Posts Tagged ea

The Sims FreePlay Review

The Sims FreePlay Review

+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
The Sims experience bundled up into a freemium package.

Read The Full Review »

Speeding onto an iOS device this Winter is Need For Speed: The Run, the iOS version of the popular console racing game.

As expected, players will find themselves in a race from San Francisco to New York across five distinctive parts of the US. There’ll be speed races through the desert alongside careful drifting around tight corners. Numerous real-world stock cars will be on offer with upgrades to speed, acceleration and handling all possible.

Healthy competition between friends will be encouraged with Autolog support keeping track of how each player performs. As a fan of the system on consoles, it’s an immensely addictive service. Who can resist challenging their friends after all? There will also be Origin support, a common trend with recent EA titles.

Take a look at the screenshots and gameplay trailer below. Need For Speed: The Run is looking pretty luscious indeed. It’s out sometime this Winter.

On a regular basis, I’m wowed by the impressive graphics we’re seeing on the latest iOS games. None more so than in the case of Battlefield 3 Aftershock from EA. It’s only in an early alpha state but already it’s looking pretty amazing for an iPhone or iPad game.

Scant details have been released so far but there will be a single player mode as well as multiplayer fun to be had. EA promises ragdoll physics and a combat engine built around facing up against hordes of enemies in wave formations, hopefully providing an experience ideal for the brief game sessions many get with their iOS devices.

Intriguingly there will also be connectivity with Battlefield 3 on other platforms with achievements and weapon unlocks suggested to be the result of this. As a fan of the BattleLog available for PC and console gamers, I’ve got my fingers crossed that the iOS version has some kind of connection to this.

No release date has been announced other than sometime this Winter. For now, take in the delights of these screenshots that look darn impressive for any iOS device.

There’s no Safari like a Fantasy Safari

Create and customize a wildlife reserve. Manage various park minutiae. Upgrade facilities and inhabitants in order to bring in the big bucks. It sounds fairly typical of a good number of freemium park sims, but Fantasy Safari twists it up a bit. By adding fantasy creatures, naturally.

Dragons, frozen wolves, phoenixes and more. It’s a bit of a departure from the usual fare, to say the least. Now, thanks to EA Mobile, we can all try our hand at running our own zoo full of non-existent animals. 40 different non-existent animals, at that. 40 non-existent animals that can learn new abilities (i.e. fire breathing) as savvy players futz with their enclosures.

Anyone looking to try their hand at managing a theme park/zoo with a bit more… “flavor” can do so right now. Fantasy Safari is already on the App Store and, like most (read: all) free-to-play titles it doesn’t require any money to get started.



FREE!
iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2011-11-02 :: Category: Games

Trivial Pursuit Master Edition Review

Trivial Pursuit Master Edition Review

iPad Only App - Designed for the iPad
A fine conversion of the classic trivia board game.

Read The Full Review »

Burnout Crash Coming To iOS

Console gamers will almost certainly have heard of the Burnout franchise. It’a a racing game series that focuses on causing havoc and destruction much more so than keeping to a tight racing line. Experienced through various different methods, the latest instalment is that of Burnout Crash!, recently released on Xbox Live Arcade and Sony’s PSN and now announced for iOS.

The iOS release of Burnout Crash! is set to allow players to ‘wreak as much havoc as possible by causing massive multi-car pile ups for mega-points’. Players can use Crashbreaker explosions and in-air aftertouch controls to steer their wreck into oncoming traffic, just like other games in the series. To reinforce the high score aiming side of the game, there’ll also be Autolog support to enable players to connect, compare and compete with their friends.

Using intuitive taps and swipes to steer vehicles and trigger explosions, Burnout Crash! should provide an ideal and fun experience across three game modes, 18 traffic junctions and six different locations. Children of the 1980s will be particularly excited to hear the 80s based soundtrack featuring the likes of Vanilla Ice and Gloria Estefan.

No set release date has yet been given for Burnout Crash! but holiday season suggests it’ll be before the end of the year. We’ll keep up to date on any developments.

Source: EA

Top 3 App Deals for 10-14-11

Three sweet gaming deals today from big companies like EA and Gameloft. Don’t pass these up; if you haven’t already played these games, you owe it to yourself and your wallet to grab them while you can.

The Sims 3 – Was $6.99, now $0.99
The Sims 3 Ambitions – Was $4.99, now $0.99

The quintessential Sims experience on iOS and its similarly well received sequel are both on sale for a measly dollar. Like our review clearly states, it’s time to “get away from life and control someone else’s.”


Dead Space – Was $6.99, now $0.99
In space, no one can hear you scream, especially if you’re a mute protagonist of the Gordon Freeman school, bent on saving your mining ship from certain doom at the hands of an alien freakshow. Yeah, we like this game. You will, too, and it’s WAY less pricey right now.


Shadow Guardian – Was $6.99, now $0.99
While our reviewer found it a touch too pricey at seven bucks, Shadow Guardian HD shouldn’t be a problem for anyone at a dollar. Give this Uncharted clone by Gameloft a try for a lot less cash.


The critter-launching, match three (or more) semi-classic Snood has been something of a mainstay on PC as well as a number of portable devices for some time now. People really like to match colors and clear shapes, I suppose. Just in case there are any folks out there who have avoided this game due to a lack of funds, it’s worth noting that Electronic Arts has decided to release a free version. So no more excuses, really.

Now anyone with an iOS device and a soft spot for flinging critters at other critters of the same hue and watching them cease to exist can try out the oddly-named classic for absolutely zero cost. This isn’t a handful of levels, either. Snood Free contains over one hundred puzzles and five different difficulty settings; much more content than an average “Lite” version. Some concessions had to be made in order to give players some reason to possibly want to buy it (note: it’s a dollar), including ads and the inability to play any multi-player games, but the overall single-player experience doesn’t suffer for it.

Match-three (or more) junkies don’t have any more excuses. They, and anyone else who’s interested, can grab Snood Free on the App Store right now for… well, for free.


FREE!
iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2011-09-08 :: Category: Games
SPY Mouse Review

SPY Mouse Review

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Liberate the Limburger in this death-defying, secret agent-shuffling, feline-fleeing line-drawing game.

Read The Full Review »

If you haven’t been living under a rock, you’ll have been awaiting the release of the next hit from superstar developer, Firemint. They’ve recently been acquired by EA, and are putting some of that marketing muscle behind their upcoming release (this week!) with a brand new contest.

Spy Mouse: Solve the Clue is game in which entrants must help protagonist Agent Squeak solve clues on a daily basis, using Twitter. Simply head on over to the game page and click on the “solve the clue botton.” A question will be posed, after a quick sign in to Twitter, and each daily correct entry will be entered to win a copy of SPY Mouse, Dead Space, The Sims 3 or Real Racing 2 for the iPhone and iPod touch.

But wait, there’s more. The kind hearted Firemint folks have also given two other chances to win, with a second Twitter entry button and a Facebook like contest – tweet disdain for the easy clues on Twitter and Like the SPY Mouse Facebook page for two more chances to win.

The contest continues through August 26th, a day after the purported release of SPY Mouse on iOS, so get while the getting is good!

EA Mobile’s Surviving High School has been released on a quite a few platforms. However, only the recently-released iPad version, Surviving High School HD, lets players experience this interactive adventure game’s tawdry tales of adolescence in glorious high-definition. While walking through the halls of Centerscore High, taking quizzes and talking to fellow students, the choices players make will shape their social lives. Depending on what they decide, they might end up a jock, a nerd, a popular kid or an outsider.

This free app also allows players to download free, weekly extra episodes extending the plot even further. When switching from Portrait to Landscape mode, players gain access to a decision tree which helps them plot their course throughout the story lines. Additionally, all episodes players download are archived in an illustrated visual timeline and this is all managed through the new Multi-Touch interface.

Completing the illusion is the ability for Surviving High School HD players to keep tabs on their virtual friends, like any good teenager would, through Faceplace Alerts. Whether their actual high school years are behind them or not, now iPad owners can survive or thrive in this high school for as long as they want.

$0.99
iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2009-11-16 :: Category: Games

Shift 2 – Unleashed Review

Shift 2 – Unleashed Review

+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
The wait is over. EA's new Need For Speed console racer is out on iOS and it's hot.

Read The Full Review »

The Portable Podcast, Episode 94

All we want to do is acquire your brains! It’s not unreasonable, I mean no one’s gonna merge with your eyes.

On This Episode:

  • Carter Dotson and guest co-host Blake Grundman discuss the EA acquisition of PopCap, along with new releases King of Fighters, Deathsmiles, and 9mm.
  • Who We Are:

  • Host: Carter Dotson
  • Guest: Blake Grundman, 148Apps
  • Contact The Show: Email | Twitter

    Music:

  • “Beatnes7 (Theme to The Portable Podcast)” by The Eternal – Download on iTunes here:
  • “Nanocarp” by The Eternal
  • How to Listen:

  • Click Here to Subscribe in iTunes:
  • Click Here to Subscribe via RSS.
  • Listen on WRGT Radio every Friday at 4pm Central
  • Listen Here:
  • Apps Mentioned in this Episode:

    $2.99
    iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
    Our Rating: ★★★★☆ :: Grows on you
    Read Our Full Review >>
    Released: 2010-02-15 :: Category: Games

    $6.99
    + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
    Our Rating: ★★★★☆ :: A GREAT BRAWL
    Read Our Full Review >>
    Released: 2011-07-07 :: Category: Games

    $11.99
    iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
    Our Rating: ★★★★½ :: POSITIVELY RADIANT
    Read Our Full Review >>
    Released: 2011-07-07 :: Category: Games

    $6.99
    + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
    Our Rating: ★★★☆☆ :: TRAGIC MISFIRE
    Read Our Full Review >>
    Released: 2011-07-14 :: Category: Games

    EA is trying to set themselves up as the dominant player in the mobile and iOS markets, and months after acquiring publisher Chillingo, EA has acquired developer Firemint. Based in Australia, Firemint are known for Flight Control and the Real Racing series, which are responsible for over 4.5 million and 2 million downloads respectively. No details have been released on the terms of the transaction, or if Firemint’s operations will change in any way. While Chillingo is largely just a publisher of apps, any changes on their end have been largely in the background, as they have continued to operate normally on the surface, continuing to regularly publish independently-developed games. Firemint being an actual developer themselves, they may be subject to more changes, although any changes are largely speculative at this point. EA reports that Firemint will be maintained as a studio under the EAi group which includes their mobile, social, and online game offerings.

    What this move does for EA is that it brings a pair of successful yet disparate franchises into their tent, and that may have been what made Firemint such an appealing acquisition target. Flight Control is a popular casual game that at one point was possibly the most popular game on iOS around when it was released, and is a progenitor of path management games to this day. Meanwhile, Real Racing is a graphics-intensive game, showcasing some of the best graphics and racing gameplay on iOS. As such, it has always sold at a premium price point, but this hasn’t kept the franchise from gaining popularity of its own, based on the number of downloads it too has gotten.

    This move could be based on bringing Flight Control and Real Racing, along with any other future Firemint projects, to other platforms. Firemint has partnered with Namco to publish Flight Control on Android and Windows Phone 7, along with a PC version available on Intel AppUp, but we have yet to see Real Racing leave iOS yet. EA has also recently acquired Mobile Post Production, who have largely worked on cross-platform mobile projects, including the porting of games across various smartphone OSes. This could mean that Real Racing might be popping up on non-iOS platforms at some point, but this is all speculation at this point. While it’s unknown what will come of this move by EA, it’s another example of them making a big splash in the mobile gaming market.

    Today is a very Dragon Age themed day for me. Dragon Age 2 for the PS3, Xbox 360 and PC doesn’t come out in the UK until tomorrow. As one of the UK writers here on staff, I was fortunate that my copy arrived a day early. Since then I’ve spent all my time playing it as well as signing up to Dragon Age: Legends on Facebook. For those not already in the know, the Facebook game is a turn-based 2D RPG and it’s really pretty cool, as well as offering link ups to the main game.

    It turns out there’ll be more ways to play the franchise soon too. As reported by Pocket Gamer and TouchArcade earlier today, it looks like Dragon Age: Legends is on its way to an iOS and Android device near you soon.

    Details are scant but the game’s official site clearly states that iOS and Android apps are coming soon, and offers some mock up images of the app running on the respective systems.

    Here’s hoping more details are forthcoming. You’ll know as soon as we know.

    EA Mobile Introduces a Deal of the Day

    When it comes to big publishers embracing iOS, it would be hard to argue that EA is not among the top of that heap.  Many of their biggest franchises including the likes of Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit and most recently, Dead Space, have not only been released on the platform, but have in some circumstances raised the bar for other development studios.  This wide acceptance and general acclaim has not stopped the team over at EA Mobile from trying to continuously win over the constant adoration of their fanbase.

    In an effort to continue in the general lovefest, EA is announcing this week’s exclusive Deal of the Day promotion.  The official skinny from their PR team is as follows:

    In a effort to give back to our community we have launch [sic] a new Deal of The Day promo that will deeply discount games or even make them free. The Deals will last all week with Saturday the 26th being the last day. The promo will include both iPhone & iPad codes over the 6 days, each day being a different mix-up of genre & style of game.

    On Friday morning we put up a vote globally for users to choose which game they wanted a deal on for Day #1 & now that game has kicked off our Deal of The Day today!

    This promo is worldwide and users from every corner of the globe can benefit from the on Sale and Free games.

    Today the sale kicked off by dropping the price on Mirror’s Edge for all devices to a mere ninety-nine cents.  So what could be coming next?  Your guess is as good as mine, but if the image on EA Mobile’s Facebook page is to believed, we may be seeing a discount on more than one title come Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday.

    Do you have any games that you would like to see get discounted?  Let us know what you think in the comments!

    Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 HD Review

    Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 HD Review

    iPad Only App - Designed for the iPad
    Mortal Kombat 3 receives the HD treatment, along with some bug fixes. Is this finally the MK game we have lusted after?

    Read The Full Review »
    NBA Jam Review

    NBA Jam Review

    iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
    This is a pitch perfect return to form for the game that originally defined the arcade sports genre.

    Read The Full Review »

    Chillingo, a division of Electronic Arts most recognized for its creation of Angry Birds, which sits almost always as the #1 paid application in App Stores across the world, announced today that Cut the Rope will receive a special update for Valentine’s Day, February 14.

    “The new Cut the Rope 1.2 update marks the annual celebration of love and affection with adorable Om Nom as cupid in a special Valentine’s Box filled with 25 gorgeous levels. A romantic and fun, “split-candy” gameplay is also introduced to challenge players as they strive to slice the right ropes to feed the insatiable green creature. Brand new artwork and a distinctive Valentine’s icon make Cut the Rope the perfect gift for your special someone” reads the official release.

    “This 1.2 update is our gift to you this Valentine’s Day for being the greatest fans out there; we hope players love the new box, levels and features just as much as we enjoyed creating it,” states Efim Voinov, CTO of Zeptolab. “Thank you for the continued support, we are already working closely with Chillingo to enhance the game and think fans will be extremely delighted!”

    Such holiday updates are becoming more and more popular, even within Cut the Rope’s own development. In December of last year, 148Apps reviewer Brad Hilderbrand announced the Christmas update of the popular application, which to date has now sold more than six million copies. Conservatively, that means Cut the Rope has generated over $4 million in revenue (after Apple’s 30% commission), not taking into account the price difference between the iPad and iPhone version of the immensely popular game. It stood as the sixth most popular paid-for iPhone game in 2010.

    When 148Apps reviewed the game last year, writer Carter Dotson awarded it 4 stars. “Cut the Rope is ingenious, following a similar formula to Angry Birds – charming graphics, simple gameplay that gets complexity steadily layered on top of it in a way that feels natural, almost without even feeling like it’s getting more difficult” he writes. “That is just brilliant game design, and with more levels promised, Cut the Rope has an exciting future, but is still great with even just the core game content.”

    Available for $0.99 on iPhone and $1.99 for iPad, a free lite version is also available to download, allowing you to try-before-you-buy. A sneak peak video of the update is available below:

    $1.99
    iPad Only App - Designed for the iPad
    Our Rating: ★★★★☆ :: YOU'LL BE ROPED IN
    Read Our Full Review >>
    Released: 2010-10-07 :: Category: Games

    $0.99
    iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
    Released: 2010-10-04 :: Category: Games

    Boxing is an amazing sport.  Say what you will about grown men duking it out until their faces look like raw hamburger meat, but there is truly a sweet science and amazing amount of intellect that goes into performing at the sport’s highest levels.  Sure, Mike Tyson may not look like a card carrying MENSA member, but his procedural intelligence inside of the ring was only undercut by his tenacity to destroy the competition.  However, the issue has always existed that there was no way to fight as the legendary figures of boxing on the iOS… until NOW!

    Electronic Arts has just announced that they will be bringing the next iteration in their award winning Fight Night series, to the iOS.  Though details are a bit hard to come by at this moment, they did let a few details slip:

    FEEL LIKE YOU’RE IN THE RING With fluid touch controls, every tap, flick and gesture keeps your boxer ducking, weaving, jabbing, and moving around the ring  ̶  just like you were there yourself. With full audio commentary from Joe Tessitore.

    FRIENDS BECOME FOES Measure your skills against your friends in a Multiplayer fight via local Wifi or Bluetooth. Feel the rush of adrenaline as you lay your friend’s boxer out, or the agony of a right hook to your boxer’s jaw. Make it personal.

    Aside from the feeling of landing yourself in the heart of the ring, the outstanding roster of boxing legends will aid in further enforcing the authenticity.  Featuring the likes of Oscar De La Hoya, Manny Pacquiao, and the aforementioned Mike Tyson, you will even get the chance to step into the ring as the greatest of all time: Mohammad Ali!

    It is hard not to get excited about a game like this, especially given how under represented the sport is in the App Store.  Check out some of the screenshots below and see if you feel the same way!

    2011 is still young, and already a theme of controversy appears to be consistently popping up, that being trademark issues. Following the Lima Sky/Doodle trademark controversy, it appears the next big controversy could be over apps with the word ‘Stick’ in the title. As independently confirmed by a developer with an affected title and reported elsewhere, UK game developer Stick Sports Ltd. is trying to get Apple to take down any apps that they claim violate their trademark, or have the apps be renamed to something non-infringing, as according to a PDF posted by a source who wishes to remain anonymous. While they are new to the App Store with their game Stick Cricket, they have been around since 2006 making Flash games, and have an Alexa rank of of 9,877, so this is not some small-time trademark troll.

    While trademark law is very tricky to understand, especially for non-lawyers like myself, the rub in this case is that Stick Sports does not appear to have a US trademark on the name, but they do have a trademark in the UK on the name, which they are appearing to enforce. They have issued a takedown notice to Apple, sent to us by a developer who has an app that Stick Sports claims violates their trademark. An identical copy of this notice was also obtained by another site that covers iOS apps. This notice from Stick Sports’ law firm was forwarded to developers of potentially infringing apps. Developers cannot change names of their apps based on specific regions, though they can offer apps to only go on sale in specific regions, you cannot rename a title for a specific region, as according to a developer I once spoke to on The Portable Podcast who had issues with a German trademark over the word ‘memory’.

    This takedown notice from Stick Sports could have some far-reaching effects. Notable apps that could be affected if they were part of the takedown notice include Stick Sports: Summer Games from Robert Szeleney, who has had multiple top 25 apps on the App Store, several of which have the word ‘stick’ in their name. As well, there is Stick-Fu from EA subsidiary Chillingo’s Clickgamer label. EA is not a stranger to trademark fights, having helped to get Tim Langdell’s Edge trademark invalidated last year, so if EA got involved in a legal fight, this story could become interesting. Otherwise, we could see some titles disappear from the App Store or become renamed in the near future as this issue progresses. This story is still developing, and it will be curious to see where it goes and how the potentially affected parties react.

    $0.99
    iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
    Released: 2010-03-04 :: Category: Games

    FREE!
    iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
    Released: 2010-12-15 :: Category: Games

    $0.99
    iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
    Released: 2009-10-12 :: Category: Games

    I know this may be slightly blasphemous to say on a site like 148apps.com, but portable gaming, even iOS gaming in particular, owes quite a bit of its success to the proliferation of consoles.  Many of the ideas that are pioneered on platforms like the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 eventually find their way to the iOS in one form or another.  This isn’t a bad thing, it just leads to issues when developers try to shoehorn console centric gamestyles onto a device that lacks the proper control mechanisms.

    One such game that has made its impact on iOS platform in the form of numerous different titles is Geometry Wars.  Despite Activision actually releasing a proper Geometry Wars title, many other developers have found inspiration in everything from the control scheme and mechanics, to the futuristic art style.  Chillingo’s (now part of EA Mobile’s publishing wing) upcoming iPad release, Infinity Field, seems to be doing a little more than just borrowing ideas, as you can see in their most recent debut trailer.

    As becomes very evident after viewing this footage, Chillingo is looking to bring their own perspective to the genre that Bizarre Creations built.  Featuring boss battles to go along with the standard barrage of enemies might go a long way toward helping to distinguish Infinity Field from Activison’s prior offering.  It will also be interesting to see what kinds of power-ups and weaponry are also added to the experience, seeing as how this was very limited in Geometry Wars.

    If nothing else, Infinity Field looks like it could be a strong contender, given its iPad specific focus.  Using all of the extra real estate on screen that the device exclusively has, could make for very intense action, pending the controls are as solid as they look to be.  Clocking in at only $1.99, it might be worth giving a look and letting us know what you think in the comments.

    $1.99
    iPad Only App - Designed for the iPad
    Our Rating: ★★★★½ :: ENDLESS FUN
    Read Our Full Review >>
    Released: 2011-01-27 :: Category: Games

    BulleTrain .22 Review

    BulleTrain .22 Review

    iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
    Downsized Games sticks it to... er... Elaborate Acquisitions with a blatant knock on their mega corporation "man"-ness.

    Read The Full Review »
    Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Review

    Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Review

    iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
    When you try to make a console game fit in your pocket, it can only end in tears.

    Read The Full Review »
    MONOPOLY for iPad Review

    MONOPOLY for iPad Review

    iPad Only App - Designed for the iPad
    The classic board game makes it onto the modern device, with focus on graphics and animation as much as gameplay.

    Read The Full Review »

    EA is offering quite a sweet deal for platforming title Mirror’s Edge today, dropping the normally $5 or $10 app all the way down to free on both the iPhone and iPad. The only catch is that the deal only seems to be available for certain countries, meaning that a vast swath of gamers may end up left out in the cold. As of right now the app is available for free in Europe, Australia and New Zealand, while American, Canadian and Asian gamers are out of luck. At this point we’re not sure if this is some sort of glitch in the system, or if EA is merely opting to offer the title for free in select regions. As of our most recent check the game is still retailing for full price in the US App Store.

    While the console versions of Mirror’s Edge combined parkour puzzle-solving with hand-to-hand combat, the iOS version is more a precision platformer than anything else, requiring precise jumps and rolls to survive levels and achieve a high score. While there’s still a little bit of combat floating around in the game, it’s really just another element of the jumping and sliding so its roll is minimized. In all honesty though, the iOS version may be the superior edition of the game due to the fact that it cuts right to the heart of what’s fun about the franchise, moving very fast and stringing together amazing maneuvers.

    We’ll keep an eye out to see if the game ever gets a price drop in other territories, but if worse comes to worse you can always create a New Zealand iTunes account and get the game that way. Of course I hear in that version Faith is replaced by a sheep, but I’m sure it’s still lots of fun either way.

    $0.99
    iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
    Our Rating: ★★★★☆ :: ON THE CUTTING EDGE
    Read Our Full Review >>
    Released: 2010-09-02 :: Category: Games

    [via Touch Arcade]

    Risk for iPad Review

    Risk for iPad Review

    iPad Only App - Designed for the iPad
    Risk has officially landed on the iPad, serving notice to all other turn-based strategy games.

    Read The Full Review »
    Cause of Death Review

    Cause of Death Review

    iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
    Interactive novels aren't the most exciting things for the ADD gaming generation, but Cause of Death is smart, quick, and fun.

    Read The Full Review »

    OpenFeint has just announced its newest iOS venture, Game Channel. The new service promises to offer lots of great features, including a free game of the day spotlight that will help users discover great free apps they might have otherwise missed. The main draw of Game Channel though is going to be Fire Sale, a new service which is taking the Groupon model of group sales and bringing it to iOS.

    According to OpenFeint, Fire Sale will present a premium app that is going on sale every week. Much like Groupon, users who are interested in buying the game at a discounted price can vote, and when enough votes are reached the price will drop. Fire Sale will then send out a push notification to everyone who voted on the app, letting them know the title is available at a discount. The first game going on sale is Jaws from Bytemark Games, and users can start voting on the title on December 17 at 12:01 am PST.

    “We have a motivated community that has proven time and again that they’ll come back for great deals. This happens every day with Free Game of the Day,” says Jason Citron, CEO of OpenFeint. “Fire Sale is a truly social, community-based promotion, that is a perfect way for game developers to get their games downloaded.”

    So how well will this new feature go over? That largely depends on the quality of apps offered and how deep the discounts go. For instance, Jaws is currently available for $2.99 and will drop to $0.99, is that good enough for consumers? Of course, the price can’t go much lower than that so the quality of the game will likely play a major factor in many potential buyers’ decisions.

    We’ll also have to keep an eye out on which publishers opt to support the program, as that will be a big determining factor. If OpenFeint can convince major players like Chillingo/EA, Namco and Gameloft to come aboard then things should go very well, but if the big companies decide to sit this one out then the appeal of Fire Sale may be quite limited. In any case, it will be very interesting to see if this group sale model can catch on for iOS. Could it be possible that we’re witnessing a revolution in digital distribution?

    Pogo Coming to the App Store

    EA has announced that it’s bringing the Pogo brand to the App Store and, to celebrate, some of the community’s favorite Pogo games are going to be available for free. Those who download the free version of the app will receive Poppit!, Word Whomp, Turbo 21, Mahjong Safari and Sweet Tooth 2. The games will be ad-supported, but the commercials can be cut out by upgrading to the $2.99 version of the app. Those who are members of EA’s Club Pogo will also be able to play an ad-free version of the titles.

    “We’ve been entertaining audiences for more than 10 years, and that experience has given us a deep understanding of the types of games that engage people and keep them coming back for more,” said Michael Marchetti, GM of Pogo for Electronic Arts.

    “With the move to iPhone and iPod touch, we’re giving people new ways to play, share and compete-now any moment can turn into a fun moment.”

    EA hasn’t detailed any future plans for the app, but we’re obviously hoping the future updates add more games to the fold and provide a continually growing catalog of challenges. The app will also support all the various Pogo community features, including the ability to earn tokens and increase your player rank. EA is also offering weekly badge challenges for a limited time, so there’s another opportunity to prove that you’re better than all your virtual friends.

    While Pogo may not be an absolutely mainstream social gaming network, it’s still a fairly big deal and its inclusion on iOS will likely be welcomed by many. Most Pogo games tend to skew towards the casual crowd, but there’s nothing at all wrong with that and those who enjoy playing the games on Pogo.com will definitely love being able to take those same titles wherever they go and playing on the road. So if you’re already into Pogo or just wonder what it’s all about this is as good a time as any to check it out.

    FREE!
    iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
    Released: 2010-12-09 :: Category: Games

    [via GI.biz]

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    Best App Ever - Yearly Mobile App Achievement Awards.
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    GiggleApps - iPhone applications reviews for kids and parents.
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