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Isolani, the latest first-person shooter from DeNA and Scattered Entertainment, creators of The Drowning, is a curious game. It tries to bring a story-based FPS into the structure of games like Candy Crush Saga, particularly with recharging lives and a linear progression, as opposed to the mission-based structure of The Drowning. David Simard, a producer on Isolani with Scattered Entertainment, took some time to answer questions about the game.

DeNA and Hasbro have today announced Transformers: Age of Extinction, the official mobile game for the film of the same name. The game is the second title in an exclusive three-year agreement between the two companies, the first being the online CCG Transformers Legends. Unlike Legends, Age of Extinction is set to be a '3D combat runner', with players taking out enemies also featured in the movie as they run, dash, and change form in a variety of environments.

Barry Dorf, vice president of partnerships and alliances at DeNA, had this to say about the project:

The TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION mobile game will deliver an explosive interactive entertainment experience on mobile devices for TRANSFORMERS fans and consumers looking to extend their movie experience after the credits roll. This isn't your typical runner game; this game puts the player in the middle of an action-packed Hollywood blockbuster where it’s destroy or be destroyed!

Transformers: Age of Extinction is set to be available later this year. If players pre-register on the official website with their Facebook account, they will receive a Rare Transmetal Rocket Launcher for the game when it launches.

DeNA and Crytek, the collaborative team behind tactical third-person action game The Collectables, has gotten into the spirit of the season by revealing it ongoing "Easter Egg Mayhem" in-game event that is scheduled to run till 15:00 CEST on April 22.

The event allows players to collect Easter-themed reward cards by accumulating Easter eggs. According to the official announcement, by completing the extremely challenging reward stages players can earn bronze, silver, and Epic reward cards that are not available in the regular campaign.

Crytek Budapest Studio Manager Kristoffer Waardahl mentions the humorous undertones. “The Collectables had an amazing launch and we’re just getting started. Crytek and DeNA are dedicated to delivering great content and the Easter Egg Mayhem event is a prime example of this,” he says. “Easter Egg Mayhem puts a spotlight on the fantastic sense of humor in The Collectables and we hope our fans have as much fun playing through the event as we did making it.”

The Collectables is available for free on the App Store.

The Collectables, the cheeky yet realistic fruit of a collaboration between Crytek and DeNA, is live on the App Store.

In this hybridized third-person romp, players get to work as a group of upgradeable mercenaries while fighting against a ruthless enemy. The game sports rich graphics, a card system tactical combat, jungle scenery, and plenty of explosions.

“Crytek managed to do the unthinkable and integrate their remarkable CRYENGINE technology into the company’s first free-to-play mobile game,” said Barry Dorf, head of strategic partnerships at DeNA. “The Collectables is a visually stunning and explosive gameplay experience that pushes the boundaries of what can be achieved on mobile devices.”

The Collectables is available for free (with option in-app purchases) on the App Store.

Crytek and DeNA have partnered to bring The Collectables to the App Store in 2014. It's a free-to-play title that features gunfights, 3D battlefields, and action heroes as players use tactics to lead squads on missions all around the world. For those who preregister for the game, they'll receive an exclusive version of the character "Reload" and limited edition gear.

"DeNA offers unparalleled experience in the mobile gaming space, and we’re excited to be collaborating with their team to deliver The Collectables to players," stated Paha Schulz in a press release, Director of Business Development, Games-as-a-Service at Crytek. “The Collectables will be the first free-to-play mobile game that leverages Crytek’s cutting-edge 3D game technology CRYENGINE.”

DeNA wants you to have a good Halloween this year! The company has decided to bring spooky new content to three of its mobile games: HellFire: The Summoning, Monster Match, and Transformers: Legends. This includes mummies, witches, haunted dungeons, and PUMPKINS! What about Pumpkin lattes?

HellFire unleashes witches, mummies, and scarecrows, scattering them throughout its new haunted dungeons in the in-game event that takes place now through the October 28.

Monster Match provides a taste of chaos with Chaos and the Gloom King: A Tale from the Dismal Islands. This event takes place from now through October 30.

Transformers: Legends features a ghost machine! Starscream's ghost crosses over to cause trouble for the Autobots in this new episode that takes place from October 30 to November 5. I think it's time for a new Autobot named Ghostbuster! [Editor's Note: I'd have gone with "Exorcist Prime"]

Who likes to preorder console games due to all those unique preorder bonuses? Well, DeNA is offering something similar when you preregister for its upcoming free-to-play arcade shooter, Lawless. All you need to do is visit the official website to receive an exclusive in-game weapon that can be used once the game releases later this year.

Check it out!

Lawless is the latest game from DeNA, bringing an arcade shooter to iOS devices. The game offers cover-to-cover shootouts as players take the role of a professional criminal who is required to rob banks, assassinate targets, and more. Players who preregister now can unlock free content when the game releases.

“Lawless is an intense, skillful game designed as an ode to classic ‘light gun’ shooters and filled with the retro Californian feel of ‘90s bank robber movies,” said Ben Cousins, head of DeNA’s European studio operations and GM of the Scattered Entertainment, in a press release. “It’s been a great experience collaborating with the talented team involved with Dead Space: Extraction to bring a cinematic arcade shooter experience to mobile.”

DeNA and Scattered Entertainment’s ambitious mobile first-person shooter spearheaded by former Battlefield series producer Ben Cousins, The Drowning, has finally launched worldwide. After the first hands-on sessions at GDC 2013 the game has been in an international soft launch, but the final, complete version of the game is now available to everyone. I spoke with Ben Cousins about what he thinks this initial "complete" version of The Drowning succeeds at, and how the game has evolved over the past few months.

Cousins says that he’s quite proud of the way that Scattered Entertainment experimented with new control schemes. “…We were unsatisfied with the FPSes on mobile devices, and I think from our research, I think a lot of the potential audience who are really interested in the genre have a phone or a tablet, and they’re not satisfied with what they’ve got out there.” There’s two things that he thinks they have that others don’t; “The first thing that we’ve got which the competitors haven’t is a control system which is designed for touchscreens that you can play with just one hand, with just two fingers in fact on one hand, and one that really fluidly fits in with the way that we hold these devices and the usage patterns of these devices. So we’re really proud that we’ve created a control system which kind of unlocks the potential of this genre on the platform.”

"The second thing we’ve done is we’ve really respected the usage patterns of these devices as well. And we understand that people generally don’t sit down and create time for a four or five hour session of playing a game on a smart device. So we’ve deliberately created a game structure that means within two minutes you can make progress in the game and you can shut down the device, and you can bring it up for a two-minute session at any time, and you’re guaranteed to make progress.

“So we’ve divided the game into these discrete chunks. The gameplay feels very much like an FPS, you’re killing enemies, and it’s high action, and you’re in this 3D world, but the system we’ve created enables you to jump in and jump out in a way which a more console-style mobile-FPS doesn’t really let you do, you’ve got to wait for a save point or for a cutscene to finish or something like that.”

Interestingly, though, there’s a virtual control scheme in there as well, and Cousins justifies it by saying “If you remember back on Halo 1, you could actually opt to play that with the GoldenEye control scheme. Now the GoldenEye control scheme is very different from the Halo/Call of Duty control system. So in the same way that in that transition that Halo had to acknowledge the small numbers of players who were used to the GoldenEye style of controls, we’ve kind of done the same thing, we believe that the touch system we’ve created is the future of controlling FPSes on smart devices, but we also acknowledge that there is kind of a legacy on this platform and a certain number of people want to play with a traditional virtual stick style system.” He does believe that it’s a suboptimal way to play – and that most will switch to the ‘new’ control scheme, just as how console gamers have adapted to the scheme Halo introduced.

The international soft launch helped out in several ways. Cousins states, “So we actually went out with probably, an incomplete game, just because we got to the point where just playing it ourselves and trying got work out whether a feature was working or not wasn’t really helping, and we wanted to get on to the live audience,so that’s kind of what we did, and we’ve been adding a whole bunch of stuff that was in that backlog anyway.” The tutorial got trimmed down as part of the changes, and a stars system was added, which Cousins claims helped player satisfaction: “the game’s about going into these environments, playing for two minutes, getting a score, and then getting parts. Kind of exchanging that score for parts which you find the environment that you can then use to craft more weapons. And we never really had a clear way of showing the player whether they had a good score or a bad score. So players we were thinking were probably going in there and what was a reasonable score and actually they weren’t getting enough score to get that particular part that they need from the environment.”

“So we have a very direct feedback at the end of the round of whether you got a bad score or whether you got an awesome score, and this really helps the game loop because you do two things: you know you either just failed to get a score you wanted to get that part, and you want to play another round, or you’ve just succeeded in getting the score and it’s a fantastic kind of reinforcement moment in the game loop where you’re really excited because you just got that score that you needed to proceed.”

These little things may just make The Drowning a better experience, which players can now judge for themselves, as it is now available worldwide on the App Store.

The Drowning, DeNA and Mobage's first-person shooter with the intuitive touch controls, is out today!

We've been keeping an eye on it for a while now, actually. Our official review is inbound, but in the meantime why not download it and try it for yourself? See what all the buzz is about and all that?

Launching over 110 apps as ngmoco and then DeNA, this company has seen it all. Originally hyped as the "Nintendo of the iPhone" and grabbing the lion's share of the iFund, ngmoco made some groundbreaking games. The games released by ngmoco did not lack quality, but they did lack sales. So in 2010, ngmoco made a big push into free to play. While it was rocky at first, the decision really started to pay off in 2012 with the release of Rage of Bahamut.

We talk with Clive Downie, CEO of DeNA West, about the transition from paid to free to play, and some of his thoughts and experiences of the last five years with the App Store.

148Apps: How has the App Store changed the way DeNA/ngmoco:) does business?

Clive Downie, CEO of DeNA West: The App Store hasn't changed the way we do business. ngmoco was conceived to take advantage of the new App Store ecosystem. We were leaders in its early days, creating some of the original premium games such as Rolando and Skee Ball that paved the foundation of gaming on the iPhone. 

148Apps: If you have one single success within DeNA/ngmoco:) you'd like to highlight from the past five years on the App Store, what would it be?

Clive Downie: Pivoting the company to freemium to take advantage of Apple offering IAP in free apps. We were there on day one with Eliminate and Touch Pets Dogs. Then we followed up quickly with We Rule and Godfinger and received excellent promotional support from Apple.

148Apps: In the five years since launch, the App Store has gone through considerable changes. The number of users has skyrocketed along with downloads, prices for paid apps has stabilized way lower than many expected, free to play has dominated the top grossing charts. If, knowing what you know about the App Store now, you could go back and influence ngmoco five years ago, what would you say?

Clive Downie: I wouldn't say anything new. We were shrewd to get out of paid, seeing the lowest average price plummet for apps and piracy negate the value we put into creating paid apps. In a market economy where the lowest price is zero that is always going to happen.

I'm proud that we pivoted the company the way we did to focus on the engagement multiples that going free allowed.

148Apps: What have you seen on the App Store, outside of DeNA/ngmoco:) companies, that has surprised you most?

Clive Downie: I'm surprised that it's not smarter at personalizing what I as a consumer might want. Genius looks like it's removed from iOS7, and while there will be some new location capabilities, it seems like there’s an opportunity to enhance the functionality around interests.

148Apps: Any predictions for what the App Store will be like five years from now?

Clive Downie: On a watch...

Personalized to me (Amazon on steroids) 

Many thanks to Clive Downie for his time.

G.I. Joe: Battleground is now available, adding G.I. Joe-themed card-battling action to the App Store. Players can select to participate in missions as part of G.I. Joe team or they can join the Cobra organization in its quest for world dominance. There are hundreds of cards to collect for players to build their strongest team, cards that feature an art-style that's similar to the classic animated series.

“G.I. JOE: BATTLEGROUND is a salute to all of the G.I. JOE fans around the world. The app experience is fast, fun and players can expect to recruit and see all of their favorite characters from the storied G.I. JOE universe,” said David Phan, producer of G.I. JOE: BATTLEGROUND, in a press release.

First-person shooters truly built and optimized for mobile are few and far between. Ben Cousins of Shattered  Entertainment wants to change that with his team's new DeNA-published game, The Drowning.

The Drowning is built from the ground up for mobile devices. This is thanks in part to the game's two minute play session structure; players will always have two minutes to take down as many enemies as possible, with the goal being to score as many points as possible. Thus, getting into Frenzy mode becomes important: getting headshots and melee kills is the way to enter this double-points mode, and keeping up the pace is the way to stay in it. Getting lots of points ensures that more scanvgeable items can be found randomly, these items being used as parts for new weapons and vehicles for traveling through the world. The game does have a main story thread running through it, that players can follow as they progress through.

The controls have been the much-ballyhooed part of the game, and in my playtime, I found that they were easy to pick up on. Swiping looks around, but tapping with two fingers fires, with the actual shot going between the two fingers. Thus, the game allows for enough accuracy to let players fire where they want, but still have challenge for headshots and the like. Tapping on the screen moves to that location, and players can execute a rapid 180 turn by tapping on the bottom of the screen, and can quickly turn to attacking enemies by tapping on the red damage indicators on the side. Finally, those things are really useful!

The game will be free-to-play, and the monetization strategies inclue an energy mechanic for traveling to different levels, the ability to get additional scavenge opportunities, and special weapons that can be bought, though these will be broken when acquired, like most of the game's weapons; the parts to fix them still need to be found. Ben Cousins pointed out that the game will always be about the gameplay - it's possible to get new weapons and additional scavenge items, but getting to use them is always about playing the game itself.

How well the title will work long-term and how intrusive the monetization will feel will still require some extended playtime, but for now, The Drowning shows a lot of promise toward changing the mobile FPS. The game is nearly done and will be submitted soon.

[vine bjJELImvlUw]

While a few of the recent games from DeNA's US wing, formerly known as ngmoco have made a crap-ton of money, they have done little to interest core gamers. Just one example, Rage of Bahamut has kept a near constant top five residency in the top grossing list since release. That's meant millions in income, easily, for DeNA.. But for core gamers, it's been a bit... boring.

Well that's about to change. Ben Cousins has reveled the first game from the new DeNA Swedish studio, now known as Scattered Entertainment. The Drowning is a free to play first person shooter, rethought for the touch screen, and looking damn sexy.

The story is that mysterious underworld creatures have forced their way to the surface through a massive, global, catastrophic event. Unexplained oil spills have caused any creature that touches the oil to turn into a lifeless zombie bird-influenced creature.

As you work your what through this world, assumedly to safety, you craft weapons, trade supplies, and fight off countless of these bird-like creatures.

While the graphics look great, the story is interesting, and the anticipation for this game is huge, the really interesting part of this new game are the innovative controls that DeNA has come up with. While this is all possible to change before release, here's what we know so far.

One of the main interface design goals is to be able to play with just two fingers. Using one finger or two, with gestures, you can aim, move, shoot, change weapons, and everything else you need to do in an FPS.

The main control element is the two finger aim/fire. The weapon will fire at the middle point between your two fingers. Stretching you two fingers will zoom, as we would expect. A single finger touch will mark a point in the world and your player will move there. It's innovative, you have to give it that. Virtual sticks just don't work that great, and this looks, at least in the demo, to be viable. It will take hours of gameplay to verify that, and I'm looking forward to it.

The Drowning is still a ways off. We can expect it in early 2013. Hopefully we'll get more info in the coming weeks. It's certainly one to watch.

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While all the little kiddies are out gathering candy - assuming they aren’t out on the East Coast because that would be fairly dangerous given the current circumstances - it can be tough figuring out what the rest of us can do with our time. Sure there might be the odd Halloween party and there’s always sitting around waiting for trick-or-treaters. But what’s a person to do with their downtime? Why not take to the App Store and sample a bunch of new Halloween content that’s just been added to a number of DeNA titles?

Blood Brothers - The most recent “gather creatures and strengthen/evolve them” game to come from Mobage is having a special Grave of Kings event. Players can nab some event-only familiars (complete with jack-o-lantern masks) until November 1st. Or until the special raid boss event ends. Which will also be on November 1st. So yeah.

Deity Wars - Starting now and continuing through October 31st players will be able to participate in a special live event to try and earn both rare cards and the expected Halloween-themed in-game items. Nothing like mixing a few ghosts and goblins with gods, right?

Fantasica - Guard your dreams! A bunch of Halloween nightmares have been let loose and players must band together to fight them off. The special event runs through the 31st and will give us all the chance to win some special loot and cards. I feel like I should reinstall this just so I can ogle the new characters because I love the artwork so much.

Kingdom Wars! - Get your hands on some limited time Halloween Edition Dungeon card packs and hopefully bring a ghost, witch, or other nightmarish monstrosity into the ranks. “Mwahahahahaha!!!” and all that.

My Monster Rancher - Rather than focusing on special event monsters (although there are those, too), My Monster Rancher is tossing lots of special prizes and costume items into the pot cauldron. Witch hats, pumpkin heads, and more await!

Ninja Royale - This Halloween a bunch of vampires chose the wrong ninja to try and snack on. In addition to the special themed drops a special jack-o-lantern clan, CARVER, has been added. Seriously though, of all the human prey to hunt why would vampires want to go after a ninja?

Pocket Planes - We’re all familiar with ferrying bitizens back and forth to earn some cash. We’re also accustomed to hauling a bunch of the little pixel people and their gear to special destinations for specific purposes. Now we can fly lots of ghouls, candy, and whatnot around until the 31st. Let’s make sure these bitizens have a Halloween they’ll never forget!

Rage of Bahamut - Granted I’m used to special events in this CCG but I’ve yet to take part in any that were holiday themed. This time it’s going to be the Manor of Illusions, complete with plenty of special items and cards to earn. I suppose it’s time to start stockpiling more cure waters.

Tiny Tower - Not even Tiny Tower is safe from the horrible spirits roaming the App Store. Granted the ghostly costumes have been available for bitizens to wear for quite some time but now there’s a special Halloweed-themed mission to complete. And you can dress them up and start haunting your tower’s floors now through the end of the month.