Category Archives: $4.99

Mirror’s Edge Review

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Mirror’s Edge Review is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Developer: EA Mobile
Price: $4.99
Version Reviewed: 1.0
Device Reviewed On: iPhone 3G

Graphics / Sound Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Game Controls Rating: 4.25 out of 5 stars
Gameplay Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Replay Value Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

Overall Rating: 3.81 out of 5 stars

Better late than never. Mirror’s Edge has been a long time coming for the iPhone, having finally been released almost 4 months after the iPad version was released. Mirror’s Edge is an adaptation of the eponymous console game, which has you playing as Faith, a ‘Runner’ who deftly navigates urban landscapes trying to get to her goal. There’s a storyline similar to the console version, but it is largely irrelevant here, as the only hints of it are in the scrolling text sections between levels. All the levels largely only differ in setting, as the goal in each level is the same – get to the end without dying from falling, bullets, or high-temperature steam. Of course, getting to the end of each level means performing acrobatic maneuvers to get over or under obstacles, stringing together wall runs, trying to discover the hidden messenger bags spread throughout the levels, all while trying to complete the levels as quickly as possible.

Mirror’s Edge’s platforming is fantastic. This was the strongest element of the console version, but now that the game is a 2D sidescroller, you can now enjoy the experience of the game without the nausea of the first person view, which makes this game feel far more like the pure parkour platformer that it can be. The striking visual aesthetic is also perfectly represented, with the city scenes all looking amazing. The game also runs very well, even on the iPhone 3G on iOS 4.0, with only minimal slowdown. The controls also are based on swiping gestures, not tapping virtual buttons, and while the running is often frustrating if you’re trying to stop to stand still, it makes chaining together long runs very intuitive.

Mirror’s Edge’s crucial flaw? It is very short. How short is it? My iPhone 3G’s battery wasn’t even halfway drained when I finished playing in a straight through session. There are only 12 short levels, with the only replay value coming from completing the levels for speed runs. As well, while combat is a lesser focus than it was in the console games, it’s still incredibly annoying, as it largely only breaks up the pace of the game. Also? The game ends on an incredibly anticlimactic note, similar to Splinter Cell: Conviction. Look, I know that you’re bound to what the console game’s storyline does, but that is no excuse for such an abrupt and unsatisfying endpoint to any game.

Mirror’s Edge may be short, and not fully rid of the horrid combat that has brought its other incarnations down, but it still is a fantastic agile urban platformer that shines more than it ever did on the consoles. It needs more content and more tweaking, but as far as it stands, Mirror’s Edge is a fun albeit brief platformer for the iPhone. Even it did take a while to finally hit the smaller devices.

[ Mirror’s Edge Review is a post from 148Apps ]


Supermarket Management HD Review

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Supermarket Management HD Review is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Developer: G5 ENTERTAINMENT
Price: $4.99
Version Reviewed: 1.0
Device Reviewed On: iPad

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

Overall Rating: 3.25 out of 5 stars

If you’ve played other time management games, then Supermarket Management HD, the new iPad offering from G5 Entertainment, will be instantly familiar. You control Kate, an aspiring supermarket manager who must race around a busy store, stocking shelves and serving customers to keep them happy.

Both the controls and the game play work the way you’d expect them to, and there’s nothing inherently wrong with either. By tapping on areas where tasks need completing, Kate goes to the area and accomplishes the task. Sometimes tasks require Kate to perform a skill of some sort, like building appetizers or selecting the right cake as it scrolls by. Scoring is based on how happy the customers are when they check out – the happier they are, the more money and credit coins are earned. The early levels are easy, and the customers are not that demanding; but later levels become increasingly chaotic. The best strategy is to keep Kate moving, to monitor the shelves at all times (empty shelves earn angry customers the quickest) and get everything done. G5 has done a decent job of keeping it balanced, so that while any level can become chaotic, it’s always possible to complete it. They even threw in some mini-game challenge levels to mix things up.

Visually, the main game looks okay. It’s done in a cartoon style that’s typical for these games, and there’s nothing to complain about. The comic book “cut scenes” are less accomplished, however, and accompanied by scripted dialogue that is both badly written and badly translated. Just skip through these and get to the next level — there’s nothing in them worth reading.

There’s no way to review Supermarket Management HD without comparing it to the Diner Dash series in its look, its controls, its game play, and even its comic book presentations; and in every category Supermarket Management HD feels like a copycat. This isn’t to say that task management games aren’t a dime a dozen in the App Store. But Supermarket Management HD just seems like a particularly obvious one, and one that does not do what some other copycats do: apply top-notch development to the imitation.

Overall, Supermarket Management HD isn’t a terrible game, but it is not a great game, either. If you’ve conquered Diner Dash, Diner Dash: Grilling Green, and Supermarket Mania, and you’re shopping for one more task management game to scratch that itch, then Supermarket Management HD might make you a happy customer. If you’re looking for something fresh, however, then you might get better service elsewhere, because this store’s shelves are empty.

[ Supermarket Management HD Review is a post from 148Apps ]


‘Rimelands: Hammer of Thor’ Review – Roll the Dice in this Epic Turn-Based RPG

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‘Rimelands: Hammer of Thor’ Review – Roll the Dice in this Epic Turn-Based RPG is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Rimelands: Hammer of Thor [$4.99] is a new tactical turn-based RPG from developers Dicework and Crescent Moon Games (of Ravensword [$3.99/Lite] fame). We previewed a hands-on video of the game about a month ago that explained how the turn-based combat worked as well as showcasing some of the games many items and weapons. With Rimelands now available, we've been able to experience these first hand, and came away impressed with how well the different elements of the game come together. The dice-rolling combat mechanic gives it an old school pen-and-paper feel, while the dungeon crawling and loot collection offers plenty to discover in the game. Couple that with an interesting story and top-notch visuals, and Rimelands is one of the best RPG experiences you can have on the iPhone.

Humans have squandered the resources of the world, throwing off the balance of the ecosystem and turning their once beautiful lands into an uninhabitable frozen wasteland. They are forced to move into underground vaults for a thousand years, and when they finally emerge they find that a new race called the Fair Folk have taken over the dominant role above ground. Humans try to reclaim their territory, and war ensues. An uneasy peace is finally reached between the two sides, and they are able to precariously coexist together above ground. This leaves countless underground vaults filled with treasures of the last millennium, ready to be explored and exacted by you, treasure hunter Rose Cristo.

The story in Rimelands sets the stage perfectly for a dungeon crawling adventure. You'll play the role of Rose as she travels to the many towns and vaults in Rimelands discovering treasures, completing quests, and evolving her character with the multitude of items and abilities available. The game is played from an isometric viewpoint and combat and movement are grid-based. This can take some getting used to as you're only able to move in four directions rather than being able to move around the world freely. Coming within striking distance of an enemy allows you to engage in the turn-based combat which is a mixture of long-ranged and melee attacks. An interesting dice mechanic determines your offensive and defensive effectiveness, and playing Rimelands feels like an interactive board game where all of the dull pen-and-paper stuff has been automated for you.

An overhead map lets you travel to the towns and vaults that you discover during the game. Quests are obtained by talking with characters around the world much like your typical RPG. There is a main storyline to follow as well as many side quests to pick up and complete. The dungeons in Rimelands are full of dangerous enemies, as well as many unique treasures. Traversing these dungeons feels very Diablo-esque, as there are many rooms to explore and a ton of loot to obtain, although with strategic turn-based combat instead of the hack 'n slash variety. Making your way through the dungeons is incredibly fun, and I found it hard to stop playing until I was sure I'd explored every nook and cranny of each in order not to miss any lucrative treasure chests.

One of the high points of Rimelands is the extensive variety of items and weapons in the game, as well as the various skill trees for your character. Defeating enemies earns you gold and experience points, and upon leveling up you can choose a new ability from one of three skill trees. Barbarian brings melee effects, Assassin boosts your ranged abilities, and Shaman covers magical abilities. There's quite a bit of diversity with how you want to build your character, and good reason to play through the game multiple times focusing in different areas each time. An engineering dynamic is in the game as well, allowing you to build different weapons with blueprints that you find. It's an interesting idea, but not totally necessary due to the many excellent weapons you're bound to come across in the game anyway.

Graphically Rimelands is a beautiful game. The characters and enemies are fairly detailed, and their animations are excellent. The environments are also very attractive, with snowy terrain when you are in the above ground areas and dark dungeons with nice lighting effects when you go underground. The in-game graphics do have a slightly jagged look to them, but nothing overly detracting. Retina Display support is a possibility down the road, as is a native iPad version, although nothing has been finalized. Rimelands runs just fine in 2x mode on the iPad, and players in our forums are definitely enjoying the game this way. The story is told via static illustrations and text, and by in-game dialogue between characters as well. There isn't any full motion video or animated cutscenes, but the story is engaging and the illustrated bits look great.

There are plenty of other nuances to Rimelands, and it really is a game with a grand scope. You can expect to get about 8-10 hours out of one playthrough, and there is good incentive to go through multiple times and try out different character builds. Plus, this should only be the first chapter in the Rimelands universe, as more content will be coming down the line via updates as well as planned sequels. Dicework and Crescent Moon have a winner on their hands here, and I'll be looking forward to seeing more from this series. I don't typically love turn-based strategy games, but Rimelands had me hooked almost instantly. It's easy enough to get into whether you enjoy the strategic combat, loot collecting, character leveling, or just want to uncover the story in the unique steampunk universe. For fans of these elements, or any gamer in general, Rimelands: Hammer of Thor is a solid choice.


Crescent Moon Games’ ‘Rimelands: Hammer of Thor’ Released

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Crescent Moon Games’ ‘Rimelands: Hammer of Thor’ Released is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Anticipation has been building on our forums for months now around Crescent Moon Games' Rimelands: Hammer of Thor [$4.99] since it was first announced. Due to an approval SNAFU, Rimelands took a little bit longer to be released than expected, but it just appeared for downloads mere moments ago.

In Rimelands, you follow the treasure hunter Rose Cristo through an epic steampunk fantasy adventure. The entire game is turn based, and features tons of customization options through talent trees and skill boosts. We're still working on our review which we will have posted soon, but if you've been chomping at the bit for Rimelands after following the threads in our upcoming games forum… It is finally here.

App Store Link: Link


‘Puzzle Agent’ Review – New Point-and-Click Adventure from Telltale Games

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‘Puzzle Agent’ Review – New Point-and-Click Adventure from Telltale Games is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

A couple of weeks ago, we had a chance to get some hands-on time with the iPhone and iPad version of Puzzle Agent from Telltale Games. The story of FBI puzzle detective Nelson Tethers was coming together nicely for the iOS devices, and now the game is finally available. Puzzle Agent succeeds beautifully in the art style and story departments, but falls a little flat with the actual gameplay offered. If you go into Puzzle Agent expecting a robust puzzle game with a lot of content and replayability, you'll likely be disappointed. However, if you're looking for an excellent mystery to solve with humorous characters and an interesting plot, you'll find a lot to enjoy about the overall experience of Puzzle Agent.

The game starts with Nelson sitting at his desk in the FBI headquarters. You can tell he doesn't see a whole lot of action, as he is surprised to receive a phone call asking him to go on an assignment in the field. The eraser factory in Scoggins, Minnesota has ceased production, and thus been unable to supply the White House with their required allotment of erasers. All inquiries as to what the problem is at the eraser factory have resulted in odd puzzle-related responses from the townsfolk in Scoggins, making Nelson the perfect candidate to have investigate the situation. You'll travel to Scoggins to question people, solve puzzles, and uncover a twisted tale of what has gone awry at the eraser factory.

Puzzle Agent functions similar to other point-and-click adventure games, giving you a scene with various interactive elements to investigate. A circle will emanate from wherever you touch on the screen, and an icon will show up within that circle if something can be interacted with. I love this mechanic as it allows me to easily check an entire area for clues without tapping on every square inch of the screen. Talking with characters in the game is definitely the high point of Puzzle Agent. Each character is fully voiced and has multiple points of conversation to engage in. The amount of personality and humor that the characters exude through the dialogue is phenomenal, and playing through Puzzle Agent is analogous to watching a well crafted animated film. The art style is also very pleasing, featuring the minimalist hand drawn style of Graham Annable who created the Grickle comics and animated shorts.

iPad screenshots (click to enlarge):

The actual puzzles you'll be solving in Puzzle Agent are a mixed bag. Some are interesting, intuitive, and fun while others are just plain awkward and frustrating. Many times it's just not clear what you are supposed to be doing in a given puzzle. A hint system is in place in case you get stuck, so it never really prevents you from progressing, but it can be annoying to spend time trying to solve a difficult puzzle with trial and error when you are immersed in the story. Another frustration with Puzzle Agent is the controls. The game is designed very well for touch screen, but the actual responsiveness when touching or dragging items is not so great. It feels like the game is optimized for the mouse and cursor of the Mac/PC version, and using the larger surface of a fingertip doesn't afford the precision needed to perform some of the basic actions in the game.

There also isn't much reason to go back and play the game once you've beaten it, as the puzzles and story don't change. One important point to bring up is that Puzzle Agent looks far better on the iPad than it does on the iPhone. Many of the textures are blurry and show signs of artifacting, and are a far cry from the App Store screen shots that look like they are optimized for Retina Display.  This leads me to believe that it's just a bug with the release version that doesn't allow it to display the game in the proper resolution, although I have yet to confirm this. It doesn't completely ruin the game, but it is a significant distraction. The iPad version doesn't seem to exhibit this problem, and hopefully the issue gets rectified with the iPhone version soon.

Even with these issues, Puzzle Agent is still a really enjoyable experience. And that's what it really boils down to – it's better served as an exceptional entertainment experience rather than an exceptional game. The art style, music, voice acting, and story are incredibly well done, but the controls and puzzles are pretty hit and miss. If you're looking for something akin to an enjoyable interactive movie, Puzzle Agent serves this purpose really well.

App Store Links:
    Puzzle Agent, $4.99
    Puzzle Agent HD, $6.99 (iPad Only)


‘Mirror’s Edge’ for iPhone Review – Finally Here, Nearly a Year Later

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‘Mirror’s Edge’ for iPhone Review – Finally Here, Nearly a Year Later is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

All the way back in the middle of December of last year we first got our hands on EA's Mirror's Edge [$4.99] for the iPhone, but it came without any solid release date. Mirror's Edge then disappeared until the iPad launch when Mirror's Edge for iPad [$9.99] popped up once again. Back then, we figured the iPhone release was immanent, but once again, it never came. Tonight is finally the night, and after spending quite a bit of time with the game today, it seems remarkably similar to the iPad version, downsized to the iPhone. In fact, it's so similar to our preview from last year that everything I said back then is still relevant.

The world of Mirror's Edge is set in the future, where a totalitarian regime is in power and an underground resistance powered by runners move information around on foot to avoid to watchful eye of the government which have implemented intense levels of surveillance across all communication mediums. You play as Faith, one of these runners.

The game is controlled using very simple swiping gestures that all feel very natural. Swiping right or left makes you run in that direction, swiping up makes you jump, and swiping down makes you slide. When you run across opposition, you can also use similar gestures to take them out with a variety of moves such as sweeping their legs out from under them or jump kicking them. There are many other interactions with different obstacles you come across, like jumping off spring boards, sliding down zip lines, and wall-running across billboards.

All of these things can be seen in the following gameplay video:

If you are like me and enjoyed the idea behind the console version of Mirror's Edge, but didn't really like the first person viewpoint and all the issues that caused in a platforming environment, you will love the iPhone version of the game. All of the visibility problems are gone thanks to the 3rd person view, and the game as a whole has been transformed in to a fun reaction game instead of an often frustrating and sometimes motion-sickness inducing first person experience.

New additions to Mirror's Edge since last year include new leaderboards that track your time through every level along with a whole heap of achievements to soak up and artwork to unlock. The whole game is optimized for the Retina Display of the iPhone 4, and looks really great in motion. This doesn't mean it won't run well on older devices, as forum members are reporting that Mirror's Edge even runs just fine on the first generation iPod touch.

Mirror's Edge is an effortless recommendation, and while I'm not sure waiting all this time has made the game any better, I'm glad it's finally here. Sure, there have been tons of running games in the past year but Mirror's Edge still is able to stand on its own, even after all this time. Playing through the game is a really cool experience, the controls work well, and just like the iPad game EA did a fantastic job of nailing the look and feel of the Mirror's Edge universe.

App Store Links:
    Mirror’s Edge™, $4.99
    Mirror’s Edge™ for iPad, $9.99 (iPad Only)


‘Dodonpachi Resurrection’ Review – A Little Slice of Bullet Hell Heaven

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‘Dodonpachi Resurrection’ Review – A Little Slice of Bullet Hell Heaven is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

We've been following Dodonpachi Resurrection [$4.99] for a while now, from its first announcement, to the first gameplay trailer, and even the pricing and release date.  And after all this anticipation, developer Cave's follow up release to the excellent Espgaluda II [$8.99/Lite] actually lives up to the hype. In fact, I like it even more than Espgaluda II, though I'm not necessarily saying one is better than the other. They're very different beasts, and really it's worth owning both if you like top-down shooters. But Dodonpachi Resurrection feels like a more well rounded experience, and caters really well to both casual shooter fans and the most hardcore of them all. There's near endless replayability due to an ingenious scoring system, and Dodonpachi Resurrection deserves a spot on every shmup fan's home screen.

Visually, Dodonpachi is a very striking game. There is no fancy Retina Display support, as this is originally an arcade game running at an entirely different resolution, and it would be unrealistic for Cave to redraw all of the artwork to suit the iPhone 4. That said, the game still looks damn good. There are three different screen sizes to choose in the options. Small has a huge border area but makes the graphics look the sharpest. Large fills the iPhone screen with the game and a small border on the bottom, but the sprites and text look slightly blurry. Medium is the default and it's in-between the other two settings. I fancy the large setting, as I don't really like borders in my games and the blurriness honestly isn't that bad. The game is filled with tons of huge explosions, humongous transforming bosses, and dozens of enemies and bullets onscreen at any given time. No matter what screen size you play with, it all ends up looking really impressive.

There are two game modes in Dodonpachi, the original arcade mode and a new iPhone mode. Arcade has you choose from three different ships and three offensive styles. These styles can give you unlimited bomb use, a more powerful alternate cannon to switch to, or a combination of the two. They all can help you in different ways, and as such each ship and style combination has its own leaderboard in OpenFeint. The arcade mode is a lot of fun to be sure, but the iPhone mode with its unique scoring system and brand new Hyper Cannon weapon are what really stand out in the game.

In iPhone mode, there is no need to pick styles, just which ship type you want to use. A divided gauge in the upper right of the screen is used for the SM scoring system. A circular area surrounds your ship, and narrowly avoiding these bullets but letting them pass through this area (known as “scraping”) fills the gauge towards the M side while also building up a multiplier in the upper left of the screen. You can continue to do this all the way until your multiplier hits x1000, if you wish. When the M side of the gauge is full, you can hit the Hyper button to start your ship firing wildly, and control the direction of fire by touching the ship and turning it. If you touch the ship and spin it in circles during this time, you build up your Hyper Cannon which unleashes an enormous beam of destruction that obliterates everything on the screen.

Killing enemies in rapid succession is what fills up the S side of the gauge, and once it's completely full you will gain whatever your multiplier is at for every enemy you destroy. Essentially, you use this SM gauge in a yin-yang like harmony of avoidance and utter destruction in order to achieve incredibly high scores. It's really brilliantly designed, and it may sound complicated on paper but it's pretty easy to grasp onto after playing for a bit. Admittedly, I'm not a hardcore bullet hell shooter guy. I love me some shmup action, but more the typical brand of them, and I've always been apprehensive of the bullet hell type because they just seemed so difficult. Not so with Dodonpachi, and I really understand now how different a bullet hell shooter is and the different type of gameplay it brings to shmups.

And this brings me to what I really appreciate about Dodonpachi Resurrection, you don't have to play it any particular way. Yes, you can endlessly scrape bullets and build huge multipliers, then strategically destroy many enemies in search of massive scores and coveted leaderboard spots. Or you can play it much like a normal shooter, using the bombs and special weapons to destroy the many enemies and bosses in spectacular fashion as you progress through the levels to the end. Heck, I beat the game twice before I even fully understood the scoring system, and had a total blast doing it. This is one of the first games of this kind where I've felt like any type of gamer can get a lot out of the experience.

There's a lot more to Dodonpachi too, like the absolute spot-on relative control system, the excellent brand new music for the iPhone mode, many OpenFeint achievements to unlock, multiple options and difficulty levels, hidden modes, and more. But the bottom line is that if you're a fan of shooters in any way, you'll want to pick up Dodonpachi Resurrection. There's not currently a lite of the game (there's one on the way), but the introductory price of $4.99 will be going for the next few days before jumping to the regular price of $8.99. Also worth noting is that you'll need a 3rd generation device or higher, or an iPad, to run the game due to the insane amount of sprites it pushes at any given time. A veritable love-fest is going on with players in our forums who are enjoying the game as much as I am, and as far as shooters go on the iPhone it doesn't get much better than Dodonpachi Resurrection.


CalPrint for iPhone Review

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CalPrint for iPhone Review is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Developer: EuroSmartz Ltd
Price: $4.99
Version Reviewed: 1.0

iPhone Integration Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
User Interface Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Re-use / Replay Value Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

For productivity and organization junkies, this is the perfect App for sharing and printing your Calendars, anywhere, straight from your iPhone. For my review of CalPrint, I’ll first look at its usefulness as a Calendar App and then describe the printing feature, which is the highlight of this app from EuroSmartz, Ltd.

At first, you may notice that CalPrint has a similar look and feel to the built-in Calendar App with iOS4 — a basic layout with several views. My favorite is Month View, but with this App you’ll find it different than the built-in Calendar App as it actually shows your events on the dates instead of just a marker for events with descriptions below. This is a common theme in third party calendar Apps, as most people want to see the information about their upcoming events all at once within this view. This is a greatly appreciated change from the built-in App. Another feature that I always enjoy is how one can navigate in this view to the next month. More and more Calendar Apps are offering side-swiping for this, and CalPrint is no exception. A fantastic idea for ease of use, and a definite plus over the regular Calendar (which I find out be a little cumbersome to navigate sometimes).

The Day View gives you a basic hour-by-hour layout similar to the iOS Calendar App, but also has the side-swiping feature of going from day to day along your schedule. CalPrint also has what they call ‘week view’ which allows you to basically see several these hour-by-hour day schedules at once, in a week-long format. You can also zoom in & out to get fewer or more days (up to 7) in this view. It’s an interesting addition, and while I still prefer Month View, I’m sure someone will have this as a favorite too.

The final view is List, and here we have something a bit special as well. Instead of listing basically all of your upcoming events, you can customize which events this list shows. Your options are by date ranges, and offer quick-taps for lists like ‘next week’ or ‘this month’ or you can custom build a list from specified dates. Really fantastic if you simply want your schedule while you’re on vacation, or on a business trip, or something else of that nature.

Now that you’re familiar with viewing your calendar, let me quickly go over editing. It’s fairly simple. In every view you have the same top-bar that offers three choices – Edit/Add Events, Email Calendar and Print. Obviously to add events you’ll want the first option, and adding events is as simple as filling out the same details as you would in the built-in Calendar App. Just make sure that you’ve selected the proper date, as it won’t auto-select the date, even in Day view.

If you have a Wifi Printer and your iPhone is on the same network, the App should automatically detect and be able to print just fine. If you don’t have a Wifi Printer but still have your printer shared on your network you’ll have to download the WePrint Software (don’t worry, it’s free!) to manage the printers. One final trick is that using this software you’ll actually be able to print from your iPhone regardless of the network. This allows you to print something via Wifi or even 3G someplace else. You can find these settings within the WePrint’s Print via Proxy preferences. The other built-in sharing option is via email; you can email a PDF document to yourself, or anyone else, which is convenient for printing later.

Sadly, while this App is very functional and absolutely useful, it does have a couple design flaws. First and foremost is the fact that it does not show multi-day ‘All Day’ events over the course of each day. It only shows up on the day that it begins. Secondly, I did mention earlier that even in Day View you’ll have to manually enter in which day you’ll want to add your event too – not a big deal, but still a bit bothersome. And while the Email via PDF is a fantastic feature, sadly my PDF was blank.

Finally I do want to note the extensive support and help that EuroSmartz offers on their website. Not only a full support document section, but also how-to videos on setting up and using the WePrint software.

While there are some drawbacks, this is still a great App to have around. It’s useful and simple. While you might not find it to be the perfect app for customizing or using as an everyday Calendar App, it’s definitely perfect for viewing and quickly editing when need be, and you’ll be able to print and share your calendars from anywhere. If you’re a calendar junkie, and even if you’re not, I highly suggest checking it out.

[ CalPrint for iPhone Review is a post from 148Apps ]


‘Modern Combat: Sandstorm’ Gets Updated, New Teaser for ‘Modern Combat 2′

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‘Modern Combat: Sandstorm’ Gets Updated, New Teaser for ‘Modern Combat 2′ is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

About a month ago, Gameloft's N.O.V.A. [$4.99/Lite/HD] received a nice update adding high resolution graphics and gyroscope aiming for players of their Halo-inspired first-person shooter with an iPhone 4. Today, their Call of Duty-inspired shooter Modern Combat: Sandstorm [$4.99/Lite/HD] gets the same treatment with its new update. Our impressions for this new update are pretty much the same that we had for the N.O.V.A. update last month, and what was once old feels relatively new again. The game looks as crisp as ever on the Retina Display, and gyroscopic aiming allows for much finer precision while leaving your hand free to mash away at the fire button.

This new update isn't the only news out of Gameloft today, as they have also released a teaser trailer for the sequel to Modern Combat: Sandstorm which is so far only known as Modern Combat 2. The trailer is, well, interesting to say the least:

Unfortunately the video doesn't demonstrate any gameplay of Modern Combat 2, but it's certainly good for a laugh, and it definitely makes me wish I had an iPad capable of shooting rockets (is there an app for that yet?). The video pegs the release for Modern Combat 2 as this fall, so most likely Gameloft will be offering more information and showing off the game in action in the coming weeks. Until then there is a discussion going in the Modern Combat 2 thread in our forum, and if you're an iPhone 4 user or have an iOS4 device capable of fast app switching, make sure and download the new update for the original Modern Combat: Sandstorm and check out these new features.


‘Archetype HD’ – An Awesome Online FPS, Now for the iPad

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‘Archetype HD’ – An Awesome Online FPS, Now for the iPad is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Early last month, Villain's Archetype [$2.99] hit the App Store, and we thought it was great in our review. Archetype is an incredibly impressive game, providing 5 on 5 team-based deathmach that works well regardless of if you're connecting via WiFi or 3G/EDGE. The new iPad version plays the same, with graphics and controls that have been optimized for the large screen of the device.

Archetype HD [$4.99] comes with all the same maps and game modes from the iPhone game, including the new rocket arena mode and Avarice map that dropped not long ago in an update. You can even play with people who are playing the game on their iPod touch or iPhone. It's a bit of a bummer that Archetype wasn't just updated to be universal, but if you've been enjoying the iPhone game, the iPad version is worth picking up as well as it controls a lot better with the iPad-specific controls instead of the pixel doubled iPhone controls.

For more information on Archetype, check out our review and/or the thread on our forums. There's also a thread specific to the iPad version as well as a thread filled with people trading usernames if you're looking for someone to play with.

App Store Link: Archetype HD, $4.99 (iPad Only)


Trillian Review

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Trillian Review is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website

Developer: Cerulean Studios
Price: $4.99
Version: 1.3.2.0

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

Overall Rating: 4.33 out of 5 stars

Cerulean Studios first rolled out Trillian more than a decade ago, back in July 2000. Today it exists as an application available on all major operating systems, both desktop and mobile. The iPhone version alone took over two years to create, from the initial alpha development to final release in November 2009.

Presently, Trillian for iPhone supports a lengthy list of clients: MSN / Live Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger, Facebook Chat, MySpaceIM, Jabber, AIM, ICQ and Google Talk. In terms of connectivity, the application doesn’t disappoint; even in comparison to the mammoth IM+ client. As with all multi-client applications, Trillian allows you to sign into all accounts at once, preventing the need of having multiple applications at your fingertips.

Getting started is a relatively painless process – you’ll need to first register an account with Trillian (free) before you can begin logging in to all your clients. Once registered, you can begin connecting to your services at will.

Trillian includes all of the expected features for an IM messaging client, such as intelligent push notifications that tell you the contents of a message when it has been received, and low-bandwidth support for those on restricted data packages. Visually, it is a clean and smartly designed application. Contact list groups are collapsable and expandable, names can be edited, avatars can be viewed and a search is present. Of note are the size of avatars: small, which not only reduces data and loading times but also makes more contacts visible without having the need to scroll. Contact information is also viewable with a tap.

The chat windows are similarly sleek. An iPhone SMS style conversation gives Trillian an official feel, and if you’re running multiple chats Trillian’s tab feature means that switching between conversations requires only a single tap at the top of the screen. The keyboard can be hidden. The application also features typing notification support, meaning you can see whenever a user is typing you a message.

In addition to text, photos can be sent between contacts. Photos are first uploaded to Trillian’s servers, meaning a smaller preview picture appears like what an MMS looks like in the SMS application of the iPhone. Buzzes can also be sent to supported clients, to alert the recipient of your existence. If you quit Trillian it will still be running in the background – even on older generation iPhones – so if a message is received a badge will appear on the Trillian icon alerting you. You go can go offline by signing out within the application.

Overall, the client is very visually appealing, and its features are ample for instant messengers. My only problem was that on my iPhone 3G I did find it somewhat slow, particularly in re-initiating the application after it has been closed. Nonetheless, Trillian is stable, secure and well worth the $4.99 price tag.

[ Trillian Review is a post from 148Apps ]