Apple has made another addition to its team this week with a former Microsoft Product Marketing chief, Robin Burrowes, joining the ranks to become the head of App Store Marketing for iTunes Europe. Burrowes was previously part of Microsoft’s Xbox LIVE team, and he’s not the first gaming executive to head for Cupertino as Apple gets serious about battling consoles head on.
Zynga Games is a company that has made most of its many millions on games “inspired” by other titles. And by “inspired,” we mean “shamelessly ripped-off.” Mafia Wars was a rip-off of Mob Wars. Words With Friends is a rip-off of Scrabble. Cafe World is a rip-off of Restaurant City. And so on.
So when Zynga came knocking and wanted to buy up NimbleBits, developers of Tiny Tower (which Apple recently named one of their games of the year), it didn’t take a genius to figure out that if the deal didn’t go through, Zynga would rip-off NimbleBit’s games anyway. And — shocker — it turns out that’s just what happened.
ION Audio is showing off two new iCade products at CES in Las Vegas this week that provide retro gamers with physical controls while they’re on the go.
Unlike its original iCade Arcade Cabinet, which you wouldn’t dream of carrying around in your rucksack, the iCade Core and iCade Mobile accessories from ION are compact, lightweight, and ready to follow you about.
There’s nothing else quite like the highly sophisticated Real Racing 2 HD on iOS. It’s the platform’s best racing simulator, is one of the best games available for the iPad and may even be one of the most fun racing games on any platform (using the iPad as a steering wheel trumps a console controller any day).
While there are many benefits to gaming on an iOS device, such as cheap games and an impressive handheld experience, there is one downside: no physical control pad. That won’t be much of a problem to some, but to gamers like me — who like to play first-person shooters and retro platformers — a physical control pad compatible with our iOS devices is truly missed.
That’s why the 60beat GamePad is a dream come true for iOS gamers.
It’s that time of year again. Not the holidays — I’m mean yeah, sure it is, but that’s pretty obvious. No, it’s the time of year when we drive ourselves (and others) a little crazy running around trying to find gifts at the last minute. Especially those pesky stocking stuffers — the little gifts that fill in the gap between “it’s Christmas? Geez, I completely forgot” and “honey, I bought you a Lexus.”
We’re huge fans of OnLive’s terrific cloud gaming service here at Cult of Mac, and we’re even more excited to hear that it’s coming to iOS devices. The company has announced that an OnLive app is on its way to the App Store, which will allow users to play top-tier console-quality games on the go.
ThinkGeek is celebrating this year’s Black Friday event by slashing the price of its popular iCade arcade cabinet for the iPad. The accessory would make the perfect Christmas gift for iPad owners who love retro gaming, and for a limited time only, it’s down from $99.99 to just $59.99.
https://vimeo.com/31513704
Ticket to Ride began as a hugely successful, massively award-winning board game, then jumped to the iPad and rocked the gaming world all over again as a shining example of what a board game should be on the iPad. Today, it’s set to take the mobile gaming world by storm again as it emerges on the iPhone — and it’s going to go through the roof.
The Steam gaming network has been incredibly popular on the Mac since it made its debut in March of last year, and it enjoys over 35 million subscribers all over the world, offering a huge library of over 1,400 games. It’s not exactly the most popular network amongst gamers today, however, after it confirmed that its database has been hacked, potentially compromising the personal data and credit card information of all its subscribers.
I’ve been in the blogging-in-my-underpants business for a long time now, and over the years, one of the only things that has been an immutable law is that the long-awaited iControlPad for iPhone will always be just on the cusp of release.
So imagine the way my whole world flipped topsy-turvy when I checked my email box this morning and noticed that the unthinkable had happened, and iControlPad had finally been released. Is this even real life?
One of my first favorite portable video games was a boxing game on — of all platforms — a Casio calculator (that’s right — you think your life’s tough, try living in a world where the most entertaining handheld a kid can play with is a calculator). The third-person perspective of Manny Pacquiao: Pound for Pound, a new iOS title that’s expected to be released soon (pending approval by Apple), reminds me of that game. But with features like swiping for attacks, customizable outfits and being able to level attributes, it’s bound to be, well, a knockout.
Feral Interactive has released the popular game Batman: Arkham Asylum in the Mac App Store. For $39.99, users can download the title and play it on any authorized Mac.
The game has been highly regarded since its release, with Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill reprising their roles from Batman: The Animated Series as Batman and the Joker.
For all those kids out there frenziedly ringing doorbells or knocking on doors till your knuckles hurt: If no one’s coming out to rain candy into your little plastic jack-o-lantern, they’re probably just taking advantage of OnLive’s Halloween weekend of temporarily free-to-play games and too busy to come to the door.
Wizardry has to be one of the longest lived franchises in gaming history — and is especially beloved by us, because the dungeon RPG’s first-ever appearance was on an Apple II. Wizardry: Labyrinth of Lost Souls will be the newest title in the 30-odd-year lineage when it debuts on November 3 for the iPhone.
Let’s face it: Chess is pretty geeky. Then again, so is the iPad (c’mon, it is). Blend the two though, and you’ve got…well, let’s just say that playing chess on an iPad at your local coffee hangout is a Wookie’s fingernail-width less geeky than insert-hyperbolic-geek-stereotype-here.
Who cares though; with its portability, large screen and potential to reach all 600 million chess players around the world, the iPad is the ultimate gadget for playing electronic chess, and the free Social Chess app is the way to play.
Still sulking into your keyboard after you dropped $45 on Duke Nukem Forever for your Mac? Well, we did warn you. Fortunately, Feral Interactive is going to cheer you up with one of this year’s most anticipated games: Deus Ex: Human Revolution will be hitting the Mac this winter.
As the number of gamers turning to Apple’s handhelds continues to increase, America’s largest game retailer is going to try to pander to them. GameStop is reportedly set to begin selling Apple’s iOS devices in a bid to stay relevant in the modern gaming market. You might think that’s a surprising move, but it’s really a desperate one.
That’s what the developer NetDragon is trumpeting about Conquer Online — a MMORPG already playable on the Mac, PC — when it arrives on the iPad. When? “In the coming weeks.”
Imagine playing from your iPhone against anyone with an Android phone. That epic battle between Mac and PC types will be a more common option if an Austin startup is successful.
I have a friend I once queried about the contents of his PC gaming library. He looked at me a little quizzically, then replied that he had the only game one ever need play: Civilization. In that instance, it happened to be Civilization 4, Civ 5’s immediate PC predecessor, arguably considered the finest version of the series since Sid Meier’s original 1991 masterpiece.
He’s not alone. Press any gamer for a name that defines the category of turn-based strategy, and the answer will almost invariably be “Civilization.” Intelligent, beautifully crafted, incredibly detailed with finely honed gaming mechanics, the games are as much a beauty to behold as they are immensely satisfying to play.
The latest installment, Civ 5 ($40), released for the Mac late last year and recently added to the Mac App Store, is the biggest departure from the series since the original.
A 9-year-old boy battling leukemia was granted his wish to develop an iPhone game.
Owain Weinert, who has pre-B Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia, asked the Make-a-Wish Foundation to develop a mobile game. His wish was granted: the game, called Allied Star Police, launched in the Apple App Store Thursday. Developed with Seattle firm 4th & Battery, it’s offered gratis and also comes in an iPad version.
You’re always strumming out guitar chords while prancing around your living room listening to Yanni right? Well, here’s your chance for a more interactive experience for your air guitar greatness. Air Guitar Move is a connector for your iPhone/iPod Touch that combines a guitar pick with motion sensor technology to turn your wild flailing into sweet sweet music.
For this week’s giveaway we’ve partnered up with the friendly folks at Appular to bring fans a great package of iOS gaming apps, for free. We’ve got codes for five of the hottest games in the iPhone App Store right now and we’re ready to dish em out to our awesome fans to liven up your iPhone gaming lives. Today’s package of apps includes Cars 2, Tiny Wings, Hanging With Friends, The Game of Life, and Sea Battles. If you want a chance to win all five games then hurry up and enter the contest.
There’re absolutely zero reasons not to get this incredibly slick, fly-by-the-seat-of-you-pants remake of the 90’s classic racing shooter Death Rally iOS game unless you hate fun or you’re dead.