Latest blog entries (Page 1 of 4)
It's the Weekend! Hurrah!
by Lew Reed on 6th Mar 2010
Weekends aren't often of particular importance to me. This is, I'm sure, due to having been in education so long where the weeks and weekends are entirely seamless. For the short time that I've been fully occupied with office work, weekends have been something to look forward to; in the end I just play games all the time, and this is what I'll be playing this weekend!
Heavy Rain (Don't worry, kids, no spoilers here)
Despite what David Cage asks of me, I NEED to play this game again. I can't know that there are 22 endings without seeing at least a quarter of them, and playing the game again with the knowledge of who the killer is will obviously be interesting. I was fully captivated the first time around, and it's frustrating that CERTAIN PEOPLE haven't finished the game yet because I want to talk to them about it! I genuinely feel that it's a leap forward in not just narrative, but in approach to game design in general. You can wave your arms up and down all you like, it seems as if buttons are still capable of conveying emotion and involvement. Enough so that, at one point, I was genuinely scared about what might happen to a certain character. I tried turning back but the door was locked, I was trapped and had to force myself through some agonising minutes of suspense and fear.
I'll be trophy hunting mainly, but only because I know they're there to encourage you to see all the ways the story can play out. I don't want to play the game to break it or exhaust the experience, so I'll try my best to keep rainfall to a minimum.
Pokémon Pearl, FireRed, Emerald & Sapphire
I kinda like Pokémon, and in preparation for Pokémon Soul Silver - the remake of a game I never played - I'm playing as many GBA games as I can get my hands on so I can transfer my Pokémon up to Soul Silver eventually... assuming it lets you do that like Pearl did; I'm not actually sure now. Well, anyway, I'm hoping either that or transfers from Pearl to Soul Silver will work otherwise it's quite a bit of wasted time. Catching Pokémon at all might be a waste of time, but while I'm walking around in the garden with my Pokéball I will feel INVINCIBLE!
Professor Layton and the Curious Village!
Bought a new DS Lite this week and got Layton with it. Never was that interested in it before, but I'm really enjoying it and the puzzles range from easy-peasy to devilishly difficult. 'Hardcore' and 'casual' is not applicable here, nor is it anywhere else for that matter.
Other stuff
I'll be dabbling in Fahrenheit/Indigo Prophecy, Advance Wars Dual Strike and GTA China Town Wars, as well as the usual intake of Guitar Hero followed by the inevitable outlet of RAGEEEE.
Ground Effect Is Free Today!
by The Freeloader on 1st Mar 2010
The Free-App-A-Day crew are up to their usual tricks, this time the free app is a game, and a decent one at that! Ground Effect is your treat du jour!- DOWNLOAD
Here are some game features to sell you on the download...
- 14 challenging levels
- Choice of 10 Ground Effect craft
- Touch or accelerometer controls
- Stunning terrains - courses over land and sea - spanning 70 km2
- Attain speeds of over 400 kmh
- Throttle speed & boost controls
- High score recording
- Replay mode - take over and perfect your performance at any point
- Ghost race - race against your own fastest time
- Free roaming – explore at will
- Huge draw distance
- Sensitive and intuitive flight controls
- Enjoy the in-game music or listen to your iPod
It's dangerous to go alone! Take this.
by Lew Reed on 1st Mar 2010
Ah, so this is where I write about how stupid Lost is, and post videos of bands with 4 guitarists? Sweeeeet. Things I like include video games, heavy metal, specialty Tea and the phrase "if it's not a right angle, it's a WRONG angle".
You might know me from several places. Woffls is the name I hide behind most of the time, and you'll find me on various forums including videogamer.com and gameplay.co.uk. I previously worked with Jamin at Hide and Geek - which has since passed - for a while, and wrote a few iPhone reviews for videogamer before my dissertation got the better of me and consumed my life.
Pretty soon I'll be unemployed again and playing videogames all day, which, despite knowing exactly what it will be like, I am still telling myself will be a whole lotta' fun. I'll finally get to play Heavy Rain and Mass Effect 2 all day every day for achievements and trophies; I'm sure this is what I was born to do.
Graal Classic: A Free MMO Today Only
by The Freeloader on 25th Feb 2010
The Free App A Day crew have dropped another free game in your laps, this time it's an MMO called GraalOnline Classic. We really have no idea if its any good as we've just tinkered with it for a few moments before getting bored. Perhaps you'll have more fun?
Only one way to find out. TO THE DOWNLOADNASIUM!
GTA Chinatown Wars Lite Now Up. Go Go Go!
by The Freeloader on 23rd Feb 2010
EDIT: Currently only available in some countries.
Yeah so it looks like there's a trial version of GTA:CTW up on the App Store. I'm guessing if you're reading this you were previously on the fence so nows the time. Clicky click.
Beneath a Steel Sky: Lite+ Now Available
by The Freeloader on 23rd Feb 2010
The rather superb Beneath a Steel Sky can now be sampled for free thanks to the new Lite+ edition which comes with the built in option to purchase the rest of the game.
Is it worth a download? Basicaly yeah, it is. Get on the case already! - LINK-O-MATIC
Try X2 Snowboarding For Free In "Boarding School"
by The Freeloader on 23rd Feb 2010
X2 Snowboarding is awesome. That said, we're all about free stuff so if you want to play it for free before you inevitably splash some cash then here's what you want to do.
Go to this page of the App Store and download the free X2 Snowboarding Boarding School game that acts as a demo.
Here's what we thought of the full version as taken from Chris' review...
X2 Snowboarding does a lot stuff right, hell it gets almost everything right. From the crisp and vivid graphics to the fluid animation and satisfying mix of racing and trick based gameplay. X2 Snowboarding is an easy recommendation. You really can tell that a lot of work and effort went into making this the best game in its genre on the App Store and the team should be commended for doing so. Even the soundtrack has been laboured over with licensed songs from the likes of Bonobo and Mr Scruff to name a couple. With this release X2 Games have simultaneously made themselves a force to be reckoned and crystallised their position as being one of those talented studios to keep an eye on over the coming year. We’re expecting great things.
Rasta Monkey Free For Three Days
by The Freeloader on 23rd Feb 2010
In order to celebrate the release of their new game E-Punk Nikato are making Rasta Monkey free for the next three days.
Here's what we thought of Rasta Monkey in our review...
"Built around a simple swing mechanic, Rasta Monkey is a platform game that uses branches as platforms, and swaps jumping for swinging. Essentially, the game is all about getting from A to B, and collecting as much fruit as you can along the way. Many will draw comparisons to Illusion Labs' Sway, although Rasta Monkey is a far simpler affair, both in terms of its gameplay and aesthetic. This is by no means a bad thing however, Rasta Monkey is still an incredibly challenging game, and although only clocking in at around two hours of play, there’s enough here to entice even the seasoned gamer.
Rasta Monkey isn’t the most in depth or technically impressive platformer available on the App Store, but most will fall in love with it regardless. The game just has a terrific vibe to it. The catchy reggae music is fantastic, and in combination with the clean visuals and genuinely hilarious dialogue, a really fun and vibrant atmosphere is created. Although the game may live in Sway’s shadow from a gameplay perspective, Rasta Monkey can still hold it’s head high as one of the App Store’s finest platformers."
So basically it's pretty good and well worth getting for free! Here's the download link.
And here's a video of the game in action. Enjoy!
Hilarious Phoenix Wright Strip Made Me LOL
by Chris Thomas on 25th Jan 2010
This made me laugh up a storm. Enjoy!
Jamin's (Christmas) Week in Games
by Jamin Smith on 4th Jan 2010
Christmas for me has always been synonomous with gaming. Whether this came in the form of a console I was expecting as a present when I was young, working in game related retail for a bit of extra cash, or simply wasting away the festive hours catching up on all the titles I hadn't had time to play over the year. This Crimbo was no different, and as well as putting some serious hours into a variety of PC and console titles, I played my fair share of iPhone games too.
In attempt to continue my weekly round up of iPhone games that didn't quite make the review section of the site, here's a rundown of what I've been occupying myself with this Christmas.
All Fridges are Psychotic
Sporting perhaps the best name of any game ever, All Fridges are Psychotic is a homage to the classic point and click adventure games of years gone by. Following the antics of the aspiring script writer Julius Brown, the plot quickly introduces Gustav Du Pont, a time travelling fridge that helps Julius achieve his dreams.
Truth be told, I'm not completely sold on the visuals, which take the scrappy child like art-direction to a whole new level (The artwork was drawn by Manda Rin from the band Bis, if that means anything to anybody). The script and narrative is fantastic however, and I found myself laughing out loud as I played the game. The game, internet and general geek culture woven into the dialogue will force a few laughs out of the right player. The puzzles are decent enough too, and anybody who knows a thing or two about the adventure genre will feel right at home.
I'm really not sure how die hard adventure fans will take to All Fridges are Psychotic, as there's a lot in the game that could potentially rub them the wrong way. As I don't class myself as a die hard adventure fan however, I can safely say I enjoyed the game.
Cross Fingers
Cross Fingers is the latest puzzle game from Mobigame, the masterminds behind Edge. The game challenges players to fit a selection of wooden shapes into a designated area, much like a jigsaw, but with the emphasis on shape rather than picture. The game introduces some really neat touch based mechanics which can literally involve crossing your fingers in order to complete successfully. Red shapes require sliding out the way in order to move the normal blocks past, but as soon as you take your finger off them, they slide back to their original position. In order to complete certain levels, you have to keep quite a few of these red blocks in place at once, requiring Twister like finger skills.
Cross Fingers has a really addictive nature to it, and once you understand how the game requires you to think, levels can be completed with relative ease. Thankfully, there are three difficulty levels, each with thirty levels, and the latter levels get very hard indeed. Puzzle fans will love Cross Fingers, and should snap it up as soon as possible.
Champions Online
I've been feeling the powerful urge to get stuck into an MMO recently, and refusing to return to WoW, I thought I'd try Champions Online. Giving players the opportunity to customise their hero in literally any way they could possibly think of, the game gives rise to some truly awesome looking characters. Mine was no exception, and is without a doubt the coolest looking super hero I've ever seen (pictured below).
After putting around twenty hours into the game, I've lost the drive to play much more. As a role playing experience, the game is certainly no match for Blizzards behemoth, but it was certainly fun for a while. I'll cancel my subscription shortly and continue waiting for The Old Republic...
I also played a fair bit of Modern Warfare 2, Borderlands and one of my favourite RPGs of all time, Chrono Trigger. But I could wax lyrical about that those all day, so I'll stop writing while I've still got an evening left to enjoy.
That about wraps up this week's round up, hope all your Christmas's were as entertaining and relaxing as mine. Look out for more next week!
For more up to the date opinions on my game playing shenanigans, follow me on Twitter!
Jamin's Week in Games...
by Jamin Smith on 4th Dec 2009
Being the absurdly busy fellow that I am, I just don't have the time to review each and every iPhone game that I get sent. This sadly means that many of my fantastic opinions on the latest games go un-voiced, doomed to float around the expansive chasm of my mind for all eternity.
Here then, is the first of a weekly blog that attempts to solve this problem. A simple run-down of what I've been playing during the week; an offering of bite-sized opinions on the the smaller, lesser known games that couldn't make the front page of the site due to time restraints. Although I'll try to limit this to just iPhone games, the odd console game or two might find their way onto these pages too. I'll strive to update my blog every Friday with this feature.
Here we go then, this week I've been playing...
Pocketball (Big Bucket Software, $1.99)
Truth be told, I didn't go into Pocketball expecting great things, but the puzzle game designed by Matt Comi has caught me complelet off guard -- I'm hooked. A delightful physics-based puzzler that is addictive from the get-go. Pocketball has already stolen a fair few hours of my life, and I'm happy to give up a fair few more on top of that.
The objective couldn't be simpler. Guide a falling ball into it's correct pocket by drawing a series of ropes between pegs. Sounds simple on paper (and screen), but the difficulty soon ramps up, and you'll find yourself repeating the same level over and over again, adjusting the position of ropes to get the ball where it needs to go. This repetition doesn't get dull however, and is actually the source of the games addictive nature. With new mechanics introduced regularly, the game never gets stale and always remains challenging.
Recommended.
Headspin (Runloop, $0.99)
Runloop's quirky take on a line matching puzzle game turns the mechanic on its head, quite literally. A grid of nine robotic heads need to be adjusted so that all are facing forwards, which I can assure you is easier said than done. Dragging a finger upwards to spin a head will also spin the heads of every other robot in that column, and a sideways spin will rotate all heads in that row horizontally. Thinking in terms of rows and columns as well as in all three of our earthly dimensions is vital for success, and requires a different train of thought to that of similar puzzle games.
With three modes of play and global leaderboards, the game has a reasonable amount on offer, so long as the puzzle mechanic itself can entertain you for long enough. Headspin isn't fantastically innovative and the production values aren't as high as other puzzle games on the App-Store (although I have to admit the scrappy visuals did grown on me after spending a while with the game) but it's certainly worth a look for puzzle fans looking for a refreshing break from the norm.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Yes, the world and his mother are playing this game right now, and I'm no exception. I've yet to dip my toes into the icy waters of online-play, but the campaign mode is holding my attention more than well. As with every other game in the series, I'm playing through on Veteran from the get-go, which saves playing thorugh the campaign twice for extra achievements...
I haven't the time to offer anything more on the game than this, but it's fantastic, and I'm off to play some more right now.
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I've also been playing Skater Nation and Oh My Word! 2, but expect more in-depth reviews of these to hit the main site in the next few days.
More next week.
For more up to the date opinions on my game playing shenanigans, follow me on Twitter!
Black Friday
by Kelsey Hoff on 27th Nov 2009
From all of us at Pocket Monkey Games to all of you out there, a very happy (belated) Thanksgiving! I had planned to write this blog yesterday, but ah, you know how it goes. The cooking, the prepping, the eating, and the sluggish excuses for movement after the meal...it just didn't get done. But I'm hoping you all had a great time with great food.
And for those of you in other counties, well, shoulda been here. ;)
So today is a very special holiday all on its own: Black Friday. A day where you're all hoping to cop a few deals. Pocket Monkey Games has just what you need to break you out of that post-Thanksgiving daze: A sweet deal on Finger Slinger! Our weekend sale is still up through the end of today. Just $.99 to get you (or at least your gaming finger) moving again. Better yet, you won't even have to fight the crowds to get your game! Just visit the AppStore for some instant gratificaiton.
So hop on it, folks! Get your hands on this game and when you do, comment and tell me what you think! I'd love to know. :)
Happy Black Friday!
PS. PMG CEO Kris Jones and I had an epic TwitPic battle to see who had the nicest Thanksgiving dinner. You can see our pictures, and vote for who you'd rather have Thanksgiving with, on our Twitter accounts. Mine @PocketKelsey and his @Kristoferjones.
Collection Snaps, Novemeber '09
by Jamin Smith on 23rd Nov 2009
The best thing about having a blog is the audience that comes with it. I happen to be somewhat of a game collector and take every opportunity I can to show it off to the world. Granted, it's not a massive collection, but it's slowly getting bigger. A while back I posted some pictures of my collection as it was in the process of moving rooms. As a little follow up to that post, I thought I'd post some updated snaps of the collection in it's new home. The pictures don't show the collection in its entirety, as much of it won't actually fit in the new cabinet, but it gives you the general idea.
There and Back Again...
by Jamin Smith on 22nd Nov 2009
Kia Ora! Those who peruse the pages of AppGamer.net on a regular basis (and are familiar with our staff and writers) may have noticed that I haven’t posted in some time. The reason for my lack of contribution is due to the fact I was off gallivanting across the globe in search of adventure and excitement. Proof below.
Thankfully, I didn’t lose touch with what was happening in the iWorld completely whilst I was gone. Armed with my trusty iPhone, I was able to catch up on all the latest news whenever I came across a WiFi hotspot. When the never ending coach, train and plane journeys started getting too much, I hit the App Store to stock up on new games to save me from inevitable death by boredom. The excellent geoDefense was the saviour of most of my travelling within Australia (I even managed to bash out a review while I was in Perth), and when Beneath a Steel Sky was released I couldn’t resist splashing out on a copy even though I had a promo code waiting for me in my inbox. I also played a fair bit of Craneballs studios latest title; 33rd Division, which is undeniably the most refined and enjoyable time management game the App Store currently has on offer.
I also need to take this opportunity to apologise to the (literally) hundreds of publishers and developers whose emails have gone un-answered whilst I’ve been gone. I'm back now however, and will endeavour to answer every email I receive hence-forth. So drop me a line!
Admittedly this hasn’t been the most interesting of blog posts, but my fingers have been itching to get back to the keyboard, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to get back into the swing of things. Must be off now though, I have a mammoth pile of games to catch up on, and they're not going to play themselves.
