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Daily Double: Soft Freak Fiesta, Balcassa for Free; Sudoku $0.99
Daily Double: Soft Freak Fiesta, Balcassa for Free; Sudoku $0.99 is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website
We continue our Daily Double article with another bonus freebie in addition to the Appvent Calender. While the Appvent Calender is offering Balcassa, a slider puzzle-Rubik’s Cube combo, Gogogic has just released their multiplayer game Soft Freak Fiesta, and it’s only free for today! Not to be left out, EA Games is throwing us a familiar puzzle game, Sudoku, for the rock-bottom price of a buck.
Sudoku
Oh, Sudoku, the puzzle that took my school system by storm. I think I’ve seen enough of these boxes to last me a lifetime, thank you very much, but if you’re a fan of the games, EA’s version is sure to delight. While it might be one of the older apps in the store, it retains all of the graphical glitz of all of EA’s apps. Unfortunately for speed-demon serious players, the animations might get annoying as they slow you down. We looked at it in February, and found it to be a slickly presented clone of an age-old concept:
“Sudoku’s presentation is top-notch. The whole user interface is very slick and has a nice oriental vibe to it. Actual game play is very refined and the way annotations and hints are integrated is simple and easy to use. Initially three difficulty levels are available. You accrue Sudoku points by winning games and those are used to unlock two additional difficulty levels.
When you start a new game you can turn on error checking. This will instantly reveal whether you’ve correctly filled in a cell or not. In-game hints can reveal a particular cell’s value, and you can ask the game to annotate all cells if you wish. These all reduce the number of Sudoku points earned. In-game help explains all modes and aides.”
It’s not going to get any cheaper than this, folks. Grab it quick!
SUDOKU
:: RECOMMENDEDCategory: Games / Board
Released: 2008-07-11
Price: $1.99 ON SALE: $0.99
Soft Freak Fiesta
Yeah, it’s not part of the normal Appvent Calender, but you can’t pass on this one! We previewed it a few weeks ago and thought that it had a lot of promise, given a large-enough player pool. Obviously anticipating that a lot of players are necessary to make this game work, Gogogic has made Soft Freak Fiesta free for its first day! Here’s a snippet from our preview article:
Soft Freak Fiesta is a sort of last man standing game take on marbles played out in turn on various game boards. While there are various game modes, they all have you aiming, bouncing, and rebounding your characters in the quest to destroy the players on the other team.
Complete with cartoony graphics, 3 types of Soft Freaks, 3 modes, and 5 levels, Soft Freak Fiesta looks like a lot of fun. You might as well give it a go while it’s free, right? You can connect with friends using WiFi or Bluetooth, or play with anyone on the game’s servers.
Soft Freak Fiesta
Category: Games / Action
Released: 2009-12-15
Price: FREE
Balcassa
Like I said, Balcassa is a slider puzzle/Rubik’s Cube combo. It looks pretty complex at later levels, so puzzle fans looking to stretch their brains a bit should be interested. Here’s what the developer has to say:
“Balcassa includes a variety of games offering hours of increasingly challenging game-play. The object of each of the games is to rotate a number of cubes into a sequence, a pattern or orientation by moving them around the screen. In some games it may be enough to get each cube into position with the correct side showing, while in other games rotation of the cubes must also be considered. The idea is simple, the solution is not!”
If you’re interested, remember: this “sale” is one day only!
Balcassa
Category: Games / Dice
Released: 2009-08-19
Price: $0.99 ON SALE: FREE
Daily Double: Auditorium for $0.99 (Again?!) and Elf for Free
Daily Double: Spore Origins for $0.99, iPharaoh for Free…and Super Monkey Ball 50% off!
Daily Double: Spore Origins for $0.99, iPharaoh for Free…and Super Monkey Ball 50% off! is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website
It’s hard to believe that our countdown to Christmas is halfway over. (24 days in December before Christmas, and today’s the 12th!) I hope you all have your holiday shopping done. This Saturday morning comes with our two daily deals. Today, EA Games has Spore Origins on sale for $0.99, while the Appvent Calender is featuring iPharaoh Episode 2 from Studioufo.
Early perusers of the App Store may remember Spore Origins. I know that when I first bought my iPod, Best Buy was giving free copies of the game away with every iPod Touch…that seems so long ago! Anyway, while this game is over a year old, don’t let that deter you. Spore Origins is based around the first stage of the Spore PC game, in which you play a tiny creature (your “Spore”) and must swim around the “primordial ooze,” avoiding larger creatures while devouring smaller ones. As you eat, you’ll eventually evolve, adding parts and customizing your creature. One word of warning: it appears to use accelerometer controls without calibration options. If that’s not a problem for you, go ahead and try it out!
Spore™ Origins
Category: Games / Action
Released: 2008-09-06
Price: $1.99
iPharaoh is an original action-puzzler with a delicious mummy theme. I’ll let the game’s description speak for itself:
Your Pharaoh, peacefully resting inside an ancient Egyptian tomb is disturbed by the sound of hammers pounding away at his tomb.
Your mission is to defend your Pharaoh and his treasures from greedy treasure hunters by using the Pharaohs mighty powers to control mummies, giant cube stones, sliding doors and moving walls.
It looks surprisingly good, and it’s far more original than many games in the App Store. You’ll need both strategy and speed to excel here. Listening to the YouTube video, it sounded like the audio might become annoying after a few plays, but the mechanics looked solid and addicting. Heck, it’s free. App Store reviews have been largely positive, and the developer clearly plans to update: an endless survival mode is promised with the next one. Grab it before the day’s out!
iPharaoh – EP2. Desperate Pharaoh
Category: Games / Puzzle
Released: 2009-09-17
Price: $0.99
Now for a truly awesome deal: Super Monkey Ball 2 is now 50%, which drops it from the premium tier down to an easier $4.99. The original Super Monkey Ball was one of the earliest and most ambitious App Store games, though it was plagued by rocky controls. Its successor has souped-up graphics, 115 levels, and Wi-Fi multiplayer. Be sure to read our review:
“Super Monkey Ball 2 is a huge step from its original self. While some isolated reports have come in of problems with the game crashing on the second generation iPod touch, in my experience of playing on an iPhone 3GS, gameplay was both smooth and fluent. Within superb in-game graphics, and an upbeat infamous sega-esque soundtrack to boot, Super Monkey Ball 2 is just one of those games you can pick up and play.”
Seeing as its original price is $9.99, this is the day to get it if you’re on the fence. The sale is for this weekend only!
Super Monkey Ball 2
Category: Games / Puzzle
Released: 2009-12-01
Price: $9.99
Daily Double: Boggle and Life for $0.99, Crazy Snowboard for Free
Daily Double: Boggle and Life for $0.99, Crazy Snowboard for Free is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website
EA Games has given us a great gift in preparation for the weekend: we have not one, but two great franchises on sale for $0.99. Both Boggle and Life have had their prices slashed to just under a dollar, while the Appvent Calender is featuring Crazy Snowboard, a 3D snowboarding game from eZone.
I looked at Life myself a few months ago, and it’s a great port of the classic board game. Almost every element makes the transition well, from the spinner to the colorful graphics to the fortunate and unfortunate events that happen to your poor character. Playing board games solo can be a lonely experience, but Life’s AI’s are competent and you can fast-forward through their turns; on the other hand, if you actually have a group of friends who want to play Life, EA’s Pass ‘n’ Play is here too. There are no corners cut when it comes to production values, and this is just one more great board game port in EA’s giant stable. Sure, it relies heavily on “traditional” family ideals (everyone gets married, everyone gets a house, unemployment blissfully lasts for a few seconds at most), but if you’re nostalgic for the old game, go for it while it’s cheap.
THE GAME OF LIFE Classic Edition
Category: Games / Board
Released: 2009-08-13
Price: $4.99
Boggle is another great game, and one that word fans should love. When we looked at this September, it had all the bones of the great game but sadly it was missing some things:
I was interested to finally see Boggle launch on the App Store and more than ready to try it out. What I found was a good 1.0 game with an interesting approach but lacking a lot of the polish that the veteran apps have added along the way…There are some great features in the Advanced mode of this app, but the rest seems like it needs time and polish.
Take that recommendation with a grain of salt, however. Since we reviewed it, much-wanted updates have brought new features like Pass ‘n’ Play, and some bugs have been ironed out. Plus, hey, it’s Boggle. Any word fan can tell you that along with Scrabble, crosswords, and word finds, Boggle-style games are a nearly-ancient standby. You won’t find this game for cheaper—at least not an official version—so if you’ve been on the fence, this is the time to buy.
Boggle
Category: Games / Word
Released: 2009-08-31
Price: $2.99 ON SALE: $1.99
And, finally, the Appvent Calender brings us Crazy Snowboard. Not Crazy Snowboarding, mind you, but Crazy Snowboard. What can be crazy about a simple board, I wonder?
Anyway, this looks like it follows the familiar track of snowboarding games. The graphics are great, and there’s a lot of content, too; thirty missions are included and you can unlock a number of boards and riders. You can grind on rails, boxes, logs, and candycanes, and it just looks like an awesome freebie for fans of such games. Future updates promise to add Plus+ support and leaderboards. For a sports game, this seems to have quite a bit of depth, and you can’t beat the price.
Crazy Snowboard – Holiday Special
Category: Games / Kids
Released: 2008-10-30
Price: $2.99
Daily Double: Pandemonium for $0.99, Wheeler’s Treasure for Free
Daily Double: Pandemonium for $0.99, Wheeler’s Treasure for Free is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website
This Wednesday brings us an old port from the PlayStation from EA and a quirky pirate-themed platformer called “Wheeler’s Treasure” from the Appvent Calender. Let’s dive right in, shall we?
Pandemonium – $0.99
I wrestled with Pandemonium when I first reviewed it, I’ll admit. It’s a 2.5-D platformer ported from the original PlayStation, and unfortunately its age shows. The level designs are entertaining at first, but failed to keep me hooked; dodgy controls and annoying lag kept me from enjoying the better aspects of the game. Not everything is bad here, though. Pandemonium does have the nostalgia factor going for it, and it has a certain charm. Supposedly, OS 3.0 helps with the lag, and iPhone 3GS and third-gen iPod users will likely experience better results anyway. I still doubt that it’s worth five bucks, but for a dollar, old fans may want to take a second look.
Here’s a peak at how gameplay works, from my review:
Each “world” had multiple levels, and the goal of each level is to make it from Point A to Point B. Sounds simple, right? A typical collection of enemies conspires to block your path and you have to either kill or avoid them to make it through. I really enjoyed some of the level designs, straightforward though they were. Run, jump, kill things…that’s just about it, but Pandemonium does it pretty well. Using the environment to your advantage is key, whether you’re jumping on bouncy watermelon-like things or riding a geyser to the next platform. Hearts, jewels, coins, and other random items can be found floating in the levels to aid you on your quest for Point B.
Pandemonium
Category: Games / Action
Released: 2009-04-29
Price: $2.99 ON SALE: $0.99
Wheeler’s Treasure – Free
What’s this? Might the free game be better than the paid one today? I can’t give a definite opinion on that, but Wheeler’s Treasure certainly looks like one of the better Appvent Calender offerings to date. Your character chases a wooden wheel through the level, trying to keep going for as many “yarrrds” as possible. There are obstacles to dodge, ranging from flying crows and cannonballs to deadly pits and skeletons, and treasure to collect. Some items, like a pirate’s hook, will help you survive your fast-paced travels. The graphics and audio both seem solid, too. Sure, the controls could be more precise, and the premise is ridiculous, but Wheeler’s Treasure looks like a great swashbuckling diversion. And, heck, it’s free. I’m not going to complain. Compared to the mix of apps we’ve seen so far from the Appvent Calender, Wheeler’s Treasure lands firmly in the land of “good.”
Wheeler’s Treasure: Tasty Voodoo Entrée
Category: Games / Action
Released: 2009-10-31
Price: $1.99 ON SALE: FREE
Daily Double: CLUE for $0.99, Ickle Count for Free
Daily Double: CLUE for $0.99, Ickle Count for Free is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website
Today’s Daily Double comes with a real gift from EA Games: Clue for $0.99. Meanwhile, the Appvent Calender is featuring Ickle Count (a kid-oriented counting game), and Gamevil has a bit of a bonus for us, too: Hybrid: Eternal Whisper is on sale for $2.99 for a limited time.
Let’s start with Clue. While this is wrapped in all of the traditional board game’s branding, it’s actually not the game you’re familiar with. Instead of a board game in which you compete against other players or the computer, it’s a one-player mystery-fest in which you step into the shoes of a sleuth. Once again, Mr. Boddy has been murdered, and it’s up to you to figure out which of his devious guests is at fault. We looked at Clue back in June:
Albeit quite different from the traditional Clue board game experience, this app is an excellent mystery solving puzzler. Some have criticized this game for being C.I.N.O., Clue in name only, if you will, but that is a strong criticism for an iPhone adaptation which retains much of the original whodunnit Clue spirit.
Given that this game usually goes for $4.99, this is the day to get it if you’re looking for a detective-style app. Has anyone else noticed that EA is putting a lot of its summer releases on sale?
CLUE
Category: Games / Board
Released: 2009-05-15
Price: $2.99 ON SALE: $1.99
The Appvent Calender’s offering is much less serious. Ickle Count is light-hearted and colorful—and above all, simple. The name of the game is counting. Numbered divers float in the water above a sea monster, and it’s your job to tap them in sequence as quickly as possible before time runs out. From the bright graphics to the silly theme, it’s clear that this one is targeted towards younger children, not older gamers.
Ickle Count
Category: Games / Educational
Released: 2009-10-17
Price: $0.99
So far we’ve had a morbid mystery and a cheerful counting game. Adding to the mix is Hybrid: Eternal Whisper, which differs starkly from our other two deals. Hybrid is a hardcore combat-based RPG with a fantastic combat system, a good amount of customization, and a heavy emphasis on combo moves. Unfortunately, it’s hampered by heavy dialogue and load screens, but for a serious gamer, the combat makes it all worth it. A recent update also added a great “battle only” mode. While this isn’t technically part of the Daily Double, it is on sale—50% off, in fact, which puts it at $2.99.
HYBRID: Eternal Whisper
Category: Games / Adventure
Released: 2009-09-18
Price: $4.99 ON SALE: $2.99
That brings today’s Daily Double to a close. As always, we’ll be back tomorrow!
Auditorium
Auditorium is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website
Developer: EA Games
Price: $2.99
Version Reviewed: 1.0.0
Price: $2.99
Version Reviewed: 1.0.0
Graphics / Audio Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Game Controls Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Gameplay Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
iPhone Integration Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
User Interface Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Re-use / Replay Value Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Overall Rating: 4.17 out of 5 stars
Auditorium is not typical EA Games fare. Heck, it’s not even a normal game.
What is it? A treat for your eyes and ears, a great way to relax, a puzzle with a well-tuned difficulty curve, and an excellent 2D physics game. That’s not to say that it’s for everyone. Auditorium might have all of EA’s signature polish, but it also has the quirkiness of an indie game. The puzzles will make you think, and it feels almost like an art piece at times. But it’s a vibrant, beautiful game, and thoughtful gamers may find themselves in love. The only downside is the (relatively) short number of included levels, though more can be obtained via in-app purchase.
Each level begins with a stream of light particles (the Flow), which must be driven to the empty Audio Containers scattered around the level. You direct the Flow by using “controls,” which look like buttons. These vary from simple directional controls (i.e., up, down, left, and right) to special ones like the Attract or Rabbit (speed-up) controls. Controls can be dragged around the screen, and their intensity can be changed with a two-fingered pinch or pull. When the Flow strikes an Audio Container, music begins to play; when all Audio Containers are full, the level is complete.
It’s all a bit hard to explain, but very easy to understand once you’re actually playing the game. The beginning levels are all easy enough, and introduce you gently to the game’s core concepts. Meanwhile, later levels can be devilishly tricky. Introductions of new controls and multiple colors means that your strategies are always evolving. While the difficulty curve works for the most part, my only peeve is that you must complete each level in order. If you’re stumped by a single level, that’s it. It’s an unfortunate (though common) decision that puts a small damper on Auditorium’s magic. On the bright side, each level has multiple solutions.
For the most part, however, this is an excellent game. It’s extremely relaxing, as well as thought-provoking. The graphics are subtle and minimalistic, as are the sound effects. And while Auditorium is actually a port of a web-based game, it feels like it was made for the iPhone. Like I said: EA’s polish plus an indie game’s innovation means a win for the customer. Agile players may find themselves finished with the first 25 levels within a few hours; still, there are extra packs available for purchase.
Auditorium is unusual, soothing, inventive, and extraordinarily pretty. If you’re looking for a sleek puzzle game, put this one on your list for sure.
Daily Double: Mass Effect Galaxy for $0.99, Polyhedra for Free
Daily Double: Mass Effect Galaxy for $0.99, Polyhedra for Free is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website
Ah, wasn’t the weekend nice? Unfortunately, Monday is here. At least we get some sales as a consolation prize, right? As usual, here are the daily goods from EA Games’ 25 Days Til Xmas sale as well as the Appvent Calender.
First up is Mass Effect Galaxy from EA, which is on sale for $0.99, down from $4.99. That’s one heck of a price drop, especially from EA. The basic premise, as outlined in our review, is as follows:
The fate of the human race is at stake; alien terrorists are plotting to wipe humanity from the face of the galaxy with a deadly biological agent. You assume the role of Jacob Taylor; a biotic-powered super soldier who must intervene in order to preserve mankind’s right to exist.
Bioware intended the iPhone game to bridge the gap between Mass Effect 1 and Mass Effect 2, and though it’s by no means a necessary buy if you want to understand the second game’s story, it does add some background information. It’s a third-person shooter complete with dialogue and cutscenes. We gave it a 3.5 / 5 back in June. Be sure to read the full review for more a more detailed look at the game.
Mass Effect Galaxy
Category: Games / Action
Released: 2009-06-23
Price: $2.99 ON SALE: $1.99
Meanwhile, today’s Appvent Calender release brings us Polyhedra, a pastel-colored take on the “fill-em-up” game. (Fans of “Just Fillin,” an early App Store success, will find extremely familiar gameplay here.) You start each level with a colorful screen, empty except for a few bouncing particles. Tap a spot, and a bubble/polygon grows around your finger; release to complete the polygon. If your polygon hits a particle before it’s complete, it pops. You’re given a limited number of polygons per level, and you have to fill at least two-thirds of the screen to progress. As you beat more levels, other “zones” are unlocked with different polygon shapes. There’s also a “toy box” mode for just playing around. If you’re looking for a good casual game, this is one to grab; while it might not be an original game concept, at least the execution is solid.
polyhedra
Category: Games / Puzzle
Released: 2009-08-11
Price: $1.99 ON SALE: FREE
That’s it for today’s specials, but there will be more tomorrow. Check back then!
Daily Double: Auditorium & Surviving High School $0.99, Totemo for Free
Daily Double: Auditorium & Surviving High School $0.99, Totemo for Free is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website
Well, I decided to call this column the “Daily Double” because of EA’s 25 Days Til Xmas Sale and Blacksmith Games’ Appvent Calender, but EA has decided to mess me up by having two games on sale today: Auditorium and Surviving High School are both on sale for $0.99. Meanwhile, the Appvent Calender is featuring Totemo, a casual puzzle game with some nice graphics.
I actually played Auditorium for the first time last night, and let me say that this game is fantastic. It has all the polish of an EA app with the inventiveness of an indie game. It’s hard to describe how the game works, but once you play it, everything is intuitive. It’s a soothing puzzle game in which you divert beams of light into containers to create sound. The level designs are elegant, and there are multiple solutions to each stage. Once you complete a level, you’re left with a “symphony of light and sound.” It’s beautiful and quirky, even if it is lacking a bit on content. (You can buy additional level packs via in-app purchase.)
Auditorium
Category: Games / Music
Released: 2009-11-13
Price: $2.99 ON SALE: $0.99
Surviving High School is an app-store success in which you take on the role of a high-school student. There are the usual tribulations—fights, girl drama, and so on—that you’d expect of high school life. The App Store reviews are mostly positive, though many have complained about not being able to play as a girl; you can shape your character into jock or nerd, popular guy or hated outsider. Plus, each week brings a new “episode,” introducing new content that replaces the old. It seems to have garnered quite the following.
Surviving High School
Category: Games / Simulation
Released: 2009-11-16
Price: $2.99 ON SALE: $0.99
The Appvent Calender is clearly working as a developer promotional tool; according to Blacksmith Games, the previous apps have all managed to surge into the Top 100 Free list. Today’s offering is Totemo, a puzzle game with good graphics and a totem-pole theme, even if the gameplay isn’t overly original (it’s a twist on the math-3 formula). Totemo includes both a Story mode and a frenetic Survival mode, and should be worth a download for puzzle fans.
Totemo
Category: Games / Adventure
Released: 2009-10-31
Price: $0.99 ON SALE: FREE
Daily Double: Boggle for $0.99 and Snorkeling, Ramp Champ for Free
Daily Double: Boggle for $0.99 and Snorkeling, Ramp Champ for Free is a post from: Best Iphone Apps Review Website
Daily deals are apparently popular this Christmas season. Between Blacksmith Games’ daily free app from the Appvent Calender and EA Games’ 25 Days Til Xmas Sale, there are a lot of one-day-only specials to keep track of. While EA Games isn’t offering any free games, they’ll be offering up to 80% off on one game per day ’til Christmas, with some games as low as 99 cents. As for the Appvent Calender…well, you’d be crazy to pass up on free games. So, from now on, we’re going to try and update you daily on these awesome deals.
Today’s freebie is Snorkeling, a game from Alfonso Bonzzelli. I’m still trying to figure out why there’s a fishing bear, but it certainly looks worth a download. Here’s what the developer has to say:
“Snorkeling is a funny, simple and intuitive game. You have to swipe your finger on the screen to move the bear cub and catch as many fish as possible (the good ones!). There are different types of fish, each one worth a certain number of points. Be careful to stay away from the bad fish or you will die and remember that you can’t stay underwater for long without recharging your oxygen.”
Snorkeling – The Game
Category: Games / Arcade
Released: 2009-11-04
Price: $0.99
Meanwhile, EA Games has Boggle on sale for $0.99 today. While Billy suggested that fans of the game wait, it’s not going to get any cheaper than this, and Boggle is one of the classic games that all word fans need. The latest update added Pass ‘n’ Play multiplayer, and the game’s wrapped with all the graphical polish you’d expect from EA. An Advanced mode adds some extra strategy to the mix. Make sure to read our detailed review!
Boggle
Category: Games / Word
Released: 2009-08-31
Price: $2.99 ON SALE: $1.99
And for today, one bonus deal: Ramp Champ is also free. It’s a playful take on skee ball from Iconfactory that should provide some simple fun. It includes four different games, each with points and goals; trophies and prizes can be collected as well.
We’ll be posting our “Daily Double” feature tomorrow, too. Be sure to check back!