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Uplink [Introversion Software] – $4.99

Hacking based games have always been a favorite of mine, and they really seem to fit very well on the iDevice. Hacker Evolution, Digital Heist, The Hacker, The Hack Run Trilogy… but none of these have really done for me what Introversion Software’s Uplink has done. A perfect port of the PC version, Uplink’s fantastic story, user interface, graphics, music, gameplay and paranoia are just as addictive as they were 10+ years ago using a mouse and keyboard. Though not very realistic, it captures the essence of ‘Hollywood Hacking’ like that shown in Hackers, Swordfish, Sneakers, and other ‘Hacker Inspired’ films, which makes for a much more interesting video game. 
Uplink’s story revolves around the Andromeda Research Corporation, which is creating a computer virus using artificial life research that can destroy the Internet. Another company, Arunmor, is trying to create another virus that can destroy Andromeda’s virus. You’re able to choose between Arunmor and Andromeda, or you can just focus on completing every mission you can while the story goes on without you. 
You start off joining the Uplink Corporation who provides work for hackers by matching missions with skill levels and providing both the hardware and software that’s needed to do the work. Once you create a user account with the company, you’ll need to prove you have what it takes to work for them by completing a test mission. You are able to activate the tutorial for this, which walks you through, step by step, showing you the basic mechanics of the game. There’s also a ‘Help’ section on the Uplink Corporation’s mainframe which gives you information about security systems and software, as well as anything else you might have questions about throughout the game. 
Once you complete the test mission, you’re able to sign in to the Uplink Corporation and view the ‘Mission List’. Here is where you’ll be able to accept jobs from companies based on your user level. Completing missions raises your level and gives you credits which you can use to purchase more software and upgrade your hardware. Starting off, you’ll have a bunch of missions which have you copying and deleting files, but once you raise your level, you’ll be altering documents, destroying entire libraries of data, and even outing other hackers. 
The user interface for a hacking game like Uplink is extremely important, and Introversion Software has done a great job making the game easy to navigate and understand. On the top of the screen, you’re able to see the date, and your IP address, as well as fast forward time which comes in handy if you’re waiting to have better hardware installed, or are waiting for more missions which fit your level. 
There’s also a CPU Usage bar , which is pretty much like a Task Manager, showing what applications are running, and how much power they’re using. You can also send more power to a specific application, making it run faster, or take power away from one that doesn’t require as much, like your Trace_Tracker (which lets you know when you’re being traced), so that you can give more power to your file copier, password breaker, or any other applications that might need to be sped up. 
In the top right corner is the world map, showing all of the networks which you can connect to. Here is where you’ll bounce different connections off of different networks, making it harder for companies to trace your IP address. 
Along the bottom of the screen are your icons used for starting up applications, reading e-mails, reading your accepted missions, checking out your level, credit amount, installed software and what hardware you currently have. Tapping on the satellite in the bottom left corner pops up a menu which separates your applications by type; Utilities, Drivers, Security, Crackers, ect. To start an application, all you need to do is find it in the list, and tap on it. Once you get further along into the game and need to change information, or enter names to search for, a keyboard pops up on the bottom half of the screen. It’s responsiveness is fairly quick, so you’re never stuck waiting for the keyboard to pop up, taking up time while you’re being traced, which is great.
Uplink is priced at $4.99, and only available for the iPad. If you’re even remotely intrigued by hacking, or into hacker games, Uplink is one of the most entertaining titles, on any gaming platform, that you can check out. Sadly, there is no GameCenter integration, which means no achievements, which would have been a fantastic addition to the iOS version. A leader board for total number of completed missions would have been great to have as well. But the gameplay doesn’t suffer from the lack of a leaderboard and achievements, and still gives players the drive to keep coming back, completing more missions, and progressing further along with the plot. It’s a must get for fans of the genre, and at the current price, is a steal. Hopefully Uplink will sell well, and get some much deserved attention so that Introversion Software can port over more of their fantastic titles to the iOS. DEFCON, Darwinia and others would be fantastic on the touch screen. 
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June 17, 2012 Uncategorized 0 Read more >

Project 83113 [NCSoft+Fabrication Games] – $0.99

Endless runners are a dime a dozen in the AppStore. However, runners that incorporate more platforming than just mindless jumping are a pretty rare breed. Mirrors Edge, ChocoRun, Mega Run, 1-Bit Ninja… these are titles that take the running genre to the next level, adding in quite a bit of plat forming. So much so that it’s hard to decide whether to place them in Platformer or Runner folders on my iDevice. The most recent addition to this sort of sub-genre of platform running is Fabrication Game’s Project 83113 (Belle), published by NCSoft, and it could very well be the best of the best when it comes to these types of games on the iOS.
Back in April, when I first heard of, then named, Project Belle, I was ecstatic. The games graphics and presentation looked outstanding. The only thing I was really worried about, like almost all games that involve platforming, was the controls. It was the beginning of a short wait, unlike tons of other games that are basically forgotten between being announced and their release, it only took 2 months for Fabrication Games to get Project 81331 out onto the AppStore, and thankfully, the developers nailed the swiping gesture controls PERFECTLY. 
Like all of my favorite platformers, Project 83113 has a decent story pushing the gameplay along. You’re never caught wondering what you’re doing and why, or trying to guess where you are or who put you there, which, in my book, is a huge plus when it comes to platformers, and mainly because so many of them don’t include any information about these things what-so-ever.
Belle is part of a slave race, controlled and used by machines. Born out of the eyes of the machines, she was raised and trained to be The One who could free their kind from slavery. She is… Project 83113 (hehe). As you progress through the game, blasting your way to the hub of the machine’s haven, you’ll come across various weapons and robots which will help you defeat some of the more powerful machines. 
You’re able to collect upgrade coins throughout the game, but you can also buy them in the shop, which is accessible through both the level selection screen and the pause menu. Here, you can buy upgrade coins and bombs, as well as upgrade your weapons and take a look at all of the story fragments that you’ll be collecting throughout the game. There are IAPs, but you’re never driven towards purchasing them, and are really just there if you’d like to help support the developers, and completely max out your weapons. 
Right now, Project 81331 contains 33 levels; 27 regular levels spread across 3 worlds, with each world having one boss level, and one stealth level. There is a 4th world, and even though I haven’t gotten that far yet, it’s not included in the GameCenter scores, so I’m assuming that it’s coming in a future update. Either that, or it’s a very small world consisting of the center of the machine’s haven (here’s hoping). Each of the 27 standard levels has 3 different badges you can earn; one for finding the hidden object within the level, one for defeating all of the enemies in the level and one for completing the level without taking any damage. This last badge is what really adds to the replay value, and ups the difficulty quite a bit. Even by level 1-4, you’ll be going nuts trying to complete the stage without getting hit. 
The controls in Project 83113 are fairly simple. Swipe right to move right, swipe left to move left, swipe up to jump, and swipe down to slide. As you make your way through the game, more moves will be unlocked, like dashing in the air, double jumping, and gliding for short distances. Belle fires her weapon automatically whenever she’s in range of an enemy, and you’re also able to fire a special shot by tapping on an enemy. However, this drains a little bit of your energy, so you’ll have to watch how many times you use it. There’s also an icon of a bomb in the lower right corner, which clears the screen of all enemies and projectiles. 
Graphics-wise, Fabrication Games has done an outstanding job making a game centered around machines and corridors incredibly vibrant. Each of the character and machine sprites are fantastically done with the environments matching the high quality set by them. Animations are detailed and, well, just plain awesome. The explosions look great, and everything down to Belle crouching looks amazing. The game is also super smooth, especially on the iPad, but I didn’t encounter any slow-down or frame-rate issues while playing on my 4th generation iPod Touch either, which was a huge shock. 
With the price of Project 83113 set at $0.99, being Universal, including GameCenter leader boards for the total score of each separate world, and having 20 incredibly difficult to unlock achievements added on top of them, combined with the mind-blowing production values and amazing game-play, this is one game you do not want to miss out on. Project 81331 will definitely wind up on my top 10 games of the year list, and is one title that I’ll be recommending to all of my co-workers, and gifting to everyone in my family. It’s that good. With the insane amount of replay value, I’ll be hooked on Project 83113 for quite some time. But it’s safe to say that Fabrication Games has not only raised the bar for games in the platform runner genre, but completely blown everything else out of the water. I can’t wait to see what they have in store for us in the future!
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June 7, 2012 Uncategorized 0 Read more >

Hunters 2 [Rodeo Games] – $4.99

After the success of Hunters: Episode One, the fantastic sci-fi turn-based strategy title from Rodeo Games, it was no surprise when Hunters 2 was announced. Being a Strategy fanatic, I was extremely excited to get my hands on the release. Unfortunately, because of some badly timed events, and large backup of games, I wasn’t able to get the time to check it out. After playing for 5 hours straight this morning, I’m kicking myself for not having it on my device sooner. 
Like Hunters: Episode One, your thrown into a civilization which revolves around contracts. There are no governments, only corporation owned planets, and credits and contracts are the only things that matter. Unlike the first Hunters, Hunters 2 has an actual story line which you can progress through while also having access to daily contracts which you can play to earn more experience and money, helping you make it through the story mode a little easier, while also providing some extra challenge. 
Starting off, you’re able to choose between Easy, Normal and Hard difficulties, as well as being able to turn Hardcore Mode on, which makes it so that any team members lost during battle are lost forever. After a back-story dialogue scroll down the screen, you’re thrown into a tutorial mission where you’ll learn the basics of the game while also finding out that your employer wants you dead, presumably because of some information you posses. After all but a total of 3 members of your team have been extinguished. Making your way to the end of the tutorial level, the last 3 members are overrun. 
You’re then taken to the ship where you can check out the available menu options, Bridge (where you start your contracts), Comms (where you can connect to Rodeo Games, Facebook, Twitter, and check out GameCenter boards and achievements), Armory (where you’re able to equip your team members), Trade (which is the shop, where you can buy and sell items, as well as purchase new members), Manufacturing (which is where you can create your own weapons and armor) and Settings (which lets you change the difficulty, team color, music and effects volumes, and turn the Blood and Free daily Gifts on or off, as well as reset the campaign). 
Each member of your team is able to be outfitted with one weapon, and armor, with both having a major influence on how you play the game with those specific characters, with the armor dictating how many moves they can make per turn, and the weapons you equip possibly taking up more than one movement point. As they level up, more abilities will become available to them, giving your team-mates super human abilities, and extra special moves to help them tear the enemies apart. Since you are able to purchase more members from the shop, even leveled up members, this makes experimenting with weaponry and armor very easy, and adds quite a bit of depth to the already depthy strategic gameplay. 
The graphics in Hunters 2 are what you would expect from a sequel. If you’ve played the original Hunters, you’re familiar with the look of the environments and character models. Rodeo Games did definitely make the graphics sharper and more vibrant, with some fantastically created plantlife and outdoor environments added to the many buildings found in the first title. They’ve also added some very nice atmospheric graphic effects and animations to go along with the new graphics, making the game even more immersive than the original. Also accompanying the new graphics is fantastic music and sound effects helping to set the dark and dreary mood perfectly. 
This time around, Rodeo Games made Hunters 2 Universal, and with it being priced at $4.99, it’s a fantastic deal, especially considering the endless replay value, and extremely difficult challenges that await players in-game. GameCenter is also supported, with a leader board based on how many contracts you complete, along with 33 hard-to-unlock achievements, both also adding to the insanely high replay value. Rodeo Games has done a fantastic job creating a completely immersive world, and compelling campaign to go along with this amazing game. Hunters 2 has quickly become one of my favorite iOS strategy games, and right now, is definitely in the top 3 on my ‘Best of 2012’ list. It’s one game that strategy fans need to have on their iDevice. 
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June 3, 2012 Uncategorized 0 Read more >

Plague Inc. [Ndemic Creations] – $0.99

It’s not too often you see a completely unique and original Strategy title, even on a platform that’s full of hundreds of incredibly talented developing teams. It’s even more rare for a Strategy title to end up taking the #1 spot on the iTunes Paid Game’s list away from Angry Birds. Plague Inc., developed by Ndemic Creations is just that. Plague Inc. has you evolving and spreading a disease, while trying to infect and kill everyone in the world before a cure can be found. Sound evil? It is. But it’s also one of the most interesting and addictive strategy games I’ve ever had the pleasure of playing.
When you start your first game, you’ll only be able to start with a Bacteria and will be able to choose between Casual (no one washes their hands, research doctors don‘t work and sick people are given hugs), Normal (67% of people wash their hands, doctors work 3 days a week and sick people are ignored), and Brutal (compulsive hand washing, doctors never go home and sick people are locked in prisons) Difficulties. Once you complete a Bacteria game on Normal or Brutal difficulty, you’ll be able to unlock the Virus. Completing a Virus game on Normal or Brutal unlocks Fungus, then Parasite, Prion, Nono-Virus and then Bio-Weapon. Once you complete all disease types on Brutal Difficulty, you’ll be able to unlock special cheats, with no cure being able to be found, humans never taking action against you, and the unlimited DNA cheat, which lets you evolve your plague like you were God. 
Once you start your game, you’re able to choose which country you want to infect first. Once your plague starts spreading, you start earning DNA points. These are used to evolve your plague by choosing from literally hundreds of different attributes, all split up into 3 different types of evolutions; Transmission, which lets you decide what animals can be infected, and how your plague can travel, Symptoms, which lets you choose what symptoms occur, and how bad these symptoms can get, and Abilities, which give your plague the strength to survive in different climates, and how resistant it is to cure research. 
As the game progresses, little bubbles will pop up across the world, letting you infect more countries, gain more DNA points, and disrupt scientists research. 
You’re also able to check out the world news, which lets you know what’s going on in the world you’re trying to infect. You’ll be alerted when and where Olympics, as well as other National events are going to start, when certain countries are noticing infection, when they close down airports and seaports, block boarders, notice infection, start researching a cure, as well as some very sobering events, like when bodies are piling up so bad that they’re being buried in massive holes, when the dead are being burned, and more. There are also graphs which let you know which countries are and are not infected, how the cure is coming along, and how your infected to dead ratio is coming along. The background music adds to this very serious sort of feeling you’ll get while playing. And it will hit you, eventually. When starting a game, you might be rooting for complete world destruction, but once you read about the events and see the death toll hit the billions, watch your plague spread, see where the evolutions branch out to, and hear when governments fall, as well as the creepy ‘ring around the posies’ chant in the background, it all starts to get pretty intense. 
With Plague Inc. being made Universal with their first Update, as well as being priced at $0.99, it’s one game that strategy fans should not miss. Considering it’s hit #1 on the paid app charts, and judging from the iTunes ratings, as well as explosion of posts throughout iOS forums, it’s pretty clear that casual gamers are jumping in, and are becoming obsessed with the game as well. Considering it’s 2012, and the popularity of movies like 28 Days Later, Contagion, Quarantine, and a whole catalogue of virus related films, it’s not surprising that Plague Inc. has climbed up the leader boards so quickly. But it is pretty surprising seeing a strategy/simulation game hit the #1 spot. It’s definitely a game every iDevice user should check out, and is one game that I will be recommending to everyone I know. 
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June 2, 2012 Uncategorized 0 Read more >

Bee Leader [Flightless Limited] – $0.99

It’s not too often a simplistic game completely blows my expectations of it out of the water. But Bee Leader, the new game from Flightless Limited, has done just that. I never would have thought that a game that revolved around controlling a bee and collecting nectar would have hit almost every single addictive cell in my video game obsessed brain, but with Bee Leader’s gameplay and insanely good all around package have changed my views of video games that, on the outside, look boring, and like they’re made almost entirely for prepubescent children. 
Throughout the game, you will basically be doing one simple task. Exploring each of the levels, looking for nectar, smaller bees to join you, and clocks which add more time to your day. You have from sun up to sun down to collect as much nectar as you can and take it back to your hive. There are, of course, hazards and enemies which you’ll need to avoid as you fly throughout the stages. Clouds with lightning and rain, trains that spew up steam, windmills and rocks which can trap you, birds, snakes, skull throwing eagles, and the dreaded hornets are only some of the hazards and enemies you’ll need to navigate around while looking for nectar. If you’re hit by a projectile, or by a hazard, you’ll wind up loosing quite a bit of your already collected nectar, and god-forbid you run into a hornet. They’ll wind up chasing you down and corning you, taking all of your nectar if you let them. 
Bee Leader stands out in almost every single aspect. The graphics are cartoony, but very polished, the music and effects are outstanding, control-wise, you’re able to choose between a freemoving joystick which appears whenever you touch the screen, a set joystick on either the left or right hand sides of your device, touch anywhere and drag, tilting controls, and an option to use another device as the controller with the Joypad app. The physics and inertia of every moveable object is great, animations are smooth and level designs are top notch. But what I really love about the game is the scoring mechanics. Every smaller bee which you collect joins you, and adds to the amount of nectar you receive from the nectar balls as well as flowers, so the more smaller bees you have following behind you, the more nectar you’ll be able to haul away. The flowers have a ‘sucking streak’ which adds to the amount of nectar you collect so long as you don’t leave the flower. Because flowers also stick to you for a short amount of time, you can extend this sucking streak by jumping from flower to flower without stopping the collection of nectar, which allows for some nice bonus points. There’s also a honey bonus when you drop off nectar at your hive depending on how much nectar you’re dropping off. All of this, combined with the subtraction of nectar based on what you come into contact with throughout the stage makes the scoring system in Bee Leader fantastic. 
Adding to the great scoring is GameCenter support. For each of the 12 levels, there’s a separate GC Leaderboard, as well as a total score board for when you complete the game. There are also 10 achievements, but these don’t really add much replay value, as they’re all centered around the ranks you get in the game by filling up your hives with honey. However, there are plenty of stats which help round it all out by being able to post these stats on social networks including Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and through e-mail. 
Bee Leader is priced at $0.99, and the developers have stated that more levels are coming in future updates, which is great, because after playing and replaying levels trying to get the best scores you can, you’re only going to want more. The game is Universal for those of you who have iPads, or both and iPhone/iPod and iPad, which is always great to hear. 
So, final verdict? I can’t believe a game that revolves around making a bee fly around a level to collect nectar before the sun goes down is this fun. Incredibly fun. Right now I’m still stuck in the first two worlds (6 levels) trying to best my score and move up the GameCenter leaderboards, playing and re-playing levels over and over again. The only bad thing I can say is that the game might be a tad too short. With only 12 levels, if you aren’t interested in besting your score for the leader boards, chances are you’ll complete the game fairly quickly. For a dollar, it’s a fantastic buy, and will definitely wind up being one of my favorite casual high-scoring arcade games of the year. 

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May 26, 2012 Uncategorized 0 Read more >

Gene Effect (Lightstorm3D) – $4.99

I’ve been a sucker for exploration games since I started gaming as a child. When I got Metroid II at the age of 10, and spent months playing it, I was hooked. From then on out, any game that had exploration as a main mechanic hit the huge part of my brain dedicated to gaming. Over the years, I’ve also become very interested in aliens and cyberpunk literature as well as manga. My father was a chemist, so science; biology, geology and math have all been a huge part of my life as well.
None of this really matters, except that Lightstorm3D has just released a game called Gene Effect, and it encompasses environmental puzzles, exploration, and an amazing back-story of researchers and miners finding teleportation devices hidden on Mars during mining expeditions around the year 2050. Basically incorporating everything I surround myself with. So it’s no wonder I’m instantly fascinated by the game.
The story starts in 2033, with the first manned NASA mission to land on Mars is started. Once they land in 2034, build a base camp, and start their 16 month stay, the crew explores a 75 mile radius around their camp, collecting soil samples. After returning, a coalition of industrial nations and private investors found the GSA – Global Space Alliance, who’s main objective is to colonize Mars, and start mining the planets resources. Some time later, teleportation devices were found while mining, and a huge expedition for more starts up. While in a mine, one of the mining crews crashes, and this is where you come in, sent into the mines to find the ship and crew. The story has a LOT more to it than that, but what fun is ruining it for our readers? There’s an entire Chronicle section within the game, which gives you quite a bit of a backstory, and grows as you unlock more information throughout the game.

The story is a huge part of the game, but the game lacks any sort of cut-scenes. So you’ll have to read if you want to find out more. This isn’t required to actually complete the game, but it definitely adds to the incredible immersion. 
Now, the gameplay can be incredibly immersive by itself as well. You’ll control your mining ship with a virtual joystick and two buttons, one for your repulsor, which you can use to blow up rocks with a seismic blast, clearing paths, and uncovering hidden objects, and another button for T-Drone (Termination Drone), which launches missiles to clear out extremely hazardous areas before entering. The physics are another fantastic aspect of Gene Effect, with great collision detection, collision speed and damage detection, weight of the mining vessel, impact reactions, falling rocks, and even gravity manipulators having been tweaked to convey realism and increase the immersion in this sci-fi world. 

Each Mission has certain objectives which you’ll need to achieve either before progressing to the next area of a level, or completing the stage. These range from collecting DNA samples, to finding different resources like Koronite (the main orange material which you’ll be collecting a ton of), and taking it to certain drop off areas within the levels, or collecting red, blue, and yellow crystal energy to start up reactors, as well as searching for sensors to unlock doors, and more. 

As you progress through the game, the story opens up drastically, as do the levels. At the beginning of the game, levels can be completed as fast as 30 seconds, but very quickly expand to levels with speed run times of 7 minutes or more, and will usually take around 20 minutes to complete your first time through. A pretty major drawback of this is that there’s no multitasking support, and no mid-level checkpoints, which means that this is not really a pick-up-and-play game. Luckily, there’s plenty of quick pick up n play games available, with incredibly immersive, sit-down for a 2 hour gameplay session games are few and far between, which definitely makes Gene Effect stand out within the AppStore.
Adding replay value to the game, each stage also has a set of medals which you can earn for getting a high-score. There’s bronze, silver, and gold medals available for each Mission, as well as medals for perfect navigation, which is completing a level without crashing into any objects, and time, which you’ll receive for completing the Mission quicker than the allotted time. If you can grab the gold medal, and get both medals, you’re awarded a special full completion medal. There are also hidden relic items in every level, and 12 hidden artifacts that you can use to upgrade your ship scattered throughout the game.

 The graphics and animations, as well as the lighting effects, are incredible. The extreme attention to detail, especially with the environments, with the plant-life, and backgrounds for the caves, as well as movement of plant-life and all of the mechanical devices within the world of Gene Effect are insanely impressive. Sadly, there’s another drawback with this at the moment. The game is only built for the iPhone/iPod Touch, which means that you’ll be playing on your iPad in 2X mode, making the game pretty pixilated. The good news is that an update which will make the game Universal is in the works for the future, as are more lighting options and performance and graphical tweaking. But as it is now, the environments look incredible, and make Gene Effect a game that you’ll want to show off to friends.

Lightstorm3D has definitely shown that they know exactly what it takes to make an amazingly immersive, incredibly depthy game with Gene Effect. The story, gameplay, graphics, controls, music, everything about the game really stands out as top-notch. Even without having GameCenter integration with no online achievements, or leader boards, it has a great amount of replay value that will drive completionists batty. Fans of exploration, sci-fi, mining, action, adventure and even puzzle games would do well to get this on their device as soon as possible. Gene Effect is definitely a game that stands out as a true console-like experience in an AppStore full of casual pick-up-and-play flash games. The $5 price of admission is well worth the journey you’ll be privileged to experience, and is highly recommended to all gamers looking for something more from the games on their iDevice. I sincerely hope iOS gamers will be able to see more from Lightstorm3D. It’s games like this that give me hope that the iDevice will grow into a serious gaming platform in the near future.
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May 6, 2012 Uncategorized 0 Read more >

Spellsword by Everplay Games ($0.99) [Universal]

Everplay Games and FireFruitForge have teamed up to bring us an adrenaline fueled game with interesting mechanics that will keep you coming back for more.

Summary:
Basically your goal in either of the game modes is to survive and either complete the mission available in the main career mode or get a new high score in the endless mode.  At your disposal is your trusty sword which you learn early wont do it when your up against a lot of enemies. The main power force in the game is magical cards which you can use when you walk over them. Once you do so the magical power inside of it unleashes and creates a differing effect based on the card. Think of it like Super Crate Box except with a fantasy setting and cards instead of crates. Dont get me wrong though, this is in no way a rip off of SCB.

Controls: 4/5
The controls on the iPad I used to play it on were sufficient and the only real problems that I had with them were mainly my fault. The game utilizes the generic platformer set up with left/right arrows in the left corner and jump/attack buttons in the right corner with the pause button in the upper right corner.

Gameplay:4.5/5
Really nothing to complain about here, fast paced gameplay, an endless mode, and a neat item shop where you can buy helmets and other assorted items that improve your game. The career mode has you doing missions, in areas that you unlock by obviously completing more missions. There are 20 missions contained in each area and they can range from survinvg a heavy onslaught of enemies for a certain period of time or collecting a certain number of magic cards. The missions are balanced nicely and present a good sized challenge to the seasoned platformer expert. 

Graphics: 4/5
The graphics have a really nice look to them. Pixeled except not in a retro way. Though the graphics are extremely similiar to Terra Noctis’ (most likely because it was made by the same company) the areas are all different than the aforementioned game.

Overall: 4.5/5
Overall this is a great game with fast paced gameplay that is extremely addicting. And yes I know addicting is one of those buzz words that you shouldn’t use in a review as it can cheapen it, but this game truly deserves that title. Splendid graphics and music along with overall good design makes this a must have. 

Pick it up in the AppStore while it’s still $0.99





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April 30, 2012 Uncategorized 0 Read more >

Top 10 iPad Games that you should download right now

Many people around the globe received and/or bought the new iPad 2 around Christmas time.  When I unwrapped my iPad I was overwhelmed with the many options and games that I had been previously unable to play. Here are some of the games that really stood out and utilize the iPad’s innovative features
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Lost Winds by Frontier Developments ($3.99)
Universal
Lost Winds certainly has an unique control method which we praised in our review of it. But what really makes this a star is the fact that it is way easier to control on the big screen. Add the awesome graphics and amazing gameplay experience and you get an absolutle must for the cheap asking price.
Review: http://www.the-app-shack.com/2011/12/lost-winds-review-gusty-new-take-on_21.html
iTunes Link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/lostwinds/id477973472?mt=8

Infinity Blade 2 by Chair Games ($6.99) 
Universal

With awesome graphics tailored to the iPad 2 display and frantic fighting action this is an easy buy. The  larger display and room to manuever make it much easier to swipe and doge in the game.  It has a long lasting story which should keep you playing for a long time.

Galaxy on Fire 2 HD by Fishlabs ($9.99) 
The original Galaxy on Fire certainly has a big fan following and is quite the experience. It is basically a space simulation game where you can choose your own destiny and where your actions have consequences.  You can choose to be a pirate blowing up ships and stealing packages or a humble trader making money by buying and selling commodities to galaxys.  Fishlabs has redone the original game and boosted the graphics substantialy. It is simply amazing how much detail has been put into the artwork and it certainly takes advantage of the A5 processor chip in the iPad. 
Aquaria by Semi Secret Software LLC (4.99)

Aquaria is a 2d RPG with a huge exploratory element. You explore the ocean blue searching for answers into your mysterous predicament. Originally a computer game, it has been adapted for the touch screen and works magnificently with it. It is iPad exclusive as the experience wouldnt have been the same on devices with smaller screens like the iPhone. It has a massive amount of exploration and combat so it should keep you intrigued for a long time.
Pocket RPG by Crescent Moon Games ($2.99)
This dual stick shooter esc RPG game has all the right elements to make it a huge success: innovative gameplay mechanics, easy to get used to controls, great graphics and an increasing difficulty level.  It was originally an iPad only game before it was ported over to smartphone size. This is definitely a quality purchase and made our top 5 games of 2011 list.
Grand Theft Auto 3 by Rockstar ($2.99 originally $4.99) 
Universal
The GTA franchise has been revitalized in this port of the third game in the series.  There really isnt too much to say about this game because it is so wide known by many people. It is basically a free roaming game in which you can steal cars, shoot people, and drive crazily around Liberty City.  At $2.99 until the 29th you have no excuse to not pick this up.
Battleheart by Mika Mobile ($2.99) 
Universal
Battleheart is a line-drawing action strategy RPG with an extensive class and shop system.  It is truly one of the best strategy games on the Appstore and the larger screen size certainly makes it easier to plan out your attacks. A very innovative take on the RPG genre and is very approachable by newbies to that niche.
Flipboard (Free)
Universal
Though this is not a game I felt it seemed necessary to include in this list. It works perfectly to bring you the news you want about exactly what topics you enjoy most. 
Carcassonne by The Coding Monkeys ($9.99)
Universal
Carcassonne is a great strategy board game that is fun for the whole family. If you or all of your relatives/friends play this you can connect via GameCenter and play asynchronously. Though it may be a bit pricey it is definitely worth it.
Machinarium by Animata Design ($4.99)
iPad 2 only
Machinarium is a point and click adventure game which has been adapted from the PC version.  It has a very intriguing storyline and one of the best soundtracks in a game of all time. Highly reommended for puzzle fans
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December 26, 2011 Uncategorized 0 Read more >

Galaxy Pirate Adventure Review – An Adventure of Pirates in Space


Are you looking for a free roam space exploration game? Get Galaxy on Fire 2. If not, read on and find out about Galaxy Pirate Adventure [by Sunfish Studio], available on the iTunes Store for $4.99.

GPA is, exactly as the name implies, an adventure about pirates. In space. You are the son of the great Pirate King Alexander and it is time for you to make your mark on the world! The story unfolds in cut-scenes through text boxes – no voice acting here. For the most part it’s well-told, but suffers from occasional issues that have become the hallmark of mis-translations.
The game boasts a 40+ hour campaign and I can believe that – having already sunk more than 20 over the last few days. Without spoiling anything, the plot so far has been easy to follow and the story is interesting enough, albeit not very deep. I suspect this is intentional though, as progress is constantly broken up by side missions.

Looking at the screenshots, you may be forgiven for thinking that the game takes place in an open-world setting, like the aforementioned Galaxy on Fire – and a lot of users on iTunes have made that mistake already. Here’s how it works: there are spaceports (40, in fact) that you travel between. At each one, your ships hang outside and you are free to look around at the absolutely gorgeous scenery. To avoid confusion, while panning around you can find icons indicating nearby planets as well as one to “dock”. Inside each station you will find find options to modify your fleet, a market, missions and a factory where you can order ships or buy equipment for them.

Purchasing new ships has been a mixed experience for me – you need to raise the cash required, as well as find enough materials. You only get these from missions and more than once I’ve wondered why I can’t just buy the scarce ones with the comparatively limitless cash. It’s a small nuisance though.

There are 6 different tiers of ship – each of which has a distinct size, range, power and slots for weapons and equipment. These slots allow for some great customization. Do you want your ship to be faster, or have more armor? Missiles or lasers?

Missions come in four different flavors: Smuggling (where you ferry goods between spaceports), Robbery (taking ships down to acquire special goods), Mercenary (doing others’ dirty work for them) and Story missions which are a blend of the others.

The combat missions are the only time you get to control your ship and this is where things get interesting. On the left there are buttons for switching targets (the game automatically lock onto the ship of your choice), approaching or moving away from your target. Range is crucial, as different weapons can have different ranges.
Once you’ve equipped your ship, weapon icons will appear in a neat row on the bottom. But the enemies aren’t there for target practice, and will shoot back. Fortunately, you have a shield. Unfortunately, it draws a large chunk of your energy. Each shot draws some energy from the same pool, so the combat becomes an interesting game of cat-and-mouse where you approach the enemy, take a few potshots, and retreat out of firing range to recover.

The enemy AI is effective, but occasionally predictable. They will shield when you fire and will consistently try to chase you down. I found the higher tiers of ships much more aggressive though, so the combat doesn’t feel bland as you might think from a curt description.

In short, I played the heck out of this attractive-looking game and still haven’t reached the end. The customization depth is staggering and potentially significantly changes the battles. If you’re interested in a lengthy adventure (in space, no less) that’s a little out of the ordinary, for iOS at least, don’t hesitate to give it a shot. Well worth the price of admission.

P.S. Do you find yourself forgetting where everything is? Check out this handy guide.

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October 19, 2011 Uncategorized 0 Read more >