July 29th in App Reviews, Games by Jonathan Norman .
I’ll admit it, I’m not the biggest “gamer” out there. I’m not sure if it’s because of time, money, or the fact that I’ve never been tremendously good at most games… aside from word games and sports games. So with that said, I was hesitant to give TowerMadness HD a try after a recommendation from a friend. Now that I have I’m not sure if I should be thankful or upset.
Why?
Because I love it. But also because I’m not good at it and it frustrates the living daylights out of me! The premise of the game is that your land is being invaded by aliens and you must set up various towers to gun them down before they steal all your sheep. It’s a strategy game that is fast paced, full of great 3D graphics, and requires quick thinking and even planning. But the greatest part, or worst, is that you can not plan out your entire mission before each of the 30 maps or boards. You really only get a good look at the boards while playing them (assuming you don’t head to the Internet for cheats), and since the game-play is so fast it doesn’t lend its self to forethought, it’s not quite fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants, but is more a mixture of the two. (more…)
July 26th in App Reviews, Games by Jonathan Norman .
Too many games for the iPad fail to take advantage of the screen real-estate the device has. The Ultimate Alphabet by Toytek is one that truly does. The game is described by the developer as a “visual crossword”, and that is more or less the short and sweet of it. However, it is a bit more.
In the late 1980′s a book by the same name contained an illustration for each of the 26 letters of the alphabet, by artist Mike Wilks. Each page was full of animals, objects, and hidden clues that begin with each of the letters for the corresponding painting/page. The job of the reader/user was to find all the objects contained on each page using the clues as a sort of crossword puzzle. The game takes the idea, updates it and evolves it for the iPad. (more…)
July 19th in App Reviews, Games by Jonathan Norman .
One thing that the Apple App Store is not short on is games, especially games that use the “Match 3″ strategy. However, in a field that at times seems to be burdened by poor quality, Paradise Quest HD for the iPad stands above the rest.
Paradise Quest HD ($2.99) is an amazingly beautiful “match 3″ adventure puzzle game set on a tropical island. Users play as ecologist Dr. Evan Finch in an attempt to restore the island to its former beautiful luscious self. Along the way your job is to “collect” natural resources to help the island revive and restore itself. There are secrets to unlock and ancient artifacts to uncover, all set within the game puzzle that is easy to understand if not always easy to complete. (more…)
July 18th in App Reviews, Games by Jonathan Norman .
Are you someone who loves puzzles but can’t stand the fact that pieces get lost, folded, or that you can’t really save your place in the puzzle for later without purchasing one of those crazy puzzle mats? Well if so you really should look into “Super Puzzle” ($4.99).
Super Puzzle is a great app for the iPad for those looking to complete puzzles without having to get out a box of pieces and deal with the clean up. The application comes with a group of preloaded puzzles that range from easy to difficult and has the ability to create puzzles from photos on your iPad. Users can create a puzzle that ranges from easy (4 pieces) to pretty difficult (500 pieces). Don’t let the 500 number fool you, it’s pretty difficult, I can tackle a normal 5000 piece puzzle with less work. (more…)
July 13th in App Reviews, Games by Jeff Cormier .
Previously I have had the pleasure of reviewing an iPhone app by Sunkissed Design, EZ-30! Crosswords 01, as well as one of their iPad app creations, Word Adventure 01, both of which display the ability of Sunkissed Design to produce great products that feature innovative online components. Their latest creation, Word Fiesta! 101 for iPad, $2.99, is no different.
Word Fiesta! 101 is a fantastic crossword puzzle game for those who have a wicked good knowledge of words, as well as those of us wary of anything involving words. (more…)
July 4th in App Reviews, Games by Jonathan Norman .
Foosball HD (from the makers of Touchgrind HD and Labyrinth 2 HD) for the iPad is a fun and exciting game, for one player or two. It’s the type of game I had envisioned when the iPad was introduced, but wasn’t sure how long it might take for it to actually be released.
If you are a fan of Foosball, the table enabled football/soccer game played by two people moving fixed players on bars/poles to score on their opponents, then you are in for a treat with this game on the iPad. Using the device users move their players by sliding their finger back and forth and spinning just like on the full table version. OK, not JUST like the real thing, as there is some “getting used to time” involved when learning the exact technique needed to play, pass, and score at will. The controls for the game work well, but not perfectly and could use a little bit of added attention and smoothness, but it isn’t anything that really hinders the game overall. (more…)
June 24th in App Reviews, Games by Jeff Cormier .
Gaming on the iPad is grand provided the game isn’t a complete piece of…. well, you understand. That said, I saw Dizzypad HD, from Nimblebit, featured in the top 10 free iPad apps this weekend and decided to give it a whirl. Any thought of an iPad version of Frogger were quickly dispelled by the screen shots provided in the application’s iTunes page.
Pictures aside, the description of the game is what really sold me – “luscious high resolution with 30 unlockable frogs…” 30 frogs? Yes please! I wasn’t sure what luscious resolution was, but I was frothing at the mouth to find out (Literally. I was almost put down for fear of having rabies).
The graphics were as promised, luscious. What really impressed me once I began playing the game was just how entertaining, and addicting, the game is. Full disclosure: I am not very good, but played for, let’s just say, most of the weekend. (more…)
May 29th in App Reviews, Games by Jonathan Norman .
Word games are a staple of fun for millions. Now you have the power of that fun and excitement on your beautiful iPad in a size you can actually enjoy! Are you a “word-a-holic”? If so then be sure to check out these great games.
Befuddled HD – Anyone who has played Boggle, Bookworm, perhaps Scramble, or some other variation on the “string letters together to form words” game has GOT to try Befuddled. It’s easy to learn and very addictive. Users start with a board of 64 letters and then attempt to form words (up to 16 letters each) from a dictionary of over 400,000. Befuddled goes down a different path from other word-string games by having the letters used in the words formed fall off and become new ones. This allows users to create new, longer, and more point-awarding words. With various difficulty levels, 8 add-ons, dictionary look-up, great graphics, and offline scoreboards, Befuddled HD has raised the bar. Best of all users can have multiple games going simultaneously (and give each a custom name) and there is NO clock to beat. Take all the time you need! The app costs $1.99 and there is the option to purchase an add-on ($.99) that will bring 5 new games and rules into Befuddled, such as Alphabet Soup Mode (must use all letters to move up a level), and Kid-Friendly Mode (board shrinks to 6×6, and the player can spell words with non-adjacent tiles). The best part about the app is the obvious heart and soul that went into the project and the extreme enthusiasm that the developers have for it. (more…)
May 28th in App Reviews, Games by Jonathan Norman .
BrainShake for the iPad has become a quick hit on a platform that is still very new, rising to the #1 free download spot in many countries, but that status of “Free” won’t last long! Better pick it up fast! So what is BrainShake and why is it #1? It’s a combination of Simon Says and Bop-It. It’s nicely put together, the graphics are well done, sounds and performance of the app are top notch, and the game-play is very easy to understand. These are important staples for anything that takes up my precious gigabytes on the iPad. (more…)
May 21st in App Reviews, Games by Jonathan Norman .
Before the iPad was released there were a few apps that made blog posts, social media sites, and general Internet headlines, one that was put out there early was Game Table. However I’ve noticed recently a trend that is swaying in a different direction when it comes to this particular app and I wanted to set the record straight! I am in no way affiliated with the developer, I just simply believe in the app and want to share it with you in case you missed it early on.
There are tons of game apps available for the iPhone and iPad, obviously if you’re a developer you’ve got to offer something different to make people take notice. That’s what the makers of Game Table knew when they created their game app. (more…)
