Bring a little bit of nostalgia to your wrist today with the new Apple Watch game, A Tiny Game of Pong. Based on the 1970’s classic game, A Tiny Game of Pong lets players compete to beat the computer or against friends through Game Center leaderboard integrations. But how do you fit Pong on a tiny display?
Leo’s Fortune previously won an Apple Design Award for its game on iOS, thanks to its engaging gameplay and beautiful art style. Over the last year, it has become a smash hit across multiple platforms including iPhone, iPad, Android and more. Today, the same great game is now available in the Mac App Store for $6.99 accompanied by beautiful high-resolution textures.
Voyage through lush environments from mossy forests and arid deserts, to pirate cities and snowy mountains. Survive vicious traps and solve physics-based puzzles through 24 levels of treacherous adventure. Follow the trail of gold and uncover the truth behind Leo’s stolen fortune. Finish Leo’s Fortune to unlock Hard-core Mode: try to beat the whole game without dying to unlock a special prize! Compete with your Game Center friends to beat as many levels as you can in the fastest time possible.
As was reported earlier today, Nintendo tonight has taken the wraps off of its first mobile game during a press event with investors and the media in Japan. The game, called Miitomo, will be available in March of 2016 and is the first of five games the company plans to release by March of 2017 (via WSJ).
‘The Martian’, Ridley Scott’s new sci-fi film starring Matt Damon, gets an official iOS and Apple Watch game tie-in just as the movie hits theaters in the US this weekend. The game was developed by Little Labs on license from Fox Digital Entertainment and with a little help from the author of the original book that the new film is based on.
The game mostly consists of text-based strategy gameplay, prompting players to make decisions to help Astronaut Mark Watney (played by Matt Damon in the movie) through solving problems after finding himself stranded on Mars.
The game puts Mark’s life directly in the hands of the player as they use resources on Earth to aid him in navigating the most harrowing of circumstances. Like the film and novel, the game incorporates real science to tell Mark’s story of survival on Mars and highlights iconic moments from both mediums to give players an authentic experience.
And the entire gameplay experience is available as an Apple Watch app, pictured below:
The game is available for $2.99 on the App Store as a universal download for iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. That includes the whole game; there isn’t any in-app purchases or downloads. The official trailer from Little Labs is below:
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pugqzJKGB4]
Robert Kirkman, creator of the hugely popular TV series The Walking Dead, has today unveiled a new game for iOS based on the show. Dubbed “The Walking Dead: Road to Survival,” the game is described as a “thrilling, mature adventure constantly toeing the line between life and the undead.”
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HlJSTVX7KA]
With the North American release of the new Avengers: Age of Ultron movie hitting theaters tomorrow, Korean developer Netmarble has perfectly timed the release of its anticipated “Marvel Future Fight” action RPG for iPhone and iPad.
Available on the App Store now for free, the game features 36 officially licensed Marvel characters, including The Avengers, Hulk, Captain America, Iron Man, Spider-Man, Daredevil, the Guardians of the Galaxy, Loki, Doctor Octopus and Ultron.
The game includes a single player campaign, 3 vs. 3 battles, one-finger gesture control or a virtual gamepad, and a familiar RPG leveling system.
With a storyline penned by best-selling Marvel comics writer Peter David, players can experience the world of Marvel firsthand across four action-packed modes. In addition to the PVE Mission Mode, Marvel Future Fight also includes a PVP three-on-three Timeline Battle that will see teams of players fighting heroes from other dimensions. For players looking to take it to the next level, the Villain Siege mode taps on players’ knowledge of the Marvel Universe to uncover evil plots of the most infamous villains, while Dimension Rift Missions will offer a true test of skill for players seeking the ultimate challenge.
To celebrate the launch of the title, Netmarble and Marvel are offering players the ability to unlock Iron Man armor as an in-game item during the first week.
Marvel Future Fight is available for free on the App Store now.
Activision has officially launched Call of Duty: Heroes, its 3D combat strategy game for the iPhone and iPad. Unlike the companion app for Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare launched earlier this month, this latest offering is a full standalone game like Strike Team.
While the basic game is free to play, you might want to take note of the cost of the optional in-app purchases before you get hooked: these range from $9.99 to a frightening $99.99 …
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[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=savBvN9Jz5g]
Earlier this month, 2K Games announced that it would be bringing its landmark horror-shooter BioShock to the iPhone and iPad. Tonight, the game finally arrived on the App Store in most of its original glory. The story, game mechanics, level design, and audio have all be ported to the mobile devices, though the graphics have been toned down to make it run on phones and tablets.
BioShock is set in the underwater would-be utopia of Rapture, which has been overrun by its own psychotic, drug-addled citizens on one especially-unfortunate New Years Eve. Players take on the role of Jack, who arrives in Rapture after a plane crash that leaves him stranded in the middle of the Atlantic, and must utilize a selection of upgradable weapons and genetic enhancements to track down Andrew Ryan, the madman running what’s left of the city.
A new Star Wars game from the now Disney-owned LucasArts is landing on iPhones and iPads, and it’s a free-to-play combat strategy game (which won’t be free for too long if you don’t have the patience to wait real time for your structures to be built). The game is called Star Wars: Commander, and while it’s only today reaching the US, it has been available in at least one other country for a little while and has received some great reviews.
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In case you hadn’t heard, the creator of the infamous Flappy Bird is back and making another attempt at stealing your attention when you just need a quick iPhone gaming fix. The game is called Swing Copters and, quite frankly, it looks like a vertical remake of its predecessor—which spawned dozens of clones without the help of this spin-off. While we won’t know for a while whether or not this game will live up to the success of Flappy Bird, it’s now rolling out on the App Store in many locales.
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Following a release for iPad back in March, HBO’s Game of Thrones Ascent game developed by Disruptor Beam & Kongregate is now available for iPhone. The game already racked up around 2,500,000 players on Facebook and the web before making its way to iPad in March, and it comes to the App Store with new art, optimized imagery for Retina displays, and Game Center leaderboards.
With Game of Thrones Ascent, fans can immerse themselves beyond the books and show, living the life of a noble in Westeros, working with (or against) each other in a persistent, authentic game world. Taking part in thousands of story-driven quests, players delve deeply into the lore and develop their own lands and reputation among the Great Houses. Players explore an expansive world filled with deep political and social play involving diplomatic agreements, pacts, marriages, and betrothals. Through Alliance challenges, players work with hundreds of others to accomplish great tasks and rise to the top of the Power Rankings.
The developers update the game weekly and alongside new episodes of the TV show when it’s airing. That includes new quests, in-game items and more that follow the storyline of the show.
Game of Thrones Ascent is available for iPhone now as a free download on the App Store.
After a couple of teases that a new Angry Birds title was incoming, Rovio today announced that a new game called “Angry Birds Stella” is coming soon. The game features a female lead character unlike the majority of Rovio’s other games, but there aren’t many details about how else it might differ from other Angry Birds titles.
Angry Birds Stella will open a door to a part of the Angry Birds universe you’ve never seen before! There will be plenty of fun and adventure, but the bunch of passionate pals will also have to deal with some serious issues in order to protect their friendship and the environment they live in. Luckily, Stella and her friends are good at finding creative solutions!
No word on an official release date, but Rovio says the game will ship sometime in the fall.
Epic Games announced today that it’s partnering with Y Combinator-backed startup Kamcord to offer its in-game recording platform to iOS and Android devs using Unreal Engine 3. We spoke to Kamcord CEO Matt Zitzmann who told us why it’s a big deal that Epic Games and the Unreal Engine team are backing Kamcord— and not its competitor— as the go-to platform for implementing in-game recording features in mobile apps.
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The UK’s Office of Fair Trading has today published its final “principles” for free-to-play games, after starting an investigation back in April last year. Publishers have until April 1st to comply to the regulations or their titles breach UK consumer law and may result in legal action …
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I previously reviewed the first two Apple authorized game controllers to hit the market under Apple’s new Made for iPhone/iPad/iPod touch program from Logitech and Moga. Both used Apple’s form-fitting design that docks an iPhone or iPod touch directly into the controller via a Lightning connector. However, Apple’s program also allows another breed of standalone controllers that connect over Bluetooth and therefore also work with iPad and Mac. Unveiled at CES, this week I’ve put one of the first Bluetooth, non-form-fitting designs to the test with the new Stratus wireless controller from SteelSeries.
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Today we get a look at the first Apple authorized Bluetooth game controller for iOS devices with the Stratus Wireless Controller announced today by SteelSeries.
We’ve already reviewed the first two Apple authorized game controllers to hit the market since it introduced its controller MFi program alongside iOS 7 earlier this year: Logitech’s PowerShell and Moga’s AcePower. Those two controllers used Apple’s form-fitting design, which lets an iOS device dock directly into a recess in the controller and connect via a built-in Lightning connector. The new controller from SteelSeries is the first standalone controller that connects to any iOS device over Bluetooth, which means it will also support iPads. It uses Apple’s extended layout, which gives you dual analog joysticks and an extra set of shoulder triggers on top of the d-pad, face buttons and single set of triggers on Apple’s standard layout.
Following the introduction of Apple’s new MFi game controller frameworks at WWDC in June, well-known accessory makers this month have released some of the first Apple-certified, Made for iPhone gaming controllers. Today I’m taking a look at one of those controllers with the new Logitech PowerShell, followed by some details on exactly how it differs from the new MOGA controller and exactly what to expect from Apple’s new controller experience as we wait for developers to update games with support.
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Ssshh, don’t tell the kids they’re learning physics, just tell them it’s an iPad space game! Stephen Hawking’s Snapshots of the Universe is an iPad app containing a mix of mini-games, videos and text that allows children to discover some of the fundamental principles of physics and space.
Based on the work and writings of Stephen Hawking, this app teaches both adults and students the basic theories that govern our lives on Earth as well as the movement of the stars and planets. You can play and learn at the same time in each of the eight experiments included in Snapshots of the Universe:
– Spin planets in orbit with your own solar system
– Drop objects with Galileo to learn about gravity
– Let Einstein feel some G-force in outer space
– Search for black holes in the constellation of Leo
– Discover Einstein’s warped worldview
– Plus more…
Each section has an app allowing children to carry out virtual experiments, see further visual explanations in video clips and then read up on the topic in more detail. The app is described as suitable for children aged 9+.
Published by Random House, the app is available on iTunes for $4.99.
Via Engadget
Following the announcement for Moga’s new iOS 7 game controller yesterday, Logitech today officially announced its new MFi controller, the PowerShell. Like Moga’s controller, Logitech’s also doubles as a battery pack with a built-in 1500mAh battery (slightly smaller than Moga’s 1800 mAh) and will sell for the same $99 that Moga is asking.
Both of the new controllers are using Apple’s new MFi iOS 7 game controller program, which offers accessory makers and developers one standard framework for implementing support for iOS compatible game controllers. Apple allows two types of game controllers and two configurations all with pressure sensitive buttons and consistent layouts. The first type of controller is the form-fitting controller (like the Moga and the new Logitech), which allows your iOS device to be docked right into the controller. There will also be standalone controllers that connect over Bluetooth.
Logitech is using Apple’s standard MFi configuration, which gives you a D-Pad, A/B/X/Y face buttons, and left and right shoulder buttons. Moga, on the other hand, is using Apple’s extended layout, which adds an extra set of shoulder buttons and left and right thumbsticks.
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[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fw3w68YrKwc]
Back in July, Square Enix released the mobile-exclusive game Deus Ex: The Fall as a tie-in to the popular console and PC franchise. Today the company published a free version of the game that allows players to run through the full game’s opening mission. Other than the limit on how far into the game you play, everything else is unrestricted.
Even though the iTunes requirements say that the iPhone 4 and fourth-generation iPod touch are compatible, the company notes in the app’s description that it will not actually run on those devices. Players looking to take the mobile Deus Ex experience for a test run can grab it now for free on iTunes.
Random House Digital launched their first original game app today: Catch the Berry. In this physics-based puzzle game, mystical creatures called the Telfnords harvest and collect magical berries. The object of the game is to catch the berries and gems in the Telfnords’ basket using your knowledge of gravity, velocity, and acceleration.
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Product: Today we’re taking a look at a brand-new word game for iOS called 4Snaps. The premise of the game is like a cross between charades and Draw Something. You’re given a choice of three words. You have to pick one of these and then take four photos (“snaps”) to help the other player guess the word. The object is to see how many turns you can take in a row before someone misses the word.
Just as the new film of the same name from director Guillermo del Toro is about to hit theatres, Reliance Games has released the ‘Pacific Rim’ mobile game for iPhone and iPad. The developers have done a couple decent movie-tie ins in the past, so hopefully Pacific Rim will be worth the $4.99 it’s asking in the App Store. The game features a story mode with over 30 levels and also a Survival Mode that will allow you to “defend humanity from an endless wave of Kaiju” in one of the massive transformer-like robots from the movie known as Jaegers.
Pacific Rim is available now for iPhone and iPad on the App Store.
Exclusive Features:
•Story Mode: Play over 30 levels and challenge monstrous creatures in intense combat inspired by the motion picture.
•Survival Mode: Can you defend humanity from an endless wave of Kaiju? See how skilled you are with your customized Jaeger.
•Command up to five different Jaegers with custom equipment and technology.
•Upgrade your Jaegers and weapons to dominate the battlefield.
•Discover and research new technology to increase your armor, power and speed.
•The game explores the Pacific Rim universe with new events, Jaegars, and Kaiju not fully revealed in the film.
To accompany its latest feature film set to hit theatres today, Disney has just released “The Lone Ranger” game for both iPhone and iPad on the App Store. The iTunes page describes the game as a full 3D role-playing game with quests, duels, and the ability to “Level-up to unlock new weapons, tools, and horses.” The screenshots look promising, so we’re hoping its better than the typical Hollywood movie tie-in. The good news is you won’t have to pay to find out as the full game is available for free on both iPhone and iPad.
Saddle up and take the reins as one of the greatest Texas Rangers in the Wild West. Embark on a thrilling adventure as you protect the town of Colby, face-off in epic showdowns, and bring infamous outlaws to justice. Fight against greed and corruption in this 3d, role-playing adventure!
· Interact with known allies and outlaws throughout your journey: With allies like the Lone Ranger and Tonto on your side, prepare to take on the villainous Butch Cavendish and his unwieldy gang.
· Restore peace to the town of Colby: Protect the citizens of Colby, and embark on legendary quests to end greed and corruption.
· Duel outlaws and bandits: Face-off against wanted outlaws with your best weapons and equipment, and bring them to justice.
· Level-up to unlock new weapons, tools, and horses to aide you on your journey.
· More languages coming soon! Play The Lone Ranger in Italian, German, and Spanish starting late July.
