Among the best things in life is playing printed games in person with family and close friends. When those are not convenient we like iOS Board Games.
News, reviews, previews, and opinions about board gaming on iPhones, iPads, iPods and even Android devices. (iPhone board games, iPad board games, iPod board games, Android board games)
The Stats: Compatibility: Universal Current Price: $2.99 Developer/Publisher: Easy, Inc. Version: 1.0.1 Size: 78.6 MB Multiplayer: Pass and Play. AI: Yes Itunes link:European War 3 Read more »
Neuroshima Hex Updated With Async and More By now you probably know that Big Daddy's Creations has released version 2.0, the much anticipated update to it's flagship app Neuroshima Hex!. And of course the big news is that this update features asynchronous online multiplayer or async as we like to call it. The app has been redesigned from the ground up with new game engine. Also included in the update is new iPad Retina support, chat, profiles and avatars, better tutorial, fast forwards, better undo and quite a bit more. And to celebrate the monumental release Big Daddy's has dropped prices on all BDC apps across the board.
Army of Frogs: Free Caylus: $2.99 Neuroshima Hex: $2.99 Neuroshima Hex - every army (IAP): $0.99 Neuroshima Hex Puzzle: $0.99
King of Dragon Pass Info Update David Dunham, lead developer at A Sharp, LLC working on King of Dragon Pass for iOS reported last week that there isn’t a lot of progress to report on the Universal build of King of Dragon Pass. Apparently their artist wasn’t able to complete the work and they have arranged for another artist. They are still making a Universal build for the app as a free update.
App Releases
The Bluecoats: North vs South Released French publisher Anuman Interactive and developer released The Bluecoats: North vs South for iOS Universal a couple of weeks back and we failed to mention it. The app is a turn-based strategy title covering the the US Civil War. It is described as a "remastered version of the North & South game released in 1989 by Infogames." As you command either the North or the South you capture states, assault enemy forts, and defend ports that bring in reinforcements. As you move across the US in a strategic turn-based fashion you are then presented with one of three mini-games along the way like armed battles in real time, shoot-outs, and horseback train chases. These mini-games appear to be more "video-gamey" and action oriented, but the app does promise the presentation of strategic choices within. The app offers multiplayer locally on one iPad or online on two with matchmaking. The app is priced at $3.99 on the App Store.
Party Doodles Released Cerebral Gardens has released Party Doodles. The app attempts to bring a drawing and guessing parlor game to your iPad and Apple TV. You get rid of the chalkboards and easels and ultimately replace them with your finger, and iPad or perhaps even your big screen HD TV with its AirPlay mirroring feature. The app supports two teams with up to 10 players on each team. Answers are provided in 3 difficulty levels. You can then share your masterpieces online through Facebook and Twitter so that those drunken scrawls will be remembered and giggled about for some time to come. You can pick it up on the App Store for free.
Social Matching - Play with your favorite social networks Released The Clash Soft has released Social Matching - Play with your favorite social networks for the iPad. It is basic Memory but with photos from your social networks. The app features four modes of play: Classic, Time Attack, Offline multiplayer (up to 4 players on the same device) and Online multiplayer (Game Center account is necessary). You can pick it up for free on the App Store.
Rage of Bahamut Released Mobage has released Rage of Bahamut for iPhone. The app is a port of an Android app that has apparently grossed quite well on Google Play. The app is a two-player TCG card battler where you control of one of three parties: men, gods, and demons, drawing powers from hundreds of unique cards you collect through play. You can play single player or against purportedly "1.5 million" online opponents on the developer's multiplayer platform. We don't have many details on game play, but the app is available on the App Store right now for free.
App Updates
Conquest! Medieval Realms Updated Slitherine Software has updated Conquest! Medieval Realms to version 1.1. The update includes memory fixes, fix on save progress in Conquest mode, improved UI, victory condition adjustment and more. You can check out the full details on the App Store.
Khet and Khet 2x Updated Schogini Systems has update both Khet and Khet 2x to version 4.0. The update includes all new graphics, a brand new interface, several bug fixes, and several new features including cross compatibility across Android, iPad, and iPhone. You can check out the details on the App Store for both Khet for iPhone and Khet 2x for iOS Universal.
Siegecraft Updated Crescent Moon Games has updated its Crossbows and Catapults-inspired Siegecraft to version 1.1.0. The update includes iPad Retina update rendering 3D at full native Retina resolution for the new iPad, bug fixes, memory tweak, and more. You can check out the details on the App Store.
New World Colony Updated But Perhaps Hold Off Erik Asmussen has updated New World Colony to version 4.26. The update includes the addition of Viximo Social Zone, allowing players to invite friends from existing social networks and send messages to each other, rule updates, and bug fixes. But Erik says users may want to hold off on this update due to a bug in the social zone login screen. A fix has been submitted. You can check out the details on the App Store.
Gobang Social Updated Kwalee has updated their five-in-row abstract strategy app to version 1.6. The update includes Facebook improvements, in-game score display, bug fixes, and usability tweaks. You can check out all the details on the App Store.
Hot Deals
Ticket To Ride Pocket Goes Free As of this writing Ticket to Ride Pocket is free in the App Store. The occasion for the price drop is that Ticket to Ride appeared on the latest episode of TableTop. TableTop is a board game playing show hosted by celebrity geek Wil Wheaton on the Youtube Geek & Sundry channel. We recommend at least scanning through the video, especially to see what happens at 23:08. You can pick up Ticket to Ride Pocket for free right now on the App Store.
Interesting Links
Autumn Dynasty Coming Soon Okay, this is real time strategy, but it looks damn interesting! Feast your eyes on Touch Dimension's upcoming Autumn Dynasty with its beautiful oriental ink-on-paper graphics and the elegant "brush stroke" paradigm of commanding thousands of soldiers at once to bravely face death. We thought it was pretty visually striking with intriguing game play. This one is set to release soon. As of Friday it was awaiting approval by Apple, so it could be out this week. You can read more about Autumn Dynasty at Touch Dimension's site.
PocketTactics Interviews Slitherine Over at PocketTactics Owen interviews Slitherine's JD McNeil as he easily defends Battle Academy's quality-inspired premium price point.
I am pleased to announce that BoardGameGeek and iOS Board Games will be attending Origins Game Fair 2012. I want to meet with you and will be filming interviews and demos of both physical board games and digital products.
BoardGameGeek has been lucky enough to be selected to participate in a pilot program at Origins 2012. We have been given a table to use as a base of operations in the Origins Game Day Live area of Hall D.
For Publishers and Game Developers:
I will be attending all day Friday and Saturday. I would love to meet with you or have you demo any of your physical games or digital games. All of these video demos will go up on BoardGameGeek.com.
I will be available to visit booths from 10am to 1pm and will be at the BGG table to film demos from 2pm to 6pm.
Please let me know if there a time that works for you. I am also free for after hours meetings
You can PM me here or you can email me at brad@boardgamegeek.com.
For Readers and Friends:
I would love to meet you at Origins. Feel free to come visit the BGG table anytime from 2pm to 6pm on Friday or Saturday. Also after hours it would be great to meet and play games or chat either at the BGG table or in another location.
Here are some highlights and comments on some apps I have been playing this week. I had the chance to play many iOS titles this week:
Ascension: Storm of Souls It is more than likely that most of you are already enjoying Storm of Souls on your iOS devices. This recently added in-app purchase for Ascension: Chronicles of the God Slayer is a great addition and provides an alternative way to play Ascension. Along with this expansion, the latest update to the app also adds a promo pack expansion and several welcome add-ons. Some of these include a next game button in online play and fast app switching.
I think this update is a must have for any fan of Ascension. The added expansions really add a lot of variety to the game and increase the number of ways you can customize the experience. I really enjoy no longer having to load the game each time I go in to play, though the connection to Game Center does seem to take a while (this could be my device). The new cards are interesting to check out and really open up new strategies. The next game button is amazing and has done a lot to ease playing multiple games at a time. The IAP system is actually set up well and restoring purchases is fairly easy. I would check this out if you have not already. You can check the game out here.
Casino by Zeniz Casino games are not something I often try out. I had a stint of really enjoying Texas Hold Em when I was in high school, but not much since then. Casino by Zeniz is basically an online portal to play slots and poker. The poker interface is pretty well done and offers several levels of play. It is easy to hop in and out of a game. The slots, beyond the basic slot game, are somewhat beyond my understanding. It does seem like strong poker simulator and you do start out with credits, so there is no initial investment. I am not sure it is exactly my cup of tea, but if you are up for Texa Hold Em on your iPad it is a well designed option. You can check it out here.
Neuroshima Hex Online The latest update for Neuroshima Hex is just around the corner. I was able to take a look at the update this week and have been quite impressed. The online system is a large improvement over Caylus and Army of Frogs. You start by creating a simple log in and password, it is sad that it is not straight Game Center, but it is not a long process. You can login in to see games that are available to join or start one of your own. Games can be async or real time if both players are online at the same time. There are also are neat options, like the ability to fast forward through the battle scenes like in a single player game. There is also in game chat. This seems like a laundry list of features, but really it is just to show that Neuroshima Hex online appears to be full featured. It really seems like this can be a new async go to. I hope that you all will check out the app when the update launches. I am very pleased. You can check it out here.
Scotland Yard This week Scotland Yard was released from Ravensburger Digital. I have had a chance to play around with it and it is quite well done. You can play with up to six players with local and AI players. There is also online play real time through Game Center. The interface is very well done and captures the game quite well. I will be doing a full review of this next week, but for now it looks like a great game, especially for families. You can check it out here.
City of Secrets: Pipes City of Secrets seems to be becoming something of a franchise and Reiner Knizia appears to be an essential part of it. Much like the previously released Skyline, Pipes is a puzzle game. Each round a series of pipes will be given to you and your task is to connect them to sockets around the edge of a grid in the optimal way. Pipes have large and small connectors. If you connect a larger connector to the outside sockets you score double the point shown, but if you connect a small connector you only score the points shown. You can also score bonus points if you have a chain of large pipes from the center (starting point) to an outside socket. It is a game that rewards preplanning and a little luck (as you don’t which pipes will come when). If you are a fan of these Knizia puzzle games this one is well done. You can get it for $.99 right now.
Draw Something Pics of the Week One picture to post this week from user katamarimanatee, who posted his excellent Monopoly pic a few weeks ago. As always, if you want to share your drawing please submit it to iosboardgames@gmail.com, with your BGG username, and you may see them show up here.
Other
Minecraft Xbox 360 Edition Here is a video review I made this week of Minecraft Xbox 360 Edition:
It seems like more and more “old” video game and board game franchises are being redone or reprinted. A prime example is Diablo III which was released this week. Sometimes these sequels and reboots are improvements but at other times these rehashes can disappoint.
So my question of the week: Should board game and video game companies continue to reprint or sequelize old releases or should they focus on creating new content that learns from the past but is not directly connected to it?
Scotland Yard Released Hot off of winning the Deutscher Computerspielpreis for The aMAZEing Labyrinth, Ravensburger Digital isn't slowing down. They have just released none other than 1983's Spiel Des Jahres winner, Scotland Yard, for iOS Universal. This release marks another family-friendly modern classic board game app for Ravensburger which now has a total of five modern board game adaptations to iOS in the App Store. Early looks at the app are so far showing a quality filled approach, with this one ticking a lot of iOS board game feature boxes like good tutorial, slick and intuitive UI, various multiplayer modes including Game Center and bluetooth/WiFI, AI, chat, and even some rarely used premium features like voice chat. The app is launch priced at $4.99. You can pick it up on the App Store.
Master of Maya Released Kaasa solution has released Master of Maya, a free to play head-to-head real time card battler CCG for iOS. Of course we're not sure about this one. Apparently it has a predecessor which back in 2007 claimed to be the world's first mobile TCG and was clearly designed for mass market appeal. You can download it for free on the App Store.
The Latest News
Cities and Knights Info Update USM says that the upcoming Cities and Knights Update to Catan is in the final phase of beta. There is a lot of fine tuning of the AI going on. USM wants to make sure the AI makes use of all the new rules that C&K brings to Catan. They are also tuning the AI difficulty levels to please beginners and advanced Catan players alike. They say they will let everyone know when the testing is complete.
Empire of the Eclipse Coming Soon Empire of the Eclipse is an upcoming MMO 4X space game app being developed by Zarksoft. We'll admit that we initially looked past this for our audience. It was the first M in MMO, which stands for "massively", that scared us off. Maybe it's the board gamer in us, but we're not too keen on games without endings. My early impressions, however, were wrong. Recently, we've been in contact with Lee from Zarksoft and seen the overview video. It's at 1:56 in the video where the narrator utters some magic words:
Quote:
Your empire may achieve victory through military conquest, economic superiority, or by harnessing advanced technologies.
The music of "multiple paths to victory" chimed out for us at that point and we were ready to take EotE back in as a title we'll anticipate. Who cares if you'll be competing against 1,369 other players? Multiple games will be occurring simultaneously and games will take months to complete. We know this scares some gamers, but it sounds very intriguing and strategically rich. Take heart in the fact that the app has been three whole years in the making. You will only have to wait until May 24th to see for yourself what it is all about. Check out the overview video:
App Updates
Fealty Updated Asmadi Games has updated Fealty to version 1.1. The update includes background music, UI enhancements, and bug fixes. Asmadi says they are continuing to work on enhancing multiplayer GameCenter support, and are planning to bring a Fealty expansion pack with new pieces in the coming months. You can check out the details on the App Store.
Rune Raiders Updated Retro64 has updated their quick-playing tactical dungeon crawler to version 1.03. The update includes a new character: Idaho Smith; five new missions, three new monsters, a new boss, survival mode improvements and scoring changes, and more. It appears they even updated the app icon. You can check out the details on the App Store.
Hot Deals
Codito Drops Prices Chris dropped by to let us know that all Codito apps (except Puerto Rico) will go on sale from Thursday trough Sunday and priced at just $0.99. Check out Medici, Ra, Tikal, and Tigris & Euphrates on the App Store.
Return of the Fallen Price Drop Playdek wants you all to know that in celebration of the success of the in-app expansion, Ascension: Return of the Fallen, they are is temporarily dropping the price to $1.99. They also want you to know if Ascension is running in the background, the observed price will not get updated. They recommend players end the background process and re-launch the game. Playdek is currently working on a fix this issue. You can get Ascension on the App Store, if you haven't already.
Time of Heroes Now Free smuttlewerk interactive has dropped the price of their turn-based strategy app, Time of Heroes. For a limited time it is now free. You can pick it up on the App Store.
Wit Gomoku HD Price Drop After the iPhone version went on sale a couple of days ago, ZASoft has now dropped the price of their five-in-a-row abstract strategy iPad app to $0.99. You can pick up Wit Gomoku on the App Store.
Neuroshima Hex Online Multiplayer Update Submitted Big Daddy's Creations has finally submitted their update that will add asynchronous online multiplayer to Neuroshima Hex. The new update will also include new ipad Retina support, chat, a better tutorial, a new game engine, and much more. We estimate that the update will probably be available early next week. You can read all about it on Big Daddy's Creation's Neuroshima Hex site.
Here are some screen shots:
Scotland Yard to Release Soon Scotland Yard will soon be released by Ravensburger Digital...and by soon we mean by this Thursday! Scotland Yard is the 1983 Spield Des Jahres winning game of cat and mouse, where players try to find the elusive Mr. X by traveling around London via taxi, bus, and tube. The iOS Universal app will feature support from 1-6 players, AI, multiplayer through pass and play, WiFi/bluetooth, and online through Game Center, a tutorial, Retina support and more. Somebody from Ravensburger posted quite a bit of details on it in the Press Releases forum and you can read more there.
Here are some screen shots:
Legion of the Damned Update Submitted This past weekend Offworld Games submitted version 1.1 of their hex turn based strategy game Legion of the Damned. The update will include support for retina display graphics. Look for it in the App Store soon.
App Releases
BattleCON Released Brad Talton and Level 99 Games has released BattleCON. It's an iOS adaption of the head-to-head fighting card game BattleCON: War of Indines by the same designer and publisher. You can read all about it in our review or just download for free directly on the App Store.
Elf Ludo Released Artex Studios has released an elf-themed Ludo app appropriately called Elf Ludo. You can check it out on the App Store.
App Updates
Forbidden Island Updated Button Mash Games have updated Matt Leacock's Forbidden Island to version 1.1. The update includes a plethora of improvements including one new island shape and 10 more available through in-app-purchase, new achievements, better Facebook and Twitter integration, improved launch time to start games and more. On Monday, we did learn that there was a temporary problem with the in-app-purchase, but were assured by the developer that it should be enabled anytime now. You can check out the full details on the App Store.
Imperial Updated Javelin just keeps working at this app, with the promise of online multiplayer coming some day, but not quite yet. In the meantime the app has been updated to version 1.3. The update includes Tweeting your score, ownership change popup, funding countries from your treasury, a feedback button, and various other improvements. The app is playable at present, but the $9.99 price tag may have some waiting still for online multiplayer which is promised for the next update along with enhancements to the AI. You can check out the details of the present update on the App Store.
Hero Academy Updated Robot Entertainment has updated Hero Academy to version 1.2.2. The update includes faster initial game loading, a fix to memory crashes on the iPad and Touch, and various fixes. You can check out the full details on the App Store.
StoryLines Updated Root-One has updated StoryLines, its Eat Poop You Cat-like app, to version 4.0. The update includes in-app-purchases of colors and brush sizes. You can check out the details on the App Store.
Jungle War (Dark Chess) Updated Brisk Ideas has updated Jungle War (Dark Chess) to version 1.1. The update includes new leaderboards, new achievements, bug fixes and minor UI and graphics improvements. You can check out the full details on the App Store.
Wit Gomoku Updated ZASoft has updated their Wit Gomoku app for iPhone to version 2.0.1. The update includes the addition of Game Center. You can check it out on the App Store.
Gobang Social by Kwalee Updated Another five-in-a-row app is Kwalee's Gobang Social. This app has been updated to version 1.5. The update includes new direct feedback, better Facebook integration, and bug fixes. You can check out the details on the App Store.
Pwnz! Updated Pwnz! is another Ludo-type app. This one has online multiplayer features like async and chat. Developer Captain IT has updated it to version 1.02. The update includes new add friend by name, rematch option, new sound notifications, and minor bug fixed and improvements. You can check it out on the App Store.
Interesting Links
NECA/WizKids, Icarus Studios Announce Heroclix TabApp™ For iPad Today National Entertainment Collectibles Association (NECA) and WizKids announced the HeroClix TabApp™, an upcoming action-based iPad game, and the first in the TabApp™ series, integrating physical miniature toys with digital arenas. HeroClix TabApp™ is set for release this fall.
The gist is that physical miniatures are placed on the iPad device, the “digital game board.” Utilizing Icarus Studio’s xScape Platform figure recognition technology, exclusive content and game maps are unlocked based on the miniature selected. Players then move along the virtual board and take part in battle. Features will reportedly include a dozen physical super hero miniatures, 50+ virtual enemy figures, over two dozen digital maps, real-time combat.
The HeroClix TabApp™ is expected to release this October and will be free for iPad. Physical miniatures will be available at participating hobby and comic shop retailers. There's more info at the HeroClix TabApp site.
Here are some highlights and comments on some apps I have been playing this week. I got the chance to play many iOS titles this week:
HappyMeeple.com Earlier this week Gabe mentioned Happy Meeple.com. This site is a way to play board games online and is formatted to be play well on both iPad and iPhone. While the site is certainly a dud in the graphical department, there are some cool features. One such feature is the varying levels of AI. For each game there appear to be several AI opponent that play in different ways and can be unlocked by beating the previous opponent or purchasing them with in game currency. Some may be scared by this micropurchase system, but initially you get Lost Cities (perhaps the most popular game on the system) and can play several games of that in a row before your “energy” is depleted. Spending money appears to only be necessary if plan to play extensively which seems fair. You can check the game out here.
Hearts Tournament I am not terrible at all classic card games, but Hearts is one that I fail at. Sadly, in my family we grew up playing Rummy and Canasta but never Hearts or Spades. If you actually do see me a “Hearts tournament” do not elect to be my partner. The app Hearts Tournament on the other hand is actually a success. It has a very polished look and is focused on having multiple games going at one time. You can play with AI, random folks online, or friends. One of our team members is currently working on a full review. For my two cents, if you are a fan of Hearts this is one of the best iOS implementations. You can check it out here.
Conquest! Medieval Realms Before I go on I must tell you that every game of this app I have played so far has been very enjoyable. The game is quite fun and brings back memories of old games like Civilization and Rise of Nations. However, unlike Battle Academy, Conquest! Medieval Realms lacks polish and stability. The game is a hex based strategy game where the player is trying to conquer 80% of the map to win. You start with a few territories and must use soldiers to conquer additional hexes. Each soldier can only conquer one hex per turn and only hexes below their attack level. Players can build defensive buildings and defend with soldiers to raise the level needed to invade a certain hex. Players must also make sure they build enough economic buildings in their territory to support their army or the soldiers will disappear and riots will start in the territory. It is a fun concept but is hindered by a few problems: 1. The app has been unstable in my experience. After rebooting and clearing my iPad the game will crash randomly. It has been more stable on my iPhone but I have still experienced crashes. This can often be far into the game, which can be very frustrating. 2. The interface is clunky. One example: the tutorial hints that there are more types of units and buildings but it does not teach you how to pull them up. If you press and hold the soldier unit it will pull up the list of other units to buy, however this was never explained clearly. Also this system is quite slow. 3. The end game can be quite slow. After conquering about 50% or 60% you are so supreme that the last 20% is quite uneventful. I guess this is more of a complaint against the entire genre rather than this game in particular.
I have to say that despite all of these problems, I really enjoy the game when it works. There are several maps to choose from and starting position is always random, which provides new challenges. You can check it out here.
Draw Something Pics of the Week I did not receive any new submissions this week and I have not had any great ones myself lately. As always, if you want to share your drawing please submit it to iosboardgames@gmail.com, with your BGG username, and you may see them show up here.
War of Honor War of Honor is a game I have had for a while but it has been hard to get to the table. War of Honor is a variant of Legend of the Five Rings which focuses on multiplayer and multiple paths to victory. It is lauded as a great entry point for new players. In junior high, when I was trying a new CCG every few minutes or so I had played L5R and remember enjoying it. For this reason I was excited to play War of Honor.
This week a stalwart gaming companion and I decided to try it. We both had some experience with the CCG and had both read the entire rulebook so we were ready to go. In the end we abandoned the game. It is not that the game is bad, in fact it was quite fun and the ability to go after different victory conditions is a nice touch. However, what pushed us away was the amazing amount of game text. The prebuilt decks they give you are meant to be simple but even they contain lines of game text. Almost every card can be used in two ways and your opponent has so many abilities available to him, it is hard to judge when going to battle is a wise move. We want to try it again with multiple players. There is a fine game in there but it will take time to study and learn the decks.
The Latest News Storm of Souls Released We put this in the update section below too. Playdek's release time caught us by surprise (again). The Ascension: Storm of Souls expansion to Ascension: Chronicle of the Godslayer is out now and available as an in app purchase for $3.99. Here are some screen shots:
Summoner Wars Trailer Released Playdek released the first trailer for the upcoming release of Summoner Wars. Not many details, but a nice look at the factions to further whet your appetite.
Le Havre Goes to Beta Testers Chris from Codito posted that Le Havre went out to beta testers on Tuesday. Chris says the release is a matter of weeks now and he's guessing at mid-June. Even if he's wrong, we love Chris because he's always quick with a date, ever springing hope eternal!
BDC explains position on Android In a thread right here on the 'Geek, Łukasz of Big Daddy's Creations minces no words as he addresses user questions about an Android version of Eclipse and his experiences with the soon to be released Android version of Neuroshima Hex. If Neuroshima Hex for Android is profitable, then they will port other games to Android. Simple as that.
Pocket Tactics Interviews One Man Left and Discusses Outwitters Owen Faraday of Pocket Tactics sits down with Alex Okafor and Adam Stewart of One Man Left to discuss their upcoming multiplayer async hex strategy board game app, Outwitters. According to OneManLeft, the app is due out "precisely in approximately a month". You can read the interview over at pockettactics.com
Interview with Gilded Skull Games and Galactic Keep Slide to Play's Chris Reed chats with developer Gilded Skull's CEO Rob Lemon about the renewed push to develop Galactic Keep, a tabletop RPG game for your iPhone. You can read the interview at Slidetoplay.com.
Battle Chess on KickStarter Here is another project in the continuing trend of old nostalgic favorites seeing new life or sequels through the wondrous bounty of Kickstarter pledges. A planned sequel to the video game favorite from 1988 known as Battle Chess has recently shown up as a project on Kickstarter. Developer Subdued Software has been working on the project for two years now and claims they were told by the man that "board games don't sell." They pushed on undeterred until the money ran out, then they discovered Kickstarter. The rest...they now say in this topsy turvy new Kickstarter world...is the future. You can check it out on kickstarter.com. I list it here because if they get enough funding, they'll go iOS and Android as well.
App Releases Splut Released At long last, Tommy De Coninck and developer Christophe Todts have released Splut (without the exclamation point). Splut! is an abstract strategy board game for 2-4 players where you move your Sorcerer, Dwarf, and Troll to kill the Sorcerers of your opponents by throwing a Rock on their heads. You can get it for free on the App Store.
Z!Checkers Released Nevonix has released Z! Checkers for iOS Universal. This is a Checkers app in 3d with fully animated pieces. It's got three levels of AI or you can play a human face to face or over bluetooth. You can get it in the App Store for $0.99.
Pegcasso Released A developer named Shnap has released Pegcasso. This turn-based multiplayer app is kind of like a drawing game. You and up to 3 friends take turns placing pegs on a Lite-Brite-like board, but nobody really knows what the other person is trying to draw. The game ends after 4 turns, and everyone gets to laugh at what each person drew and what they thought they were drawing at the time. If you are not convinced, don't let the app's price stop you. It can be had for free on the App Store.
Pyramid Wars - the card game Released MammutApps has released Pyramid Wars - the card game for iOS Universal. This app is a card-driven game in which you are a Pharaoh trying to build a pyramid faster than your computer opponent. The game appears to have euro-game influences of building with limited resources and using cards for actions like build, attack, and conjure. You can get it for $1.99 on the App Store.
Casino By Zeniz Released The US Playing Card Company, who is probably the biggest manufacturer of playing cards in the world, has released a mobile casino game app called Casino by Zeniz. This free app features poker and slots and promises more games coming soon. Both games of the app are highly socially connected with tournaments, reward systems, and co-op play. Perhaps there's something here that developers of strategy game apps can apply to our player communities. The app is free on the App Store.
Titanic Released SmartGames, a maker of many one-player print logic and puzzle games, has released Titanic by SmartGames. The aim of this one player game is to move lifeboats to catch drowning passengers in an orderly and strategic way, because after all everyone must remain calm and act orderly when the ship goes down, right? For $0.99, see how many passengers you can save by picking this up on the App Store.
App Updates
Ascension: Chronicle of the God Slayer 1.2 Released (Storm of Souls and Promo Bundle) The latest update for Ascension has been released. The major updates include Storm of Souls and Promo Pack 1 added as in app purchases, iPad Retina graphics, an in app purchase manager, and a next game button. You can read the full text of the update here.
Titan HD Updated Valley Games has updated Titan HD to version 1.1.1. The update includes fixes to persistence, AI, game state sync, and artwork. See the details on the App Store.
Dungeon Crawlers Update Ayopa Games has updated Dungeon Crawlers for iOS Universal to version 1.1.3. The update includes various fixes and even a hint. See the details on the App Store.
Dice Soccer Updated LambadMu Games has updated their soccer-themed dice rolling game to version 1.2.4. The update includes better loading performance, user interface improvements, adjustments to gameplay and balance, bug fixes and more. You can check out the full details on the App Store.
Wit Gomoku HD Updated ZASoft has updated their five-in-a-row app to version 2.0.1. The update includes a new user interface and performance optimization. Check out the details on the App Store.
Hot Deals
Dice with Buddies Updated and Free Stofle Designs has made its async dice app free for a limited time. They have also updated the app to version 2.0. The update includes various UI improvements, Tweeting, bug fixes and better stability. Check out the details and get it free now on the App Store.
Interesting Links
Study Shows Big Growth in Paying Mobile Gamers Newzoo, the international market research and consulting firm completely focused on the games industry, revealed key insights into mobile gaming in the US market as part of a broader study. They found that the number of mobile gamers in the US has grown from 75 million to 101 million, of which 69% plays on smartphones and 21% on tablets, with the largest growth in the conversion to paying players. The number of paying players has grown 35% to 37 million Americans, or 36% of all mobile gamers. From this Newzoo projects that mobile gaming is set for another year of double-digit revenue growth in the US. Newzoo finds that American players spend five times more on iOS games than on Android games. You can read more of this study at the Newzoo site.
TouchArcade App Released The site dedicated to all things iOS gaming has released their very own app. Features include News and Reviews, Top Reviews, Hot New Games, Watch List, and Forums. We will certainly be making use of it. You can get it on the App Store for free.
Gamezebo App Wanna Play Released Gamezebo casts its video game net a bit wider than TouchArcade, but in our experience they have been very good about covering board and card game apps. Therefore we mention that they too have fairly recently launched their own app called Wanna Play. The app features game previews of upcoming games, a wish list for being notified of releases and sharing with friends. You can get it from the App Store for free.
