Tag: Versus »

As mentioned earlier this week, free-to-play turn-based MOBA Aerena: Clash of Champions has a new premium priced version called Aerena - Masters Edition. This new edition eschews its former F2P model in favor of asking players to pay upfront for an experience that's ad-free and eliminates the grind. Since I reviewed Aerena when it first came out and noted the game's somewhat slow progression, I decided to take a look at Masters Edition to see how well it delivers on its promises.

As it turns out, I found myself able to purchase unlocks including new units, ships, and shells all within playing a couple matches, which is a big difference from Clash of Champions. It seems as though Masters Edition is more generous with its in-game currency in general, making progression feel a lot smoother. In doing so, playing it felt more like a game about crafting a loadout that fits a particular playstyle rather than a game about slapping together whatever units and items are the most affordable.

It is worth noting that with this re-release players can still opt to play Aerena in its free-to-play form, and both versions of the game allow players to play against one another. Also worth noting is the fact that the free-to-play version offers time-limited trials of new units, whereas the paid version does not. This isn't really a big deal though, since it is easy enough to unlock units in Masters Edition anyway.

Overall, those that were frustrated by the progression mechanics of Aerena: Clash of Champions in its original form should be pleased with the changes that Aerena - Masters Edition has made. That being said, anyone that wasn't initially compelled by it won't be won over by this new version.

This week at 148Apps, once we were all finished with our Halloween and post-Halloween merriment, writer Lisa Caplan explored the vast landscape of camera replacement apps for the iPhone. Caplan writes, "Apple has done a lot to improve the native camera app with iOS 5 and lucky iPhone 4S owners are already taking the highest quality iPhone images ever. But, even with the tune up, many of the most requested features from manual adjustments to photo bursts, darkroom effects to more sharing options (Facebook anyone?) are still lacking. But, the app store is filled with alternatives so this week we look at our favorite four camera replacement apps."

Unlock your iPhone's photo potential by reading the full article on 148Apps.com.

Over at our kid's apps headquarters, GiggleApps, Amy Solomon took a closer look at an innovative 3D comic book called The Gwaii. Solomon states, "This app does have some 3D effects as well that are best seen as one moves the device, looking at the additional angles that this provides. The 3D here is effective but somewhat overly sensitive to touch and there have been moments that I wish I would have turned this element off, trying to keep my hand steady to minimize the screen movements. I think this effect may be a distraction for some children, while others may really enjoy this effect."

Read more about this new interactive storybook on GiggleApps.com.

Finally, AndroidRundown featured an article by Carter Dotson that attempted to address the iOS versus Android ongoing argument head-on. Dotson says, "The thing to remember, though, is that Android and iOS are different in their very natures. iOS is a piece of Apple software, following Apple principles; it is designed to run on specific hardware. That is a big part of why the experience is often smoother. Android is designed to run on many, many forms of hardware, not just what Google has intended for it to run on. Yes, Google has their stock devices that run a pure Android, but Android is meant to be something bigger, and not as something tailored to one set of hardware. That Android is on the caliber of Android is impressive."

Add your voice to the argument after reading the full article on AndroidRundown.com.

That is the week that was. What started with Halloween ended with the first onslaught of holiday commercials on television, so keep your eye on 148Apps.com and our Facebook and Twitter streams for the latest reviews and helpful hints to get you through the holiday season. See you next week, readers!