Image by Chris Thompson

It’s Fourth Of July here in the states, and everyone is celebrating with sales on their apps, including EA, Chillingo, Crytek, WB Games and more. Let’s take a look, shall we?

First up is EA – from July 2th until July 9th, all their games will be $0.99 or free. Their pitch basically amounts to an “all our stuff is on sale” sale. That said, here are a few great games you should definitely pick up at these low prices.

Warner Bros. are also doing a “Everything is $0.99″ sale, maybe just to prove they can. It’s nice to see some competition here, but the indies are sure to feel the pinch. Even so, there are some great games to save money on. Here are a few we dig.

There are also some games on sale for Independence Day that don’t hearken from the juggernauts of electronic gaming, but they’re still worth your time and monies. Check ‘em out below, but be sure to check the price before you buy – some of these are on sale starting on the 4th itself.

Continue reading Celebrate Your Independence – From High Priced Apps »

Ham in the Fridge, those responsible for the well received if a bit disturbing 5 Minutes to Kill (Yourself), have been up to something. They’ve been lurking in the shadows, left to their own devices, doing something altogether unseemly. They’ve been Bumpin’ Uglies. I’ve recently had the chance to talk a bit with Brett Hummel (Creative Director) and Drew Pearson (Director, Business Development) about their odd little creation and have come away from the discussion feeling more than a little excited. Not that kind of excited.

Bumpin’ Uglies isn’t quite the depiction of debauchery that many would expect given the (awesome) title. Uglies are, in fact, these small lima bean-looking critters who are about as smart as a sack of dirt and can only get around by way of being flung. Players have to guide their ugly through a given level (32 total at the moment), gathering shinys and coins along the way, until they manage to collide with the ugly waiting at the other end. Hence the bumping. This creates a temporary whirlwind of activity, followed by the production of a number of “bumplings” possessing traits from both parent uglies. And some recessive genes, naturally. Coins gathered throughout each level can be used to unlock new level packs (3 available at launch with more to follow), more ugly parts for further customization, and special boosts (4 types available at launch) that can be used to make getting around a bit easier.

Bumpin’ Uglies is slated to release later this summer for free. If it sounds like a game worth playing (and it should), head on over to the Kickstarter page to lend a financial hand. Come on, you know you want to.

Everyone likes free stuff, right? Free games are all the better. For that reason alone, people will want to take note of Little Generals – a new, free action game all about pitting tanks against tanks.

Promising to be simple to play yet quickly addictive, players start out with a limited selection of weapons to pit against their opponents as they compete in 1-on-1 physics based battles. New weapons are unlocked through the acquisition of Warbux, either by defeating opponents or buying them with real money via the in-app purchases available. These weapons then promise to make Little Generals all the more exciting and thrilling.

Throughout the game, Little Generals promises to be charming through its use of cute animations and talking generals to add a great original touch.

Check out the trailer below to learn more. Little Generals is out now, it’s an Universal app and free to play.

FREE!

Little Generals

+ Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad
Released: 2012-05-30 :: Category: Games

The Game Bakers’ unique turn-based strategy game Squids is back with a sequel releasing later this month on iOS. Squids: Wild West brings new gameplay elements, new environments, and new squids in a planned set of 48 levels for the squids to launch around. The Game Bakers has gotten our hands on a preview build of the game that shows off some, but not all of what fans of fighting squids can expect.

The core of the game is roughly the same, which combines turn-based strategy with the kind of slingshot physics of Angry Birds. Players still pull back to aim their squids in a certain direction in a top-down two-dimensional playing field, and release at the desired power to launch into enemies, with harder hits doing more damage. Four new squids are in the game; two of the new ones, Calamary Jane and Cleef were ones we got to play with, and they are both shooting types, with Cleef able to shoot twice per turn, and Jane having well-balanced stats. All the squids from the original game will be back.

One of the key additions to gameplay are the new seahorses. These appear in some of the levels, and can be ridden when a squid comes in contact with them. The player pulls to aim them like they do the squids, but power is set by a circle that grows and shrinks under the seahorse. Releasing when the circle is the biggest causes the furthest fling and most damage to be done to enemies, with a bonus available for maxing it out. The seahorses can also take multiple moves in one turn with a squid.

We shouldn’t forget about the most important addition to the game: new hats! Plenty of western-themed hats will be available for all the characters, along with many of the hats from the original game. iCloud synchronization is not implemented in this version yet, but is planned to be in the final version. Currently, the plan is for the game to release in late June. Those who can’t wait to play the sequel can check out a small taste of Wild West in the original Squids, available now.

Nickelodeon has released an update to popular bow-shooting adventure, Monkey Quest: Thunderbow. The update includes new levels, modes, items and more.

The update added 30 news levels with new puzzle types, bouncy bomb levels, and armadillo levels. In addition to these free new levels, three more modes of gameplay were added. The game now includes survival mode, dig mode, and mayhem mode. And now the monkey has four more MMO items to unlock including the heavy metal bow, heavy metal hair helmet, heavy metal quiver, and the Anubis staff.

Monkey Quest: Thunderbow is a physics-based bow shooting game that has elements of both popular Angry Birds and Worms. The monkey shoots a magical bow and arrow in various levels that has the thunderous power to destroy the environment of the levels themselves. Monkey Quest: Thunderbow comes in both free and paid versions for the iPhone as well as free and paid HD versions for the iPad. Check out the video below with gameplay features of the new update.

$0.99

Monkey Quest: Thunderbow Extreme

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2011-12-14 :: Category: Games

Insanely popular physics-based puzzler Cut the Rope has received yet another update adding even more levels. It’s been a few months since the last update (December), but the game has been constantly releasing new levels and content since its release back in October of 2010.

With this release, Cut the Rope has added another “box” with 25 more levels to the already insane level count of 250. That puts the total levels up to 275 and total boxes to 11. This box has a DJ theme with vinyl records throughout. In addition to the extra levels added, a new Om Nom drawing has been hidden in the game for players to collect as well as a new leaderboard and achievements.

The game was released with 100 levels. The game has almost tripled in content since its release with no extra charge to players.

$0.99

Cut the Rope

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

$3.99

Cut the Rope HD

iPad Only App - Designed for the iPad
Released: 2010-10-07 :: Category: Games

Only a month after its release, Rovio has released its first update to Angry Birds title, Angry Birds Space. This new update includes levels and Space Eagles for everyone!

The game now has ten new levels set on icy planets. In addition to the free new levels, all iOS players will be receiving free Space Eagles. These avians are a bit different from the Eagle in the previous Angry Birds games. Instead of destroying all pigs on a level, the Space Eagle creates a large explosion in a set area of a level. While still incredibly powerful, it doesn’t instantly finish a level for players. Now all updated iOS players will receive twenty of the mighty birds. Also, each daily login will grant one free Space Eagle for players.

Angry Birds Space puts a new spin on the popular phyiscs-based sling-shot game. The birds are now flinging themselves at pigs in a zero gravity atmosphere. These new, slow-motion puzzles with competing gravity from various planets puts a new spin on the familiar Angry Birds gameplay.

$0.99

Angry Birds Space

iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2012-03-22 :: Category: Games