Back in December, Hudson somewhat surprisingly released an emulator app for their cult-classic 16-bit console TurboGrafx-16. This emulator, called the TurboGrafx-16 GameBox [Free], features a free-to-download shell that includes the full game of World Sports Competition and houses a hefty selection of other titles that can be unlocked via in-app purchase for $2.99 each. There's also one new rotating tile per day that gives you a chance to play that particular game for 10 minutes, up from the initial 3 minutes offered on the app's release, as a sort of demo to decide if you want to purchase the full version.

We really liked the TurboGrafx-16 GameBox in our review, noting that its virtual controls were about as good as they come on an iOS device that emulates games designed for physical controls and a favorable save system ensured that you could retry tricky sections easily without causing too much frustration. The initial selection of games available for in-app purchase in the TurboGrafx-16 GameBox featured a range of very good to mediocre titles, with a couple of must-haves like Bonk's Adventure, Ninja Spirit, or R-Type. Today Hudson has released an update for the TurboGrafx-16 GameBox that adds 5 new titles to the in-app catalog which are listed below:

Bonk's Revenge by Hudson Soft

Detana!! TwinBee by Konami

Kaizouchoujin Shubibinman by NCS/extreme

Double Dungeons by NCS/extreme

Benkei Gaiden by Sunsoft

Like a few of the games in the initial release of TurboGrafx-16 GameBox, 3 of the 5 new titles are the PC-Engine versions of the game, the Japanese counterpart to the TurboGrafx-16. As such, their menus, dialogue, and instruction manuals are entirely in Japanese with no option for an English version. For a game like Detana!! TwinBee this isn't as much of an issue, as it's just a vertical shooter and knowing what's going on is secondary to blasting stuff out of the sky. But in the case of Benkei Gaiden, it's a heavily dialogue-driven RPG which will be hard to enjoy if you aren't able to read Japanese text.

Also worth noting is that the full version of Bonk's Revenge is currently free to play as part of a special promotion. Seeing as this will likely be the title that most people are interested in, it's a great chance to actually try it out yourself before committing the cash to unlock the full version. Make sure to update your game to the latest version and give Bonk's Revenge a spin and check out the other 4 new titles in the TurboGrafx-16 GameBox.

I travel a ton, both for many of the conventions and events we cover on TouchArcade, as well as because staying in one place for too long is boring. Traveling a lot is liberating for many reasons, but mainly because you realize just how little of the stuff you own you actually need. Specifically, from a computing standpoint, I've got my entire infrastructure down to a single laptop bag which houses absolutely everything I need for TouchArcade and all other things I use my computer for.

When bag space is at a premium, you rarely have room for any "unitasker" as Alton Brown puts it, which sadly leaves many traditional gaming accessories without a place in my mobile arsenal. I've made a special exception for the Fling iPad joysticks, but I haven't had an actual USB gamepad for ages. Normally this isn't much of an issue, but since 2011 is the 25th anniversary of both the Metroid and Zelda series, I've taken it upon myself to replay both series in emulators as carting my originals (and associated consoles) around just isn't realistic.

This is where Joypad [$2.99 / Lite] comes in. Utilizing a small iOS app combined with a companion program running on your Mac or Windows PC, you can use your iPhone as a game controller. Setup is simple, and basically just amounts to having both your computer and iPhone on the same wireless network while having both the iOS app and the companion program running. In the Joypad Connect computer program you'll then select one of the pre-sets for mapping buttons to keys, then select your iOS device from the list of devices and you'll be good to go. If you're playing an emulator or game that uses different keys, you can create a new profile for that, and go to town mapping the controls it uses to the virtual buttons of Joypad. It all works really well.

This will be somewhat obvious if you've played the various emulated games that Sega has released on the App Store, and other classic titles released by other developers... but often times these classic games simply require the precision and tactile feedback of a real controller. So, how well Joypad works is largely dependent on two factors: 1. How good you are at handling virtual controls. 2. The control demands of the game you're emulating and whether or not those will even jive with Joypad. Specifically, games that require super-precise D-pad dancing aren't so great. Also, games that require you to hold down more than two buttons can be hit or miss depending on what buttons they actually use and how often you need to use that button combination.

Another issue I've randomly run in to is that Joypad is highly dependent on a low-latency WiFi network. It has worked great in most locations, but this week I've been staying in an area of Barcelona with so many WiFi networks that my menu to select them on my Mac scrolls for ages. With the local WiFi signal spectrum this jam packed, I've had issues just browsing the Internet, so it's not much of a surprise that Joypad also suffers. I don't expect this to impact most people, but if you live in a super-crowded urban environment just be aware that your game controls will only perform as well as your local WiFi climate will allow.

That being said, Joypad is without a doubt one of my favorite non-game apps that I've tried lately. Sure, it was released almost a year ago now, so it's very existence will likely be old news for some. However, if you're like me and never really had reason to look for something like Joypad before, now you know about it. $3 for the app is also considerably cheaper than any worthwhile USB gamepad, and while it is by no means a substitution for real physical controls, it sure is a great travel companion.

So, you got roped into hosting  Super Bowl XLV party today and you’re having one of those Edvard Munch “The Scream” moments as you realize the big game is only a few hours away. Serves you right for having that wicked huge studio, that 1080p high-definition TV, and the kind of personality that allows this sort of thing to happen to you. But, hey, I’ll help you help yourself by pointing out a few apps that’ll smooth out some of the party planning wrinkles, educate you on the Packers or Steelers, or just give you a sense of what the hell Super Bowl XLV is all about.

THE SEASON
The NFL doesn’t like to put its programming on the App Store until the season is over, so there’s no solid way to play catch-up on the regular NFL season without watching several ESPN or NFL Network pre-Bowl broadcasts. However, you can watch the 2010 NFL Playoffs up until the Super Bowl via the 2010 NFL Playoffs [$19.99] app.

There were some cool games this year. Definitely spare a few moments to see Aaron Rodgers go nuts on the Falcons -- dude was almost perfect on the afternoon. Also, check out the Steelers and Ravens battle. It was a ridiculously physical match that I’m sure a handful of players from the Steelers are still reeling from this afternoon. Consider these... crash course games. You'll know whats up for the big game.

THE ROSTERS
But, oh-uh! You don’t know stat lines, roster details, and can’t tell me what Hines Ward or A.J. Hawk look like. There are a couple of cool apps that provide this level of detail. The Official Green Bay Packers [Free] is a winner, as it provides pictures, stats, and roster details like, for example, IR or other injury reports. The Steelers Gameday Plus [$1.99] does about the same, but it lacks the polish and the personal touch.

For an overview of the whole season, check out NFL.com Game Center [$1.99]. And to see what NFL players are saying about the big game today, NFL Pro Tweets [Free] won’t steer you wrong.

STADIUM, ALSO TOILETS
If you want a better sense of where the Super Bowl is, check Super Bowl XLV [Free]. It’s a game guide that provides a 3D map of the bowl where game is being played. In my experience, nothing says, “I know football” quite like being able to tell people where all the toilets are in the new Texas-based arena. Oh, and you can also get your hands on the game program via the Super Bowl XLV Official NFL Game Program [Free].

FOOD FOR YOUR PARTY
If you’re dead set on serving up the ridiculous, calorie-inflated chow that people like to eat on the biggest Sunday of the year, Apple has a monstrous list of recipe apps, such as The Chili Chef [$1.99], Dip Diva [.99], and Cheese Plate [$2.99]. I suggest downloading the Calorie Counter [$1.99] if you’re going this route because, man, you’re going to be putting some stupid stuff in your body over the weekend. Check out Apple’s list.

SIMULATIN' (BE THE SMART GUY)
Of course, you could be the smartest guy in the room if you start talking about the various ways the game played out in the simulations from Madden 11 [.99 / HD], the best football game app out there (check our review out). You could do the same with Gameloft’s NFL 2011 [.99 / HD] or Backbreaker 2: Vengeance [.99], but both feel secondary to Madden.

Have a great Super Bowl Sunday, everyone... And may the best team win!

Alright, I suppose technically this is more of an entertainment app than a game, strictly speaking. This hasn't stopped me from trying to stump it (and having a great time doing it) for the past hour. Akinator [$1.99] and Akinator HD [$1.99] ask you to think of a person or character, then asks you a number of questions. These questions can be answered by buttons for "yes" or "no", as well as "I don't know," "probably," and "probably not" in case you're not sure. The Akinator will start asking you incredibly vague questions such as whether your character is male or female, or whether they even really exists. A few questions in and it will start asking you more and more specific things, right down to the color of their hair.

The sheer amount of stuff the Akinator is capable of guessing is just incredible. It's been able to come up with Mr. Pink from "Reservoir Dogs," Alex Trebek from "Jeopardy," Sebastian from "Little Mermaid," and George Washington. It even can do comic book characters:

This is definitely a novelty app, especially considering you can play with the Akinator online for free, but as mentioned previously-- I've been having a ton of fun with it. Also, answering the questions truthfully, I've yet to be able to think of something it doesn't know. Something to keep in mind, the Akinator requires an internet connection... an unfortunate side effect of being able to guess every person ever.

In-game achievements are a super way for developers to add play incentive to games, and are something Microsoft got right early on with Xbox Live. Happily, thanks to the likes of OpenFeint, Plus+, and Apple's own Game Center, iOS gamers have been racking up achievements for some time now. And, while we've seen achievements land in titles outside of the Games category -- in Education, for example -- we were intrigued to hear of a new Photography app that boasts achievements for in-depth usage.

Kotaku recently took a look at noted photographer Tray Ratcliff's release of 100 Cameras in 1 [App Store], a new photography app that hands out Game Center achievements in an effort to get people to take more photos, and to have fun with them.

"I think it is fun to have some sort of comparative measurement of your experience with the app," he said. "The more you use it, the more achievements and points you get. We also use the achievements to encourage you to discover all the features of the app that you might not otherwise see.

"I think it's fascinating how achievements are both completely unnecessary but really satisfying! Also, there's something about being rewarded when you were not really expecting it. It's like a small Swiss child running up to you in the street and offering you a piece of chocolate, just for being an awesome dude."

100 Cameras in 1 features an impressive 31 different pieces of chocolate to be doled out by the small virtual Swiss children that are the app's integrated achievement system. Taking certain paths through the app or using a certain set of filters triggers the various achievements, which are as interestingly named as the 100 different visual filters that the app places at the user's disposal. Thanks to its ability to combine multiple filters, some rather interesting effects can be rather easily achieved.

With 100 Cameras in 1, Ratcliff wanted to deliver a faster and cleaner picture taking experience, with more flexibility than the alternatives. Having run through the app fairly extensively (grabbing achievements along the way), I feel that he's pretty much met his goals here, and perhaps most impressively on the speed front; despite the complex filter systems, moving through the app and getting to the end product is smooth and super fast.

I like what Ratcliff and developers Lavacado have done here, both for the creative, outside-the-box use of achievements as well as for delivering a solid, artistic photo application. I'm anxious to see what other non-game areas are well met by the use of achievements. Chase Bank, Wells Fargo -- an in-app check deposit seems well worth an achievement, eh??

Trilobyte's The 7th Guest [iPhone / iPad] is a game with a ton of history that is near and dear to our hearts here at TouchArcade. With that being said, it is an incredibly difficult game. When it was first released, in an era without instant access to sites like GameFAQs I remember being stumped on puzzles for days, or even weeks. Trilobyte decided to make things a little easier for gamers who find themselves stuck while playing 7th Guest by releasing The 7th Guest: Book of Secrets [99¢] a companion app which offers hints, solutions, and a full walkthrough of the puzzles in the game.

Now, I'm not entirely sure why you'd flip out a buck for this considering there are numerous free walkthroughs online. I suppose maybe if you mainly use your iPod touch and/or iPad offline, or you were roaming internationally with your iPhone and didn't want to pay international data rates... But regardless the release of this companion app has given me a good reason to say check out our 7th Guest review, and consider giving the game a shot if you want to see what the CD-ROM glory days were all about. It has even been updated since then to fix some issues mentioned in the review.

As mentioned in our post from this morning, the original iDOS fiasco last October was an incredible one. We constantly updated our initial post on the emulator throughout the day as we were more and more blown away by just how capable it was until Apple finally pulled the plug later that same day. Not long after, I reminisced on just how important iDOS was, hoping developers utilized the iDOS emulator framework to bring DOS classics to the iPhone.

As of today, iDOS is back, and free. The update text warns to "think thrice" before updating, as part of getting iDOS back on the store involved removing the iTunes functionality that allowed users to just drag and drop whatever executables they wanted within iDOS right in to iTunes to sync. You'd think that this would be the end of the iDOS saga, but forum member BoxOfSnoo informed us that the initial iDOS emulation rabbit hole is still there... It's just a little more complicated to get to.

Using the freeware utility iPhone Explorer, adding additional games to iDOS is as simple as browsing your apps in iPhone Explorer, opening the iDOS folder, and then dumping whatever files you want inside of the iDOS documents folder. These files will be available in iDOS, as /Apps/iDos/documents/ is the equivalent to C:\ inside of iDOS. This does not require you to be jailbroken.

What Apple's response will be to this discovery is anyone's guess. Technically speaking, I'm not entirely sure if iDOS is breaking any of the developer agreements since adding games is done entirely through an unsupported third party utility. Regardless, it seems that this version of iDOS is just as capable of the original version, just with a slightly different way for loading additional games on to it. If you haven't yet, you should really consider downloading iDOS. It's free and may not last long.

Oh, and of course, the thread on our forums for iDOS 2.0.1 is going wild again with people installing all kinds of crazy stuff on their iOS devices.

You may remember last October when a little app called iDOS snuck its way into the App Store. Every once in a while the review team at Apple falls asleep at the wheel and approves an app that probably shouldn't be allowed in the App Store. iDOS was one of those apps. It was a version of the DOSbox emulator that let you run DOS on your iOS device and load up all sorts of crazy old PC software.

Ah yes, I remember the iDOS day well. It was so much fun watching our article on iDOS constantly getting updated with whatever new feat of magic was discovered by the eager members in our forums. Many classic PC games ran incredibly well in iDOS, with full keyboard and mouse support, and the coup de grace was actually installing Microsoft Windows 3.0 on an iPad and playing the classic version of Solitaire included with it.

Like all good things though, the iDOS phenomenon quickly came to an end, and the app was removed from the App Store almost as suddenly as it appeared. Being able to load and run entire outside programs from within the iDOS app is a big no no according to Apple, and the thousands of people who had downloaded iDOS quickly backed up the app to their hard drives for safekeeping.

Then last night, iDOS surprisingly showed its face again in the App Store. In order to get it through the approval process, developer FAST Intelligence closed up the iTunes file sharing rabbit hole that was the gateway to loading whatever DOS programs you wanted, but has added some other nice functionality to try and compensate.

There are now 6 legal shareware games preloaded in iDOS which can be downloaded for free from the new “iDOS Store” within the app. The games can then be launched easily by selecting them from your collection, and no knowledge of DOS commands is necessary to get them going. For those that want to though, there is still access to the full DOS prompt for launching games.

Other additions include a full virtual joystick/d-pad and buttons rather than just a virtual keyboard, the ability to play on the iPhone/iPod touch in portrait mode just like the iPad, and Bluetooth keyboard support for text-based games. The virtual gamepad is actually really good, and makes playing games like Wolfenstein 3D a whole lot more enjoyable.

While it is pretty disappointing that you won't be able to go nuts running programs using the new iDOS, it's actually a pretty solid little emulator and still fun to play around with. Word on the street is that jailbroken devices can still load whatever games they want into this new version using file managing programs, but that doesn't seem very exciting to me since iDOS has been available as DosPad in the jailbreak App Store Cydia for a long time now, and offers that same functionality.

These screenshots show the new portrait mode gamepad controls for the iPad (left) and the iPhone (right). Click either image to enlarge.

If you missed out on iDOS the first time, it's still worth checking out this new version despite its limitations, especially as it's now free to download. Be warned though – if you have the original version of iDOS in your iTunes library, this new version is actually an update that will replace that one, so it's suggested that you back up the original app before downloading version 2.0. There's a brand new thread in our forums for discussing this rereleased version of iDOS, and hopefully this time Apple will let it stick around for longer than one day.

App Store Link: iDOS, Free (Universal)

Early last month we posted our exclusive preview of Manomio's much anticipated iAmiga emulation system that will shortly be used to bring a list of old school Amiga classics to the iPhone and iPad. In the time since that post, developer and CEO Stuart Carnie has provided us with a number of new builds of the iAmiga development test system which have each brought various fixes and improvements to the environment.

I wanted to list some of the changes that we've seen in these recent builds, for readers who are waiting anxiously for iAmiga to do its thing in the App Store.

• Basic iPad support now working (display appropriately scales to the device's screen)
• TV-out is now supported on Retina display devices and iPad. Hot plug / unplug handed gracefully.
• New mouse control system implemented -- greatly enhances the feel of mouse-based titles (behaves nearly identically to a trackpad, now)
• CPU is more stable
  • Shadow of the Beast no longer crashes
  • IK+ no longer exhibits graphics glitches during intro
  • CPU tracing system implemented, able to generate gigabytes of log data for issue tracking, at need
• Audio now pauses properly when switching between Game / Settings tab (no looping)

Carnie has also shared with us a list of near-term "to do's" that we can look forward to, shortly:

• Finish integrating the CRT effects OpenGL ES engine (using GLSL shaders). List includes: No effect, 50% scanlines, aperture 1x2 RB and aperture 1x3 RB
• Aspect ratio selection (full screen, 4:3, whole pixel)
• Save / Resume support
• Defender of the Crown cabinet shell and graphics

It's been loads of fun testing out a slew of Amiga games on the iPhone with these new builds, and I can't wait for everyone out there to get the chance to enjoy so many Amiga classics, delivered through Manomio's emulation system. We'll bring more news from the studio as iAmiga development continues.

Few releases on the App Store have made me squeal in greater delight than Hudson's TurboGrafx-16 GameBox [Free], for several reasons. First off, while most were busy arguing whether or not Sega does what Nintendon't, I was busy having the time of my life playing classics such as Blazing Lazers, Keith Courage in Alpha Zones, and Bonk's Adventure. Secondly, this might be one of the best implementations of a console emulator we've seen so far on the App Store.

Downloading the actual emulator itself is completely free, which gets you access to World Sports Competition as well as a daily rotating free demo game which you can play for three minutes. (Today's is Salamander.) From there, you can view the catalog of currently available games, which it sounds like Husdon has plans to constantly expand. These games are $2.99 each, and once you unlock them via in-app purchase you can play them to your heart's content.

Much like the original TurboGrafx-16 system, the emulator has a D-pad and two buttons, along with a turbo mode for each button that can be toggled on and off. The games I've tried control about as well as you would expect a console game designed for a controller to play with virtual controls. They're entirely workable, but don't expect the same precision as a physical controller.

The controls situation is alleviated somewhat by a great save state system that allows you to save and resume games at any time. If a jump is coming up that's particularly tricky, just save your game state, attempt it, and instantly load where you were again if you fail. Sure, it's a little cheesy, but it has substantially lessened the frustration I usually experience when I die in these types of classic ports due to the lack of precision from virtual controls.

Right now the game selection in the emulator isn't the best, and aside from the previously mentioned World Sports Competiton and Salamander, it also comes packed with Gradius, R-Type, Bonk's Adventure, Bomberman '94, New Adventure Island, Vigilante, Ninja Spirit, Military Madness, Victor Run, Soldier Blade, Jaseiken Necromander, Dungeon Explorer, World Class Baseball, and China Warrior.

TurboGrafx-16 GameBox is a marvelous emulator packed with nostalgia for anyone around during the TurboGrafx-16 glory days. It's substantially cheaper than picking up a TurboExpress and the real game cards... which is easier said than done due to the systems being afflicted by the capacitor plague, making functional units very hard to come by. There are a ton of games I'd like to see included with future updates, but this is a great start. Now only if Sega would release something like this instead of packaging all their games individually...

Now this is a curious development. According to the PlayStation Blog, Sony is on the verge of releasing an official PlayStation iPhone app. In the initial version, which is launching "very soon," players will be able to connect to PSN to see their trophies and see what their friends are doing. In addition, you'll be able to browse through game listings, get hardware information, see announcement, and then share those things via Twitter, Facebook, and Email. The free app is also going to be updated with "tons more features" in the future.

What's got us scratching our heads about this is that it's no secret that the iOS platform is a fierce competitor not only to the Nintendo DS, but also to Sony's own PSP. Historically, console rivals have taken great pride in the exclusivity of their associated networks. You can't access PSN via a Xbox 360, much like how you can't access Xbox Live via a PlayStation 3. Microsoft has even had apps removed that connect to Xbox Live profiles.

Either way, we're incredibly curious what these additional features are going to be. Just for the sake of wild speculation-- The Psx4iphone emulator available for jailbroken devices can run PSone games at respectable frame rates on newer iOS devices, meaning that eventually this PlayStation app could technically be capable of running the same PSone classics currently available for sale on PSN. Realistically, we don't ever see that happening, but at the same time... Who ever thought we'd be playing Sonic games on a non-Sega console?

We'll have to wait and see what this app evolves in to, but in the meantime, I can't help but wonder what Marcus thinks of all this.

Indie development studio Manomio, whose proud motto is "in retro we trust," first grabbed our attention last summer when their Commodore 64 for iPhone [link] emulation app was rejected by Apple, putting some of the App Store's boundaries under the spotlight. Happily, though, C64 eventually got the green light and has been warming the hearts of retro gaming enthusiasts for just over a year, now. It's beautifully executed and is a favorite here at Touch Arcade.

Early this year, Manomio let us know that they had a whole lot more retro heart warming in store and shared details of their upcoming Amiga emulation system, now known as iAmiga, that would allow them to license and release various classic Amiga titles to be faithfully rendered on your iPhone screen. On hearing this we were -- readers and editors alike -- thrilled at the prospect of enjoying some of the true gaming gems that sit among the vast library of Amiga releases. A short tech demo video was provided in short order, showing two games in play, that served as quite a teaser, making us very anxious to get our hands on the studio's latest.

I'm happy to report that, yesterday, Manomio CTO Stuart Carnie was merciful enough to finally put an end to our suffering and provide us with an exclusive early build of the iAmiga system, packed with a bundle of sample games, to put through its paces. Yea, it's dirty work, but somebody's got to do it.

After spending some serious time with the iAmiga system, I can tell you that, for an early build, it is truly impressive. While it's true that a few of the games that I tried glitched at some point, the vast majority ran perfectly and buttery smoothly on my iPhone 4. I'm talking about totally accurate sound, flawless graphics, glass smooth animation -- just as if the games were being played on the standard config Amiga 500 that iAmiga emulates. Right now there are keyboard, mouse, and joystick input systems that can be activated with a tap, but (especially in the case of the keyboard) they are quick and dirty solutions that will be replaced with much more refined components before anything lands in the App Store, Stuart assures me. The overall portrait / landscape control mechanics, like those found in the studio's C64, will be preserved, however.

As for what's under the hood of the iAmiga system, Manomio has taken the UAE4All Amiga emulator and tied it to Stuart's own ARM assembly optimized, emulated 68000 CPU core. In the name of performance, the core relies upon the ARM7x architecture and, as such, only iPhone 3GS / 3rd gen. iPod touch devices and up can play. iPad support is coming, as well.

The original plan was to take this emulator and wrap it around various licensed Amiga titles and release them as stand-alone games. That's still part of the plan, but as certain App Store restrictions have loosened a bit of late, there will likely also be a sort of Amiga shell app released that that allows the stand-alone games to be played in a richer Amiga emulation environment that may offers things like OpenGL ES 2.0 shader effects to add scan-lines, CRT glare, and even TV-out and iPad play using a tethered iPhone as a controller. Just the kind of things that make die-hard retro nuts rather weak in the knees.

Stuart has given the okay for us to record and share sample gameplay footage of his emulation system, and so I've put together a fairly lengthy mix of 10 Amiga games that you just might remember.

The games shown in the video are the following, in order: Defender of the Crown, Battle Squadron, International Karate +, R-Type, R-Type II, Speedball, Stunt Car Racer, Shadow of the Beast, Virus, and Xenon 2: Megablast. It should be noted that this list does not represent the list of games that will necessarily be coming to the App Store through the iAmiga system -- these are games simply used to test the system in its developmental state. (In fact, some of these I added from my own collection of Amiga disk images.)

As far as what we will be seeing in the way of iOS Amiga releases, Manomio has licensed various titles from Cinemaware, so Defender of the Crown, It Came from the Desert, Wings, and others are on the way. The studio is currently in licensing discussions with several other IP holders to secure additional titles for iOS release, including Factor 5 (Turrican I, II, III), The Bitmap Brothers (Xenon II: Megablast), Magnetic Fields (Supercars), Cope-Com (Battle Squadron), and Archer MacLean (IK+). Additionally, they are in talks with an unnamed major mobile publisher that's very interested in putting Amiga classics in the hands of today's gamers.

As you can see from the video, what we're in for is a wave of excellent games that are retro, true, but not so retro that they lack mainstream appeal. (Yes, the Amiga was that advanced 25 years ago.) This is big news, not only for iOS gamers, but for mobile gaming in general. In my personal experience, Amiga emulation has been quite a bit more difficult to manage than other age-old platforms on proper Macs and PCs due to the complexity of the original hardware. The thought of having easy access to these games in a tap-and-go fashion -- even standing in line at the bank -- is just amazing. I call this some of the very biggest news in iOS gaming that we've ever covered and can't wait until all of you out there get a chance to enjoy these great Amiga titles on your iOS devices, as well.

For readers unfamiliar with the Amiga, it is a 16-bit computer released by Commodore in 1985. A far more complex system than the C64, the Amiga featured a powerful central processor (the same found in the early Macintosh), various custom co-processors, and a multitasking operating system that, together, enabled audiovisual feats previously unseen in a consumer system at that point in time. While it did not see enormous popularity in the United States, it was wildly popular in Europe and is considered by many to be one of the very best game platforms ever created. InfoWorld called the Amiga the "third milestone" in computing after the Apple II and IBM PC.

We'll be tracking Manomio's iAmiga project closely and will pass along any further details that emerge, as we get them.

UPDATE: The developer has indicated that iAmiga will gain AGA support sometime after the first version is out the door. AGA (for Advanced Graphics Architecture) is the third generation Amiga chipset that brought a 24-bit color palette and more overall graphics horsepower to the platform. (Many of the most recent Amiga games are AGA-only.)

Early last month we took a look at Elite's ZX Spectrum: Elite Collection (Vol. 1) for the iPhone, a collection of 8-bit, British classics wrapped in a capable emulator, designed to deliver nostalgic gaming reverie to the iPhone- or iPod touch-wielding player. Late last week Elite released ZX Spectrum: Elite Collection HD [App Shop] for the iPad, featuring not only Vol. 1 but Vol. 2 of their game collection, making it the ultimate iOS ZX Spectrum experience.

The Elite Collection HD features all of the games from Vol. 1:

• Turbo Esprit
• Saboteur
• Chuckie Egg
• Harrier Attack
• Frank Bruno's Boxing
• Buggy Boy

As well as the new, Vol. 2 titles:

• Roller Coaster
• Beyond the Ice Palace
• Saboteur II: Avenging Angel
• Batty
• Kokotoni Wilf
• Battle Ships

As with the earlier iPhone release, the iPad Elite Collection plays the games very smoothly with decent controls -- about as good as can be managed in a multi-touchscreen adaptation of a system of this sort. I've particularly appreciated these collections as I've long had an interest in experiencing the UK games of the 8-bit era but, being unfamiliar with the ins and outs of the Spectrum systems, I've had trouble with traditional emulators. Having everything neatly packaged up here has been a big win for me.

Though U.S. gamers never really had the chance to play many of these classics on their 8-bits back in the day, classics they are, and ZX Spectrum: Elite Collection HD is a great way to get to know these titles.

Last week we reported that premier '80s game studio Elite Systems would soon begin bringing classic ZX Spectrum game titles to iOS (via emulation) with the coming release of ZX Spectrum: Elite Collection (Vol. #1) [App Store]. This weekend the game went live in the App Store, shortly following a press release issued by Elite, meant to manage expectations of the unreleased title.

In the release, Elite's Steve Wilcox said,

The media and consumer reaction to the announcement, in late September, of Apple's approval of ZX Spectrum: Elite Collection has been extensive and enthusiastic. Our concerns now are to ensure that both groups understand that Vol. #1 of the App is a work in-progress, a rough diamond if you like and that we're committed to developing the App (eliminating some of its more obvious shortcomings and adding new features) over the weeks and months ahead.
...
If we're to achieve our goal of offering (and enabling others to offer) access - via mobile and wireless devices - to many of the thousands of fantastic ZX Spectrum games, we need to restore some order to the market and adjust expectations amongst developers, publishers and players.

Wilcox promises that the application will always be priced at £0.59 (Euro 0.79, US $0.99) and that within a month, six more game will be released via a free update (Vol. #2), with a further free update to come within the following month (Vol. #3), bringing with it an in-app game shop.

This Volume 1 release features the following six popular Spectrum titles:

• Turbo Esprit
• Saboteur
• Chuckie Egg
• Harrier Attack
• Frank Bruno's Boxing
• Buggy Boy

The bundled games in this release features on-screen, directional "key" controls configured for each specific title. Gameplay can be carried out in either portrait or landscape mode, depending on player preference. Audio is fully reproduced, as well, bringing the Spectrum's lavish soundscape to discerning iPhone gamers. (A bit of wit there...)

See Elite's brief trailer video.

I've not yet spent a great deal of time with this one, but can say that the emulation seems to be running games at full ZX Spectrum speed. (And I'm happy to say I've not hit a single R Tape loading error.) We'll be following Elite's progressive releases in this series closely.

I'll start out by saying that this is a bit of a curious post. The app I'm highlighting here isn't a game at all -- not even sort-of a game. It's a music player, of sorts. But, a music player that should bring a smile to the face of many a gamer who sat in front an Amiga or PC, joystick in hand, back in the late '80s and early '90s. The app I speak of is French developer Yohann Magnien's Modizer [App Store]...and it's a MODplayer.

First, some history for those unfamiliar with MODs, trackers, and all that lot of sampled digital audio goodness. In 1985 the Commodore Amiga was released, bringing with it dramatic innovations on every front, really. And, among them, was its 8-bit, 4-channel, wavetable, stereo audio subsystem offering far better audio playback than any other consumer machine of the time. Digitized sound samples could be loaded into the Amiga's CHIP RAM and triggered for playback (and with zero CPU intervention), with highly realistic results.

Two years after the Amiga's release, developer Karsten Obarski decided to create a program that would load samples into said RAM and trigger them for coherent playback using a simple script that's something akin to the scroll of a player piano. That program was called Ultimate Soundtracker. And that script, plus its associated audio samples all bundled together into a single file, is called a module or MOD. Since then "trackers" of every sort, along with new MOD-like formats, emerged for platforms far and wide.

Demoscene coders were quick to adopt these trackers to create soundtracks to accompany their onscreen pixel magic and soon the "music guy" became a critical component of every demogroup. Noting this, game developers began adopting tracker modules as their solution for in-game music. Back in the day of limited CPU resources, audio boards with real horesepower came onto the scene to enable efficient playback of not just 4 but 8, 16, 32, 64 channels. Demos and games benefitted mightily, and audio geeks had a new scene to drool over. (I was a GUS and CapaMOD man, myself.)

And plenty of iOS games have reach out to MODs, S3Ms, XMs, and other formats of the kind for their soundtrack solutions.

And, so we come back to Modizer. Is it the only MODplayer in the App Store? No, it's not. But it appears to be the most full-featured. Modizer supports a dizzying array of audio formats thanks to its use of the MODPlug and UADE players (the latter of which actually emulates an Amiga 1200 computer), switchable in the settings menu. A variety of OpenGL-based audio visualizers can be enabled to accompany playback, a feature that will be much appreciated by those accustomed to hearing MODs running alongside a demoscene production's onscreen pixel magic. And it all runs smooth as glass without missing a beat.

Modizer is a universal application, natively supporting the iPhone 3G, iPod touch 2G, iPad and up, with specific optimizations for the iPhone 4 and iPad. The app includes a file browser that allows free access to the MODLAND and HVSC collections -- about 215,000 tracks in all -- that, when downloaded, are stored locally for quick access. The archives contain audio tracks from basically every demo ever made as well as most games for the C64 and Amiga.

See our iPad demo video. The developer provides a few iPhone demo videos, as well.

At a mere $.99, Modizer is a godsend for gamers with a fancy for digital music. And, while indeed not a game, Modizer for iOS seems worth a spot here at Touch Arcade.

UPDATE: We just got word from the developer that he's currently working on a v1.1 update that includes various bugfixes as well as a number of enhancements:

• Some optimization for browser (mainly when browsing modland/artists)
• Sharp X68000 support (mdx/pdx files) with updated Modland lib
• Addressing issue where some formats miss the last second of music
• And more to come, depending on user feedback...

Magnien indicates that he's also considering a network "user stats" sort of ranking system that would let users easily share the overall highest rated songs. We'll keep you posted.