Category Archives: $3.99

The Guardian Review

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The Guardian Review is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Developer: The Guardian
Price: $3.99
Version: 1.03

Design Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Features Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Integration Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Overall Rating: 4.17 out of 5 stars

The Guardian online receives an audience of around 37 million people per month, second only to the New York Times for amount of online readers of a printed paper, according to the BBC. And with some 1.5 million iPhone 4s sold on the first day alone, news applications are sure to see an increase in sales. Presently, at $3.99, it sits at number 17 of the top paid news appslications in the US store. So is it worth it?

I’m all about making the content centre-stage for news applications. That means less frills, more visible articles and less loading times. The Guardian does things a little differently. Around one-fifth of the screen is taken up by the top menu bar, meaning there’s less room for article content. However, the bar is not entirely redundant – with three well integrated features, one of which certainly wasn’t expected.

Firstly, a search that is more advanced than its rivals’ equivalent. Options to choose between searching topics, sections and contributors are a welcome change, and the proper iPhone integration and Apple-esque design make it appear solid and well-built. It is. Secondly, an “edit home” section. The Guardian have done away with the typical horizontal-scrolling bar seen in CNN, FT Mobile, Washington Post and many others (a scrolling bar that I advocate strongly for news). Instead, they have followed the more traditional category-ordering method. Simply select which section you read the most, and drag it to top. Order the categories in your own personal preference. This does mean a bit more scrolling, but the application limits the number of stories per section (you choose anywhere from one to five) and offers a view all tab for each category.

The third feature is something that, in all of the news applications I’ve looked at, I’ve never seen. Trending news. Colour-coded from red (trending significantly) to yellow (trending a little), a list of all the trending news is presented. The trends are determined by the categories each author attaches to their publication. A nice idea to spruce up an application and see what’s getting the most coverage. The only trouble with it is that whenever you tap “back” after following a trending news item, it takes you back to the latest news rather than the trending news.

The award-winning articles are not let down by the interface either. The font is paper-esque, and can be adjusted in size. Articles can be e-mailed or sent to Facebook and Twitter, and can be added to a list of personalized favourites. High quality, low-size images make for refreshing viewing, and a list of related subjects means there’s always something more to read. The bottom menu bar is adjustable with some twenty options to choose from (see screenshots attached), including The Guardian Galleries. There’s also an offline-reading option where it’ll download the content you want – simply choose the sections – meaning no data is used thereafter. Great for reading material where you know there won’t be reception, or for travel.

Audio podcasts are available to listen and download. Unfortunately, audio sections can’t be added to the bottom menu-bar, where text-based content is given precedence.

The only real drawback is general sluggishness, probably due to the higher-than-average image content. On an iPhone 3G scrolling is noticeably jerky, but it’s smooth sailing on an iPhone 4. An option to turn off all images, at least from the front page, would solve this problem.

So is it worth $3.99? That’s down to personal taste. Certain papers write certain articles in a certain way. If you like the content on the web page, then there should be nothing stopping you. Although I favour the design of other news applications, there’s something very official and inviting about The Guardian app. Something that Apple themselves have perfected.

[ The Guardian Review is a post from 148Apps ]


The Hockey Experiment Review

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The Hockey Experiment Review is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Developer: Ninth Dimension Studios
Price: $3.99
Version Reviewed: 1.0
Device Reviewed On: iPod 3rd Gen.

Graphics / Sound Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Game Controls Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Gameplay Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Replay Value Rating: 1.75 out of 5 stars

Overall Rating: 2.81 out of 5 stars

Little monsters playing 3D hockey with an 8-bit sensibility sounds like promising premise for an app. Unfortunately, Ninth Dimension Studio’s recently released The Hockey Experiment does little with it, instead delivering a simplistic and uninspired hockey game.

If you’ve seen the trailer or preview images, you’ll probably agree that the game has a neat aesthetic. And really, that’s the best thing about it. All the players are these short, big-headed monsters called Mischievous Muckity Mucks, with scary skins applied over top of them. They remind me of the Cartoon Network’s little white mascot. They’re very appealing, almost like rag dolls. They skate around a nicely rendered, if somewhat generic, hockey arena. The visuals really do work.

Unfortunately, the Muckity Mucks are about the only nonstandard thing here. The developers didn’t do anything with their neat little creations, except apply them to the most basic of basic hockey games. This is real NES level game play. You have two buttons: one shoots and the other passes on offense, while one checks while the other switches players on defense. You move your players with a control stick. And … that’s it.

The fact that we get to play these neat little monsters is wasted, because they play hockey just like generic humans players would. There’s no special monster abilities, no skill differentiation between teams, no humorous bits where one creature bites another or roars. Skate, pass, shoot, check; that is the scope of this game. Even fighting, a moment that would seem to be ripe for some mischievous mayhem, is reduced to a single button tap mechanic.

There’s a couple of power ups, but they appear at random and don’t seem to do much. There are also different player builds like taller and faster or shorter and harder hitting; you won’t be able to tell which is which on the ice, though, and their differences seem minor at best. The teams are all the same generic skill, same generic play style.

I’m not saying that the Hockey Experiment plays poorly. It’s not a terrible arcade hockey game. But slapping some silly monster skins on your generic players is not enough to elevate this to a new spin on the game or to justify charging $3.99 for it. The experiment was not successful.

[ The Hockey Experiment Review is a post from 148Apps ]


Trail Tracking GPS That Multitasks, Thank You EasyTrails GPS

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Trail Tracking GPS That Multitasks, Thank You EasyTrails GPS is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Imagine walking in Paris, strolling around the city while marking your trail with an old version of EasyTrails GPS or any other trail tracking GPS app. Something really funny happens next to you and you want to shoot a quick video, but you’ll ruin your trail. Bummer. Later on you want to find the best restaurant in the area, but you can’t get out of the app or you’ll lose your trail. Thankfully the food is mostly good in the area, but there’s a decent chance that you end up in some average food spot when the best place in the world is right around the corner. Tracking trails is a fun way to take a walk because you can share the data with others and keep track yourself for later use, but the hassle of being otherwise tech free hurts quite a bit.

Fortunately, with iPhone OS4 and the latest version of EasyTrails GPS, you can let the app run in the background while you take that video and search for that restaurant. If trail tracking is your thing, whether you’re walking around a city, practicing for a marathon, or doing some cross country skiing, EasyTrail GPS may be the app for you.

$3.99

EasyTrails GPS 4

iPhone App – Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Released: 2009-08-14 :: Category: Sports

[ Trail Tracking GPS That Multitasks, Thank You EasyTrails GPS is a post from 148Apps ]


Osfoora HD, for Twitter

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Osfoora HD, for Twitter is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Developer: Said M. Marouf
Price: PRICE
Version Reviewed: 1.0.1
Device Reviewed On: iPad

iPad Integration Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
User Interface Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Re-use Value Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Rating: 3.7 out of 5 stars

The relationship between Twitter users and their apps has always been strange. What one user finds absolutely brilliant and perfect is horribly incompetent design to another. Osfoora HD is a new app for the iPad to try to hook iPad Twitter users, and it comes packed with powerful features, but it is only for users looking for a particular type of Twitter experience.

Osfoora HD lets you do everything that you’d expect from a modern Twitter app. You can view your timeline, replies, direct messages, lists, and search. When tweeting, you can add pictures, videos, geotag your tweets, shorten links, and even tweet songs from your library. These are all features that top-flight Twitter apps have had, and Osfoora HD’s inclusion of them even in its initial release is impressive considering other apps have had trouble re-incorporating features from their iPhone equivalents.

Osfoora HD not only comes packed with powerful tweeting features, but the interface handles beautifully, incorporating standard UI functions and doing them all in an incredible smooth and easy to use manner. As well, everything looks fantastic on the iPad screen, from user icons to just the crisp display of text.

The problem with Osfoora HD is that it really only takes advantage of the iPad in that it displays everything in a large font. Otherwise, this is basically just an iPhone Twitter client blown up to iPad resolution, even coming down to a similar number of tweets as iPhone apps display. It feels like a waste of screen space to present such a limited amount of information. It all looks nice, but the iPad is such an expansive device, with so much resolution and screen space, that to limit users to only display a small portion of one timeline seems almost criminal. This may be great for casual users, but advanced users may be feeling a bit claustrophobic only seeing a few tweets in their timeline at a time.

Osfoora HD is just a contradiction. It comes packed with a laundry list of advanced features that power users would expect from an advanced Twitter app, but then it shows itself to be more of a casual user-focused app to check up on a few people, or for advanced users who only like to check the most recent happenings in their stream. For users who like the kind of information overload that other apps can give them, Osfoora HD may be worth a pass. However, Osfoora HD’s got everything it needs to be a really great app with all its tweeting features, it’s just a question of what your needs are from viewing tweets, and if only viewing short batches a time is your preference, then Osfoora HD is a great choice of app, and is technically sound to boot.

[ Osfoora HD, for Twitter is a post from 148Apps ]


WWDC 2010: Kevin Beimers – Behind the Filth of ‘Hector: Badge of Carnage’

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WWDC 2010: Kevin Beimers – Behind the Filth of ‘Hector: Badge of Carnage’ is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Last week at WWDC we ran in to Kevin Beimers, the writer, programmer, and game action director for Straandlooper, creators of Hector: Badge of Carnage [$3.99]. Hector is an episodic point and click adventure game where you play the role of a disgruntled police officer in the town of Clappers Wreake. Like similar games, advancing the plot involves solving puzzles using items found in the game world either by themselves or combined in interesting ways with other items. There are also dialog trees to work through with the various citizens of Clappers Wreake and your conversation skills also become a large part in accomplishing the goals set out in front of you.

We really enjoyed the game in our review, and after hearing the story behind Hector, I can't help but enjoy the game even more. Before the filthy world of Hector was even imagined, the guys behind the game actually created a 52 part childrens' series, Lifeboat Luke, which is currently being aired in Ireland. Lifeboat Luke goes on nautical rescue missions and teaches children about safety at sea. Interestingly enough, Hector originally was pitched as a TV show as well, and there was even ground work for a pilot episode laid. Some clips of Hector can be seen in Straandlooper's showreel of animated clips they've worked on:

Aimed at a primetime UK time slot, Hector was meant to go up against South Park and other raunchy evening shows. Unfortunately, the insane popularity of reality TV has significantly cut in to the willingness for anyone to fund an animated project. Or, as Kevin put it, with reality TV all you need is a dozen people in a room with a camera and you've got a show. With the future of Hector as a TV series getting increasingly bleak, Straandlooper decided to turn their ideas in to a point and click adventure game.

Originally they debated building it as some kind of Flash game, but the lack of any strong way to monetize Hector as a browser game pushed them to the App Store– A place where, as Beimers explained, people are more likely to pay for and appreciate the amusing gameplay and animation quality of Hector: Badge of Carnage. Since the developers have been long time fans of point and click adventure games, the transition from animated short to interactive adventure was fairly natural. (And as fans of the genre, Kevin noted how awesome it was to have his works compared to classics such as Day of the Tentacle or Monkey Island.)

The project so far has been a success for Straandlooper, as from the first episode on the App Store alone they've already made more than they have on any of their other short animated projects. Hector's initial popularity has practically guaranteed the release of the second episode, where players will explore the police station that Hector works with as well as spend time getting to know Hector's various coworkers. They hope to release episode 2 within a year.

Some other fun Hector facts came out of our conversation such as the entire game being voiced by a single person. As many people in our forums have mentioned, Hector is a shockingly raunchy game to be approved on the App Store. Straandlooper actually planned for this, and had contingencies in place to do things like replace the porn shop with a store similar to Wal-Mart. Hector was under development for 6-7 months, with another 2 months spent on the "last 2%" of the game making sure everything was as refined as Straandlooper wanted it.

An iPad version is in the works, but since so much was tweaked and customized for the resolution of the iPhone screen, it may be a while until we see its release. However, they do plan on releasing the second installment on both the iPhone and iPad.

If you haven't played Hector: Badge of Carnage yet, you really need to give the game a try if you've ever enjoyed a point and click adventure game. For more about the game, take a look at our review.


Bounce On 2 Review

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Bounce On 2 Review is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Developer: Team Phobic
Price: $3.99
Version Reviewed: 1.0.0

Graphics / Sound Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Game Controls Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Gameplay Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Replay Value Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Overall Rating: 3.63 out of 5 stars

IMG_0622Bounce On 2 is the sequel to one of the App Store’s first platformers, Bounce On. I loved Bounce On, pure and simple: it was good, solid platforming fun, featuring awesome level designs, controls, and game mechanics. Bounce On 2 is a mixed bag. On the one hand, it offers a number of improvements, including closer Plus+ integration, new power-ups, and a new alternative control scheme. However, I couldn’t shake the feeling that a lot of the new “features” just added clutter, and I have to admit that I prefer the first game. Bounce On 2 is still a good platformer with a lot going for it…but it’s not quite a must-have.

If you haven’t played Bounce On before, the game is easy to pick up. You take on the role of Bounce, a red rubber ball who spends the game rolling and jumping through the game’s extensive world. Levels are dotted with enemies, obstacles, power-ups, and more. Bounce On has been called “the iPhone’s Mario,” largely because it involves a lot of good, old-school platforming, and I can’t argue with that title. For the most part, this is a “roll-and-jump” game that definitely evokes nostalgia.

The controls are still simple and functional, but this time you have two choices: tap and tilt. Tilt is the default, and I suppose I’m just used to it, because that’s what I prefer. Both work well, though neither is perfect—you’ll want tilt for fluidity, but touch controls give you much more precise control, which is necessary in the later levels. To jump, you simply tap the screen. Power-ups add more to the control scheme—to trigger your parachute, you tap the screen; once you get the fireball powerup, you’ll need to use a flicking motion to move.

IMG_0615This time around, the game revolves around a key-based system. Instead of simply navigating from Point A to Point B in a level and collecting optional gems along the way, different goals have to be fulfilled: killing all the monsters, beating a set time, collecting all of the gems. Meeting a goal (these are pre-defined) earns you a key; enough keys allow you to progress. It gets a little confusing, but once you get used to it, it’s easy to appreciate how the different goals can transform the same level into an entirely new experience. My biggest complaint about this method is the new level selection “screen,” which requires you to navigate a mini-level to reach a real level’s door. There’s a lack of continuity in the setup, and it’s disappointing. On the bright side, this allows you to progress without completing each and every level, which I consider almost a must-have function in any game.

The levels themselves are pretty good. Many use new, tricky mechanisms like switching the direction of gravity. The power-ups have been completely redone as well; now, you jump on boxes to unlock the power-ups within. They range from a ninja headband that grants double-jump to a parachute to a fireball. For the most part, things are still fun, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was missing. There was less of a sense of exploration and the levels are much more linear. Thankfully, you can still find challenges in the later levels.

The graphics have received a major overhaul since the first game, and now are much more complex…and also darker. The new look is supposed to be more sophisticated, I guess, but I miss the simplicity of the first game. Now it just looks more cluttered. Bounce, of course, is as cute a rubber ball as ever, but other elements—especially the text—look overdone and almost amateurish. It’s a matter of personal preference, of course, and it doesn’t affect the game as a whole. The soundtrack, on the other hand, is great.

As for replay value…it’s here, in spades. The original title featured three types of medals based on how completely and how quickly you completed a level. Now, you have multiple keys to earn, but it doesn’t stop there. There are also Plus+ leaderboards and achievements to unlock. Plus, there are Team Phobic “tokens” hidden in each level for you to collect. You can also post your records to Facebook and Twitter.

Overall, Bounce On 2 is a fun platformer with a lot of quirks and fun gameplay. It doesn’t quite live up to its predecessor, but don’t let that fool you. There’s a lot of replay value between the Phobic tokens, the keys, and the Plus+ leaderboards, and rolling through the levels is a lot of fun. I’d recommend the first Bounce On over its sequel, but this is a solid title nevertheless.

[ Bounce On 2 Review is a post from 148Apps ]


‘Touch Racing Nitro’ – A Single Finger Racing Game

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‘Touch Racing Nitro’ – A Single Finger Racing Game is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Bravo Game Studios' Touch Racing Nitro [App Store] reminds me a lot of one of my favorite NES racing games, RC Pro Am, which is a very good thing. In Touch Racing Nitro you race one of twelve RC cars around the eighteen included tracks. (Both are slowly unlocked as you play through the game.) There are a number of games that look similar on the App Store, but Touch Racing Nitro's single finger control method makes playing the game feel substantially different.

Instead of the somewhat expected racing controls where you're either tilting or using some kind of virtual joystick/steering wheel with on screen buttons, the developers have implemented this scrumptiously simple single finger input where the car goes in the direction of your finger, with your speed controlled by how far away your finger is from the center of the screen.

Our forum members seem somewhat divided on how they feel about the controls in the Touch Racing Nitro thread, but I really think once you get a hang of them they work quite well, especially since you can effectively play a fast paced racing game with one hand which allows me to multitask and do things like race my car in game while I drive my car in real life.

Like any good racing game, Touch Racing Nitro has its fair share of jumps for you to get massive air off of. This is assisted by using nitro that you pick up while burning around the track. Tapping on the screen with a second finger fires off your nitro which can either send you flying over jumps and ahead of the pack, or cause you to lose control entirely through a turn.

Two game modes are included: Tournament mode where you race against AI opponents and the self explanatory time trial mode where you can play any track you've unlocked. Sadly, there isn't any online leaderboards currently and the iTunes description only mentions Facebook Connect coming soon. After seeing how well Jet Car Stunts implemented their leaderboard and replay system via OpenFeint, it's hard to really imagine a racing game without that.

With how polarized the reactions on the forums have been regarding the controls, it really seems like Touch Racing Nitro is a game that badly needs a lite version. Once I got used to the single finger controls, I liked them a lot, but without anything to accurately compare them to it's hard to give a full recommendation on picking up the game if you're on the fence. So, it might be worth seeing how the online leaderboards play out and if a lite version ever materializes.

App Store Link: Touch Racing Nitro, $3.99


Artist Colony

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Artist Colony is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Developer: I-Play
Price: $3.99
Version Reviewed: 1.0.6
Reviewed on: iPhone 3GS

Gameplay Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Controls Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Graphics and Sound Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Re-use / Replay Value Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Overall Rating: 3.88 out of 5 stars

Developed by Vivid Games and published by i-Play, Artist Colony is a graphically exciting adventure which takes you on the journey of creating a thriving community or colony of creatives and artists. Much compared to that of the popular SIMs franchise, the game sees you take on the role of various artists and creatives to become the best you can be. Starting out, you (Ben) and your friend (Dylan) are thrown into a deserted and run-down community of buildings and establishments. Having not been used for years there is quite a bit of work needed to be carried out before you can both start to gain skill levels. Your first job is to clear all the surrounding debris around you and the various buildings, in order to access buildings like the art or music studios.

Just like most simulation games, your characters action will depend on the levels of their feelings. For example, you won’t be able to force your artists to paint, if they find that their own inspiration levels are lower than usual. To increase an artists’ inspiration levels, you have to take care of them. For example, when hungry you must drag them to the kitchen to eat .. (etc). After you’ve cleared most of the debris though, this is exactly what you’ll be asked to do. By painting, you’ll be aiming to get your artist to painting level 1 and beyond. Throughout the game, you’ll be continuously aiming to earn both skill, determination and inspiration, in order to complete more complex and challenging tasks ahead in the future. As you clear more and more debris and sticks from the ground, blocking the paths to other creative establishments and buildings, you’ll also unlock even more activities for your artists and creatives.

IMG_0547

Controls are pretty straight forward. While the game is hands-on, most of the time your artists and creatives move around by themselves in such time you need to call upon them. Need your artist to perform a task? Simply tap, drag and drop him or her to that location. If your artist is performing a mundane task or something which takes a hefty amount of time, you can speed up gameplay by tapping the fast-forward button located in the top right. In the left-hand pane you’ll see a profile of your current artists that are active. Tapping any one of these profile photos will immediately shift the camera focus onto this character, allowing for easy location of specific characters when more artists and creatives are eventually introduced into the game. If you ever need to hide this panel, tapping the button located in the bottom left of the screen is where you want to go. Right at the top of the screen is your primary goal. However frustrating and puzzling at times, this task must be completed or met, in order to progress in the game. Need to pause the action? The pause button is located in the the bottom right.

Once you level up in any of your skills, you’ll receive a short colony memo. To read and manage these, just tap the button located top left which looks like a closed envelope. Got multiple items you need to view? Head on over to the pause menu and then tap ‘Journal’. Your journal, like any journal, is where your goals, events and overall progress are stored. Within your journal you’ll also find hints and tips to restore the colony to its once former self. If you’ve earned enough inspiration and skill you’ll also be able to see and store paintings in your gallery. Your gallery is a place for all your artist’s works. From paintings to sculptures, photos dance shows and music shows .. your gallery is there to record the work produced by your artist’s colony. As the game progresses you’ll also start to earn money from your works. With this money you can then start to upgrade existing surrounding services, including buildings, garden features and more.

Artist Colony is a beautiful situational simulation title with vibrant visuals. While I thought the game could beneift from more features, including the ability to create your own in-game characters and overall gameplay length to be a little short coming in at just under 24 hours, I found that the attention to detail within the game, coupled with a great storyline and in-game control mechanics made Artist Colony an enjoyable experience.