Pocket Heroes [F5 + Ayopa] - $0.99

Online Multiplayer fans should be in heaven right now, especially when it comes to Asynchronous play. Last week, the releases of Outwitters and Summoner Wars (and Left2Die for the non-async MP gameplay), and now this week, with the release of Ayopa and F5’s Pocket Heroes, an RPG title with Roguelike influenced gameplay has hit the virtual shelves, and servers are loaded!

Starting it up, I was pretty surprised to see that Pocket Heroes has no single player campaign. Not that I was expecting it, but I’ve never had the privilege of playing an Asynchronous MP only RPG title, but with the versatility of the iDevice, it’s no surprise that we’re seeing more and more of these MP-async titles popping up. 

You’re able to start a game with up to 3 other players through either your GameCenter friend’s list, or through e-mail. With 4 different classes to choose from, you’re able to put together quite a team. Once you actually start the game, your first quest is a fairly simple one, and acts more like a tutorial phase. You’ll learn how to target enemies, how to move, where you can move to, and how the upgrade system works.

 Upgrading is done automatically, your stats increase with each level you gain, but you’re able to work your way down through the skill tree, getting a skill point which you can spend on an extra ability every other level upgrade. As you take out enemies, they’ll drop loot; coins and items. You are able to pick up items which you can’t equip, and drop them around your friends, so item hunting usually benefits all players involved. After each quest, of which there are 10 in each game, you’ll meet at a tavern. Here, you’re able to purchase items from the shop with the coins you’ve collected, and get ready for your next quest. 

If you aren’t lucky enough to have any friends who own the game, and can’t strategize before-hand, there is a chat area at the top of the screen which lets you co-ordinate attacks, and let the other players know what you’re doing, or what you hope they’ll do. This is also really nice for letting other gamers know if you’ll be gone for a while, or when you’ll be back. It’s really a nice little addition. Right now, as with most MP games that hit the stores, there are quite a few issues and bugs that couldn’t have been found during the beta testing. Some issues that I’ve run into; When I first started the app, I registered my name as ‘Syntheticvoid’ and couldn’t connect to the server. Thankfully, the developers at F5 were kind enough to help me out, look through their server log, and see that I had a capital letter in my name. Turns out I needed to register with ‘syntheticvoid’ in order to connect to the servers. Right now, there’s no random match-making, which could be a real deal-breaker for quite a few gamers. Denying and deleting games is not an option, so you have the potential to wind up with loads of unfinished, or un-joined games in your game log. There’s also no randomized quests. Even though the level generation is randomized, the 10 quests that you’ll go on in each game will always be the same. 

With F5 being great right now at working with players and trying to make Pocket Heroes the best Async-MP RPG title it can be, and Ayopa being the publisher, with every single game under their belt having been updated quickly, and consistently, I have complete faith that Pocket Heroes will reach it’s true potential soon enough. Priced at $0.99, it’s easy to take the plunge, and experience gameplay that’s reminiscent of a Dungeon’s & Dragons session with friends. But if you’re hoping this is a full-fledged Action or Turn-Based RPG with hundreds of quests to do online, you’ll be pretty upset with the game. There are plenty of other titles that let you join in a world that’s pre-constructed and always alive. But if you’re looking for a close game with friends, Pocket Heroes is just the game you’re looking for, and it can only get better over time.

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Hanger [A Small Game] - $1.99

One of my favorite iOS games has got to be Hook Champ. The amount of content, the gameplay, the mechanics, controls, items, everything is just fantastic. But since, there hasn’t really been a game that comes close to the type of gameplay without feeling dull, stiff, or just no fun. Sweden based A Small Game’s most recent iOS title, Hanger, has changed that all around, matching gameplay reminiscent of the Hook titles, with the feeling of Karoshi. 

Hanger is a game which has you controlling characters who are trying to use a rope to fling themselves through various environments, some seeming extremely strange, to get to the end of the stage while loosing the fewest amount of body parts they can. That’s right, legs, arms, torsos and loads of blood will go flying all over the stage while your characters are Tarzaning it through the levels. 

There are two gameplay modes in Hanger, Levels, which is kind of a Story Mode, with little clip scenes at the beginning of each world, and Endless Mode, which, you guessed it, has you flinging your character as far as you can before they’re nothing more than an arm and head, or fall to their doom. Right now, there are only two worlds and 30 levels in Level Mode, but each level has a possible 3 star rating, which depends on how many ropes you use, the number of body parts you loose, and how many gems you can collect while going through the level. The base score is 50,000, and for each rope you use, 500 points is deducted, while each body part you loose deducts 1,000 points. The gems that you collect give you 200 points each, so you can either try and make your way through the stage by using the least amount of ropes, going quick, and praying to god that you don’t smack into a wall or whatever other strange object the environment is made out of, or you can go slow, and collect all of the gems, giving you a bigger bonus score at the end of the stage, or you can do a little bit of both, it’s really up to you. 

The graphics are retro inspired, with stickman people, and very interesting backgrounds, all effecting the level’s names; for instance, in the level, ‘Party’, you’ll come across bottles of Champaign, laughing heads, fancy hands, and more, while the level titled ‘Forest’ will have you swinging from trees. Now, I’m not usually a fan of rag doll physics, but here, the physics in Hanger, are fantastic. Flinging your rag doll stick figure, always having a name, which is, by the way, a great addition to the game, through each of the levels looks and feels fantastic. A Small Game’s developers nailed the physics portion of Hanger. The controls are also spot on, with left/right arrows and a rope button, which you’ll press to detach your rope, and again to shoot your rope out. 

Right now, priced at $0.99, it’s a fantastic buy. The price will go up soon to $1.99, which is still, a great price for this game. More worlds for Level Mode are in the works, but with Endless Mode, there’s loads of gameplay, as well as replayability. Also adding to the replay value, GameCenter’s 15 achievements and 6 different leaderboards, one for each Level Mode World’s total score, as well as one for each of the 4 separate Endless Mode levels. A couple things I would love to see added is an HD build, or an update to make the iPhone version Universal, as well as an option to move the controls around to where you’d like them on the screen; especially if the game becomes Universal or HD, as on the iPad, the buttons are kind of far inward. But still, I’ve been having a blast with Hanger, and really, can not recommend it enough, especially for fans of Hook Champ, Karoshi, and score-chasing games. I can see Hanger easily becoming a classic iOS game. 

If you're still interested, but on the fence, you can check out the Flash Version at NotDoppler.

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Gemibears [Piston Games] - $0.99/$1.99

Matching games have grown quite a bit, and gained a pretty solid following on the iOS. Playrix title, Call of Atlantis, was my first real iOS matching experience, and since then, I’ve been hooked. But as with all genres, with massive amounts of titles comes massive amounts of cloning, and repetitiveness, so it’s always nice to see something with new mechanics added to the lineup. Moscow based Piston Game’s most recent addition to the AppStore, Gemibears, happens to be a Match-2 title, with some interesting gameplay mechanics and modes to keep it fresh, and help it stand out in the crowd. 

When you first start up Gemibears, you’re only given the option to play Story Mode. But as you progress through the game, you’ll be able to unlock Action, Tactic and Classic Modes, all giving you different takes on the Match-2 play. As you can imagine, the goal is to match as many bears as you can by moving them around the board. You’ll always have one space open to move a bear or selection of bears to. You do not need to make a match in order to move, which does help if you’d like to plan moves out, or are stuck, and need to a piece across the play-field. Being able to move entire rows of bears also helps to make multiple matches at once, so there’s plenty of luck tied in with the strategy, as most Matching Games tend to use.

What makes Gemibears interesting is the mechanics that the game includes into the gameplay as you make your way through the first world. There are some bears which will fall asleep, making them impossible to move until you match one of their sides with another bear. There’s also a zipper at the bottom of the play-field which is your time meter, and once it runs down, it’s game over. But you’ll have bears which have clocks on them, and add to the time. This isn’t anything new within the genre, but the way that they’re utilized keeps the game interesting. 

Story Mode includes more than 60 levels to make your way through, all split up into different worlds. As you complete the worlds, the other gameplay modes are unlocked. Action Mode gives you a certain amount of time to get as many points as you can, also utilizing the bears with clocks, so you could potentially wind up with a huge score if you’re quick to act. Tactic Mode is the most strategic mode, and is reminiscent of Monster Flip’s Puzzle Mode. You’re given 3 turns to make a match or you’ll loose a life, with each match refilling your turns. Lives are regenerated once you score enough points, and you need to get the best score you can before all your lives are gone. Classic Mode is your typical relaxed gameplay mode. There’s no time limit, and you’re able to make moves until sleeping bears make it so that you have no more moves left. 

There are extras which you can find in the main menu as well, like the Gemipedia, which collects information on all the bears you’ll come across in the game, Wallpapers and local scores. The graphics, animations, controls, music, and effects all fit together nicely to give gamers a very polished game. If you’re a fan of the genre, Gemibears will be a great addition to your device, and with the Tactical and Action modes, which is probably where you’ll spend the most time, there’s endless challenging reparability. The developers have stated that more planets for Story Mode, as well as more bears, and more bonuses will be added in future updates. Also helping to add to the replay value is GameCenter integration with boards for Classic, Action, and Tactic Modes. Unfortunately, there’s no achievements, so if you’re not a score-chasing fanatic, the GC support will be kind of lost on you. But for $0.99 for the iPhone version, and $1.99 for the HD build, it’s definitely worth checking out, it might just wind up turning into one of your favorite match-games. 

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Dirt [Broken Kings] - $0.99

Games on the iDevice are expanding every week. With more and more games being released that are best described as ‘experiences’ more than ‘games’, it’s great to see these types of titles hit such a diverse range of genres. There is one title that has really stuck with me since it’s release in February 2011. Broken King’s Dirt. An exploration game which tells the story of Dirt the cat.

Dirt is an endless game, controlled by tapping and rotating your device. You’re equipped with a pickax which you can use to dig through the underground you’re seemingly trapped in. As you delve deeper into the game, more of the story opens up while you dig through the ground finding gems, running into strange characters, and uncover more of your past. As stated, the game is best described as an experience. There’s no way to die, there’s no time limits, there’s no score, only a story which unfolds as you explore. 

The graphics, animations, music and sounds are all fantastic, and build up an incredible atmosphere which is fabulously immersive. The way the story unfolds is very well thought out, and you’ll most likely find yourself becoming attached to Dirt fairly quickly. 

Once you complete the story, you’re able to keep exploring, looking for each and every gem, creature, object and banner you can possibly find throughout the game. There is no GameCenter, no achievements, and not a whole lot of replay value. But it’s definitely a game that will stick with you for a long time after you experience it. 

Priced at $0.99, Broken King’s Dirt is a game that every iDevice owner should check out and play, at least once. It’s one of the most well-crafted, well-written, highly polished story games that you’ll ever come across. I just hope that the Broken King development team creates a Dirt 2, or more games that build on this type of gameplay. They’ve obviously got an incredible understanding of what it takes to perfectly produce such a title, it’d be a shame if all that talent was pushed aside. 

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Tameuchi [2dgames.jp] - $0.99

Shmups have really seemed to expand outwards and spawn some new and interesting genres, especially since the introduction of the AppStore. Dodging games like FlipShip, Tilt To Live and Silverfish; Dual-Stick exploration like Isotope and Inferno; Survival games like ElectroMaster, even the endless genre has been touched resulting in games like Hypership Out Of Control and the wave-based Enborn-X. 

Taking a page out of ElectroMaster’s book, and expanding even more on it, 2dgames.jp has recently released their bullet hell survival/dodger, Tameuchi. 

Tameuchi is a bit strange, well, it’s not very surprising that it’s a bit strange, it’s created by Japanese developers who obviously have a taste for the cute and out of the box thinking. You control a little girl up against wave after wave of purple jelly looking creatures, milkboxes, pudding, and more who all seem to have a wide array of bullets and projectiles all ready to take you out. The good news is, you’ve got an endless supply of bullets, can fly, have proper shielding, can level up, and are able to regain health by collecting bananas. 

The controls, like most iOS games, are fairly simple. To move, you just need to touch down anywhere on the screen, and drag your finger in the direction you’d like to move. While you’re doing this, you’ll be charging up your bullets. Once you let your finger off of the screen, your bullets will be released, and the carnage will begin. 

As you collect green and yellow bananas, your projectile charge bar, and health will be regenerated, you’ll also be able to level up as you progress throughout the game, killing everything in sight. Once you level up, your charge gauge will get bigger, and your projectiles will get stronger, being able to take out more and more of the ever increasing onslaught of enemies. As your rank goes up, the enemies will get stronger, and more of them will attack you all at once. Their bullet patterns will also get more complex. What really helps out, is that while you’re charging your bullets, you’re able to suck up some of the smaller bullets with your charge shield. However, you can only absorb a certain amount before you wind up taking damage. Also working in your favor, once you defeat the milk carton, or pudding, all of the bullets on the screen turn into collectible bananas. 

Priced at $0.99, it’s a fantastic game to pick up if you’re a fan of the slightly weird Japanese gaming culture, or are into dodging/bullet hell titles. The only bad things I can say about the game is that there is only one game mode, it's not Universal, though, the game still looks great in 2X mode, and there's absolutely no leaderboards. That’s right, not even local boards, it does save your highest score, which is a plus, but nothing else. GameCenter integration, as well as more modes would make Tameuchi one hell of a game. But for 2dgames.jp first at bat within the AppStore, they’ve hit, at the very least, an inside-the-park homerun. 

If you’re interested in the game, but don’t know whether or not to take the plunge, check out Tameuchi Lite. 

****After writing this review, I contacted the developer and asked if GameCenter would be added in a future update, they said that yes, it would be, and asked us to be patient. =o)

So those of you holding off on the game because the lack of it, it will be implemented in the future. *****

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Astronaut Spacewalk [Jorge Hernandez] - $3.99

It’s always great seeing something new and unique hit the AppStore. With so many new developers that have hit the AppStore over the last 4 or so years, it’s incredible that there are developers out there that have ideas that haven’t been done or taken advantage of yet. That’s the case with Jorge Hernandez’s Astronaut Spacewalk, an astronaut simulation title that has you move and control an astronaut around a spaceship right above the earth’s atmosphere. 

The first thing you might notice when starting up the game is the detailed controls. Going through the operation manual is something you really should do before you start playing. The controls are unlike anything I’ve experienced on the iOS as of yet. You’re given buttons which will move you up, down, forward, back, left, right, rotate you right, left, strife right, left, rotate you forward and back, and controls that will move the camera around you, however, they aren’t your typical virtual controls. On the left side of the screen, you’re given your basic movement buttons, and on the right you have your rotating, and the center of the screen controls your camera. It does take a little fidgeting around before you get comfortable with them, but once you do, the controls are perfect for the game. 

Starting off, you’ll need to guide the astronaut to various spots around the shuttle. You have a certain amount of boosters, and re-aligning energy, as well as a set amount of oxygen. If you can’t make it to all of the checkpoints around the ship with the given amount of energy and oxygen, you’ll need to start from scratch. There are also set boundaries around the shuttle, and if you leave them, you’ll need to restart as well, so no making your way from the shuttle to the moon, or re-entering the atmosphere in your suit. There are some glitches that occur if you manage to collide with the ship, and keep going forward, you can wind up getting stuck inside of the ship, unable to make your way out, but this really only happens if you’re trying to make it happen.

After the first mission, you’ll be faced with objectives that generally have you moving from one area to another, and staying there while something is fixed, attached, or checked out. You will need to align the astronaut in the correct positioning in order for this to happen, which can get quite challenging. Even further on, you’ll be making your way to satellites, space stations, and more. 

The graphics are definitely a highlight within the game, with the Earth, Shuttle, Astronaut, and space debris very detailed. Combined with the controls, physics, inertia, and basic gameplay, Astronaut Spacewalk becomes a very immersive experience. Something that also helps is the music and effects, as well as the constant background NASA chatter. Astronaut Spacewalk is really less of a game, and more of a challenging experience. Each of the 20 Missions provides unique tasks which you must complete before you run out of air and power. 

Having a launching price of $3.99, it’s a fantastic simulation title to pick up if you’re interested in something new and unique, and are up for a challenge. I can’t really see the gameplay appealing to a wide audience, but hopefully it does. With more and more people becoming interested in space and NASA, now seems like a perfect time for a game like this to hit the AppStore, but with so many casual gamers, it’ll be a hard sell. Being made only for the iPhone is another thing that will most likely keep people from purchasing it, but if you’re willing to play in 2X mode, with a little bit of pixilation, or just have an iPod/iPhone, it’s definitely a game you should check out. I can’t wait to see what Mr. Hernandez has in store for future games on the platform. Here’s hoping this is only the beginning. 

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AXL: Full Boost [SpinVector] - $2.99

I’m generally not too big a fan of racers on the iOS. Even on console platforms, racers have almost always seemed a little dull after getting addicted to Kinetica on the PS2, and wasting a good 200+ hours of my life playing it. But there are a few that have that special spark that makes them stand out above the crowd. QuBIT, Protoxide, jAggy Race… and now I can add one more racing title to that very small list of mine; AXL: Full Boost, developed by SpinVector, an Italy based, 15-person studio who’ve won numerous awards. Now developing titles for the iOS, AXL: Full Boost is their second iOS title, the first being the award-winning BANG! With 10+ years of experience under the belt, it’s no surprise that at first glance, AXL looks amazing. But, as with other games that look amazing, the gameplay that lies underneath all the special glitz and glamour can make or break the game. 

Using technology developed by another Italian company, Raylight, AXL: Full Boost stands out by including orbs into the racing. These orbs can either be used to boost your racer, reaching insane speeds, or you can use them to take advantage of power-ups found throughout the tracks. The catch is, when you use these orbs, they’re left behind you, giving your opponents the opportunity to pick them up, and use them themselves, adding an extra little layer of strategy to the gameplay.

The technology also allows for Quick-Time Events. This is used for very sharp turns within the game. Whenever a sharp turn is coming up, an icon appears on the center of the screen, letting you know which direction you’ll be turning. When this does pop up, you’re able to twitch your device in that direction, and have your racer attach itself to a track within the turn, letting you keep up your high speed racing, and focus entirely on the racing and orb collecting/strategic aspects of the game. 

Looking at the screen-shots for AXL, it’s very clear that the graphics for the game are top-notch. The futuristic, clean, smooth, minimal look of all the buildings and racers definitely creates an intriguing atmosphere. Also pretty noticeable is the draw-distance. In most iOS games this is usually pretty short, but with AXL, the minimalistic graphics help to allow the developers to make the draw distance fairly large, which is a huge plus, and something that I hope is taken advantage of more within the genre. 

Once you get into the game, you’ll notice that not only do the graphics stand-out, but the automations are also fantastic as well, drawing you into the game even more. One of my favorite animations in the game is when you break, and get ready to boost, and your whole racer changes shape. It definitely adds to the feeling as well as style of the game.

Like a lot of other racers out there, there is a story intertwined with the game. In 2099, the environment collapsed, and humanity needed to find a new energy source, in 2123, HEX a new form of renewable energy was found. In 2150, Shifters, shape changing racers, were built using HEX, and after that, large corporations create newer and better Shifters, and the AXL Division of racing is established. This is where the game starts. 

At the beginning, like most racers, you’re only able to choose between one Shifter, and have to go through training missions before getting into the real gameplay. You also find out that you’re responsible for the loss of 55 Pan-American engineers. You were expelled from Rotco Global Defense Corporation, and have been sentenced to 4 years of civil labor. Later, found with contraband, you’re currently waiting for sentencing from the courts. Ikuma Energetics, a racing company that has scouted you out, has the power to suspend any criminal proceedings for the duration of your apprenticeship. Lucky you, you get to race Shifters.

There is loads of content within the game, 3 different modes; Starcade (or Story/Carrer Mode), Free Run, and Custom Race. As you progress through Starcade Mode, more tracks, and more Shifters will become available to you, there are 12 total, each having different statistics. Starcade Mode offers up 71 different races spread across 7 different locations. Free Run lets you practice on any one of the tracks that you’ve already reached, and Custom lets you race against however many opponents you want, and lets you decide if there’s power-ups included or not, as well as which track you race on. 

In the options, you’re able to adjust the Effects, and Music volumes, as well as change the view from First Person, Near or Far views, and adjust the sensitivity. Unfortunately, there is only a tilt control scheme, which really does have an effect on the gameplay. Even though you can adjust the sensitivity, until you get comfortable with the controls, more often than not, you’ll find yourself bouncing from wall to wall, which effects you more than you might like. With the Quick Time Events included in the tracks, you need to be going full speed to use them, which means that you can not accidentally touch the wall of the track, and need to have an orb for boosting right before it, which can result in your Shifter smashing right into the wall of the turn. Without orbs for boosting right before the QTE turns, you’ll need to take the sharp turn on your own, which almost always results in bouncing off the walls even more. But if you have the patience and determination to stick with it, and most likely play track more than once so that you can learn them, the controls become less and less of an issue as you make your way through the game.

Running at a smooth 60FPS, even on my 4th GEN Touch, which, with each passing week, is becoming more and more obsolete, and has fantastic tracks, amazing graphics and animations and great music and effects, with outstanding stand-out of the crowd mechanics with the orbs, power-ups, and turns. There are also 24 achievements, and 14 leader boards included in GameCenter, which definitely adds to the replay value, which is, of course, already fairly high. Sadly, the game is not Universal, which means you’ll be playing it in 2X mode if you’ve got an iPad. AXL: Full Boost is priced at $2.99, which is a fantastic price. Fans of the genre should definitely pick this up. It stands out in a genre full of like-minded titles, offers loads of content and basically endless replay value. It could very well wind up being the best racer available for the iOS, maybe even one of the best racers available on any gaming platform.

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Unstoppable Fist [Ragtag Studio] - $0.99

If you didn’t already know, here at The App Shack, we’re huge fans of casual score-chasing arcade titles. The endless replay value, difficulty levels for all players, addictiveness, and gameplay that attracts gamers from a wide range of preferences all seems to hit the right chord with us, especially when all of this is done just right. Ragtag Studio’s first iOS release, Puppy Panic, didn’t really grab our attention, so when we heard of Unstoppable Fist, we were a little skeptical. But after getting our hands on it, passing it around, and trying to out-score each other for hours, we were definitely shown that are skepticism was all for naught. 

Unstoppable Fist is an endless arcade title suitable for casual as well as hardcore gamers. You’re able to choose between Easy, Medium, and Hard difficulties, with a very clear bump up in the difficulty levels as you choose the harder modes. The game reminds us a lot of Gun-Fu with it’s gameplay mechanics and challenge. 

Your character stands in the middle of the screen, and objects/animals come at him from both sides. In order to take out these objects/animals, you need to tap on either the upper left, upper right, middle left/right or lower left/right sides of the screen, with the character also able to do a double attack if you tap on both sides of the screen, however the character can only do this if you tap on both sides in the same direction (up high, middle, or down low). There is also a special attack which is done by either swiping down or up, and clears out all 3 areas on either the left or right side of the screen.

There’s only one gameplay mode in Unstoppable Fist, which is kind of disappointing. With a game like this, having a Time Limit Mode, or Godlike Mode would have been a fantastic addition. However, the lack of modes doesn’t really harm the game, as each difficulty mode kind of feels like it’s own gameplay mode, and the 3 different environments help quite a bit. 

Where Unstoppable Fist really stands out, and shines is in its scoring system. Here, you build up your multiplier by punching objects/animals without missing. If you punch or kick and don’t hit anything, or you get hit by an object, your multiplier resets. This scoring system adds quite a bit of difficulty and challenge to the, otherwise, rather simple gameplay. 

With the game being endless, there’s obviously a lot of replay value, but adding to that is GameCenter support, with 4 different leaderboards; 1 board for each difficulty, Easy, Medium and Hard, and one for Top Kills. There are also 33 hard to snag achievements which add a ton to the game. With Unstoppable Fist being priced at $0.99, it’s very easy to recommend. If you’re a fan of score-chasing arcade titles, it’s one you should definitely pick up. It is only available for the iPhone/iPod at the moment, but since the graphics are retro-inspired, and already pixilated, it doesn’t effect the game too much playing in 2X mode on the iPad. Unstoppable Fist has definitely made us excited about what Ragtag has in store for gamers in the future, and we can’t wait to get our hands on it. 

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