The Portable Podcast, Episode 48

The Portable Podcast, Episode 48 is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Crank it up!

On This Episode:

  • Carter talks with Doug Davies of Funky Visions about Jiggle Balls HD, as well as discussing what the September 1st Apple event could bring to the table with new devices.
  • Carter and Rodney Gibbs of Ricochet Labs talk about their new social quiz game QRANK, the tweaks made to the game, the emphasis on geolocation brought to the game, and what the future holds for QRANK across various platforms.
  • Who Are We:

  • Host: Carter Dotson
  • Guest: Doug Davies, Funky Visions (Jiggle Balls HD)
  • Guest: Rodney Gibbs, CEO of Ricochet Labs (QRANK)

  • Music:

  • “beatnes7 (The Portable Podcast’s Theme)” by The Eternal
  • “Nanocarp” by The Eternal
  • Where To Listen:

  • Click Here to Subscribe in iTunes:
  • Listen on WRGT Radio every Friday at 4pm Central
  • Listen Here:
  • Apps Featured in this Episode:

    $1.99

    iPad Only App – Designed for the iPad
    Released: 2010-08-27 :: Category: Entertainment

    FREE!

    iPhone App – Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad

    Our Rating: ★★★★☆ :: TRIVIA-TASTIC
    Read Our Full Review >>

    Released: 2010-03-23 :: Category: Games / Trivia

    [ The Portable Podcast, Episode 48 is a post from 148Apps ]


    iBeerCooler

    iBeerCooler is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

    Have you ever missed the goal of your favourite team or the best moment in movie because you went for a while to check if your beer is already cool? Be sure it will never happen again.

    iBeerCooler is a unique application which uses an advanced physical model to estimate time needed to cool a beer down in your freezer. It will keep you informed about the cooling progress and let you know as soon as the beer is ready.
    No more missed goals or warm beer!

    Features:
    Live preview – shows the current beer’s temperature.
    Advanced physical model – Temperature sliders for setting temperature of your beer (ambient) as well as in cooler/freezer.
    Wide range of beer selection: Lager, Ale, Wheat beers, as each beer has its own physical characteristics.
    Top notch graphical design – No more boring apps!
    iOS4 Local notifications – keep you informed whatever you do.

    We are sure you will enjoy it, as much as we do. So grab your favourite beer and give it a try!


    Peavey Introduces AmpKit for iPhone

    Peavey Introduces AmpKit for iPhone is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

    Remember how just over a month ago I wrote about AmpliTube, the guitar amplification application for your iPhone and iPad? Well, Peavey Electronics have now joined the scene with their AmpKit software to create a bit more competition and rivalry in the music amplification section of the App Store.

    AmpKit turns your iPhone into a highly customizable guitar amp, boasting a myriad of effects and the ability to record your latest music creations. Such effects include the pedals Noise Gate and Elevenizer, and the mics Workhorse 57 dynamic and Germann 87 condenser. As is to be expected, AmpKit contains a number of in-app purchases, including: 12 more amps, 16 effects padls, 13 cabinets and 8 unique mics. Most of these extra purchases are in the range of $2.99-$5.99.

    “We’re delighted to be working with Peavey to provide AmpKit and AmpKit LiNK to musicians around the world. Peavey’s world-class hardware design and manufacturing capabilities complement Agile Partners’ unmatched expertise in creating guitar-focused apps for the iOS platform,” said Jack Ivers, a principal at Agile Partners. “Peavey’s music industry experience and global dealer network will provide musicians around the world with easy access to the AmpKit LiNK guitar adapter.”

    The aforementioned AmpKit LiNK adapter, required to hook up your guitar, costs $39.99 and is available worldwide. Interestingly, this is exactly the same price as Amplitube’s IK Multimedia iRig, AmpKit LiNK’s main rival.

    The iPhone application comes in two flavours: free and plus. The plus version costs $20, and with that you’ll get access to: a Peavey 3120 amp and a matching 4×12 cabinet, a Colonel Vintage amp, a Vintage Brit amp and a number of additional pedals including distortion, fuzz, compressor, chorus, phaser, flanger, reverb and 10-band EQ.

    The application is not natively iPad supported, meaning you’re stuck to the iPhone if you choose the Peavey solution. Agile Partners, developers of the application, are also the authors of the much-renowned GuitarToolkit and TapToolkit applications.

    Images courtesy of Peavey. For more details on the application and where to buy the LiNK hardware, here’s where you need to go.

    $19.99

    iPhone App – Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
    Released: 2010-08-24 :: Category: Music

    FREE!

    iPhone App – Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
    Released: 2010-08-24 :: Category: Music

    [ Peavey Introduces AmpKit for iPhone is a post from 148Apps ]


    R-Type Review

    R-Type Review is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

    Developer: DotEmu
    Price: $1.99
    Version Reviewed: 1.0
    Device Reviewed On: iPhone 3G, iPad

    Graphics / Sound Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    Game Controls Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
    Gameplay Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    Replay Value Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

    Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

    When R-Type was first announced for the iPhone, I initially felt some skepticism as to how good the port could be: R-Type is notorious for its difficulty, and shmups (shoot ‘em ups) need the kind of precision control that the iPhone sometimes struggles to provide. EA partnered with DotEmu for this port of Irem’s classic, and I am proud to say that my skepticism has been invalidated by the work done here to make this game play as well as it possibly could on iOS.

    R-Type is a known for two things: being heavily reliant on set enemy patterns and for being insanely difficult. Your only tools to fight the Giger-esque alien hordes are your ship and detachable shield satellite powerups given to you, so it’s all about your reflexes and memorization of enemy patterns to try and get you through the game’s 8 levels. Good luck with that.

    Luck is on your side, though, as the controls of R-Type are great. The best option is the offset touchscreen controls, which give you buttons for firing and deploying your satellite, and let you move your ship by dragging around anywhere on the left side of the screen with a 1:1 movement offset. There are also surprisingly accurate tilt controls and a Coin-Op control scheme featuring an on-screen d-pad and a screen with an angled effect, like playing an arcade machine. All the controls work remarkably well to the point where I felt more like dying was the fault of the game being impossibly hard, rather than any control issues. And while the game is hard, there is an Unlimited mode that gives you infinite lives to play with, so completing the game is merely a matter of will. The game also saves your exact position upon exit, making it incredibly convenient to play on the go.

    Of course, R-Type is still a paragon of Japanese shmup design – it’s full of enemy patterns that you have to learn and it will frustrate you until it turns you into a screaming and crying wreck. And I’m just talking about Unlimited mode – the limited lives given to you in Normal mode will likely prevent anything but the most skilled of players from getting past the first couple of levels, and there’s somehow an Insane difficulty available, which is difficult to even comprehend. The biggest complaint about R-Type is that it runs sluggishly on the iPhone 3G, for it is an emulation of an old game; on more powerful devices it runs without complaint.

    The best compliment you can give a game like R-Type is that it is accurate to its roots – DotEmu’s port is nothing if not wonderfully done, as it lets the original game shine through without any question about the quality of the port. R-Type is still an insanely difficult shmup that is best consumed by those well-versed in the genre or looking to experience a classic entry in it, but those looking to experience this monument to old-school gaming will find a fantastic port awaits them.

    [ R-Type Review is a post from 148Apps ]


    BlockHead Pix

    BlockHead Pix is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

    Design vintage video game style characters to use as profile images on your favorite social networking sites, forums, blogs, photo/video sharing sites or your mom’s refrigerator. Classic game graphics were all about the pixels. A guy with just three pixels for arms could jump over crocodiles, rescue his royal love-interest and save the planet from galactic invaders. By those standards these little boxes should be more than up to the task of impressing your friends and followers. Re-create 8-bit versions of your favorite characters or concoct something completely unique. BlockHead Pix gives you familiar and intuitive tools to craft pixel perfect images. Once you’ve designed an avatar with just the right amount of underdog meets protector of the planet, upload directly to your Twitter profile or send a tweet with built in Twitter integration.

    Features
    * Create classic game style characters with unique pixel perfect precision.
    * Show off your arcade inspired avatars on Twitter with a touch.
    * Upload directly to your Twitter profile image.
    * Level up all your profiles with easy export options including email and save to photo album.
    * Draw with familiar tools, auto-save and shake to undo.
    * Get started with built in character templates.
    * Keep track of how many pixels you’ve conquered with the stats scoreboard.


    ‘Godville’ A Month Later – Still The Best Game I Don’t Play

    ‘Godville’ A Month Later – Still The Best Game I Don’t Play is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

    A little over a month ago I first posted my review of Godville [Free] and was entirely amused by the concept behind the game. In essence, Godville is barely a game at all, as your interaction with the world is limited to either encouraging or punishing your hero who otherwise just goes about his business. You play as your hero's god, and the "game" basically consists of you reading the events that transpire in your hero's life. Depending on how you treat your hero either through punishment or encouragement, your hero will either be a cold hearted bastard killing everything in its path or a happy go lucky lover of all things living… Or something in between.

    Godville is a community driven game, and once your hero reaches level 10 you're able to participate in the idea box. You can submit ideas for items, equipment, quests, enemies, combat actions, and tons of other things. Users then vote on these entries, which are eventually implemented in the game. Initially, the adventures of your hero in Godville when the game first launched were fairly repetitive, but after a month of idea box submissions from users, the game has only grown more amazing.

    Not only is Godville getting better from user submissions, but the developers have been hard at work releasing updates both to the Godville client itself, and the web-based backend that powers the whole game. Special artifacts are one of my new favorite inclusions. These are new items that your character will loot from monsters or win from duels that have special abilities. Of course your hero is entirely too stupid to operate said artifacts themselves, but you can spend your god power (otherwise used for punishing and encouraging) to have them operate the item. These items can teleport them back to town, put a gold brick in their inventory, strike a death from their records, and many other things.

    The amusing part of all this is that if you don't catch that your hero has one of these special artifacts in their inventory, chances are they'll just give it away, sell it, or otherwise get swindled out of it before you even have a chance to use it. Even if you do use it and it has some marvelous effect, they'll usually just hawk it for beer money anyway. How little control you have over your hero is part of what makes Godville so much fun for me, as my hero almost never does what I want him to do, but seemingly has developed his own (fairly stupid but evil) personality of his own.

    Previous to the recent update, your character would randomly find themselves in duels with the heroes of other players. Now, every few hours, you can send your hero off to an arena to immediately participate in these duels. Aside from potentially humiliating another god with defeat, winning a duel also awards you all the coins that the opponent is holding along with some other swag… This is often lost anyway as your hero's ego grows and he bites off more than he can chew in combat, then endlessly begs you to be resurrected.

    I decided to post about this game again not only because it has had significant updates since our initial review, but also because I'm downright amazed that a game that isn't really even technically a game has held my attention for so long. Checking up on what my Godville dude is doing has somehow managed to slip in between checking my email and checking my Twitter feed on my phone. Admittedly, when I first tried the game I thought Godville had sky-high novelty value, but I didn't see it lasting for me as most novelty-heavy games are only amusing until said novelty runs out.

    The buckets of creativity being dumped in to Godville seems to always make loading up the game amusing. Initially I only saw Godville as a clever jab at the grind of RPG's as instead of you spending your time grinding, your hero does it for you. After spending an immense amount of time with the game over the last month, Godville seems to be the most captivating virtual per experience I've had so far on the iPhone. If you haven't yet, you really need to give this game a try to see if it grows on you just as much as it has grown on me.

    App Store Link: Godville, Free