feel that they are very well written. But I will also admit that they’re lacking when compared to Square’s writing. This shouldn’t deter you from purchasing this wonderful title, but if you go into the game expecting it to match up to the level of FF titles, you might very well be disappointed. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SMTYmKbtz1U/UW_txOGABcI/AAAAAAAAO4Y/d6PV6943q2o/s1600/Symphony+Of+The+Origin+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SMTYmKbtz1U/UW_txOGABcI/AAAAAAAAO4Y/d6PV6943q2o/s400/Symphony+Of+The+Origin+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
It’s still very clear that a lot of time, effort, love and care has gone into creating the world for Symphony of the Origin. And it’s definitely worth it’s original asking price of $10.99 (though it is on sale ATM for $3.99). SotO is also the second Kemco title that’s Universal, and the third that supports the 5th Generation’s wider screens. With the jump up in quality all around, it’s incredibly easy to recommend this title to RPG fans, especially fans of old-school RPGs. If you’re a new-comer to the Kemco world, Symphony of the Origin just might be the perfect title to start out with. It definitely has secured it’s place on our list of favorite Turn-Based RPG titles on the iOS, and comes with a heavy recommendation. As always, we can’t wait to see what Kemco releases next. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/9zadZHKYlmw?list=UUuDlsmhKCSBFoIevO7Ep0eQ" width="585"></iframe>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/rpg-symphony-of-the-origin/id575806752?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-M1h-Tef4QFc/UW_t6HJKeLI/AAAAAAAAO4g/fNBQNudL2K0/s320/Symphony+Of+The+Origin+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-46835157140791662582013-04-12T08:37:00.000-07:002013-04-12T08:37:29.809-07:00Slayin [Pixel Licker Games + FDG] - $0.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MZqRRZ8IUPE/UWgpAOTbnII/AAAAAAAAO2o/XL1uBvJW-34/s1600/Slayin+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MZqRRZ8IUPE/UWgpAOTbnII/AAAAAAAAO2o/XL1uBvJW-34/s1600/Slayin+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The iDevice is home to many bite sized games that are surprisingly incredibly addictive. It’s also a refuge for retro graphics trying to find their core audience. Mixing these two aspects together, Pixel Licker Game’s new title, Slayin, published by the very respectable FDG Entertainment, has already risen to the top of the iTunes paid charts, sharing the company of Bad Piggies, Minecraft, Temple Run, Angry Birds and others. If that’s not enough for you to check it out, there’s also a flash version of the game which was released in late 2011, and <a href="http://www.pixellicker.com/games/games_slayin.html"><b>can be played on Pixel Licker’s homepage</b></a>. But still, here’s (hopefully) all the info you’ll need about the iOS version.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Lm7Dwjp2FjY/UWgpAzyHfBI/AAAAAAAAO2w/I4ULNnrG-gA/s1600/Slayin+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Lm7Dwjp2FjY/UWgpAzyHfBI/AAAAAAAAO2w/I4ULNnrG-gA/s400/Slayin+01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Slayin, on the surface, is a simple endless retro RPG title. Each stage is screen sized, meaning that there is no side-scrolling involved. Enemies either drop down from the sky or come up from the ground, and you’re job is to kill them, collect the items they leave behind, purchase upgrades, defeat bosses and get the highest score you can, earning Fame Points which can be used to permanently unlock more features like extra characters and gameplay modes, among other things like cosmetic skins and designs/items for your graveyard. However, the more you play, the deeper the game gets with some very nice mechanics.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VJS6hEXx2FE/UWgpBsPKbbI/AAAAAAAAO24/yzekRKvQobw/s1600/Slayin+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VJS6hEXx2FE/UWgpBsPKbbI/AAAAAAAAO24/yzekRKvQobw/s400/Slayin+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Control wise, you’re given two directional buttons and an action button. Depending on your character, the action button is either used for jumping, or attacking. With your default character that is unlocked at the very beginning of the game, it’s used for jumping. Now, the directional buttons might not work exactly how you might think. Your character will always be moving, never coming to a complete stop unless running against the side of the screens. The directional buttons are used to simply change the direction that your character constantly moves in. This means that if you want your character to stay in one place, you’ll need to quickly slide your finger back and forth between the left and right buttons. Luckily, staying in one place isn’t really something that you’ll be trying to do too often. </div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_wt79NC84Zc/UWgpCOqZyNI/AAAAAAAAO3A/hN_v6-E9lm4/s1600/Slayin+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_wt79NC84Zc/UWgpCOqZyNI/AAAAAAAAO3A/hN_v6-E9lm4/s400/Slayin+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Two of the three characters will always be attacking, at least in one direction. Your first unlocked character, the Knight, will be able to attack in the direction that he’s facing with his sword. Even though he is holding a shield in his other hand, it’s only cosmetic, and anything that runs into his shield will actually harm him. However, each of the characters do have different attack, defense and luck stats, and the Knight’s defense is the strongest of the three. The second character is the Wizard. She is the only character that, instead of jumping with the action button, attacks with it. When the action button is pressed, she will quickly spin around for a few seconds, killing anything she comes into contact with. There is a short cooling off period after attacks so that you can not just spam the action button and never be harmed, but her attack is also the strongest of the three. The last character you can choose is the Knave. This dual-knife wielding character can attack characters from both sides, meaning that any characters that run into his back will be instantly killed. However, he has the least amount of defense, but the best luck, which does come in handy after the first couple of levels. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ecz0UVbw9NE/UWgpCxNaP2I/AAAAAAAAO3I/baoDDyFqzww/s1600/Slayin+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ecz0UVbw9NE/UWgpCxNaP2I/AAAAAAAAO3I/baoDDyFqzww/s400/Slayin+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Now, you are able to purchase health from the NPC shop character that drops down midway through stages as well as right after every boss battle. But sometimes things just get so hectic that that’s not going to be enough. This is where one of the cooler gameplay mechanics comes into play; silver, gold and all of the little trinkets and diamonds that enemies drop do restore some health. The more rare an item is, the more health it restores. As you build up your hit combo, you’ll eventually hit 30, which starts enemies dropping gold. Build up your combo even more, and they’ll start dropping gold chains, goblets, diamonds and more. Not only are these used to restore a little bit of health, but also help add to your score. Tied in with all of this is your combo’s no-damage multiplier. Kill enemies and keep that combo up, and your multiplier will grow and grow until you do get hit. One hit though, and it’s back to 0x, however, your combo that builds up for gold and item drops keeps building until you do not kill an enemy quickly enough, and the meter empties. It all adds quite a bit of depth and a heavy risk/reward aspect to the gameplay. You’re also able to purchase stronger weapons and special skills from the shop in-game. Though they are not permanent, they will definitely be something you’ll be tossing in-game currency into left and right if you’re a high-score chaser or just want to get further into the game. </div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IYqlyVAyHPg/UWgpDvr19yI/AAAAAAAAO3Q/qphwPfSBkV4/s1600/Slayin+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IYqlyVAyHPg/UWgpDvr19yI/AAAAAAAAO3Q/qphwPfSBkV4/s400/Slayin+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
There are IAPs included with a currency called Fame Points. But I was able to unlock all three characters, the Advanced Mode (which starts you out at level 80 instead of level 1) and the extra life item (which allows you to keep playing once you’ve lost all of your HP, but resets everything except your current stage progress back to 0) after playing for about 2 hours, which makes it not seem like so much of a grind. My best advice would be to unlock the Knave first, because you can earn more Fame Points with him and his high luck stat. But if you’d rather unlock everything straight away, you can get 5,000 FP for $0.99, 20,000 for $2.99 and 50,000 FP for $5.99. The Wizard is 3,000 FP, Knave is 5,000, Advanced Mode is 8,000, Boss Rush Mode (which is exactly what it sounds like, take on boss after boss until you die) for 10,000 FP and the extra life is 5,000 FP. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-w24a1m6E8AI/UWgpErJCDzI/AAAAAAAAO3Y/qXl6jITiMYU/s1600/Slayin+06.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-w24a1m6E8AI/UWgpErJCDzI/AAAAAAAAO3Y/qXl6jITiMYU/s400/Slayin+06.PNG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Like most other iOS games, Slayin also has a massive amount of quests, or objectives that, once completed, will help you earn some extra currency. Things like ‘Defeat xBOSSx Perfectly’ ‘Get a combo of XX’ ‘Kill XX enemies with XX weapon’ and others. There are 3 different difficulties to the objectives, with the easy ones giving out 50 coins upon completion, the medium ones giving out 150 coins and the hard quests giving you 300 coins. On top of the extra characters and gameplay modes, there are skins for the controls which cost 500-600 FP, and items that you can decorate your fallen hero’s gravestone with, ranging from 500 FP to 5,000 FP per item. These gravestones are visible to your GameCenter friends who also have the game. There are also options for changing the movement buttons to the left side of the screen as well as adding scanlines to the game to give it that ‘official’ old-school vibe. There are 5 leaderboards in GameCenter, one for your highest score, one for each individual character and another for Boss Rush Mode. There are also 23 achievements to help add to the replay value and challenge of the game ranging from ‘Unlock the Knave’ or ‘Unlock the Wizard’ to ‘Finish all quests with the Knight’ ‘Reach Level 100’ ‘Get a combo of 222’ and more. </div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/-ga-bQa_cZM" width="585"></iframe>
</div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Slayin, like many iOS games that started out as flash games, is a perfect fit for the iDevice. Games last around 5 minutes, the more you play, the more the game opens up and there’s always going to be a score to chase. Pixel Licker Games has done a fantastic job with Slayin, as well as with porting it over to the touch-screen. The controls are spot on, and the gameplay is incredibly addictive and reminiscent of old-school gaming. I really can not recommend this one enough, as it’s going to be a game that never leaves my phone. Slayin is also Universal, and plays great on the larger iPad screen with it’s very generous touch-spots for the controls. Priced at a buck, it’s definitely a game that every iOS gamer should have in their collection.</div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/slayin/id548580856?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-41HauGZSR5M/UWgpFAkMRuI/AAAAAAAAO3g/tl9hyvSJbwE/s320/Slayin+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-10652287148643009382013-03-28T07:34:00.001-07:002013-03-28T07:34:14.229-07:00Star Warfare: Black Dawn [Freyr Games] - $2.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rH967Y7aKyQ/UVRSMgEANQI/AAAAAAAAO1I/J5ZZ_ydQZP8/s1600/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-rH967Y7aKyQ/UVRSMgEANQI/AAAAAAAAO1I/J5ZZ_ydQZP8/s1600/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Gamers always dream of their favorite console games being ported to the iOS. It’s just our nature. Being able to have our favorite games in our pockets is something that all of us want. Last year, when the official Borderlands iOS game was released, the hype that built was outstanding. Needless to say, once more and more information about the title became available, that hype dwindled and once the game finally hit the AppStore, there was quite a bit of backlash from both Borderlands fans and just curious parties. It was a major flop, to say the least. Well, now iOS gamers can rejoice yet again, because without warning, Freyr Games, developers of the 3rd person shooter Star Warfare, has just released the sequel, Star Warfare: Black Dawn. With little advertising, and almost no hype, especially considering what the game is, we finally have it; Borderlands on the iOS. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HLvzJOnTjIM/UVRSy29OKtI/AAAAAAAAO1Y/2ELuxqQZcZ8/s1600/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HLvzJOnTjIM/UVRSy29OKtI/AAAAAAAAO1Y/2ELuxqQZcZ8/s400/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+03.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Not to say that this is a direct clone. But just about everything that made Borderlands so incredibly great can be found in Black Dawn; The different skill trees, hundreds of random weapon drops, multiple characters, each with different pros and cons, warp gates, open environments, damage pop-ups all over the place, and even kill for second chance mechanics. Unfortunately, there are a couple of things missing; the spoken dialogue, massive injections of humor, vehicles, jump & sprint actions. Though it’s hard to hold that against Black Dawn when so much of the game is done right, and offered for a measly couple bucks. And as crazy as it is being able to play a game of this caliber on our phones and tablets, with as much as the game has taken from it’s console inspiration, it’s almost impossible not to compare the two, and judge Black Dawn based on what Borderlands is. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rcUH2ZaLr2s/UVRSyZmlC6I/AAAAAAAAO1Q/fiWQ2huETCQ/s1600/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rcUH2ZaLr2s/UVRSyZmlC6I/AAAAAAAAO1Q/fiWQ2huETCQ/s400/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+02.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Black Dawn lets you choose between 8 different characters and 4 different classes (one male, one female for each class); Prayer, the medic class, Engineer, the geek class, Soldier, the powerful class and Sniper, the ‘foxy class’. Prayer class characters can set up a healing station, Engineer’s can drop machine gun turrets while Soldiers can set up an Avatar to distract enemies and keep them busy and the Sniper can set traps. Each class has 3 different skill trees that they can build up and pick skills from. These extra buffs help immensely throughout the whole game for taking out higher level enemies to level up quicker, or if you just get in trouble and need a little extra boost to help you get out of a jam.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ph3nznbT99E/UVRS4glLuHI/AAAAAAAAO2Q/R7uhMkC4RMM/s1600/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+10.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ph3nznbT99E/UVRS4glLuHI/AAAAAAAAO2Q/R7uhMkC4RMM/s400/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+10.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Now, a Borderlands clone wouldn’t be complete without an online feature; it’s definitely one of the things that made Borderlands so incredibly fun, and as you can guess if you’re familiar with Star Warfare, Freyr Games knows what it takes to support online gameplay. Black Dawn includes co-op gameplay with up to 4 players. Here, you can play through the game, completing missions, earning experience, gold, mythril, weapons and everything else you can get in the single player campaign, but while playing with others. Right now, there is only co-op gameplay, but in the future Freyr plans to include PvP gameplay with character decoration. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fOZpoju1hLs/UVRS0fcA6bI/AAAAAAAAO1o/BdvJa4vjjm8/s1600/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fOZpoju1hLs/UVRS0fcA6bI/AAAAAAAAO1o/BdvJa4vjjm8/s400/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+05.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
If you’re not too keen on FPS games because of the iOS’s touch screen, I don’t blame you. I’ve got a hard time getting into FPS titles myself. But Black Dawn has done a great job of making the game comfortable to both veterans and new-comers alike. There’s an auto-lock option, making gaming a lot easier, but also not allowing for many headshots. For those of you who are badass FPS gamers on the touch screen, this option can be turned off so that you can headshot to your hearts content. Movement is done by dragging anywhere on the left side of the screen, while looking around is controlled by the right. The shoot button is placed where most FPS titles have it by default. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-phLDRTk0o8E/UVRS1PkRnTI/AAAAAAAAO1w/qea4RTNS9ho/s1600/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+06.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-phLDRTk0o8E/UVRS1PkRnTI/AAAAAAAAO1w/qea4RTNS9ho/s400/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+06.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Unfortunately, you’re unable to move any of the icons, and on the smaller iPhone/iPod screen, looking around and turning does block a bit of the screen because you’ll have to reach up and over the shot button. As with most FPS games, you can adjust your aim and look around while shooting by dragging your finger across the screen while pressing on the fire icon, but with so many console gamers coming to the iOS, and with games like NOVA and Modern Combat allowing for customizable control placement, it might be a little frustrating that it’s not included here. However, there are options in the settings menu for reversing the X and Y movement, and adjusting the sensitivity for looking around, which is a huge plus. On the iPad, the controls aren’t really an issue, as there’s enough room to the right and below the fire icon to drag around and look, so you won’t be reaching over or across anything on the bigger screen. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pdvszwvN1iE/UVRS31DORhI/AAAAAAAAO2I/bwrh1f5MEsM/s1600/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+09.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pdvszwvN1iE/UVRS31DORhI/AAAAAAAAO2I/bwrh1f5MEsM/s400/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+09.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Objects like gold, ammo and health are picked up automatically by walking over them but picking up weapons and shields as well as opening chests is done by tapping on the screen when a pop-up appears. As for the weapons and shields, it’s pretty similar to Borderlands; the pop up shows the weapon or shield along with it’s stats and how much you can sell it for. Chests are opened by tapping the ‘Open Chest’ icon that pops up when you’re near them. These options for picking up items and opening chests, however, can be kind of finicky. You’ll have to stop moving and look at the object just right for the pop up to appear, which can be kind of frustrating at first, but once you get the hang of it, it goes pretty smoothly. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-p28SHo_siw4/UVRSzRRqdEI/AAAAAAAAO1g/g7BNcyiTdlQ/s1600/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-p28SHo_siw4/UVRSzRRqdEI/AAAAAAAAO1g/g7BNcyiTdlQ/s400/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+04.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Black Dawn’s graphics look fairly similar to Borderlands, and you might even have a hard time distinguishing the two if you played BL on a lower end machine with all the special extra graphical effects turned off. But aside from that, the animations, character models, environments, and just about everything else is top notch and incredibly well designed. The layouts of the levels are also pretty impressive. While the first couple of areas aren’t too big, you’ll soon reach areas that are huge. Luckily, there’s different warp zones in each map, allowing you to enter the areas in different spots. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AIypJnMlv_o/UVRS2cIKWUI/AAAAAAAAO14/v8VdObB9_A8/s1600/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+07.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AIypJnMlv_o/UVRS2cIKWUI/AAAAAAAAO14/v8VdObB9_A8/s400/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+07.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
There are IAPs included in the game. But before you go getting all upset about it, here’s the scoop. Mythril is used to play the game’s mini-games of Roulette. Here, you can spend Mythril to take a spin and get a random weapon or shield. You can also convert Mythril to coins. There are no items in the shops that I’ve come across that are Mythril only purchases, everything can be bought with the gold that you’ll collect while killing enemies and completing missions. The only thing Mythril might really come in handy for is for resetting all of your skill points, which will cost you 100 Mythril. Fortunately, if you buy the game, you’re given 100 Mythril for being an ‘early adopter’. You can also earn 140 Mythril for downloading Freyr’s previous games, Star Warfare: Alien Invasion and Amazing Runner, which are both FREE. On top of that, you’re able to watch video ads and check out TapJoy offers for more free Mythril, so there’s no real push towards dumping more cash into the game. Black Dawn is incredibly well balanced, and the only reason I could see to drop a couple bucks on more Mythril is to help support the developers. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jJ8O_ufdco4/UVRS3B3uSQI/AAAAAAAAO2A/jneLsGTyGvI/s1600/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+08.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jJ8O_ufdco4/UVRS3B3uSQI/AAAAAAAAO2A/jneLsGTyGvI/s400/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+08.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
There are some things that will remain frustrating unless they’re fixed. Right now, it’s kind of hard to select “Mission” “Shop” or “Talk” after tapping on a character. Half of the time if you don’t tap at exactly the right spot, you’ll just exit the menu and have to tap on the character to enter it again. There’s also only 10 slots in your inventory, which means that if you like having options when in battle, like carrying around an SMG, Sniper Riffle and then having a Revolver, Pistol and Shotgun handy, you’re left with 7 inventory slots, and that doesn’t allow for many items to be taken with you when you exit the area. There’s also no option to increase your inventory slots, so inventory management is something that you’ll be doing consistently. While this may not bother some gamers, it will weigh heavily on others, and having the option to buy more inventory slots would be a great addition for the future. There are also some grammatical errors in the dialogue. Though it’s nothing that will make understanding what’s being said impossible, it is very noticeable. </div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/BiEhtHVirgw" width="480"></iframe>
</div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
But all-n-all, Star Warfare: Black Dawn is a spot on Borderlands clone that’s well worth the $2.99 purchase and then some, even with the included IAPs. This is what the official Borderlands iOS game should have been but wasn’t. Even if you’re not a fan of Borderlands, Black Dawn offers up some very nice co-op gameplay which is only going to get better, and a huge open world environment to roam around in. I’m actually a little shocked that this launched for $3 when it could have easily came out the gate matching Modern Combat’s price point of $6.99, and still been well worth the purchase. Not only that, but the amazing support that Freyr Games gave to the first Star Warfare based on players feedback gives us loads of confidence that Black Dawn will only get better and smoother. Along with that, it's Universal and supports the iPhone/iPod 5's widescreen. Right now, this is TAS’s favorite FPS title on the iOS, and is a very easy recommendation. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/star-warfare-black-dawn/id571159423?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EEEC7epOO8k/UVRS5DpL-YI/AAAAAAAAO2Y/VBwJw9NakzE/s320/Star+Warfare-+Black+Dawn+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-82402023075438890382013-03-17T09:01:00.002-07:002013-03-17T09:01:39.246-07:00Nameless: The Hackers [BoxCat] - $3.99<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MGIevKjXOH8/UUXoRDAaQtI/AAAAAAAAO0E/HDCBR4-KxaE/s1600/Nameless+The+Hackers+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MGIevKjXOH8/UUXoRDAaQtI/AAAAAAAAO0E/HDCBR4-KxaE/s1600/Nameless+The+Hackers+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
It’s pretty surprising that in a store filled with freemium/paidmium IAP pushing games, there’s still a few developers out there that are willing to release games without any in-app-purchases at all. Unfortunately, a lot of these games go pretty much un-noticed, and it really is a shame, especially with so many gamers clamoring for IAP free titles. Well, the most recent ZERO IAP title to hit our devices here at The App Shack? Nameless: The Hackers, developed by BoxCat. Not only is it completely devoid of IAPs, it’s also an incredibly well made game. I was a little skeptical at first, judging by the screenshots, it didn’t look as though the game had what it needed to grab my attention, but after about 5 minutes with the game, it was clear that this was something special, and definitely deserving of every bit of attention and support it could get. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PmHzDhTCeM8/UUXoRk7IFEI/AAAAAAAAO0M/6vLa_upq5G0/s1600/Nameless+The+Hackers+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PmHzDhTCeM8/UUXoRk7IFEI/AAAAAAAAO0M/6vLa_upq5G0/s400/Nameless+The+Hackers+01.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Nameless: The Hackers is an RPG that focuses on a group of 2 hackers who have been contracted to help find a missing programmer. As you progress through the game, 2 more members will join your squad, and you’ll start to unravel a conspiracy of mass proportions and wind up on a list you definitely don’t want to be on. While you’re following along the main story, you’ll be able to help out people around the globe by carrying out side-quests as well as take down some pretty formidable opponents. While you’re taking out other hacking groups and completing side-quests, you’ll be earning the game’s dual currencies; ByteCredits and Research Points. ByteCredits are used to purchase just about everything in the game from new skills to HP upgrades, Boosters (Defense, Attack, HP, Energy; up by 10% for 15 minutes) and Items (HP refills, energy refills, virus cleaners, ect), while Research Points are used primarily for upgrading (researching) skills. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wiCAcdxpUvg/UUXoSUi2SZI/AAAAAAAAO0U/fN3cnjwh0-c/s1600/Nameless+The+Hackers+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wiCAcdxpUvg/UUXoSUi2SZI/AAAAAAAAO0U/fN3cnjwh0-c/s400/Nameless+The+Hackers+02.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Starting off, you’ll just have a couple of basic hacking skills. But fairly quickly, you’ll be given access to the Mt. Fox store where more skills will become available once you hit certain points in the story. Not only will you be able to purchase skills, but you’ll also be able to upgrade them. Upgrades unlock as you collect cards. Cards are collected by taking out various groups of hackers across the world, and by completing certain tasks. A very cool aspect of the cards is that they’re randomly generated. While the type of cards that you get may be pre-destined, the stats that accompany these cards are all left up to luck. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-67xeq6yc5Ro/UUXoTSONQ1I/AAAAAAAAO0c/OrIlVGNATAI/s1600/Nameless+The+Hackers+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-67xeq6yc5Ro/UUXoTSONQ1I/AAAAAAAAO0c/OrIlVGNATAI/s400/Nameless+The+Hackers+03.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Each card has 4 segments attached, get a card with 1 segment unlocked, and the card will be a 25% card, 2 segments, 50%, ect. With each percentage increase, the stats that are locked to the card will increase. For instance, a 25% card might tack on 2 to your attack strength, while a 50% card could increase your attack by or 5. Not only are there random card generations, but there’s also different rarities of cards. A rare 25% card could very well be more powerful than a 50% or even 75% card. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
On top of all this, you’re also able to re-roll cards. In the menu, you can view the cards that you’ve unlocked so far. From this menu, you can select to re-roll cards for a cost. Even cooler? You can pay for a re-roll with either of the two currencies, though re-rolling with Research Points instead of ByteCredits will give you a slightly better chance of rolling a better card. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IkQTHeoaRdM/UUXoT-bJisI/AAAAAAAAO0k/N-nf1Q6z1xo/s1600/Nameless+The+Hackers+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IkQTHeoaRdM/UUXoT-bJisI/AAAAAAAAO0k/N-nf1Q6z1xo/s400/Nameless+The+Hackers+04.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
As far as the user interface goes; everything can be done while using one hand/finger. Taps to execute moves and navigate the game while swiping to move about the world and select targets has been set up perfectly. The menus are very well designed and uncluttered, while everything else is simple to navigate and very responsive. To access your inventory, you simply tap on your health/energy numbers that are next to the character icons. To access your characters skills, you tap on the character. Underneath the character icons is the menu where you can quickly access the Mt. Fox shop, your inventory, view your collected cards or enter the options menu where you can save your game and adjust the music and sound effects (separately). </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tbbO0R8fkCQ/UUXoUjmQRyI/AAAAAAAAO0o/owcbDv2Ouuc/s1600/Nameless+The+Hackers+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tbbO0R8fkCQ/UUXoUjmQRyI/AAAAAAAAO0o/owcbDv2Ouuc/s400/Nameless+The+Hackers+05.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
If you ever get stuck, or need a refresher, there is a help/tutorial section in the Mt. Fox shop area. However, with everything being shown to you in a very simple and straightforward manor at the beginning of the game, chances are you won’t need to use this help section. But it is there, and easy to access, if you ever need it. Unfortunately, right now the game is only designed for the iPhone/iPod, and you’ll have to play in 2X mode on the iPad. Luckily, it doesn’t look too pixilated on the bigger screen, and fans of the RPG genre (as much as it sucks) should be use to playing games in 2X mode, considering most RPGs in the AppStore are designed for the iPhone and not made Universal. Nameless: The Hackers is, however, supported by the iPhone/iPod 5’s widescreen, and it looks fantastic on the smaller screen. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The only negative thing I can say about Nameless is that the choices that you make don’t really effect the outcome of the game. There are some multiple choice decisions thrown into the mix, but the only thing they really effect is whether or not you get a couple of items or a few bonus ByteCredits. It would have been amazing if the developers threw in multiple story arcs depending on choices that you made. But with basically no RPGs featuring mechanics like this, it’s hard to hold this against BoxCat, especially with the amount of polish and how well Nameless plays, and even how great the story is minus decision based effects. </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/BZTgrpH8QT8" width="585"></iframe>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
With an incredibly supportive development team, great artwork and animations, a well thought out and engaging story and surprisingly deep customization systems, Nameless: The Hackers is a steal at it’s current price of $1.99. It is on sale for launch, and the price will rise to $3.99 soon, which does feel like a very appropriate price for a game of this caliber. BoxCat has done an outstanding job creating a fresh and original RPG for the iOS, and better yet, even with the dual-currencies, there are NO IAPs! It’s hard not to get excited about that these days. I’m hoping that Nameless sells well and that we can see more games from BoxCat. As their first outing, they’ve definitely hit the ball out of the park and are a dev team that I will be keeping a very close eye on in the future. </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/nameless-the-hackers-rpg/id572128073?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-18LhFmFxvps/UUXoUw2xmbI/AAAAAAAAO0w/r6XrD5ba-50/s320/Nameless+The+Hackers+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-51839738645554700732013-03-14T09:02:00.001-07:002013-03-14T09:02:45.138-07:00One of the AppStore's best Beat-Em-Up Titles; Mutant Fridge Mayhem - Is FREE for a LIMITED TIME!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_Wn7vQQ3xAA/UUHzP2dAH9I/AAAAAAAAOzs/vzXwbAaCl1k/s1600/MFM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="270" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_Wn7vQQ3xAA/UUHzP2dAH9I/AAAAAAAAOzs/vzXwbAaCl1k/s400/MFM.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
One of our favorite iOS developers, Grumpyface Studios (Wispin, Bring Me Sandwiches!, Super Mole Escape) has just let their incredibly fun beat-em-up Mutant Fridge Mayhem go free for a limited time! With only a handful of beat-em-ups on the AppStore, whenever one comes along, we always jump on it. But most, if not all of them left us wanting more. That is, until we got our grubby little hands on this. There's not one negative thing that we can say about it, except that maybe it's a bit too short (even with the Endless Levels, WE WANT MORE!!). So if you don't have it yet, definitely check it out! </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/VtO8RO7Ecow" width="585"></iframe>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/mutant-fridge-mayhem-gumball/id566394373?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DYfhMunZg08/UUHzgakvXtI/AAAAAAAAOz0/K2uMy-xpGgg/s320/Mutant+Fridge+Mayhem+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-43582851026129578742013-03-08T17:11:00.000-08:002013-03-08T17:11:09.285-08:00Review Rewind: Neoteria<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nUEuqdmsgqA/UTqJBKXJZqI/AAAAAAAAOyM/_-aL11s1EUQ/s1600/TAS+RR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nUEuqdmsgqA/UTqJBKXJZqI/AAAAAAAAOyM/_-aL11s1EUQ/s1600/TAS+RR.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
There's very few games that have been transferred over to my iPhone 5 that have not been updated to fit the 4'' screen. However, there are some games that are just so freak'n good that half-inch be damned, they're still worth having, even in their 3.5'' states. OrangePixel's games definitely fall into this category... and just about one year ago we happened to review their first SHMUP title; Neoteria. Even though we didn't find it as great as their trademark platformers, we still found Neoteria to be a blast, and gave it a solid 4 out of 5 stars. Now, it's today's Review Rewind, and if you're a SHMUP fan who doesn't own this one yet, you should... even if you only have a new 4'' device.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
**NOTE** This review was written after playing Version 1.0.0</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hSxB9JBasiE/UTqLfk1LZnI/AAAAAAAAOyk/hDuFB3u_YW8/s1600/RR-Neoteria+Icon+Big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hSxB9JBasiE/UTqLfk1LZnI/AAAAAAAAOyk/hDuFB3u_YW8/s1600/RR-Neoteria+Icon+Big.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">OrangePixel has proven, with their mobile game releases, that they are kings of the retro gaming world. Their lineup of Meganoid, Stardash, INC, Super Drill Panic and more now have another title that’ll eat up gamers lives; Neoteria, an arcade inspired retro shoot-em-up with the difficulty level fans of OrangePixel have come to love and respect. And really, OrangePixel development merged with shmup gameplay… a pretty hardcore fan of both couldn’t ask for more.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gn6KpvDjYnQ/UTqLgRSmqZI/AAAAAAAAOys/45OHiwPQVCg/s1600/RR-Neoteria+01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gn6KpvDjYnQ/UTqLgRSmqZI/AAAAAAAAOys/45OHiwPQVCg/s320/RR-Neoteria+01.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
In the game, you’ll start off with only Easy Mode selectable. As you progress through the first world, you’ll unlock Normal Mode, and once you complete the first world on Normal, you unlock Hard Mode, which, if you’re familiar with OrangePixel’s games, is basically where the hardcore gamers will spend most of their time. You’re given little snippets of the story as you make your way from world to world. The outer mining settlement is under alien attack, and it’s up to you to stop them.</div>
</div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
There are checkpoints throughout each world, set up kind of like levels. Each has 3 stars which you can earn by playing on all 3 difficulties. The first star is for beating the level on Easy, second star for Normal, and third for Hard. There are different paths which you can play through on your way through each world, with each path leading to the same end boss. You are able to go back and replay previously beaten stages if you’d like to power-up your weapon, which you do by collecting the blue crystals that enemies leave behind, or if you’d like to try and travel through all the paths in each world.</div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-knaclegXlTc/UTqLgmDtjpI/AAAAAAAAOy0/LzDXW7zU0p8/s1600/RR-Neoteria+02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-knaclegXlTc/UTqLgmDtjpI/AAAAAAAAOy0/LzDXW7zU0p8/s320/RR-Neoteria+02.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">As with other OrangePixel games, Neoteria is done in a retro style that looks fantastic. However, there is one little drawback. On the iPad, the graphics have a little blur behind them whenever objects are moving. This includes the backgrounds, environments, player ship, enemies, and projectiles. It’s not too much of an issue, because most of the time, you’ll be focusing on the crazy amount of enemies coming at you, and trying to survive, but it is there. I’m not sure if it’s there on the iPod, because of the smaller screen, but if it is, it’s not noticeable.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RLbMXRnjqS0/UTqLhHx2_5I/AAAAAAAAOy8/V5ky5O73zZE/s1600/RR-Neoteria+03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RLbMXRnjqS0/UTqLhHx2_5I/AAAAAAAAOy8/V5ky5O73zZE/s320/RR-Neoteria+03.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
The controls for Neoteria aren’t really what you would expect from a shooter like this, and it’s where the arcade inspiration really becomes apparent. On the left side of the screen, you’re given two buttons for movement of your ship up and down, and on the right side, there’s a fire button, but you can tap anywhere on the right side of the screen to fire. There is no auto-fire, so you’ll constantly be tapping on the right side of the screen to shoot. Here’s where those quick tapping abilities all you old-school gamers should still have come in handy.</div>
</div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
In the Controls Menu, you’re able to move the buttons around as you see fit, which definitely comes in handy if you’re playing on an iPad. However, the touch detection area is pretty small, and does not go outside of the buttons at all. This can result in your ship not going up or down because your thumb is the slightest little bit off. This is understandable, since you are able to move the buttons around, and could potentially have the up button pretty much touching the down button, and you wouldn’t want the detection area to overlap. Being able to make the buttons bigger would be a nice way of fixing this, especially since they go invisible after a short time, and obscuring the gameplay area wouldn’t really be an issue with it.</div>
</div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
To top it off, it’s also iCade and Joypad supported!</div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YhKMhkDcNRE/UTqLhpEFgEI/AAAAAAAAOzE/OYBzpXInn7Y/s1600/RR-Neoteria+04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YhKMhkDcNRE/UTqLhpEFgEI/AAAAAAAAOzE/OYBzpXInn7Y/s320/RR-Neoteria+04.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
Neoteria does not really have a whole lot of content, especially when compared to the insane amount of levels in OrangePixel‘s other titles. 3 worlds, each with 8 pretty short levels in them. I’m hoping that like their other games, Neoteria will get some nice content updates in the future. But like other shmups, the value is really in the replay value, not necessarily in the content, and Neoteria has it in spades. Yes, there are only 24 short levels in the game, but you’ll be able to play through them with each of the 3 characters, and finding out how to make it into the hidden paths could take a while.</div>
</div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
There’s also the scoring system. At the end of each level, your score is based on the percentage of the level’s enemies that you wiped out, your shot accuracy, and the score you built up while playing through the level. This does add an extra level of replay value, as the first couple times you play through the game, you’ll probably be pounding away on the fire button, and then start trying to increase your score by getting higher accuracy percentages.</div>
</div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
Neoteria is also supported by OpenFeint and GameCenter, with 12 achievements, and 3 leaderboards, one for each character (difficulty). So if you’re a high-score chaser, battling for a higher position on the leaderboards is sure to keep you busy for some time. Getting all of the achievements should also take a while, as a lot of them are for finding the secret paths, and 100% completing each difficulty.</div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gdhk15qN-B0/UTqLiPZmimI/AAAAAAAAOzM/hD7s2lWSsnw/s1600/RR-Neoteria+05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gdhk15qN-B0/UTqLiPZmimI/AAAAAAAAOzM/hD7s2lWSsnw/s320/RR-Neoteria+05.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
Granted, Neoteria isn’t OrangePixel’s best release to date, but I’m ecstatic that one of my favorite development teams released a shmup, one of my favorite type of games (yeah, I’m a platformer/shmup/strategy fanatic). The developers have said that they’re working on another control scheme, as a few players aren’t really comfortable with the current set-up, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it got a few content updates as well. OrangePixel’s other titles have also been known to get very fleshed out/extremely polished based on player feedback, so the distortion with the graphics, touchy controls, and any other issues that there might be, have a very good chance of being dealt with.</div>
</div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
At $1.99, being Universal, having iCade and Joypad compatibility, as well as the crazy high replay value that comes along with shmups and games having GameCenter and OpenFeint support, not to mention, it’s ORANGEPIXEL, it’s a great buy.</div>
</div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/u034TrT7LOc" width="585"></iframe>
</div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 20px;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/neoteria/id503652796?mt=8" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="80" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-LQQ58AGgrLo/UTqLizcPdGI/AAAAAAAAOzU/QrXa2xXeWYs/s320/RR-Neoteria+Download.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.the-appshack.com/2012/02/neoteria-199-orangepixel.html" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8rSQB9pooaE/UTqLkzelKiI/AAAAAAAAOzc/LMksUqrA_B8/s1600/TAS+Original+Review.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618399450554496310.post-42793367884906565732013-03-08T16:56:00.001-08:002013-03-08T16:56:35.640-08:00Get the RTS title, The Walking Dead: Assault, for FREE via IGN!!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ufSXdHddnq4/UTqHvdMByiI/AAAAAAAAOyE/AZpLVsZNkUM/s1600/TWD+Assault.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="223" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ufSXdHddnq4/UTqHvdMByiI/AAAAAAAAOyE/AZpLVsZNkUM/s400/TWD+Assault.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The Walking Dead: Assault is a real-time strategy title based more on the comics than the show. If you haven't yet checked out this great strategy game, you can get it for free straight through IGN's monthly giveaway. Just <b><a href="http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/03/08/ign-free-game-of-the-month-the-walking-dead-assault">head on over to the IGN page and click on the link to get your free promo code!</a> </b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
**Note**</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
This offer is only good in the US, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, German, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, Spain and Sweden. Also, you DO NOT need to register on the IGN site in order to get a code. How cool is that?</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="blogger-post-footer"><a href="http://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-count="horizontal" data-via="TheAppShack">Tweet</a><script type="text/javascript" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div>Syntheticvoidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12133329892902265264noreply@blogger.com1