Game name: Lego Harry Potter Years 1-4 Device: iPhone Article type: Review
Price: $4.99 for iPhone
Lego is probably the greatest toy ever, and it is so easy to enjoy the games based upon the legendary blocks. I have enjoyed Lego Star Wars for the Xbox, and Lego Batman, Lego Indiana Jones 1 and 2 for the Wii. The only Lego game I have been disappointed with for the Wii is Lego Harry Potter. For the Wii you have to run far between the different levels, and it all become rather tedious. The setting is also too dark, and the game is too linear compared to the other Lego games. Lego Harry Potter for the Nintendo DS on the other hand has a good level selection portal just like Lego Star Wars for Xbox. The game feels more coherent, and yet less linear.
Game name: Wispin Device: iPhone Article type: Review
Price: $0.99 for iPhone
Last week, we took a hands-on look at Wispin [99¢], the debut game from indie developer Grumpyface Studios. Wispin is an arena survival shooter without the shooting, instead relying on a unique color matching mechanic as the core of its gameplay. I really enjoyed my time with the preview version of Wispin, and it has since become available for purchase in the App Store. If you typically like the kind of action you would find in the multitude of iOS dual-stick shooters, but are tired of how similar they’ve all become, then Wispin is worth a look as it offers a new take on the formula and does it with the kind of style and polish that would rival long-time development studios.
Game name: Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit Device: iPhone Article type: Review
Star rating: 4 stars (1 star = lowest score, 5 stars = highest score) Price: $4.99 for iPhone
Need for Speed™ Hot Pursuit for iPhone and iPod touch is an arcade thrill ride that places the player into some of the latest supercars to take down illegal racers. The game includes many different models that are kitted out in police livery, such as the Ford GT, Bugatti Veyron, Porsche Cayman S, Dodge Viper SRT10 and the Chevrolet Corvette Z06. To unlock these cars players will have to start from the bottom and work up to the top.
By participating in four different types of events, cash (otherwise known as bounty) is earned. Bounty acts as a global progress indicator, so whilst it cannot be used for purchasing cars or other accessories it gives the player a good idea of progress. Each time one earns bounty from an event it is added to their existing total, which indicates how much more bounty is needed to reach the next level. Then, once a new level is reached, a new car is unlocked which is available to use straightaway, and then the cycle starts all over again. As well as earning bounty for finishing first in a race or taking out a driver with a decent amount of time to spare, it can be earned for actions that you perform mid-race: using nitro for a speed boost, ramming another car, drifting or even driving safely all earn extra cash. For those who are impatient and want to drive the fastest cars as soon as possible, bounty is available via in-app purchase.
Game name: SteamBirds Device: iPhone Article type: Review Price: $0.99 for iPhone
New from the developer who brought us Canabalt [$2.99] and Gravity Hook HD [$2.99] comes SteamBirds [99¢/HD], an iOS port of the Flash game of the same name. Like Semi Secret‘s other games, SteamBirds takes an incredibly simple game mechanic and marries it with high quality presentation. At its core, SteamBirds is a turn-based strategy game featuring dogfighting aircraft from a top-down perspective. In an alternate history where a scientist accidentally discovers cold fusion in the mid-19th century, this new technology is used to create high-velocity steam-powered weapons on airplanes. These planes are then deployed into combat to complete the 21 missions in SteamBirds.
Game name:Puzzle Escape Device: iPhone Article type: Review Star rating: 3.5 stars (1 star = lowest score, 5 stars = highest score) Price: $1.99 for iPhone
What is it about helpless animals who can’t get from one side of the screen to another without human assistance? The formula, first popularized by Lemmings, makes another appearance in the guise of Puzzle Escape, which once again asks players to guide a helpless critter past dangers he has no business wandering into in the first place. While the game is very challenging and offers plenty of levels, there’s very little that makes it stand out from the crowd.
In Puzzle Escape, players must get a cartoon bear from the start of the stage to the final door, avoiding traps such as pits and spikes along the way. For each stage you’re given a set of power-ups such as blocks, springs or bombs which can be used to create a safe path for your furry friend. You then go through the trial-and-error process of trying to use the items at hand to beat each level. It’s the same formula we’ve been using for years, and it’s executed well enough here.
Game name: Hedgehog Launch Device: iPhone Article type: Review Star rating: 4.5 stars (1 star = lowest score, 5 stars = highest score) Price: $0.99 for iPhone
The crew over at Armor Games has a real knack for making addictive, simple games that manage to pile on the fun. Hedgehog Launch is one such title, and its appearance as an app is truly a welcome one. This little game is big on charm, gameplay and entertainment value.
Game name: Phoenix Device: iPhone Article type: Review Star rating: 4.0 stars (1 star = lowest score, 5 stars = highest score) Price: $0.99 for iPhone
I imagine that when the pioneers of video gaming sat around in their figurative garage, they imagined a video game that had space ships and so many things flying around the screen at the same time that they could hardly think. They wanted madness! Information overload! They then created Space Invaders.
Game name: iSlash Device: iPhone Article type: Review Star rating: 4.5 stars (1 star = lowest score, 5 stars = highest score) Price: $0.99 for iPhone
Your finger hovers over the edge of the screen as the ninja stars bounce wildly from wall to wall. You’ve got to be quick, those things all must be corralled and if even one gets away then it’s all over. Even worse, a mistimed cut and you’ll run right into one of those bad boys, which isn’t going to feel good in the morning. You see an opening and with a single swipe cut the room in half. Success! But don’t get too full of yourself, you need to make the space smaller still, and now there’s even less room for error.
Game name: Kiko: The Last Totem Device: iPhone Article type: Review
Fabulapps, makers of the instantly popular CrossRoads HD time management game for the iPad, announce the release of a simple, casual, yet never-ending puzzle game, Kiko: The Last Totem, for the iPhone and iPad. The new game from Fabulapps will be available through Apple’s App Store on October 28, but unlike most other games in the App Store, Kiko: The Last Totem will unleash the full potential of social gaming in a unique and addicting app.
Game name: Jamzu Device: iPhone Article type: Review Star rating: 4.5 stars (1 star = lowest score, 5 stars = highest score) Price: $1.99 for iPhone
While physical board games are bordering on a thing of the past, Jamzu proves that there’s still plenty of life left when you put the board game concept on the iPhone. The game is a breath of fresh air and will likely be greatly enjoyed by those looking for a deep, competitive title.
Game name: BIG BAD Flower Device: iPhone 4 Article type: Review Star rating: 4 stars (1 star = lowest score, 5 stars = highest score) Price: $1.99 for iPhone
Everyone likes big monsters, whether it be Godzilla-like beasts or Katamari balls. There’s just some kind of macho fascination with giant, indestructible things that are hell-bent on terrorizing the Earth. Flowers, though – flowers are tough. The idea to have a big killer flower has existed, and has been successful, in the past with the Little Shop of Horrors, but game developers tend to stay away altogether.
Game name: Super Twario Device: iPhone 4 Article type: Review Star rating: 4 stars (1 star = lowest score, 5 stars = highest score) Price: $1.99 for iPhone
Who said that a Twitter app had to be dull and predictable? No one, admittedly, but we all kind of assume that Twitter apps will be fairly obvious in their approach. Interestingly, Head First Communications decided to combine a Twitter App with a side scrolling platformer, at least partially.
Game name: Angry Birds Halloween Device: iPhone iPad Article type: Review / News Price: $0.99 for iPhone, $1.99 for iPad
This evening Rovio Mobile released a Halloween themed supplement to the original Angry Birds [99¢ / Lite / HD] with the somewhat obvious title of Angry Birds Halloween [99¢ / HD]. There’s not a whole lot to say about it other than it’s another 45 levels of Angry Birds set in a Halloween theme. There is a new spooky theme, ghost pigs, and pumpkins to smash everywhere.
Game name: Star Battalion Device: iPhone Article type: Review Star rating: 4 stars (1 star = lowest score, 5 stars = highest score) Price: $6.99
Gameloft seems to be hitting its stride as of late with the excellent sequel to Gangstar and Modern Warfare 2. Their recent games have all had fantastic controls, consistently smooth graphics, and half-ok stories to boot. Star Battalion, their latest game, doesn’t quite hit the highs of their latest games, but it also doesn’t sink down to the all-time Gameloft lows (Real Tennis 2009 – ouch).
Game name: Dead Rising Device: iPhone Article type: Preview
Console gamers have been going nuts this week with Dead Rising 2, a high-octane sequel to the 2006 zombie action game. Dead Rising Mobile on the iPhone, however, will trim out a lot of the original game’s features and everything in the sequel, making this a game about one basic idea: Killing zombies in a mall.
