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Added: 10.01.2014 15:00 | 8 views | 0 comments
The core gameplay of minimalist puzzler LYNE is reminiscent of classic Arukone: connect two like shapes anchored at different spots on a grid via a single, unbroken line. There are multiple shapes on the board that must be connected--triangle to triangle, square to square--without their distinctly-colored lines crossing each other. But LYNE expands upon this basic rule in a number of ways to enhance the challenge, depth, and ingenuity of an initially simple puzzle foundation. The most obvious of these changes is that LYNE takes place on a graph paper-like grid, allowing lines to be drawn diagonally. In more standard Arukone games, such as , each move fills an entire block and can only be dragged horizontally or vertically. LYNE's added dimension doubles the potential moves and strategies available, creating seemingly endless options on even small game boards. To both challenge players further and guide them toward the correct path of the many available, colored spaces that match the end shapes are scattered about the grid. Each of these must be passed through when connecting their related shapes, and can only be touched by their like-colored lines. This means a blue square's line cannot intersect a green diamond's, but you also cannot block off access to the diamond since the green line must reach it. The result is often long, roundabout loops where a line circles the screen before returning to an end shape only one block away, and unexpected solutions to seemingly simple challenges. |
Added: 09.01.2014 22:00 | 13 views | 0 comments
Labelling Castle Doombad as a tower defense game is simultaneously accurate and erroneous. On one hand, you're certainly defending a tower. On the other hand, it's not the well-being of the tower that ultimately matters. The real point of Castle Doombad is to protect its most precious cargo, its princess, from being rescued by meddling heroes. The awesomely-named Dr. Lord Evilstein has spirited away a generic princess and imprisoned her in his tower. Now he's being harassed by dozens of generic warriors that want to get her back. Dr. Lord Evilstein is safe in the uppermost floors of his tower, but if the princess is rescued and whisked outside his domain, he's finished. Castle Doombad is a tower defense game, but it has a few personality quirks that separate it from the gargantuan herd that already roams the App Store. Playing as a bad guy is just one difference, and it's admittedly a hoot. Who doesn't want to command a tower full of devious traps and evil minions? More importantly, you're able to mix and match traps, which truly lets you customize your play style. Your choices are auto traps, manual traps, and minions. Auto traps are traditional tower defense fare like spike floors and arrow launchers, though you can also opt for ceiling hazards like acid-drippers and alien tentacles. Manual traps, like a huge weight that drops from the ceiling, pack a powerful punch, but need to be activated manually and come with a long cooldown. |
Added: 09.01.2014 20:00 | 10 views | 0 comments
There has been a murder. Richard Remington, the owner of the swampland tourist attraction Boggy's Bog, has been killed in the murky, mushy trenches outside his office. The only suspect to start is Boggy himself, the legendary swamp creature that inspired the creation of the vacation destination and who may or may not actually exist. As the eponymous Detective Grimoire, it's your job to explore Boggy's Bog, investigate the murder, and nab the culprit--human or myth. Players familiar with SFB Games' (formerly Super Flash Bros) 2007 of the same name will recognize the gameplay in Detective Grimoire. A simplified and streamlined point-and-click adventure, much of your investigation is spent traveling around the swamp, examining beautifully animated scenes, locating clues, and interrogating potential suspects. While both Detective Grimoire and its Flash inspiration revolve around solving a murder in an amusement park, this newest entry into Grimoire's case history presents an entirely new story, cast of characters, and challenges, as well as a different, larger, and more fleshed-out world. All of the dialogue is charmingly voiced, backstories are deeper, and mysteries more elusive. At the same time, Grimoire fans will be treated to playful nods to the original, from jabs at Officer James's facial hair to an uncanny red-headed sidekick. This successful combination of lighthearted jokes and a weighty murder mystery keeps Detective Grimoire consistently engrossing. While Grimoire finds himself in a variety of scenic-yet-creepy locations, from a darkened office lined with shadowy animal heads to a teetering bridge supporting one lone house, the mood of his investigation is upbeat and often humorous. His tone with suspects is more confused than accusatory, and their reactions are unperturbed caricatures. |
Added: 09.01.2014 18:00 | 8 views | 0 comments
If anyone ever figures out how to make the mobile equivalent of the popular online game , they stand to make a boatload of money, possibly even with a capital 'B.' The thing is, no one has quite been able to execute that game's quality and precision on touchscreens. Battle Supremacy by Atypical Games and Revo Games is the latest to give it a shot, but despite some worthy efforts, it's still no mobile substitute for the real thing. It's certainly not for a lack of visual oomph. Battle Supremacy looks gorgeous, if that's an appropriate word for a game featuring rolling death machines. From the tanks themselves to the little flourishes like butterflies and snow, the developers did things right. The introductions and cutscenes during the solo missions are notable highlights, made to look like old war footage in all its sepia-toned antiquity. Yes, I said solo missions, which is something not all games like this have. The first one even serves as a tutorial, though you'll have to find it yourself as it's the first of many features that goes unexplained. Each mission gives you several AI partners to help you tackle multiple objectives. The lone drawback is that you don't know how long each mission will last, giving you no way to tell if you can go for broke or play things more cautiously. Completing solo missions gets you experience points to improve your rank - needed to unlock the game's eight tanks - and upgrade points to improve the main gun, armor, engine, treads and radar. You can see how each upgrade affects your stats before you buy, and the points are universal, so you can spend them on any tank you're able to use. Unlike World of Tanks, there's no real life equipment involved, simply boosts to the gear you've got. |
Added: 09.01.2014 16:00 | 9 views | 0 comments
As a tech demo for what can be possible with a slight tilt or two of your iPhone, simian.interfacepushes all the right buttons. It's unique, stylish, and provides numerous wonderfully satisfying moments that jumble together into a compelling side-order of entrancement. Now what we could really do with is the full game! See, the problem is that, as hinted at, simian.interface feels like someone started making a massively interesting game, and then sort of got bored of the concept partway through and moved onto something else. Still, simian.interface works great as a mere taster. This is a game all about technical whimsy and alignment. You're presented with squares, lines, and other shapes, and you must line them up to either fit inside one another, to overlap perfectly, or to slot into a pretty pattern, all by tilting your iOS device. The controls feel spot-on, and allow you to really focus on the task at hand and immerse yourself in the concept. And it's a really neat idea, as it turns out. Although it's fairly simple 90 percent of the time, there's still plenty of room for clever rotating, sliding, flipping, color blending, and all other sorts of literal twists on the base concept. There's no filler here whatsoever - from start to finish I had a smile on my face. |
Added: 08.01.2014 16:00 | 12 views | 0 comments
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Tell me if this sounds familiar: you're browsing your favorite website on your phone, and without realizing it you've clicked on an ad. Oops! Guess your finger slipped, and that's why you're now in the App Store being told to download Candy Crush Saga (even though as a Gamezebo reader, you probably already have it). Maybe your finger slipped... but maybe it didn't. Sites all around the web this week (like ) have been reporting on a strange and somewhat sleazy phenomenon: ad networks that are automatically sending you to the App Store to download the game they're pitching. Games that have been mentioned as part of this scheme include Candy Crush Saga, Clash of Clans and Game of War - Fire Age. In other words, the three top grossing games on the App Store. |
Added: 07.01.2014 13:00 | 9 views | 0 comments
Here's a timely lesson straight from the just-ended holiday season: empty calories can taste really, really good. Sure, you might regret that extra helping of stuffing or second desert, but not while you're eating it. Glu Mobile's Eternity Warriors 3 is something like that, a gluttonous serving of free-to-play action-RPG carnage that provides little nutritional value but tempts you to keep coming back for more. At the risk of stretching that opening analogy to the breaking point, one of the ingredients in the Eternity Warriors 3 recipe is a story. That is, there's a reason you're taking your Warrior or Monk and pitting them against hordes of enemies in Diablo-esque fashion. It's just not that important. Consider it a garnish, there for presentation purposes only. |
Added: 06.01.2014 20:00 | 11 views | 0 comments
It's crime time! Team Lava's Hidden Objects: Mystery Crimes puts you behind the detective badge as you solve crimes the only way you know how: by completing hidden object scenes. Sift through lists of objects, interview suspects, and send evidence to the forensics team for evidence, all without stepping foot in a single real-life dirty alleyway. Hidden Objects: Mystery Crimes is split into two main areas of play: hidden object scenes and investigative interludes. The former are the meat and potatoes of the game, so you'll spend a great deal of time here looking for items and admiring the luscious artwork. Between rounds you'll talk with persons of interest and manage forensics tasks, many of which include quick mini-games to spice up the gameplay with some variety. |
