Shall We Do It? (BATTRIX, Drop Wizard, rainblocks, Tumbledrop and Zoo Keeper DX)

You may remember how, in this recently published post, I said of the iOS puzzler, rainblocks: I'm not sure it's something I'll return to all that often.

Fast forward to today, just over a week later, and although I can't prove it, I'm pretty sure rainblocks--which was made by Eric Koziol--is now my most-played iOS game.

So, what's changed in the meantime? I don't really know, to be honest--well, other than I think my brain went on a walkabout during my initial experience with it, which prompted me to assume it was some sort of endless (or nearly so) puzzle game, like the Tokoton mode of the Zoo Keeper series.

In reality, it's a decidedly timed affair, with the result being that rainblocks feels like a mad-dash, try-to-beat-your-high-score kind of title--which is right up my alley, especially if it's stuck inside a portable device.

rainblocks

One aspect of this iOS game that I've always liked is its art style. It's very simple, but also very clean, colorful, consistent and even "classy," if that makes sense. In fact, I dare say it reminds me of something Nintendo or one of its second-party developers would have made during the GameBoy Advance era to fill the gaps between its heavy hitters.

As for the other games mentioned in this post's header, if I were to line them up based on how much time I've spent with them in the last week or so, I'd probably go with: BATTRIX, Zoo Keeper DX, Drop Wizard and then Tumbledrop.

I don't suppose you're up for taking in some of my thoughts on all of these lovely iOS games (and they truly are lovely, each and every one of them)? If so, please keep reading.

BATTRIX--This bite-sized RPG was made by the wizards at Opus Studio, who also brought the world the Half-Minute Hero games and Jikandia: The Timeless Land, which of course means it features some stunning spritework.

There's more to it than that, though--which probably won't shock anyone who's experienced any of the afore-mentioned PSP titles. This is most evident in BATTRIX's gameplay "hook," which tasks players with exposing its map one tile at a time. (You begin the game standing on a single, solitary tile, and nearly every step you take away from it reveals previously hidden areas and battle-able enemies.)

The idea is a perfect fit for the medium, and a lot of fun to boot. Also a perfect fit for the medium: the controls used in BATTRIX's battle scenes, which of course are intuitively touched-based and which also feature fast, frequent and intriguing weapon changes.

Drop Wizard

Drop Wizard--This was my first iOS game, and it's sure to remain one of my favorites for some time to come. The graphics here are absolutely adorable--and right up there with the best of the single-screen platformer genre, if you ask me.

The gameplay's great, too, in that it wisely considers and keeps in mind the iOS platform's weaknesses (generally unresponsive digital controls being the main one, of course) without letting them hamper the action at hand.

As for what all that nonsensical blather means for the end-user (me and you): instead of focusing on fast-paced leaps and twitchy, last-millisecond responses à la most other single-screen platformers, Drop Wizard focuses on strategy. Which is a good, as all you're able to do in this game, control-wise, is move your adorably behatted protagonist left and right. (Yes, that means there's no jump or other action button.)

I'm sure that sounds more than a bit nuts, but in reality it's brilliantly refreshing.

Zoo Keeper DX

Tumbledrop--Despite this game's title, it's nothing like the wonderful Bubble Bobble clone--or, rather, Snow Bros. clone--called Tumble Pop. That's disappointing at first, or at least it was for me, but it's doubtful you'll feel that way for long, as Tumbledrop's gameplay wastes little time in differentiating itself from any other title you're likely to compare it to.

So, what's Tumbledrop's gameplay like? I guess you could say it's a physics-based puzzler. Actually, it's kind of like Jenga, that block-balancing tabletop game that everybody's become obsessed with at one point or another. Only Tumbledrop is a lot more visually interesting, what with its on-point use of pastels as well as its bricks and blocks and stars that grin like non-creepy Kewpie dolls.

Anyway, it's a lot of fun, and it's no pushover (pun not entirely intended), which always is a good thing, in my opinion. In fact, I've only made it through a few screens so far thanks to its general toughness. Still, I hope I can make it a bit further before I stick a fork in it and move on to some other technicolor iOS title.

Zoo Keeper DX--If you've played some version of Zoo Keeper over the years, you've pretty much played them all. In the case of almost any other series, I'd say that's a bad thing, but these bright, animal-themed puzzlers are such a blast to play that I can't bring myself to do it.

One somewhat negative thing I will say about the iOS iteration of Zoo Keeper is that it's a bit lacking when it comes to modes and options--there are just three of the latter, as far as I can tell, and one of them is an online battle mode I'm unlikely to use.

Other than that fairly minor quibble (especially given Zoo Keeper DX's cheap asking price), though, this one's a ... well, it's a keeper, as that old--and appropriate--cliché goes.

See also: previous 'Shall We Do It?' posts

Please share your iOS game and app suggestions and recommendations here

In news that is sure to thrill my pal Simon, the oh-so-British proprietor of the Red Parsley blog, I recently bought my first smartphone.

Specifically, I got an iPhone.

Which means, of course, that I'm in the market for a whole bunch of iOS games and apps.



Have any of you played any iOS games or used any iOS apps that you think I should experience as soon as possible? If so, I'd really appreciate it if you'd name them--and tell me why you like them, if you're willing--in the comments section below.

Just so you know, I've already purchased the following: Drop Wizard, rainblocks and Sunburn!

I spent a few minutes with both Drop Wizard and rainblocks over the weekend, and I found the former game, especially, to be a lot of fun. (I also liked the latter, but I'm not sure it's something I'll return to all that often.)

PC version of Wizorb available now

OK, class. Raise your hands if you didn't buy Tribute Game's fantastic, Breakout-with-a-smidge-of-an-RPG XBLIG title, Wizorb, because you don't have an Xbox 360.

Great. Now, keep your hands up if you would have bought the game if it had been released for Windows-based PCs, too.

Well, I have good news for you guys and gals: A PC version of Wizorb is, as of today, available for purchase via GamersGate.com.



Those of you who didn't keep your hands up dropped them because you're waiting for Linux and Mac versions to be released, right?

Ah, I have good news for you, too! The guys at Tribute Games expect to release Linux and Mac versions of Wizorb in the next two or three weeks.

Don't worry, class, I'll let you know when they're available. Also, expect to receive a special homework assignment from me soon (as in, hopefully by the end of the week)--one that involves reading my long-time-in-comin review of this wonderfully retro game.

See also: Previous Wizorb posts

Nintendo's investors are idiots

I'm guessing you've heard by now that various analysts, experts and even investors are calling on Nintendo to make games for Facebook as well as for smartphones (Apple's iPhone, in particular). If not, you may want to read the article, "Mario Pressured to Jump to IPhone as Nintendo Wii, 3DS Slump," which caused quite a ruckus after it was published on bloomberg.com yesterday.

Personally, I can't think of anything worse--for investors or gamers--than Nintendo abandoning its heretofore-properous hardware business in favor of producing cheap Facebook and iPad/iPhone games. For instance, I'm not sure how the company would make more money by selling, say, an iPhone version of Super Mario Bros. for $.99 or even $5 a copy than it could by selling a Wii U version of Super Mario Bros. for $50 a copy.

I could see Nintendo having similar financial problems if it only took part of the above-mentioned investors' advice and made Facebook and/or iPhone games while also making 3DS and Wii U games. After all, surely a $.99 Super Mario Bros. game made for iPhone would negatively impact the sales of a similar Super Mario Bros. game made for Wii U, especially since the latter would sell for many times the price of the former?

Would you like to see any of these characters star 

in his or her own Facebook or iPhone game?

The only way I could see Nintendo benefitting from such a move would be if it produced and published only new IPs, or if it produced and published a mixture of new IPs and simplistic spin-offs of its existing IPs, for Facebook and/or smartphones.

That's just my opinion, of course--and I didn't exactly graduate with a degree in business or economics. Anyway, what do all of you think about these cries for Nintendo to enter the Facebook and smartphone spaces? Should the company follow that advice, or ignore it?

Edward Hopper x Leisure Suit Larry

Have you ever thought of Edward Hopper's iconic "Nighthawks" painting while playing a Leisure Suit Larry game? I sure as hell haven't. Of course, my only memory of this Sierra On-Line series is of sneaking into my uncle's office as a teen to play Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the Lounge Lizards on his Apple IIGS while he and my parents drank margaritas and played cards (hey, we were on vacation), so maybe I just haven't spent enough time with these saucy point-and-click titles.

Anyway, although I'm sure I'm not alone in having never imagined a visual mashup involving Leisure Suit Larry and "Nighthawks," at least one person has imagined such imagery: artist Aled Lewis, whose resulting illustration (below), titled "Just Another Sleazy Joint," is included in the SUPER iam8bit show that kicked off in Los Angeles last night.



Also included in the above-mentioned show are three similar mashups: One ("Divine Intervention") involving Leonardo da Vinci's "The Last Supper" and Police Quest: In Pursuit of the Death Angel, another ("How Appropriate, You Fight Like A Post-Impressionist") involving Vincent Van Gogh's "Cafe Terrace On The Place Du Forum 1888" and The Secret of Monkey Island and a third ("Indiana Jones and the Persistence of Memory") involving Salvador Dali's "The Persistence of Memory" and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: The Graphic Adventure.

Scratch that, I caved and picked up Angry Birds

I couldn't help myself. It was just sitting there, staring at me from the Mac App Store. I've only played a few levels thus far, but already I can see why everyone's atwitter about it.

Still, I'd love to give that lonely little app a bit of company on my rather deserted desktop by buying, sooner rather than later, a Mac port of Game Dev Story, too. 

Speaking of Game Dev Story, I just read that developer Kairosoft recently announced that Game Dev Story 2 will come to the States eventually--although fans shouldn't expect it to appear on any of Apple's App Stores anytime soon. (Read about it here.) Oh, and apparently the company also is prepping a similar title that places players in the shoes of a game store manager. (Read about that game here.)

Finally, another game I'd love to see on the Mac App Store is Electro Master. I have no idea how it plays, but I don't really care because: 1) it has a blocky, retro look and 2) it includes fruit! (See the grapes in the screenshot above.)

See also: 'Let me know when Game Dev Story is added to the Mac App Store, will ya?'

Let me know when Game Dev Story is added to the Mac App Store, will ya?

Sure, I could drop $4.99 Angry Birds or the original version of Pac-Man (as opposed to Pac-Man: Championship Edition), but I'd rather save my hard-earned cash for something I really want--like Game Dev Story.

For those of you who have never heard of this Kairosoft-developed title, it lets you manage a game company as it attempts to create a million-selling game.

Players get to create said company's game console, develop an array of games (including "dance RPGs" and "ogre racing" titles, according to this hilarious Wired article), hire/fire employees and more--although not necessarily in that order, of course.

Anyway, it should go without saying that if Game Dev Story were available on the Mac App Store it would be sitting on my desktop already. Here's to hoping that happens sooner rather than later.

Yet another reason to be envious of iPhone owners

iPad (I think), iPhone and iPod Touch owners the world over gained access to what seems to be a great new app yesterday: Hudson's PC Engine Game Box (aka TurboGrafx Game Box in the States).



This free app, which comes with a copy of World Sports Competition, serves as a portal for PC Engine games, a number of which--Bonk's Adventure, Bomberman '94, Dungeon Explorer, Military Madness and Ninja Spirit among them--could/should be considered classics.

Each title costs $2.99, although a daily "featured game" can be sampled, free of charge, for three minutes.

(Via 1up.com and andriasang.com)

Drinks all around!

I just got back from the Apple Store, and although the Genius Bar employee who met with me didn't know what was wrong with my MacBook (he said it looked pristine inside even though I dumped a glass of water on it a few days ago) he said Apple would take care of it--without charging me a dime.

It's possible the hard drive will have to be replaced (which would mean I would lose some data) but the Apple guy said that was unlikely. Oh, and after the laptop is fixed it'll be shipped directly to our home--early next week. Is that awesome news or what?

(By the way, the Snow White-branded MacBook in the photo above isn't mine--although I do think it's kind of sweet.)

See also: 'Computer says no'

Sorry, (Explorer and) Safari fans

I recently realized that this site looks a bit wonky when viewed via Internet Explorer and Safari. Sorry about that.

My advice: Access it through Chrome or Firefox instead--especially if you want a wonk-free blogging experience.

Trism 1.51 (aka Trism HD): Coming soon to an iPad/iPhone 4 near you

How many hairs been pulled from the heads of gamers since Steve Demeter's iPhone/iPod Touch puzzler, Trism, hit the App Store three years ago? I have no idea, but if I had to guess I'd say it's in the millions if not trillions.

That number is sure to increase once Trism 1.51 (aka Trism HD) is released. After all, the update will allow iPad and iPhone 4 users to get in on the Trism action.

No word on when Trism 1.51--or the announced-some-time-ago Trism 2--will hit the App Store, though Demeter assures both are on their way in his latest blog post.

What do you think the chances are that I'll get an iPad, iPod Touch or an iPhone before that happens? Yeah, I don't think they're very good either.

See also: 'The man behind the Americanization of Mother 3's Magypsies' and 'The Advocate: Apple's Gay Poster Boy'

Please excuse me as I drool all over my keyboard

If I had a cellphone (I know...), I'd buy one of these Classic Mac felt cases, created by Etsy seller RabbitRampage, in a heartbeat.

Instead, I'll just stare at it--and this similarly slick GameBoy felt case--longingly.

See also: 'You know, I think I need a new mouse pad ...' and 'That's nice. Now where's my Game Gear soap?'

Remember when I said Square Enix was planning to port Final Fantasy to the iPhone?

Well, the port has hit the U.S. App Store--at the rather attractive price of $8.99. (Attractive compared to the $19.99 price tag attached to the nearly identical PSP version of the game, at least.)

Anyway, here's a video of someone playing said port:



An iPhone port of Final Fantasy II--aka "the Final Fantasy even the biggest Final Fantasy fanboys should ignore"--is available, too, and also costs $8.99.

I'd probably pick up part one if I had an iPhone or an iPod touch. As it is, I'll probably pick it up for the PSP--if I can find it somewhere for $9.99 or less.

See also: 'You don't say: Square Enix is going to release Final Fantasy I and II *again*'

I must have missed the 'Noby Noby Boy is coming to the iPhone' announcement

Another thing I missed: It'll be a completely different beast than its PS3 counterpart. At least, I think that's the case after watching the following WTF-ish teaser trailer.



Two additional videos that show off unique aspects of the iPhone/iPod touch title can be found here and here. I'd describe them to you but, honestly, I have no idea what's happening in any of them.

See also: 'Next up: Saturn!'

(Via tinycartridge.com)

Trism 2: Coming soon to an iPhone, iPod touch or iPad near you

Steve Demeter, the gay game developer who made headlines around the world following the release (and runaway success) of his first iPhone offering, Trism, recently announced that a sequel will soon be made available for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad.

Unfortunately, that was the extent of his announcement--well, other than the following teaser trailer:



Keep an eye on the Demiforce site and/or Demeter's blog for more information on this much-anticipated title.

See also: 'Steve Demeter: The man behind the Americanization of Mother 3's Magypsies' and 'The Advocate: Apple's Gay Poster Boy'

Will Apple's iPad steal gamers away from the DS and PSP?

Considering the gadget's price ($499 for 16GB, 32GB for $599 and $699 for 64GB--plus $130 if you want 3G) and size (9.56 by 7.47 by 0.5 inches, with a 9.7-inch screen), I kind of doubt it.

(Curious to see how the iPad stacks up to the DS and PSP? Check out this GamesRadar.com article. For those of you who don't feel like clicking on the link: It's a beast compared to the DSi, DS Lite, PSP and PSP Go, but it's only slightly larger than the upcoming DSI XL.)

Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter seems to think otherwise, telling IndustryGamers.com: "The one device I think will suffer from the introduction on the games side is the DS. I think ultimately a tablet at the right price is the kind of thing you buy your kid for school, since they could take it to school, bring it home and do their homework. But I think the bigger issue is the proliferation of games on Apple devices, and you're going to see a lot of cross-fertilization of games between the iPod Touch, iPhone and the tablet, so I actually see the iPod Touch benefiting from that."

EEDAR analyst Jesse Divnich is a bit more cautious. "The success of any gaming hardware device comes down to its installed base and quality third-party support. If the iPad wants to succeed as a serious gaming platform they will need support from the major players in our industry (i.e. Electronic Arts, Take-Two, Ubisoft, etc), but to receive quality support these publishers need to be reassured that the gamer installed base can surpass 20 million (worldwide). There is no point in making great games if no one is there to purchase them."

If this Bloomberg.com article is any indication, Apple's already on the right track when it comes to attracting the attention of third-party developers and publishers. Case in point: Jon Kromrey, general manager of the Apple games group at Namco Networks America Inc., shares that he is “having fun thinking about all the wonderful things we can do with the device.”

For more on the iPad's potential as a games machine, check out this PCWorld.com article.

See also: 'Not sure if want, part deux: Game 'apps' on the Amazon Kindle'