Spider-Man is a name that has not only been one bantered about among Comic Book (ahem…) I mean Graphic Novel fans, it has become a part of Americana.  As several successful film releases have proven, the webslinger has drawing power far beyond the printed page.  With that in mind, it was only a matter of time before a Marvel approved Spider-Man game was going to climb onto the iPhone.

Brought to you by the good folks over at Gameloft and previewed by network site 148apps.com, Ultimate Spider-Man: Total Mayhem has now been christened with a September 1st release date and trailer to boot!  So without further ado, lets dive into the footage:

As you can you can see in the trailer, it looks like the game will feature quite a bit of high octane action, but I must note the trailer’s lack of actual gameplay footage.  I wonder if they might be trying to hide something from us?  That said, it is Gameloft and they do not half-ass anything, so I am not too concerned. If you would actually like to see more gameplay you can check out Jeff Scott’s E3 preview over on 148apps.

Developers say that they are trying to stay as true to the series as possible.  Here are some of the things that they think will help win over the loyal fans:

If there is one thing that gamers have become very accustomed with, it is futuristic scenarios where you step through the end of humankind.  One thing I have never experienced, however, is taking an active role in wiping out the human race.  In the upcoming game from Deceased Pixel, you are earth’s last line of defense against… ourselves.

Releasing later this month, Super Mega Worm is an intriguing new game that tasks puts you in the rapidly shedding skin of an earthworm that would make Jim quiver in his space suit.  The game’s back story is described as the following:

Mother Earth is on the brink of extinction and has released her last defense, the Great Death Worm Wojira. Wojira is on a revenge mission to destroy the parasite they call Humans. Crawl and eat your way through waves of humans and their robots of destruction. You are the last line of defense, can you save the world?

I have to say that this story seems a little more than just odd.  That said, maybe a gameplay trailer might help to gain a better grasp of what exactly is going on.

Wow!  After checking out that collection of 8-bit awesomeness, those were the first words to pass through my mind.  I know I am a sucker for anything that looks a decade old, but I am pretty sure that this game has my face directly in the crosshairs of its target demographic.  There is just something about the simple nature of the presentation that seems charming, despite having seen very little of the actual game.

As for concrete facts about the game, there is very little that we actually do know.  The few things about Super Mega Worm that we do have written confirmation of are that there will be a grand total of twenty-eight stages, over twenty edible items, and three different powers of destruction.  If the trailer is any indication, I would bet the farm that one of the abilities includes special flamethrowing powers.

One thing that we do not know for sure is the control mechanism for the game.  If I were to venture a guess, using my completely un-expert opinion, it seems to be custom fitted for tilt control.  I draw this conclusion due to the lack of any evidence of a d-pad in the trailer, as well as the arching curves that your character makes while maneuvering the environment.  It seems to be lacking the pinpoint turns that are characteristic of a d-pad input interface.  Or perhaps you control movement using the slider seen in the screenshot at left…

Of course all of this is just speculation, until the game comes out. However, one thing can be assured: Super Mega Worm has the potential to be AWESOME!

Ever since the days that Sim City first graced the Commodore 64 back in 1989, gaming has forever been shaped by its lofty influence.  It is of little surprise that it was then ported to virtually every platform known to man, as well as spawning countless titles based on almost (if not completely) the identical concept.  G5 Entertainment’s upcoming iPhone game Virtual City looks to be no exception to the rule, joining a rapidly expanding club of city building games on iOS devices.

Unfortunate as it may be, Virtual City is not quite ready for public consumption at this point in the development, so the team decided to take an interesting approach and release a “lite” version of the app to tide gamers over until the full release.  I know what you are thinking: “Why would we want to play a lite version, when the full version isn’t completed?”  G5 had this specifically in mind when they were crafting the demo and made sure to pack in full of plenty of features:

Virtual City FREE offers four levels of pure fun, over 30 minutes of game play and supports iPhone 4 Retina Display resolution. Build dwelling houses and industrial buildings, produce goods and deliver them to the shopping malls and setup mass-transit system. Make your city a better place to live by recycling garbage, planting trees, and upgrading buildings to make them more eco-friendly. — Press Release VIA G5E.com

Giving away thirty minutes of game doesn’t really sound like that much time on the surface, but that can cover quite a bit of downtime while stuck waiting in line.  If it is nothing more than an effective time burn it is worth the download.  If you are wondering what the game plays like, then wonder no more and check out the gameplay example below:

Here is a big shocker… It is EXACTLY what you would expect!  Constructing and managing your resources seems about as simple as could be expected from a touch interface, while hopefully managing to keep a firm grasp on the complexity that makes the genre appealing to so many.  I know I am a big fan of being able to micromange every aspect of my cities, so that is a must for me.

The bottom line is that for a glorified free demo, Virtual City Free looks like it will give you quite a bit to sink your teeth into, well as long as you can game quickly.  Also, that thirty minute time limit better be per session, otherwise I may have a bigger beef altogether…

The line-drawing game genre has came a long way in the last year and a half.  I know I may be showing my n00b side a bit, but before I played Harbor Master, I had never even grasped an idea of the true potential of the touch input.  Not only did the concept wow me, it gave me an insatiable appetite for quality titles using similar mechanics.

Another upcoming game from Chillingo looks to be coming to my rescue, with an interstellar angle to boot!  Alien Cab is the perfect melding of line-drawing and time management that could keep you on your toes for hours.  Taking a page from the Diner Dash book of gameplay, you will be tasked with helping to shuttle little green men from one planet to another, all while managing to keep a firm grasp on your sanity.  I may not be a huge fan of stressful mechanics, but I am willing to try everything at least once.

This may sound like quite a bit to comprehend all at once, so fortunately there is a gameplay trailer that makes the key concepts of the game much clearer:

If there could be one knock against the game from my viewing of the trailer, it would have to be the very simplistic looking nature of the game.  When you compare it to something like their recently released Zombie Escape, it almost seems too easy.  With that in mind, Chillingo sent over a few handy selling points of the games for once it is released:

• Highly addictive gameplay and fun for the whole family
• Amazing sound effects.
• Visuals optimized for iPhone 4 retina display
• Increasingly tense endless gameplay.
• Crystal leaderboards and achievements.

Call me a cynic, but this seems pretty similar to most of the line drawing games we’ve seen. Time will tell if this one is a keepr.  But if you are interested in seeing more, you are in luck.  Check out the screenshots below and see if you want to let these little green men into your space jalopy.

There’s no doubt that the iPhone has provided a platform for new, indie developers to get creative and reveal their games for all to see – I always get little excited when I see a new developer coming up with something different for me to play. When I cast my eyes upon Grumpyface Studios’ upcoming debut title Wispin, that excitement returned once more.

The studio’s Founder and Creative Director, Chris Graham explains: “With Wispin, we set out to create a unique arcade experience featuring frantic, reflex-based gameplay alongside a critical thinking element similar to what you’d find in a color-based puzzle game.  We wrapped it all up in a fun world filled to the brim with quirky characters that we hope everyone will enjoy.”

The gameplay revolves around a color-based mechanism, whereby using the on-screen “Touch Color Wheel” you can adjust the color of your cutesy character Wispin’s aura. This will in turn grant your character certain attacking abilities (and immunities) to be used against a whole host of enemies that will each need to be tackled in a different way.

Chris reveals: “Attacking happens automatically upon collision – we found this to be quite intuitive where the player’s primary focus is on movement and color changing.  When the player changes to a specific color, they are able to attack enemies of that same color and are also immune to all attacks and projectiles of that color. Bombs, arrows, and fire-breath are some of the color-coded attacks used by the enemies, who we lovingly refer to as Bloopers.”

There’ll be two different game modes to play through, with the objective being to last as long as you can while scoring as highly as possible. Add to that various pick-up items, two combo systems, a bright, eye-catching art style and some crazily fast-paced gameplay – it makes for a game that I’m genuinely looking forward to.

The final feature that Grumpyface have decided to include and which I have to mention, is one that I personally wish we’d see more often in titles on the iOS platform; that’s the ability to select between both an on-screen D-pad or a tilt-based control system. I cannot count the number of times I played a game and wished for an alternative method of input.

This was reiterated by Chris himself: “Granting players access to whichever control method they prefer allows for a more intuitive experience — we want everyone to be able to jump right in!”

Wispin is currently still under development and is expected to hit the App Store sometime during the fourth quarter of this year. In the meantime, here’s the game’s debut gameplay trailer to offer a little more insight into what it’s all about. You can also find a whole lot more about the game over on Grumpyface Studios’ official site.

A while back on TPG, we reported that publisher Chillingo had a few zombie based games that were heading to the App Store. One of those games, Zombie Escape, is still slated to be released in the very near future – while we’re waiting, though, those same developers over at Viqua Games are putting out something rather different.

A far cry from zombies, helicopters and bombs, UltraDeep is being labelled as “a simple but insanely addictive highscore tilt-action game.” You tilt your iPhone in an attempt to guide a little scribbly stick-man as deep into the Earth (I presume) as possible. The graphical styling looks cute in its own doodled fashion, but it does concern me just how many games, across several platforms, are now adopting a style that was once only used in free, browser-based games.

As you fall deeper and deeper, you’ll have to avoid some spiky, stalagmite-looking obstacles and collect as many diamonds as possible in order to gain power ups – they’ll turn your bog-standard stick-man into an invincible, flaming doodle, smashing through anything that gets in his way. There’ll also be a few other power ups such as shields and the ability to slow time.

I remember playing a DsiWare game of similar principle not too long ago named Paper Plane; this was, of course, lacking the use of the iPhone’s accelerometer. But, if it’s remotely similar to play, I’ll personally vouch for the “simple but insanely addictive” promise.

Other features in the game will include unlockable items, the capacity to level up your character (making him even faster) and online leaderboards and achievements thanks to the OpenFeint service – something which a commenter on Viqua’s website wasn’t very pleased about:

“Why did you have to ruin it with OpenFeint? – The service (along with 99% of the Social Achievement services) suck. I am really disappointed in you guys. – I’d love if you just used your own leader boards, and built code to view achievements. I doubt it’s hard.”

I’m not out to pick a fight or anything, but I’d personally have to disagree with the above statement – I love the OpenFeint service and the feeling it gives me to have earnt achievements that my friends haven’t, though it would be nice to have a single, unified social service that could be used across all iPhone games. A Viqua Games representative was soon to respond and point out that although it could probably be easily done, they’d never be able to match the standards of OpenFeint. Nonetheless, whether you’re a fan of OpenFeint or not, this game certainly looks to be both exciting, chaotic and perhaps a little bit crazy at times – therfore, I’m sold. What’s more, it’s going to be released at the rather appealing price of just $0.99.

UltraDeep is currently awaiting the almighty iTunes seal of approval after being submitted to Apple. The developers are currently targeting a release for August 26^th, but the ball is well and truly out of their hands, for now.

Written and Recorded by: Michelle Lopez

iCasual is a free audio podcast that we deliver to you!
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Hello everyone this is Michelle from the portable gamer with your iCasual report for Gravity Runner from We Are Colin for all devices running current iOS software. Gravity Runner is an addictive little game where your character runs while you try to control where he goes. It’s similar to other games in this genre accept it adds the addition of controlling gravity which literally gives this game a whole other side. Running along you will tap to jump and then tap in the air to flip your guy around. Timing is really everything because if you flip at the wrong time you’ll float off into nothing and it will be all over. You will want to start in the level based playing area where your game trains you and gets progressively harder. With over 25 levels to concur you’ll gain a lot of skills that you can then try out in the endless mode where you can go on and on with randomly changing environments. Either mode is very challenging and appropriate for any age. The graphics have a wonderful feel and the music is up beat enough the add to the excitement, though you can listen to what ever you like if you wish. With the social media integration and because the controls are so easy to pickup this will be a game you go to again and again.

We have been lucky enough to be among the few who got to review it early and I’ve had a hard time putting it down. You can expect to see it hit the app store any day now for only .99, a real steal for this level of game.
Update: Gravity Runner is now available!

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Mark your calendars for tomorrow July 30th everyone! Magnifusion, the newest addiction from Toco Games will be coming to the App Store. Just for July 30th the game will be FREE. If you miss out on this great offer they will have a 1/2 price sale for a few days where you can get this gem for $.99. After that you will be stuck with paying the reasonable price of $1.99, which isn’t that shabby either for the quality of game play your gonna get.  Well, what are you waiting for? Get out your favorite reminder app and don’t miss out.

Oh all right, I guess you want to know a little about the game first before you get all excited. Well, I have been lucky enough to be playing this addictive and refreshing puzzler for a few days now and I’m happy to say you won’t regret it when you get your hands on it.  The game mechanics are easy to learn and fun to master. You slide your finger on the screen to combine same size and shape bubbles to make them bigger. When the timer runs out a beam of light will encircle the screen and allow you to pop the bubble that match that beam. Sounds simple, but as the board fills up it gets harder and harder to move like minded items together. The graphics look great on any device and is integrated with Open Feint. Below is a preview video that I’m sure will make it clearer why you will want this game.

Plus hear is some extra news for our readers. The developers have given us a special unlock code that, once you have the game, you can use to get an extra mode called “Maze Arcade”. All you need to do is go to the “codes & extras” screen and enter the code 477201.

Coming in August to an app store near and dear to you will be a new game in the running genre that gives you an added dimension to previous incarnations of games like this. In Gravity Runner you play a character running for all he’s worth. You control him with a simple tap and collect items as you run. Sounded a bit like other games already out there but there is one unique variation..With an additional tap you can turn the character upside down. From the screen shots and preview video the developers provided below, this looks to be a fun, fast paced game that will be an instant hit. As soon as we get our hands on it, we will give you a full review but here is what we know so far:

Feature Highlights:
* Easy to learn, a lifetime to master,
* Fiendish traps and difficult obstacles,
* 25 widely varying levels + 4 secret levels,
* An Endless mode to challenge even the most veteran of players,
* A variety of pickups,
* OpenFeint Enabled,
* Submit your score worldwide and compete to become the best,
* Post scores over facebook and twitter and challenge your friends,
* A collection of achievements up for grabs,
* Choose to listen to your own music while racing through the levels.

Device Requirements:
* iPhone or iPod touch
* Requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later

Pricing and Availability:
Gravity Runner will be priced at only $0.99 (USD) and will be available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Action and Arcade categories. Coming August 2010.

The iPhone 4 brings with it not only antennagate but a new gyroscope that game makers can access to enhance gameplay. Flip it! Gyro from Jeybee.com is an exclusive casual party game built just for this new feature and I for one can’t wait to try it. But alas I am not meant to have an iPhone 4, since I am on the Verizon network. I didn’t want to leave this news out of the line up, because I’m sure a lot of our readers are enjoying these new features. It reminds me a bit of that bop it game. I think its begging for a wrist strap. What do you think?

2 modes of fun:

• Play Survival mode to see how long you can keep flippin’. The game gets faster every move you make. Compete on a global leaderboard to see if you have what it takes to be the Flippin’ Master.
• Jump in to the Challenges and take the time trial competing on 30 different levels. Challenge your friends via Twitter and Facebook or compare with the world. Only the fastest flippers will make it to the top of the rankings.

It will be released any day now is live on the App Store for an introductory price of $.99.