EA, being the large gaming corporation that they are, have released their upcoming summer and fall lineup... and it's huge.
Madden NFL 11 - iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch - Fall - Everyone's favorite NFL game is back this year, but with a few cool features that will make the game even more intuitive on a touch device. The new "Gameflow" feature is the one that I'm most excited about, as it gives players the ability to spend "less time in the playbook and more time on the field".
"Coaches don't go into a game with their full playbook like you do in our game. When it's 2nd down and 3 yards to go, they don't thumb through a 3-ring binder with 350 plays in it. They find tendencies before the game and build a game plan to exploit the other team's weaknesses. This means they call plays based on the situation."
To make the game quicker, and more realistic in the process, "Gameflow" has the "coach" pick the play based on the situation you are in and then radio it to you, letting you see the play on the field like you normally would. If an audible needs to be called, there is now the ability to draw hot routes anywhere, letting you devise whatever route you would like, on the fly.
Check out our hands-on article here for a more detailed look.
[Source: EA Sports]
Reckless Racing - iPhone, iPad - Summer - Remember the amazing looking tp-down racing game,
Deliverance, that never came out? It turns out that it was bought by EA, and has been renamed Reckless Racing. Reckless Racing "mixes old-school top-down racing game play with state of the art graphics and engaging multiplayer features." EA seems to be touting its online features more than anything else, promising "fully stocked internet multiplayer mode, on-line leaderboards and the ability to trade ghost races with other players from all over the world". If the game plays half as good as it looks, you'll see me playing Reckless Racing non stop when it launches later this summer.
For a more in depth look, check out our recent hands-on article.
NCAA Football - iPhone - Now - NCAA Football is EA's first app designed specifically for the iPhone 4. While it doesn't have all the new bells and whistles that Madden will have, it does have over 55 of the most well known colleges so you can support the team that you love... and it does look pretty.
Sim City Deluxe - iPhone, iPod Touch - Summer - EA seems to have addressed all the glitches in their first attempt at Sim City, and have made an app that is much more playable. All of the menus have been redesigned, and the glitch that has buildings disappear when you zoom out should be gone. Also added are the famed Sim City disasters, which could possibly bring over the Pocket God set that have sites on tormenting even more souls. There is also a rumor about an
iPad version in the works, but nothing has been announced... so don't get your hopes up.
[Source: IGN]
The Sims 3 Ambitions - iPhone, iPod Touch - Summer - There aren't many details about this one floating around, but it does seem to be the iPhone counterpart to the PC expansion pack with the same name. According to EA, in "Sims 3 Ambitions, players decide whether their Sim will be the brave town hero or cause loads of mischief among their neighbors. Their future is entirely in the player’s hands!"
Sims 3 Ambitions will add many often requested features to the Sims on the iPhone. New large features like careers, babies, and building new structures make this a pretty huge new version.
Yahtzee - iPad - Summer - Everyone's favorite dice rolling game is coming this summer, and it will surely be prettier than the thing that you have to unpack out of the box.
Risk - iPhone, iPod Touch - Summer - I'm not sure what took EA so long to come out with Risk, but this announcement will surely make many people happy. I liked
Lux DLX alright, and think that
Strategery is a great Risk alternative, but there's nothing like the real thing. As long as EA gets the AI right, this one will be a winner.
R-Type - iPhone, iPod Touch - Summer - Just like you remembered it, R-Type is keeping "100 percent true to the original game allowing fans to get back to the ‘80s video-arcade experience in the palm of their hands." As I wrote in an earlier preview article, the original R-Type is "the most frustratingly difficult game outside of playing a Don Bluth game in the arcade". There is a distinct possibility that my iPhone will end up thrown across the room.
Be sure to check after the jump for some more great screenshots.
