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iPhone Review: Hockey Nations 2010

iPhone Review: Hockey Nations 2010

IMG_0136Developer/Publisher: Distinctive Wireless
Genre: Sports/ Hockey
Price: $3.99
Acquired: Review Copy Provided

Review Platform: iPhone 3G and iPad
Verdict: Unless further updates fix its issues, save your money.
Pros: Well designed controls and graphics.
Cons: AI is too hard. Goalies never block shots.

When I heard that a 3D full hockey game was coming out for the iPhone, I was very skeptical. Then Street Fighter 4 came out and I was forced to reconsider my skepticism about games like this, trying to provide a larger console experience on the iPhone. Unfortunately, while Street Fighter 4 was an amazing triumph for the platform, Hockey Nations 2010 falls a long way from that mark. This game is a great start for the genre, and was very ambitious for the first hockey game to hit the iPhone. Still, it’s not worth spending money on just yet.

IMG_0134First things first, the controls are great. You have a virtual joystick, a shoot button, a pass button, and a turbo button. They’re all nice and responsive on the iPhone, but are WAY too big on the iPad so don’t even try there. The graphics are pretty decent, and are comparable to PS1 with everything being 3D-rendered. The audio is pretty minimalistic, but I prefer that to it being overdone to where it takes away from the game itself.

One thing I really liked about this game is that it didn’t license the NHL teams. It has a team for each country giving it a very Olympic-esque feel. The drawback to this, though, is that some countries just plain suck (I’m looking at you Great Britain!). Thankfully, you can pick whomever you want. While I was playing, I used Canada exclusively.

Where the game fails is its AI. Let me preface this with the fact that I’m no stranger to hockey video games. I’ve played a lot, and I consider myself to be quite good at them. I played my first exhibition game on the normal difficulty. When I lost to Great Britain 14-2, I knew there was a problem. I switched the game down to easy and still lost 7-3. I also spotted another problem while suffering these losses: If a shot on goal is straight at the net, it will go in. The goalie only stops the puck if you’re in his zone and haven’t shot it yet. In all the games I played, I never saw an exception to this. The reason why my scores were always so low were that the computer team always had any player I got the puck to covered by 3-5 players. My shots on goal were almost non-existent because of it.

IMG_0114I played about 30 games before writing this review. I didn’t win a single one. I didn’t even have a close game (the closest was 6-2). Because of this horrible record, I can’t really tell you what the differences are between the different game modes. Everything seemed like it was just an exhibition game because once I lost, it was over.

I think this game/series has a lot of potential. The core of it is well designed. It needs a total overhaul of the AI, though. Until then, buyer beware.

Posted in Reviews, headlines, iPad, iPhone & iPod Touch0 Comments

iPad Review: Zen Bound 2

iPad Review: Zen Bound 2

IMG_0033Developer/Publisher: Secret Exit
Genre: Puzzle
Price: $7.99
Acquired: Review Copy Provided
Review Platform: iPad
Verdict: An excellent sequel and transition to the iPad!
Pros: Fantastic music, graphics, controls.
Cons: Tilting the device can be a bit awkward, having to unlock extra modes.

If you have owned an iPhone at any point in the last year or so, you probably bought the first Zen Bound title that was released for it. If not, go buy it now. I’ll wait. Okay, are you back? Good. Let’s get started here.

IMG_0036Zen Bound 2 is the latest puzzler from Secret Exit and it’s based off the original title of the same name. I’ve tried to explain this game to friends, but none of them can really understand it until they try it. To put it as simply as I can, you wrap rope around a wooden object. As the rope touches the object, the wood gets painted a little way out from the rope. If you can paint at least 70% of the object without running out of rope, then reconnect the rope to a glowing nail, you’ve solved the puzzle. Yes, I know that may be hard to follow, but it’s remarkably easy to understand once you try it. If you’re a bit shaky about the concept, there’s a free demo of the original Zen Bound that you can try out. Be warned, though: You will get addicted! The goal of 70% on each level is only the minimum needed to solve each puzzle. There are three flowers that will bloom over each puzzle based on how well you do. 70% will net you one, 80% will get you two, 95% will get you three. You’ll need to get a lot of these flowers to unlock additional game modes.

So other than the amazingly unique puzzles this game offers, what else is there to look forward to? Glad you asked! First off, the graphics on the iPad are just plain beautiful. The lighting, patterns, and trees (the level select areas) are stunningly well rendered and realistic. The audio is unbelievable. Not only are the sounds of the rope and wood creaking a nice touch, but the music is top notch and very relaxing. The original Zen Bound came with MP3 downloads of the soundtrack, but I’ve yet to see it for this version.

IMG_0047The controls are where this game really shines.. When the original Zen Bound was on the iPhone, the controls were already great. On the iPad’s gigantic screen, they get even better. Using one finger, you can spin the wooden object in any direction. Using two fingers, you can rotate the object like a peg was directly under it. It feels like you’re actually holding and interacting with the object. There is one place where the control suffers, though. The direction the rope is pulled toward is controlled by tilting the device. This worked very well on a smaller device like the iPhone, but on the larger iPad, it feels very cumbersome. Overall, though, I think the controls are a massive success!

Zen Bound 2 also comes with several different play modes to keep your brain hurting with its wonderful puzzles. Three are unlocked when you first start the game, but the rest will only get unlocked as you make the flowers blossom. I’ll leave the unlockable modes out of my review so you can be pleasantly surprised, but here’s how the three you start with work:

  • The Tree of Vitality- This is essentially the classic mode of Zen Bound. You wrap the wooden shapes with rope and the rope touching the objects will paint them.
  • The Tree of Challenge- This was my favorite mode. The rope won’t be what paints the objects in this mode. Instead, the objects are covered in nails with balls of paint on the end. As the rope touches these nails, the ball of paint will burst and paint a large section of the object. Just be careful, here, as the finishing pins are placed in spots that you can easily block your access to as you try to wrap up the other nails.
  • The Tree of Nostalgia- This mode plays a lot like Vitality with one large difference: Every so often on the rope, there will be a ball of paint. When this is wrapped onto the object, it will burst and cover a large portion of it. You really have to plan around these to take advantage of them.

If you’re any fan of puzzle games, this is a must own title. The price tag may seem a bit steep, but you can rest assured Zen Bound 2 is worth every penny!

Posted in Reviews, iPad0 Comments

iPad Review: Minigore HD

iPad Review: Minigore HD

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Developer/Publisher: Mountain Sheep Games/Chillingo
Genre: Arena Shooter
Price: $4.99
Acquired: Review Copy Provided
Review Platform: iPad
Verdict: Buy it if you don’t already own it.
Pros: Absolutely perfect title. Fun for everyone! Great control innovation.
Cons: Possibly paying again for a game you already own.

Zombies, vampires, terrorists, and non-descript glowing tetrahedrons. When it comes to dual-stick shooters, we’ve shot them all. Well, Minigore HD brings a new bad guy into the mix for your destroying pleasure: Weird… fuzzy things?

Minigore has been out for the iPhone for some time, now. I never picked it up, though. After playing games like iDracula and Geometry Wars, I learned that I totally suck at dual-stick shooters. Since then, I’ve mostly avoided trying any new ones. Minigore HD added something new that fixed this for me, but more on that later. First, we’ll get into what makes this game totally awesome.

IMG_0023In every dual stick shooter, there’s some kind of object– for lack of a better term– that’s swarming you and you’re shooting. In Minigore, these objects are strange, fuzzy, cube-like monsters. They have giant eyes, even giant…er mouths, big black feet, and they’re covered in black fuzzy hair. At first, only tiny ones will charge you, but they will get bigger and bigger as you progress. As you shoot the larger ones enough to stop them, they’ll break apart and several smaller ones will come running out like a morbid Russian nesting doll. Every so often, the fuzzy monsters will thin out to nothing, bringing out one or more dragons made of bouncing balls. The dragons can only be shot when they’re touching the ground, and if you break them apart, you’ll end up with more than one. In the several hours I played this game, these were the only two baddies I saw, but they’re still quite a bit to keep up with. What they lack in variety, they made up with in sheer force!

As you shoot the baddies, items will appear. One item is the shamrock, which will be dropped by enemies every so often. If you collect three, your character will turn into a flaming minotaur which is invincible and ready to plow straight through the furry demons all around you for a short period. Also, you’ll need to keep your eyes peeled for crates to drop with one of two special guns. There are a shotgun, which will blast through enemies to the ones behind them as well, and a grenade launcher, which works pretty much exactly as you would expect it to. These have limited ammo, but can be stacked to use one after another if you pick up multiples.

IMG_0008The game really shines with its character selection screen. There are TONS of characters to choose from and they’re all pretty unique. The main character, John Gore, is available in many different forms. You can play him as a child, adult, hardened vet, old man, zombie, and even dressed as Santa. John Gore absolutely rocks! While you play, he spurts out so many one-line catch phrases, you’d think you were playing as Ash from the Evil Dead movies. I don’t care how often I hear them, they’re always funny. Each incarnation of John uses his guns a little bit differently, from the vet who can wield two guns at once, to the zombie who can’t shoot straight (only for experts!). On top of the great cast of characters from just Minigore (there are more than just John, but I’ll leave those to surprise you), you can also play as characters from other games. A few of those are: Zombieville Guy from Zombieville, Hook Champ from Hook Champ, Lizzy from Sway, Ninja Man from Sway, and (my favorite) EviroBear from Enviro-Bear 2010 (“Who is shooting that shotgun? A bear is shooting that shotgun! How can that be?!”). Each character can be unlocked by spending total kills on them. Be prepared to spend a lot for some of these little critters.

So why I am raving so much about a dual-stick shooter that I should be sucking at? The controls, stupid! How’d you make it this far in and not see where I said that earlier?! Minigore HD lets you choose two control options: The original dual stick mode, and a touch to move version, which freakin’ rocks! In touch to move, wherever you touch, your character will move. If you hold your touch down, and move your finger around, he’ll just keep going on that direction. I hear you now, “How do I fire?!” John will do it for you! John will turn and fire at whatever is closest to him. That may sound like it makes things easy on you, but you’d be very, very wrong. Evading becomes your big concern in this scheme since you cannot prioritize your shots. You have to move closer to some baddies to begin shooting them, which will often put you right in harm’s way. Having a some touch-based control scheme like this one opens Miniore HD up to the masses. Anyone can pick up this title and play the hell out of it with no previous video game experience, or even any coordination for working two sticks. Like how the iPhone and iPad bring advanced technology to a point where anyone can use it, this title brings this genre to everyone.

IMG_0012If you’ve never played Minigore on your iPhone, I highly recommend the iPad title. I can’t think of anyone who wouldn’t enjoy this. Nothing’s more fun than blowing up furry demonic things with flashy weapons and great catch-phrases. I’m not a big fan of charging people twice for the same game though, so if you already have the iPhone version and like the controls, I’d say to save your $5.

Posted in Reviews, iPad0 Comments

iPhone Review: Zenonia 2: The Lost Memories

iPhone Review: Zenonia 2: The Lost Memories

IMG_0068Developer/Publisher: GAMEVIL
Genre: Action RPG
Price: $4.99
Acquired: Review Copy Provided
Review Platform: iPhone 3G, iPad
Verdict: Buy it. Buy it right now.
Pros: Challenging and serious RPG that knows how to not take itself seriously all the time.
Cons: It’s not always clear what to do next, menus can be confusing at first, GAMEVIL’s splash screen at the beginning uses your ringer’s volume and can be quite loud.

It seems like it wasn’t all that long ago that I was here reviewing the first Zenonia release for the iPhone. To my great pleasure, there’s now a sequel available and it aims to please even more than the original!

Zenonia 2 is a very well fleshed out action RPG. You view your character from the top town in 2D and run around doing quests for NPCs and battling monsters for experience and items. The movement will feel a bit choppy at first, but it’s really part of this game’s style. All of this will be very familiar if you’ve played the first Zenonia, which I highly recommend, or if you’ve played just about any RPG. What sets Zenonia apart is its in depth story, quests, and its amazing sense of humor.

IMG_0047In the original title, you only had one character to choose from (whose parents cruelly named Regret). In Zenonia 2, there are four VERY different characters for you to choose: Lu, a paladin (high defense, close range attacks); Ecne, a shooter (fast, long range attacks and high evasion); Morpice, a magician (long range, powerful magic attacks); or Daza, a warrior (very powerful, close  range attacks).

The storyline has the same core to it no matter who you choose to play as, but each character fits into it in a very different way. This is a great way to stretch more gameplay out of the title. You will want to play this with all four characters before you’re done, and since each works differently, it’s always a new challenge. The story is that a great beast (the boss from the first Zenonia) is about to awaken, and a major disaster wipes out everyone’s memories. Each of the four characters are doing their own things when this happens, and get arrested shortly afterward. They all converge in prison, try to escape together, and end up getting caught and brought before the king. The king says you’re the four spoken of in the prophecy, and must find the four crystals to save the world. Then you all split up and the quest begins!

One of the biggest parts of this game is the quest system. You’ll find random NPC’s in towns (they even call themselves NPC’s) who will ask you to do things for them. They could be things like gathering firewood, killing baddies, delivering items, or even getting them some toilet paper (my favorite quest ever). What do you get for helping these people out? Why, goodies like items, experience, and money of course! These are very much worth your while, and, as the toilet paper example so clearly illustrates, can be extremely entertaining as well.

IMG_0052One big drawback about the game is that it’s not very clear what you’re supposed to be doing. Unless you speak to every single person more than once, you may miss something that you need to do to progress the storyline further. That said, the maps won’t let you go further until you’ve finished all you need to do. Another drawback of uncertainty is the menu system. It took me several levels to realize that the blinking “+stats” and “+abilities” on my screen needed me to do something for them. It also took about ten minutes of trial and error to learn how to use an item or an ability that I bought. Once you get it figured out, it works well. That said, you’ll go crazy until you do.

Something I found quite neat was the equipment system. When you equip an item in almost any RPG you’ll ever play, your character looks exactly the same. In Zenonia 2, your character will be wearing or carrying the item in question. This makes equipment useful from a strategy point of view, and fun from a style point of view at the same time.

Another side feature to this game is the player vs player system. This allows you to play over the WiFi or 3G with other players of a similar level (or friends). To link up, you need to take to the man out front of the Inn in each town. You’ll be given the option to go against a random person, or someone you’ve already fought who’s name you’ve saved. You’ll use your current character, and the random battle pairs you up fairly well. The arenas are random, but highly varied, and have baddies floating around to keep you distracted. If you win one of these battles, you’ll gain experience and gold for the regular game, so the stakes are high. Unfortunately, if you’re using one of the two characters that can fight from a distance, you’ll have a very high advantage. In the few games I played, if I was the ranged character, I always won. If I wasn’t, I always lost. I don’t know how this could be fixed, or if it could be fixed. Still, it’s a nice addition to the game.

IMG_0006My final complaint seems small, but has some justification to it. You can play as four characters, and will want to. You can take them online to battle other players. That’s good, too. There are only three save slots, though. That is very, very bad. GAMEVIL can always stick in another save slot in a future update, though, so I’m sure that will be updated in the not so distant future.

In summation, I can’t recommend this game enough. If you like RPGs or action games like Zelda, this is a must-own iPhone title. If you’re just an average video game player, my recommendation does not change. So what are you waiting for? Go click that lovely link at the top of this article and buy yourself some digital crack, a.k.a. Zenonia 2.

As an addendum to this article, Zenonia 2 plays pretty well on an iPad, although I’m hoping for an update to shrink the d-pad and upgrade the graphics.

Posted in Reviews, iPhone & iPod Touch1 Comment

iPhone Review: Plants vs. Zombies

iPhone Review: Plants vs. Zombies

Plants Vs Zombies TitleDeveloper: PopCap Games
Genre: Tower Defense

Price: $2.99

Acquired: Review Copy Provided

Verdict: Worth the hype and then some!

Pros: Simple to grasp, funny, extremely addictive.

Cons: No lite version.

PopCap, the makers of treasures like Peggle and Bejeweled 2, bring another unbelievable title to the iPhone and iPod Touch. With a name like Plants vs. Zombies, how can it lose? Plants vs. Zombies got its start on the net as a flash game, moving eventually to being a paid downloadable title. The gameplay was always perfect for a port over to the iPhone, so many people were surprised by the delay in it coming over. The wait ended on February 15th, 2010 as Plants vs. Zombies hit the App Store to a great reception from gamers, and as I discovered, for a good reason.

Most people reading this will have already played Plants vs. Zombies on their computers. This review isn’t so much for you, as it is for people like me; People who waited for the game to make it to the iPhone before they tried it. So, for all the PvZ virgins out there, get ready for some great fun!

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When I first turned on this game, I was treated to its great sense of humor right off the bat. The loading screen is a dirt lawn being rolled over with some sod. As the sod goes down, flowers pop out at 25%, 50%, and 75% loaded. When it gets to 100%, a zombie’s head pops out and moans at you. When I got to the main menu, I chose the help option, hoping to learn some gameplay tips. Unfortunately, those pesky zombies tricked me! The help file reads, “Help for Plants and Zombies Game: When the Zombies show up, just sit there and dont do anything. You win the game when the Zombies get to your houze. (-this help section brought to you by the Zombies)” It took me several tries before I caught them in this trick. Boy was my face red!

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So how is it that we’ve gotten to the point where plants and zombies are at war with each other? The game never spells it out, which I like. I gives me a great opportunity to fill in the story myself. The way I see things, is that the zombies have arrived and are preparing to wipe out all of humanity. The humans are holed up in their houses, trying to hide. Seeing this, these people’s houseplants and gardens have risen up to stop the tide of zombies. The plants’ mentalities are simple: If the people in the house die, who will water them? How can you lose with such an awesome story?

The story mode starts out with some great instructional levels. You catch sun beams that fall from the sky. Once you have enough, you can plant seeds for plants that can protect the house. The opening level gives you a single lane of sod. The zombies, having had enough dirt to last an unlifetime, will only walk down the sodded lane.  As you learn the gameplay, the levels will expand to three and finally five rows that the zombies will walk down. You’ll get more and more seeds as you progress through the levels. You start with pea-shooters, which obviously shoot peas at the zombies. You’ll soon get sunflowers, which give you more sunbeams, and wallnuts, which act as walls to hold the zombies back longer. The great thing is that there are a couple dozen different seeds that you’ll collect and can use as the levels get tougher.

peashooter-from-zombies-vs-plants-totally-looks-like-bellsprout

The zombies, themselves, are rather cute and funny. They’ll amble slowly from the right side of the screen, never veering from their path. Strangely, the zombies will eat your plants when they get close enough. I’ve never seen vegetarian zombies before this game (other than that one AWFUL movie whose name I won’t repeat). The game starts you with normal zombies, who are total pushovers. As the difficulty slowly ramps up, you’ll see zombies with road cones on their heads. It may look silly, but it gives that fragile brain a bit of extra protection. As you make it further into the game, you’ll even see zombies in football pads and ones riding lawn mowers (my personal least-favorite). At the end of each level, the game announces that the last wave is about to approach. It always begins with a lone zombie coming down the center pathway, carrying a flag like he’s marching into war. I still giggle like a little school girl every time I see him.

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All in all, I think this game is an amazing success. PopCap has done it again. The game is cute, fun, challenging, has great controls, great graphics, perfect sounds and music. I can’t find a single negative thing to say about it. Also, it’s got zombies. Zombies that eat plants! Just go pick it up, already!

Posted in Reviews, iPhone & iPod Touch0 Comments

iPhone Review: Doom Resurrection

iPhone Review: Doom Resurrection

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Developer/Publisher: Escalation Studios/ id Software
Genre: First-person shooter
Price: $9.99
Verdict: Worth the price of admission.
Pros: Amazing graphics and gameplay.  Fun new twists on the series.
Cons: Slightly odd aiming controls. The computer’s whistle.

If there’s one thing that’s more than simply redundant, it’s a resurrection of zombies. That said, it’s a hell of a lot of fun! No matter how many times Doom comes out, I can’t help but want to play it. This is one of the few older game franchises that hasn’t released thousands of sequels and promptly embarrassed itself out of any credibility.

Doom Resurrection, for the iPhone and iPod Touch, is a brand new game in the Doom universe. It uses graphics from the third game in the Doom series, which look surprisingly good on the iPhone/ iPod Touch. The game has the same basic story line: A military experiment on teleportation that accidentally opens a door to Hell. Now there are demons and zombies all around and you need to, if you excuse the phrase, “get the Hell out of Dodge.” The one new twist is that you find another living person at the beginning. He’s a bit too afraid to venture out with you, but instead locks himself in a room and sends a little flying robot with you so he can talk to you. The robot whistles very loudly any time it talks to you and the noise really got on my nerves, and probably will for you as well. That’s one of only negatives on this game, though. Still, watch out if you’re playing with headphones in.

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The game itself is an on-rails shooter– meaning that it moves for you. To be honest, this is my favorite kind of shooter. It really tests your reflexes and reaction time because you never have time to rest and gather your senses. The controls are simple and refined. You tilt the device to move the crosshairs and aim your weapon. There are buttons in each corner that allow you to fire, reload your weapon, dodge attacks, and switch weapons. You touch items on the screen to pick them up as you see them. There are also certain enemies who will grab and attack you, and you free yourself by shaking your iPhone/iPod Touch. The controls are very solid, but have a few quirks. I found the aiming system to be very cumbersome at first, especially the fact that tilting forward aimed up and back aimed down. Luckily I accidentally paused the game and found the invert function to switch those. Once you get used to the calibration, it feels just fine. The other odd point is picking up items can be picky. If an item is in the corner, it’ll be more likely to fire your weapon (or whichever button is nearby) instead of grabbing the item. A simple update can fix that small issue, though.

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As far as gameplay, it’s exactly what you would expect. You walk around military bases and parts of Hell and blow up zombies and demons.  It really doesn’t get any better than this. What more can I say? Lastly, the Doom series is synonymous with cheat codes like the perfectly named “God Mode.” Unfortunately, in my time with this game, so far, I have  not found any of the cheat codes for this title. I’m sure they’re there, but I can’t share them with you, yet. If I’m able to find them, I will update this review for everyone. If you’re a fan of Doom, first person shooters, rail shooters, or just blowing up zombies, this game is an OUTSTANDING title and well worth your $9.99. Keep sending these our way, id. You did a wonderful job :)

Posted in Reviews, iPhone & iPod Touch0 Comments

iCasual: iGuerilla

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Title: iGuerilla
Developer: Alexandre Minard
Price: $0.99
Written by Jaden Walker and Hosted by Carter Dotson.

Posted in iCasual, iPhone & iPod Touch0 Comments

iCasual: Land of the Lost Crystal Adventure

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Title: Land of the Lost Crystal Adventure
Developer: Universal Studios
Price: Free
Written by Jaden Walker and Hosted by Carter Dotson.

DID YA KNOW? iCasual is a free audio podcast that we deliver to you!

Click HERE to subscribe in iTunes | Click HERE for the RSS Feed.

Posted in iCasual, iPhone & iPod Touch0 Comments

iPhone Review: Zenonia

iPhone Review: Zenonia

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Released: May 24th, 2009
Developer/Publisher: GAMEvil USA Inc.
Price: $5.99
Verdict: Worth every penny!
Pros: Funny and campy dialogue, great story, lengthy play, multiple endings.
Cons: Somewhat sketchy controls, but you can get used to them.

A lot of 2-D Action RPGs like to claim to be “the next Zelda.” This one claims it, and while it’s not, it’s certainly a great game in the same genre.

Zenonia was designed in Korea for being played on cell phones. It was recently translated (with some fun Engrish thrown in) and ported to the iPhone and iPod Touch. Even so, the game play comes through as rather impressive on a cell phone port. The controls are on the corners of the touch screen: movement in the bottom left, actions on the bottom right, and menu on the top right. Overall, the controls work very well. That said, the movement can feel a bit out of control at times, and navigating the menu can be slightly frustrating. The overall experience allows me to forgive both, though. One of the best features is that the game will save whenever you exit it, not just when you tell it to. This is very important on a device that receives calls and text messages, and is just in general a great idea overall.

IMG_0001You play the game as a 17-year-old boy named Regret (most of the names are strange translations). His father is killed by a demon, then the whole town turns against Regret. You’re essentially banished from the town and your adventure begins. The game does seem quite a bit like Zelda in that there is an overworld, towns, and an underworld (caves, basically) in which you can wander at your own leisure. In the overworld and underworld, you’ll find bad guys around every corner and will attack them in real time. As you defeat them, you’ll gain levels and find weapons and armor to make yourself stronger. Also, any health you lose refills over time, but at the cost of your stomach. You need to make sure you’re eating to maintain the energy needed to fight.

IMG_0032In the towns, you’ll talk to people and take on jobs that will help you get more experience, items, and money. As all RPGs, you’ll spend the money on equipment, items, and food. One of the things I found surprising in this tiny little port is the opportunity for multiple endings. Several times throughout the game, you’ll be asked to make choices (one of the earliest is whether or not to help someone who ends up being a villian at the end, who would take you under their wing in return for the help). This really adds some depth and replayability.

IMG_0002Once of my favorite little quirks of this game is that every town has a dog, and you can talk to them. They’ll say several different things, some of which are absolutely hilarious. Never miss a chance to talk to the dogs! Alongside just funny commentary, they’ll also give you great in-game advice, or even jobs to accomplish for them.

Overall, Zenonia is the first great RPG I’ve come across on the iPhone. The whole game took me around 33 hours to finish without taking many side quests. I’m also tempted to try it again to see the other endings. This  game is a must own title for any serious RPG fans out there.

Posted in Reviews, iPhone & iPod Touch2 Comments

Attention Readers- iDoom is not Doom!

Attention Readers- iDoom is not Doom!

Picture 2The iTunes store has been known for being extremely strict on publishing requirements for applications. At the same time, some terribly offensive things (like the Baby Shaker app) or blatant copyright infringement (iHomer and iDonkeyKong) have slipped by. This is another case, and I want to make sure everyone is warned because of the nature of this potential scam.

id’s most famous game, Doom, is set to come to the iPhone any day now. Currently sitting in the iTunes store is iDoom. This is NOT the real game. This is a “noise maker” application that plays sounds from Doom. It looks like the real game, and is priced like you would expect the real game to be priced. Most sound sampling apps are either free, or only a dollar. They are most certainly not $5, showing that the developer of this is trying to capatalize off Doom’s pending release and confused buyers. Add to it that their support site does not exist.

Buyers beware on this one. iDoom is not what you’re looking for. Doom is not out yet. Trust me, once it is, you’ll be sure to hear about it on our site! :)

Posted in News, Upcoming iPhone Games, iPhone & iPod Touch1 Comment

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148Apps.biz - iPhone development news and information for the community, by the community.
http://148apps.biz :: @148AppsBiz

Best App Ever - Yearly Mobile App Achievement Awards.
http://bestappever.com :: @BestAppEver

GiggleApps - iPhone applications reviews for kids and parents.
http://GiggleApps.com :: @GiggleApps

 

 

 

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