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Zen Wars is based off a old arcade classic called Rampart which featured multi-phase tower defense gameplay. There are 3 different phases to every one turn you get in the game regardless of the mode.  The first, the combat stage is where the player has about 15 seconds to fire on the opposing forces defenses and troops. Then you can rebuild your ramparts and walls to beef up your derisory.  The final stage is where you can place down cannons in the available enclosed space.  Now the catch is that you cant just put your defenses down wherever you want you have different shapes that are offered up each rebuilding period that you have to fit together to encircle your fortress. In your territory you can have up to three fortress which one of which you have to have completely encircled.
The game comes packed with 3 different modes including a campaign mode.  In the campaign mode you are put in the middle of  certain scenarios that you have to overcome.  Then in the survival mode 4 of those levels in the main campaign are available for unlimited play.  Then comes the coup de grace the multiplayer mode.  A total of 3 players can battle it up over Gamecenter trying to be the last one standing. A interesting feature is that voice chat is included so you can chat with people and make alliances in order to get farther in the round. For example if you want to win a round you can team up with another guy so your chances of winning are improved.  Then after hes dead and out you can disband from the team and test your might against your former allie.  Its definitely alot more fun against real people but the campaign mode is still good for practicing and developing your strategy’s for online.
Overall this is a great strategy game that is very fun to play and one of the most in depth strategy games for the ipod platform.  I highly recommend this game, 4.5/5 stars!

Bonkheads HD is a new platformer action game from Around The Clock Games. It’s a clone of the original Mario Brothers where you would knock the enemies over by hitting the blocks under them, then kick them off the screen. I use to play this version of Mario with my next door neighbor all the time when I was younger, and loved it. It’s great to see a clone of it available in the AppStore now, and Around The Clock Games has done an amazing job re-creating the game, as well as adding some of their own new mechanics and loads of enemies. In it, you’ll play as Grag or Thog, and stop the hordes of pests from invading your town of Trollsville. You can also play with a second player on the same device, which is awesome.

Now, in Bonkheads, there’s 144 levels spread out across 12 different environments, each with different enemies, friction, and gravity. There’s also 6 power-ups hidden in the platforms to help, and sometimes disrupt, your gameplay. As you progress, the game saves after each level, so if you loose a life in a stage, and want to play through that level again, hopefully not loosing a life your second or third time through, you can just go back to the level select screen, and play on from the last level you had all your lives in. This comes in handy especially when dealing with new enemies that have different mechanics to learn. If you get stuck on a certain level, you can always go into the Options Menu, and change the game difficulty from Normal to Easy, or crank it up to Hard if the game isn’t giving you enough challenge.

The controls in Bonkheads are great. You’re given the choice of having virtual controls, which are nice and tight, or invisible controls, swiping left and right on the left side of the screen, and touching the right side to jump. They both play pretty much the same, and are both very responsive and easy to use. The graphics are great, smooth and professional, along with nice animations for each platform you’ll bonk your head on, and each and every enemy, only adding to the professional look and feel of the whole game. Physics-wise, Bonkheads is great. It’s not floaty, and not weighed down, jumping feels nice, and the speed for your character and enemies is great. Turning is done easily, not needing to pick up your thumb, and the speed of your character is constant, never needing to hold in a certain direction and speed up in order to make a jump. The music and effects are also nice, fitting in nicely with the game, but you’re not able to keep the effects sounds while turning down the music.

Bonkheads is OpenFeint enabled, giving us 9 different leaderboards, and 33 achievements, helping to add tremendously to the replay value of the game. Also, the two-player gameplay is great fun, if you can get over the fact that it‘s in portrait mode, and each of you need to hold the device at the same time. This might cause some frustrating gameplay with both of you cramming your fingers onto the screen, and moving the device at the same time, it does work a lot better with an iPad though. If the two player was done over wi-fi, it would greatly enhance the idea, and make 2-player gameplay a lot more fun, especially if GameCenter was added, and you could be auto-matched, or play with GC friends. But this is really the only issue I can find with Bonkheads.

It’s given me back a little piece of my childhood by cloning one of my favorite games, and expanding on it, making one player gaming extremely fun. The professional look and feel of the game is great, and has made me very excited about where this game will go with future updates, as well as where Around The Clock Games is going to go with their next game. I will definitely be keeping my eyes on them for as long as they decide to put out iOS games. If you’re into plat formers – especially older 8 and 16 bit platformers, this is one game you should definitely get. Being Universal, $2.99 is a great price for tons of gameplay, and loads of leaderboards with plenty of replay value.

I’m giving Bonkheads HD 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/bonkheads-hd/id446732236?mt=8

iBlast Moki needs no real introduction, the physics-puzzle game from Godzilab is one of the most popular on the iOS, snagging the #2 game spot of all time on metacritic. So when iBlast Moki 2 was announced, everyone was eagerly anticipating this sequel, and for good reason. In iBlast Moki, you use bombs and other items to get Moki’s into the portal at the end of each level. The physics are amazing, the level design is top notch, and the environments are varied, and extremely vibrant. The sequel includes even more kinds of bombs and items to help the Moki’s reach the portals, the same amazing physics, even more interesting level design, and more vibrant environments, and it takes advantage of retina and HD display. There’s also a level editor and a level sharing service thrown in for endless hours of entertainment and fun.

In iBlast Moki 2, you’ll encounter some very interesting bombs, and you don’t need to play for hours to get into the new game mechanics. They are thrown at you almost from the beginning. Paint bombs that each have different characteristics, ropes, and balloons are some of the first you’ll see. There’s also objects that you can stick your Moki’s to in order to get them to the portals at the end of the levels. In the game, it’s your job to place bombs throughout the levels, and set them to go off at specific times in order to fling the Moki’s to the end while collecting all the flowers in each stage, and doing it as fast as you can. Your regular bombs are the ones that you’ll really have to play with trial and error getting the timing just right, making them explode at just the right time to send your characters off in another direction. This is done easily because the level resets every time you press the stop button in the lower left corner. The paint bombs, however, are more about where you place them, and timing isn’t really an issue with these. You’re given red, green, and orange bombs. The red acts as a bouncy liquid, and once your characters or any other objects touch it, they bounce up into the air. Green bombs act as glue, making your characters stick to whatever objects get covered in the liquid when the bomb goes off, and orange bombs act as turbo speed bombs, drawing your Moki to them, and shooting them forward at faster speeds.

Because iBlast Moki 2 is a physics-puzzle game, the physics are a huge part of it, and Godzilab has done an amazing job with them. Everything feels real, and sometimes it might seem like you’ll have to be a physics major in order to get the solutions on the first or second time through the level. I actually would not be surprised if Godzilab had some physics majors help them with this aspect of the game, as they’re done so perfectly. This, coupled with the superb level design, add a ton to the challenge of getting up on the high-score board that’s in-game in the pause menu. The top 3 scores for each level are shown, and if you’d like, you can pay 1 Moki coin, which you earn throughout the game, to see these top solutions. This, is something that’s already upsetting people. Some gamers work for hours on a level trying to get the best score they can, and then their solution, if one of the best, is saved to the server, and accessible to everyone for 1 Moki coin. Godzilab has commented on this issue, and said that they will come up with a fix for it in a future update, but until then, the best solutions for each level are there, ready to be seen by everyone, unless you play offline. This is the only bad issue I can find with iBlast Moki 2 though.

With 90 levels spread across 6 different environments, and a level editor that lets you share and download created levels, there’s pretty much endless gameplay. A cut-throat leaderboard helps immensely with the replay value, and like I’ve said, some people will spend hours with one level, and some might even spend weeks creating one. iBlast Moki 2 could very well end up being the best puzzle game in 2011, maybe even the best puzzle game for the iOS, period. The scoring mechanics are great, the graphics are cute and polished, physics are perfect, level design is mind bending, and the gameplay is endless. For $3, it’ll be pretty much impossible to find a better puzzle game out there. It’s highly recommended to fans of the genre, and new-comers to the scene alike, and is on sale for launch, so you can grab it now for a buck! The universal version is $3, and should shoot up to $5 soon. If you don’t have it yet, make sure you get it soon, because it’s going to be a game that you end up buying eventually after hearing everyone you know talk about it.

I’m giving iBlast Moki 2 a score of 5/5, with a strong recommendation to get it now.

Link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/iblast-moki-2/id437400857?mt=8

    Mobigame announced via Twitter that their new iOS game EDGE Extended is going to be  out this wednesday 25.
    Also releasing wednesday night is Contre Jour (should have been released early july), a physics based something from Mokus (also French, like Mobigame) where you can modify the terrain to move our hero, Petit, from portal to portal. Watch the video to get a look at its awesome-ness: 

Get ready for a new 8 Bit game that requires strategy and quick reflexes. That game is 8 Bit HD Plus [$0.99 (iPad Only)] by Dumadu Games. In this game you control Speedy a Petite Car and try to save it from the unstoppable enemies. As you play through this never ending game your goal is to try to get as much fruit as possible. You can also gain lives by picking up the 1 UP power-up, but you can only hold up to 9 lives (sort of like a cat). During this game you have to dodge the enemies by tapping on the left side of the screen to move left and the right side to move right. There

is 3 different modes to play through. You can play through 2 track, 3 track, or 4 track mode. Each mode gradually gets faster and with more tracks to dodge enemies that definitely makes the game harder. When you first boot up the game the only track unlocked will be the 2 track mode. The other 2 tracks require you to collect a certain amount of fruits to unlock them. It takes 500 fruits to unlock the 3 track and 1500 fruits to unlock the 4 track mode. That’s pretty much all there is to this game. It’s a simple but yet addictive game that you could spends hours on. I did find an issue when I booted up the game though. There was actually ads on the main menu in a paid game. Which is definitely a no-no in my book. It seems to have been resolved though. I haven’t seen any ads since. I also have one suggestion. It would be great if there were other power-ups in the game that allowed you to freeze the enemies or make Speedy indestructible. That would definitely make the game a hit! Overall I found this game to be really simple, but extremely fun at the same time. The 8 Bit graphics are very nice and the gameplay will have you thinking through the entire game. My final rating is 4 out of 5 stars. If you’re looking for a fun little game for your iPad that’s inexpensive then check out 8 Bit HD Plus for $0.99 by Dumadu Games here.

Destructopus: Total Rampage is a side-scrolling destruction game from GlitchSoft. In it, you play as The Destructopus, a normally peaceful creature, able to sleep at the bottom of the ocean for centuries, you’ve been awakened by greedy oil drillers. Coming to the surface, you see a polluted and dying world. Overtaken by rage, you vow revenge; Now it’s time to make the world green again. It is worth mentioning that Destructopus just went through a pretty major update recently, adding GameCenter support, a new campaign, new map, new areas, new levels, a new boss, and much, much more.

So in the game, you’ll go through 20 campaign levels, causing as much destruction as possible by hitting your tail and mouth attack buttons, as well as shooting a laser out of your eye. There’s loads of upgrades in the shop, but I’ll come back to that. You can press down on the joystick to dodge higher attacks, and lower attacks just go right by you, there’s red attack points on buildings which you need to hit with either your tail or mouth attacks in order to destroy them, and at the end of the level, you release some captured animals, which is a big theme in the game, and you can actually share posts on FaceBook about endangered animals right through the game. The destruction aspect, graphics, and controls, remind me of when I use to sit in front of the TV playing old 8 and 16-bit games. The difficulty is great, and there’s always that ‘one more time’ feeling after beating a level, or dying. There’s also some great scoring mechanics going on in the game, including a hit multiplier. If you can manage to not be hit during a level, your multiplier will shoot up, increasing the amount of money you’ll have to use for upgrades.

The shop in Destructopus is pretty large, and in it you can buy more attacks, defense upgrades, and if you’re good enough to earn loads of coinage pretty fast, you can unlock the two extra characters in the shop as well. There’s also IAPs for more coins if you’d like to upgrade right at the beginning of the game, or if you’re finding the game too difficult. But you can also always go back and replay previously beaten levels to gain some extra in-game cash, and unlock some more upgrades if you’re finding a particular level too hard to get through. The prices in the shop are a tad on the high side, but if you don’t mind a little grinding, can all be bought with gameplay. The higher leveled upgrades unlock as you make your way through the campaign, adding quite a bit to the drive of the game.

The graphics that GlitchSoft has used in Destructopus are great; Very vibrant and colorful, and spread over 4 environments. There’s loads of enemies to take on, ranging from airplanes and helicopters to army men and missiles, and some very interesting boss battles are thrown into the mix as well. The animations in the game are very good, adding a whole lot the gameplay. Seeing the little innocent pedestrians running away is always good for a laugh, and the movement is very fluid. It would be nice seeing more added to the debris with the explosions, but as they are now, they’re still pretty nice. The physics also work pretty well, when you destroy something and it comes falling down or flying forward, killing more enemies and pedestrians in the process, it does feel like it has some weight to it. The music and effects are also very nice, and add to the whole atmosphere of the game.

There’s a whole lot going for Destructopus, especially after the major content update it recently received. Great controls, nice graphics, smooth gameplay, a great upgrade shop, unlockables, spreading awareness of endangered animals, and more; Along with 35 GameCenter achievements, there’s plenty of content. But there are no GC leaderboards, and the story could use a little more plot. You don’t know why the animals you’re freeing were captured, or why they’re being eatin by bosses, and there’s no push in the progress of the story while you’re moving through the environments. Having some sort of news broadcast or something would be a nice addition. But these points don’t really effect the overall gameplay, or replayability of the game, even though leaderboards would help quite a bit to nab the attention of you score mongers out there. It’s a great side-scrolling destruction based game, filled with hours upon hours of awesome, entertaining gameplay. For $0.99, it’s a great game, and the developers have stated on the Touch Arcade Forums that they’re going to include retina graphics and make the game Universal in a future update, so be on the look-out for that.

I’m giving Destructopus: Total Rampage a score of 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/destructopus-total-ramage!/id414603435?mt=8

Ruffled: Feathers Rising is a free-roam 3D game from Pixelloop. In it, you play a bird set on taking revenge on the humans for invading their land. Just so happens that the only way you can take revenge on them is by covering them in feces, which actually makes for a pretty good game.

You’re given 5 different areas to exact your revenge; Residential, City Park, College Campus, Construction Yard and Downtown. Each is a huge open world in which you get to fly around collecting worms and gold pieces, flying through time circles, and nose-diving down to dump poo on unsuspecting people and cars. You’ll have different amounts of time for each level, starting at 5 minutes, and going up to 10, to rack up as many points and achievements as you can. There’s also practice modes for each level, which let you fly around, getting to know the layout of the level. Collecting worms adds to the amount of poop you get to drop on people and cars, while flying through rings extends your level time. You’ve got a rage meter at the bottom of the screen that rises with each successfully landed poo, and once it’s filled, the time stands still, and your points multiply. Entering Rage Mode is the only real way to get awesome scores.

Each level is filled with pedestrians and cars, and are pretty big. Flying around is done automatically, and you control your flight by pressing and dragging on the left side of the screen. The controls work reasonably well, but adding tilt controls would really help give the player the feeling of flight. The right side of the screen is tapped on when you want to drop one on someone. Each time you do, the camera follows your poop until it hits an object. This makes crashing into random objects in the world a pretty common occurrence unless you can manage to keep steering your bird while the camera is locked on your poop.

The graphics in Ruffled are pretty good. Environments are varied and detailed quite well considering how big they are. Walking and driving animations are a little funny looking, but they work. You can tell that each moving object is following a strict lined out path, but this does make it easier to plan your attacks and follow people around. The game runs relatively smooth, and hasn’t crashed or lagged out on me once. The music and effects fit the game and add to the atmosphere very nicely.

One thing I love about this game is that you can play it one of two ways. You can go achievement hunting, exploring the levels as thoroughly as possible, picking up every item you see. Or you can focus more on pooping on the people and cars, flying around in Rage Mode, and going for a high-score. I also love how each level is progressively longer than the last, and all unlocked from the moment you start up the game. So you can pick a level depending on how much time you want to spend playing the game.

There’s enough replayability to keep Ruffled on your device for some time, but without online leaderboards, you’ll only be able to beat your own previous scores. There’s also no story beyond the first intro images. It’s be great if after you finished a level, you’d get a cut-scene or series of images having the bird flying back to the flock, and telling of his wild escapades and achievements. If animations were cleared up, the story was expanded on, online functionality was added, tilt controls were thrown in, and the performance was cleaned up a tad, this would be one hell of a game. It does have Universal support going for it, so you can experience the great environments on both your iPod and iPad in the same resolution, and $2.99 for this open-world free-roam game is a pretty decent price. I do have high hopes for the game though, as the developers are active on the Touch Arcade Forums, and listening intently to iTunes AppStore reviews.

Ruffled: Feathers Rising is going to get a 3.5 out of 5 stars from me

Link: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ruffled-feathers-rising/id448835495?mt=8