Tag: Rebuild »

If you’ve got the Monday blues we have just the thing to cheer you up. The week is shaping up to be a spectacular one for sales.

We’ve got a bunch of well-loved indie games at discounted prices this week along with a few that are a little more mainstream. Here are five deals you won’t want to miss.

Head, shoulders, knees, and toes!

On This Episode:
Carter talks to Colin and Sarah Northway, the married traveling independent developers. They discuss their development process, how Incredipede was Colin's idea produced with Sarah's assistance, and how Rebuild is Sarah's idea and project with some assistance from Colin. The mobile version of Incredipede is discussed, as well as the Kickstarter for the upcoming Rebuild: Gangs of Deadsville.

Episode Cast:

Host: Carter Dotson

Guests: Colin and Sarah Northway, Northway Games

Music:

• "Beatnes7 (Theme to The Portable Podcast)" by The Eternal - Download on iTunes here:

  



• "Nanocarp" by The Eternal

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Apps From This Episode:

Remember that popular and hard to put down simulation title, Rebuild? The developer has started a new Kickstarter campaign to bring a sequel to iOS, Rebuild: Gangs of Deadsville.

It sounds very deep and even more exciting as the developer, Sarah Northway, has already spent more hours working on this title than the first two titles combined, and she's only halfway done. She's also hired on two artists and a writer to help make it even more engaging, deep, and fun for all players. Check out the Kickstarter page!

Even with the iOS release of XCom: Enemy Unknown rapidly approaching, some may find the wait unbearable. Playing the original release on Mac, PC, 360, or PS3 is certainly an option but if you're specifically looking to fill the gap on your iOS device (or simply want to play something similar on the go) then today's your lucky day. We've got a list of seven different iOS titles that ought to scratch that itch until Firaxis makes it official. Keep in mind they don't all offer the same exact X-Com experience, but they do all evoke a similar feel for various reasons.

Aliens versus Humans is definitely the list's most faithful to the early X-Com series. Skyrangers and Interceptors are MIA but there's still plenty of that good old back-and-forth between base management and turn-based firefights. New technologies such as advanced weapons and armors can be researched and produced and soldiers can acquire marginal improvements if they survive a number of missions, too. It's the closest thing to playing UFO Defense on your iOS device that you're likely going to find for a good long while.

Hunters 2 shares quite a few key similarities with early X-Com games, but it's not a 1:1 likeness. Many key elements are here; such as hidden enemy movement, soldiers that level up and learn new skills individually, customizable loadouts, and needing to keep an eye on action points (i.e. Time Units). That said it's also its own game with an emphasis on combat over management, daily missions to complete for extra credits in addition to the campaign, and a much smaller (but elite) team to control that prevent the stages from overstaying their welcome.

Tactical Soldier - Undead Rising is another close comparison to the older X-Com series. It’s zombies instead of aliens, and it’s all about the skirmishes with little in the form of resource management, but it’s definitely rocking that tactical vibe. Stylistically it’s very reminiscent of getting a squad of rookies killed before they even step off the Skyranger, and there’s a big focus on each soldier progressing individually with better stats and abilities.

Battle for Wesnoth might use orcs and elves instead of aliens and space marines, but it still manages to capture some of that classic X-Com magic. Mostly it's because your soldiers can be leveled up individually and sport their own names, but it's also just a very rewarding strategy game. One with a ridiculous amount of campaigns to play through and factions to control.

Frozen Synapse doesn't require any base management. It doesn't have named soldiers that can individually tweaked. There aren't any aliens. And yet, most missions in this simultaneous turn-based strategy game feel quite a bit like X-Com. Your soldiers are just as susceptible to bullets are your enemies, and losing even one can have a huge impact on your strategy and chances for success. There's also the added intensity of planning each move, right down to the little details like which direction a soldier will aim. That in itself isn't so nerve-wracking but having to decide what to do without knowing what your opponent is planning (and vice-versa) can be just as harrowing as being down to your last rookie and knowing that final (you hope) Sectoid is close by.

Star Command is a bit similar to Frozen Synapse in that its strategy is more reactionary. Rather than trying to lure enemies to key positions you need to think fast and get your crew out of harms way while simultaneously trying to avoid getting your ship scrapped and trying to blast your opponent's vessel. There's nothing turn-based about it but the combat can be every bit as lethal and death is just as permanent. Of course it's possible to reload an earlier game in order to save a downed crew member, but that sort of goes against the spirit of it all.

Rebuild might appear to be the least X-com-like game at first glance, but it's actually just as valid as every other title on this list. Instead of capturing the feeling of a desperate struggle to keep your squad alive, it captures the feeling of a desperate struggle to plan ahead and manage resources well enough to prevent total annihilation. In essence it's more like the Geoscape than the battlefield. Carefully taking control of various buildings, divvying out salvaged weapons and clothing, and assigning roles that best fit each survivor's skillset are all essential to not ending up like every pocket of humanity always does in a George Romero movie.

We Are Your App Authority

Every week, the experts here at 148Apps take on the hundreds of apps released weekly and take the time to sort through them, find the good ones, and write about them in depth. Isn’t that spectacular? A few lucky ones become Editor’s Choice, standing out above the many good apps and games with something just a little bit more to offer. Here are a few excerpted notable reviews from this past week. Want to see all of them? Then be sure to hit our Reviews Archive.

Thanks to the advent of quality cameras on cellphones, we as a society take a heck of a lot more photos than we ever used to. The simplicity involved and the fact that everyone almost always has their phone on them, makes it all too easy to get very snap happy. What’s the best way of storing them, though? There’s so many different services, it can get complicated. Everpix aims to consolidate all the services together, enabling users to always be able to browse ALL their photos, not just certain groups of them. --Jennifer Allen

Major Magnet from PagodaWest Games is at once a celebration of the titles that influenced its creators, but it also exists as a fantastic original concept that works wonders on touchscreens. It’s simultaneously nostalgic, original, and fun, a winning combination. --Carter Dotson

Simogo has made a name on the App Store for themselves by creating stylish games that operate in a way that’s just a little bit different from the rest of the App Store. Year Walk is a haunting adventure that tells a strange story, seemingly influenced by Swedish folklore, that’s their best title yet. --Carter Dotson

Wrapcam is the newest photo editing app, but it’s not quite the same as the others. It does use a variety of filters, but these different filter options and effects are designed to let users wrap and roll pictures to create impressive photo art. It’s like taking a picture and wrapping it up in decorative paper or cloth. --Angela LaFollette

Within mere seconds of playing, Spunk and Moxie made me smile yet swear. Yes, it’s that kind of game. It’s entirely appropriate that cameos are made by characters from Spelunky, VVVVVV and Super Meat Boy, given they all share a similar level of difficulty. There’s even, currently, a $1,000 cash prize for unlocking all the stars! --Jennifer Allen

Other 148Apps Network Sites

If you are looking for the best reviews of kids' apps and/or Android apps, just head right over to GiggleApps and AndroidRundown. Here are just some of the reviews these sites served up this week:

GiggleApps
I am excited to introduce readers to a new maze app by GiggleUp, Preschool Maze 123. As the name may imply, is a delightful maze app for preschool children – a lovely companion app to their other lovely maze app, Toddler Maze 123. --Amy Solomon

I would never expect or encourage the iMarker and the Crayola Color Studio HD to take the place of coloring by hand with crayons on paper, but my son is quite interested in digital toys and tools. I am happy that he can continue to work on his pencil grip now while using this app, but I would love more apps or more material to be developed that would also work with the iMarker. --Amy Solomon

Sharing with Duckie Deck is a delightful role-playing app for toddlers which re-enforces how to be nice and share with others. --Amy Solomon

AndroidRundown

Rebuild is an interesting apocalyptic game from Sarah Northway that brings survival, end-times and zombies together in a fun, atypical way. It had the major zombie staples: zombies are running amuck, and I had to make it to a sealed off bastion of humanity, and guard against the undead that would just love to welcome us, uh, personally to their fold. Graphically, the developer did well to ensure that the zany artwork became a part of the gameplay, instead of distracting from it. There was a weird sort of bleakness to the abandoned All Mart that lent itself to the storyline. The hand-drawn art was from from unpleasant, and the game animations worked well. --Tre Lawrence

If I thought about some of the least sexy things that I could write this KickStarter Spotlight on, I would imagine that plastic screen protectors would be somewhere near the top. These are the things that nobody wants on their device and, in my opinion, something that really muddles the advantage in having a swift, crisp display. So, that aside, for me to take up an entire blog post about a screen cover it must be fairly incredible. All the latest advancements in Corning’s Gorilla Glass and similar products have ushered in a new wave of advanced smartphone screens capable of being ever sensitive as well as strong. Unfortunately, things do happen. Every smartphone owner, including your’s truly, has that story of the time that they dropped their phone a mere foot and ended up with that disheartening spider-webbed glass. While we might not be able to do anything about the glass in modern phones there is certain control over what goes on that screen. Enter Evolutive Lab’s Rhino Shield which, among carrying on the animal moniker trend, is by-far-and-away the most unbelievable protection that I have ever seen. --Joseph Bertolini

Vector is a side-scrolling running game based on the basics of parkour. It pitted me as an individual reluctant to conform to totalitarian regime in power, and with an understandable need to escape. I started by picking a location… the first of three (Downtown) was opened b default. Each level had its own appropriately named sublevels, which had to be unlocked. Actual gameplay jumped directly into the storyline, with a built-in tutorial (which is always a big plus for me). I had the bad guys after me as I jumped out of a building. Using swipes, I had to conform to my environment to elude an equally skilled establishment thug intent on preventing my escape. While running, there were goodies to collect, and tricks to learn. Prior to the action starting, I was given a trick or two to pull off, which determined moving on to higher levels. Coins collected could be used to open special moves, as could real cash. --Tre Lawrence