Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Review: Cat Basket

Review: Cat Basket:
Some games are happy to set out their stalls from the get go. Cat Basket is a game about putting cats in a basket. It's a simple arcade score-chaser that anyone can pick up and play, and that simplicity imbues the action with plenty

Blizzard sues over HearthStone ripoff as open beta goes live

Blizzard sues over HearthStone ripoff as open beta goes live:
[UPDATE] Following the publication of this story, Blizzard announced that the open beta period for HearthStone: Heroes of Warcraft had officially commenced. The game was previously only playable to those who were

PGC: King's success has been all about fan engagement and word of mouth, says Tommy Palm

PGC: King's success has been all about fan engagement and word of mouth, says Tommy Palm:
Following the opening speech for Pocket Gamer Connects 2014 from Steel Media MD Chris James, in which he highlighted that much had changed in mobile over the last ten years, Tommy Palm, King's Games Guru, was

PGC: MyGamez CEO Mikael Leinonen thinks there's a market for Western games in China

PGC: MyGamez CEO Mikael Leinonen thinks there's a market for Western games in China:
At Vinopolis, just before lunch, MyGamez CEO Mikael Leinonen outlined the company's strategy for successfully publishing Western games in China, and a lot of it flew in the face of what the other speakers had to say. Acccording to

PGC: How Where's My Water? became Where's My XiYangYang?

PGC: How Where's My Water? became Where's My XiYangYang?:
There's no point making a Western game for a Chinese market. That's the main thrust of the talk given at Pocket Gamer Connects by Lei Zhang and Yumiao Lu from ATH Studios. The duo give an intriguing blow-by-blow

Man At Arms TD Review

Man At Arms TD Review:
Man At Arms TD Review By Jennifer Allen on January 21st, 2014 Our Rating: :: ENJOYABLE GENRE MASH-UPiPad Only App - Designed for the iPad Colorful and vibrant, Man At Arms TD is a highly enjoyable mix of two genres.

Dragon Trials Review

Dragon Trials Review:
Dragon Trials Review By Jordan Minor on January 21st, 2014 Our Rating: :: TRAIN YOUR DRAGONUniversal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad Dragon Trials’ multiplayer flying duels are fun once other players finally show up.

Mega Jump 2 Review

Mega Jump 2 Review:
A lot has certainly happened in the world of mobile gaming since Get Set Games' original Mega Jump was first released on the App Store in 2010. These days, smartphone and tablet gamers have come to expect things like

'Slender Rising 2' Review - The Best Slender Man Mobile Game Yet

'Slender Rising 2' Review - The Best Slender Man Mobile Game Yet:
What originally started as a meme on the Something Awful forums, the character of Slender Man has grown far beyond what the original creator probably ever intended. An unnaturally skinny and tall man, with no features,

TCHOW Rainbow Review

TCHOW Rainbow Review:
TCHOW Rainbow Review By Jennifer Allen on January 21st, 2014 Our Rating: :: BASIC LOOKING BUT ENJOYABLEUniversal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad A little harsh to look at, TCHOW Rainbow still provides an enjoyable

Zez Review

Zez Review:
Zez Review By Lucy Ingram on January 21st, 2014 Our Rating: :: OOZES WITH CHARMUniversal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad Entertaining without being overwhelming, Zez offers limitless hours of combo-breaking action in a

Pop to Save Review

Pop to Save Review:
Pop to Save Review By Stacy Barnes on January 21st, 2014 Our Rating: :: POP TO IT!Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad Another physics puzzler enters the fray. Pop to Save is nothing spectacularly new, but it’s a

Lollipop 3: Eggs of Doom Review

Lollipop 3: Eggs of Doom Review:
Lollipop 3: Eggs of Doom Review By Lucy Ingram on January 21st, 2014 Our Rating: :: AN EGGCENTRICALLY PECULIAR JOYUniversal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad Catch eggs, hatch ‘em, and unleash the Eternal Lollipop of

Review: Bardbarian

Review: Bardbarian:
Bardbarian is exactly the sort of slightly bonkers mash-up of genres that the App Store does best. Its mix of lane defence, RPG, and arcade shooter feels fresh and familiar at the same time, and its rich presentation makes it an

Guild Wars 2: Changing What It Means to Create & Play an MMO

Guild Wars 2: Changing What It Means to Create & Play an MMO:
This week, Guild Wars 2 embarks on an ambitious four-part finale to a story that's been fifteen months in the making. Beginning with The Origins of Madness, players will begin to understand the strange signs and world-wide

Adways invests in 5Rocks to create better mobile marketing channel

Adways invests in 5Rocks to create better mobile marketing channel:
Consolidation will be a key trend during 2014, and consolidation of mobile services will be part of that pie. So, in that regard, the investment by Japanese mobile ad company Adways into Korean mobile tracking company 5Rocks is

Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn Patch 2.15 notes

Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn Patch 2.15 notes:
Patch 2.15 for Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn has gone live. With it comes additions and changes to the Wolves'...

Blog: Marketing lessons from Steam Dev Days

Blog: Marketing lessons from Steam Dev Days:
People who attended Steam Dev Days seemed to be mostly interested in the Steam Machine initiative, but I found the marketing advice to be the most valuable. ...

PGC: Western developers need to learn Gatcha monetisation techniques

PGC: Western developers need to learn Gatcha monetisation techniques:
According to Nicolas Godemont-Berline, general manager of Gumi, if you're looking to make money from the Japanese market, your best bet at the moment probably isn't releasing a game. Instead, Godemont-Berline

StarCraft 2 patch 2.1 now live; massive change-log detailed

StarCraft 2 patch 2.1 now live; massive change-log detailed:
The eagerly awaited StarCraft 2 Patch 2.1 is officially live, bringing live with it a slew of new features and tons of...

Kabam doubles revenue in 2013, "seriously considering" IPO

Kabam doubles revenue in 2013, "seriously considering" IPO:
The mobile publisher behind The Hobbit said it generated $360 million last year

Supercell investors back in play as Finnish start-up PlayRaven closes $2.3 million seed funding round

Supercell investors back in play as Finnish start-up PlayRaven closes $2.3 million seed funding round:
You might think the Helsinki start-up scene is over-saturated. But still the money pours in. The latest mobile game developer to hook into investors' largesse is PlayRaven. It's just closed a $2.3 million seed round, with VCs

First Playable Version of Shadowrun Online Coming in March | Ten Ton Hammer

First Playable Version of Shadowrun Online Coming in March | Ten Ton Hammer:
The first playable version of Shadowrun Online is finally nearing completion and should arrive in late March.

Phablet shipments expected to increase 500 percent in 2014

Phablet shipments expected to increase 500 percent in 2014:
New data from Juniper Research suggests that the phablets will cast a big shadow in 2014. The crossover devices, which bridge the gap between smartphones and tablets, are expected to ship 120 million units globally in

He ain't heavy: iPad 2 and 4 sales bomb as iPad Air soars

He ain't heavy: iPad 2 and 4 sales bomb as iPad Air soars:
The latest figures from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners shows what many in the industry suspected - Apple customers love newer and lighter models. Comparing the December 2012 quarter to the December

Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn: A PvE Mini-Review of Update 2.1

Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn: A PvE Mini-Review of Update 2.1:
Final Fantasy XIV added content update 2.1, A Realm Awakened, in December 2013. With a month to experience the content, Ryahl provides a review of the end-game PVE content expansions offered in this update. Come