Tag: Freemium »

Evolution: Battle for Utopia by My.Com has received big update titled "The Black Legion."

The Black Legion update brings players six more regions to explore, 10 new types of weapons, and three new types of defense to help them battle the army of General Kurbatov. It also raises the level cap to 58!

Player's defensive capabilities are also getting an overhaul: now you can fortify your base with turrets and allies. Lastly, if you feel like a challenge, you can try out Black Legion's two new mini-games.

Evolution: Battle for Utopia is available for free on the App Store.

When it comes to suburban life simulations, The Sims pretty much wrote the book. In The Sims Freeplay, we get to see a mobile-centric version of the game that is equal parts enjoyable and complex. Here are a few tips to get folks going on the natural path to building a happy, healthy cyber-community.

Currency

The first thing one probably wants to understand is the currency system. There are several different tenders that can be used to make purchases or otherwise enhance the life of your Sims. Within the game, the main form of currency is referred to - naturally - as "Simoleons." Simoleons are probably most like real-life money, and can be earned by having Sims do things like going to work. Established properties can garner Simoleons at intervals, so it pays to "invest" and upgrade these properties. There are a few easter egg Simoleon earning activities as well, like pets digging for them.

Another currency type is the "Social Point." This can be earned in neighboring towns by doing tasks such as practicing fire fighting. This encourages interaction with other players, as it's easier to get fellow players to invest in an item necessary to get Social Points. Social Points can be spent on items in the game store.

"Lifestyle Points" can be gained by completing quests, increasing the town's value, leveling-up, or watching and viewing special offers. They can also be purchased with real money. Lifestyle Points can be used to purchase items and speed up tasks.

The game also incorporates experience points, which allow characters to level-up and have access to more content.

One of the best ways to accumulate cash is to work. Consistently. On that note, getting promoted helps earn more faster. Building in moderation also helps maximize reserves. Happy Sims are better able to earn spendables, so keeping Sims inspired by ensuring their needs are met.

Even the simple act of gardening also leads to supplemental game cash. Several "natural" tasks like checking mail can net small amounts that add up.

Careers

There are quite a few professions to choose from, ranging from Real Estate Agent to politician, and a Sim's career can be enhanced by "practicing" the job. Practicing makes the Sim better, and helps them get promoted. Sims can max out in careers, so the progress is not limitless.

Hobbies

Hobbies are great tools for gaining experience and limited content. The availability of hobbies to a specific character are generally restricted based on what one has unlocked and the age of a character. In other words, after the age requirement is met, one might have to do achieve/build something to be able to perform that hobby.

The biggest overall tip is to exhibit patience. The game runs in real-time, so there is always the temptation to use Lifestyle Points to expedite the action. Those Lifestyle Points could probably be best used elsewhere. Along those same lines, rushing to become a real estate mogul sounds logical - in the real world. In FreePlay, restraint is sometimes a good thing.

MLB Perfect Inning, the baseball simulation game from Gamevil, has received a new update that adds in some new content and bug fixes.

Most notably, the update brings new voice-over commentary from renown sportscaster Joe Buck. It also adds new motion captures.

We had an opportunity to review this game a short while ago; the updated version is available for free (with optional in-app purchases) on the App Store.

Yap Studios has just released a spankin' new reddit client, titled Feedworthy for reddit.

The new client packs several features, including Imgur functionality, night mode, collapsible comments and more. From the app page:

• Inline images and animated gifs
• Image Albums from Imgur
• Collapsable comments
• Night mode
• Press-and-hold to share
• Blazing performance
• Beautiful design
• And a whole lot more!

Feedworthy is free (with the in-app paid option to remove ads) on the App Store.

Mynd, the calendar and scheduling app we reviewed last year, is getting a big update.

Version 5.0.2 expands upon its ability to sync with LinkedIn, and allows for increased search connectivity within the service and the device contacts. Evernote entries can also be shared directly from the app. There is also the new ability to categorize events.

One big addition is the premium featureset. This is a subscription service that unlocks Inside Mynd, a set of extra functionality, and more.

New Mynd Premium (in-app purchase upgrade) features include:
• Traffic-based “time to leave” push notifications so you’re never late again. Note, existing Mynd users will be ‘grandfathered in’ to get this feature for free. New users will have to upgrade to Mynd Premium to get these notifications.
• Inside Mynd: Much like fitness software helps monitor your health, Inside Mynd gives you the ability to set goals within your calendar and track how you spend your time in a highly visual way. This is part of our new paid upgrade, Mynd Premium (available via in-app purchase) and makes it easy to quantify your business and personal productivity.
* Set goals and track your progress with Inside Mynd.
* Categorize your events to see where you spend the most time. For example...
-- If your goal is exercise 5 times a week, carve out 5 hours a week on your calendar to work out and give those events the category heading "exercise." If you skip a workout, delete it from your calendar. At the end of the week, Mynd will chart how much time you exercised.
-- If your goal is to spend more time managing your employees, and you're scheduling time-out to think about a particular employee's performance before their annual review, you can tag that employee in the event, without actually inviting him/her to that event.
-- If you’re a professional services consultant, you can use this feature to track time spent with clients and export it for use in billing.
* Track the miles you drive for business, and export this data for use in expense reports.
• Priority Email Support: We now accelerate Mynd Premium users to the top of our support queue.
• Professional Messaging: Mynd branding does not appear on emails and calendar invites sent through Mynd Premium.

There is a free trial of the subscription service, which costs $6.99/month to $49.99/year, depending on the number of months purchased.

Mynd Calendar is available for free (with optional premium features) on the App Store.

DreamsCloud, the interactive service that looks to help people analyze and reflect on their dreams, has announced its new iOS app DreamSphere.

The app has a host of features, including a Dream Journal which can be recorded via text or voice, a Dreams Map, which allows users to check their dream patterns against that of other users around the globe, a Smart Alarm, and more. There are also premium features that can be unlocked.

DreamsCloud co-founder and Chief Visionary Officer Jean Marc Emden talks about empowering users. “Dreams have such a significant impact on our overall health and wellness, and are the voice of our subconscious mind,” he says. “With the launch of DreamSphere, we wanted to create an app that provides users with a companion for daily wellness and self-reflection. By empowering our users to remember, process, decode and discuss their dreams on-the-go, DreamSphere will help individuals tap into critical insights and a better understanding of their waking lives.”

The app is now available for free (with aforementioned optional premium content) on the App Store.

MuseAmi has just launched a new, social app based on the ability to take, edit and share video called Hook'd.

The app incorporates MuseAmi's proprietary technologies, one of which is real-time audio processing, which allows for users to create and share content directly from an iOS device. MuseAmi also offers authentic backing tracks, including licensed music from Warner Music Group, and says it will announce additional licensing deals in the coming weeks.

MuseAmi chief Bob Taub mentions the partnership with Warner Music Group. "In Hook'd, we've created a fun, addictive and totally new way to capture moments through music, and share it with one person or with many," he says. "We're proud to have the support of Warner Music Group at launch. They've been a real champion of our technology, and their incredible catalog provides our users with authentic master recordings that make Hook'd like no other app on the planet."

Hook'd is available for free (with optional in-app purchases) on the App Store.

New features have come to freemium-based reverse Tower Defense game Royal Revolt 2, and they're sure to prove enticing for fans.

The game now offers the Chamber of Fortune, giving players the chance to earn additional rewards. You can now share your fearsome King with your Facebook friends, plus there's a new and distinctly spooky Graveyard environment for those keen to mix things up.

New achievements and quests, as well as many bug fixes, round off the package.

Royal Revolt 2 is out now and free to download from the App Store.

A few weeks ago I was led into a room to see something new from Fuero Games and The Witcher developers CD Projekt. Something that involved The Witcher. I had hopes and fears much like you’d expect. Would it be a port? A spin-off? Maybe a town-building sim?

Turns out it was The Witcher Battle Arena - a free-to-play Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) game set in the same universe as the popular titles from consoles and PC. It’s also looking pretty freaking great at the moment, to be honest.

The Witcher Battle Arena has been designed for mobile from the ground up. It uses a fairly straightforward control system that allows you to tap to move to a specific location, drag the camera around, or tap and hold/drag to guide your hero more directly. Tapping on an opponent will attack, and you can tap on different skill buttons to trigger them.

Most of the expected MOBA bits are present and accounted for as well. Each hero starts at level 1 and will gain experience throughout the match, skills may be upgraded with each level, money earned automatically and by fighting rival heroes can be used to purchase better and better hero-specific gear, and so on. About the only major changes to the basic formula are the lack of endlessly spawning minions on either side and smaller arenas that encourage direct player-on-player interaction. In other words everything has been streamlined so that matches are fast and brutal.

I imagine the whole “free” thing might still be making you a tad nervous but the developers are adamant that The Witcher Battle Arena will not be a pay-to-win game. There are no wait timers, no hard currencies, and absolutely everything from new characters to vanity items can be earned simply by playing.

The Witcher Battle Arena doesn’t have a set release date yet, but it will launch with a decent selection of playable characters (eight in total - Eithne of Brokilon, Ioverth, Letho of Gulet, Zoltan Chivay, Saskia of Aedrin, Philippa Eilhart, The Operator, and a Golem). And it’ll be free, of course.