Hey, remember Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1? It came out over a year ago, we liked it a lot in our review, and couldn't wait for additional episodes to come. Maybe I got spoiled by Telltale's release schedule, but I was sort of expecting Sega to rapid fire release additional episodes of the game. Well, it turns out we won't be playing the second installment until sometime next year. But, hey, it'll have Tails!
Cool, right? I'm a little worried about the engine change, as that seems like something that's a little strange to do between installments of an episodic game. It sounds cool though.
LostWinds [$3.99] from Frontier was originally released for the Wii in 2008 and we've been waiting for the iOS port since it was reported in July. It's a beautiful adventure platforming game with puzzle elements, which rates highly in almost every way.
The story opens with little Toku asleep on the grass, but once you swipe him awake, there's a lovely layered platform world to explore, with pink trees, waterfalls, caves, villages and other characters to discover. Just tap the screen to walk in that direction, or hold your finger down for a second to keep moving automatically.
On the first level, you discover Enril the wind spirit and gain the ability to generate gusts of wind with a finger swipe. So if you swipe a plant it sways in the breeze, swiping a tree causes it to shake and rustle, while swiping a waterfall splashes water around. You can also swipe at objects - like large rock balls - to move them, or swipe burning fires to fan or direct the flames. These abilities help your search for the evil Balasar, so you can lift his dark curse.
Picture Super Mario Bros. Got a nice image in your head? Good. Now imagine Mario could never stop moving and would only change direction if he hit a wall. A little tougher. And what if absolutely everything could kill him in one hit, and there was no such thing as a checkpoint? That sounds like the sort of game that would have you cursing, spitting, and contemplating throwing your controller, and it also sounds a lot like Wind-up Knight [$0.99]
Occasionally a game will come out on Android that looks so good I slaver for a port. Wind-up Knight is one of those games. Released on the Android Market a couple months back, the side-scrolling adventure looked slick, adorable, and hard -- all the things I look for in a platformer. Now that it's arrived on iOS, I can finally confirm: this game is outstanding.
Back in October, we were pleasantly surprised with Bring Me Sandwiches!! [99¢], a new platformer from Adult Swim Games and Grumpy Face Studios. First of all, any platformer on iOS lives and dies by how good its controls are, and Bring Me Sandwiches!! delivered on this front with several great options for controlling your character. Secondly, it took the basics of platforming and mixed in a dose of Katamari-like progressive collecting, which proved to be a really great addition to the genre. Finally, Bring Me Sandwiches!! had a truly excellent visual style that felt like it could have been ripped straight from a show on the Cartoon Network.
Yesterday, Bring Me Sandwiches!! got its first update, making it a Universal app and providing some other minor fixes and tweaks. All of the same content from the iPhone/iPod touch version of the game is available on the iPad, though sadly there is no transferring of game saves between multiple devices. The game plays great on the larger screen, and like the original version, gives you half the lower screen for movement and the other half for jumping (when using touch controls). This is important to me as I typically find the controls in platformers on the iPad to be awkwardly placed, and here you can basically just use anywhere that feels the most comfortable on the lower part of the screen.
If you're the owner of an iPad that you've been itching to get Bring Me Sandwiches!! on, now is a great time to drop your hard earned dollar on the new Universal version.
In a bit of a surprise today, Ubisoft released Prince of Persia Classic [99¢] into the App Store. Now you might be thinking, "Hey, Ubisoft. Didn't y0u already release a classic version of Jordan Mechner's influential platform adventure last year?" And the answer to that is, yes, it's called Prince of Persia Retro [99¢]. That game was basically a perfect port of one of the earliest versions of the game, Prince of Persia for Macintosh, with some very sub-standard virtual controls tacked on. The nostalgia factor was there, plus it was cheap and Universal, but Prince of Persia Retro was far from the ideal way to play such a finicky game that demanded precision control.
Today's release is actually another port, this time from the 2007 Prince of Persia remake that was available on Xbox Live and the PlayStation Network. Prince of Persia Classic is essentially the exact same game as the original – same level layouts, same enemies and hazards, same storyline and one hour time limit – but completely redone with fantastic 3D visuals and what appears to be a more zoomed in camera to better suit iOS. Sure, if you're a purist then that might not sound like such a great thing. But if you love the original gameplay and can appreciate a shiny new coat of paint, then Prince of Persia Classic fully delivers.
As for the translation from controller to touch screen, obviously it's much more difficult without tactile feedback but at the very least the controls feel leaps and bounds better than those in Prince of Persia Retro. There's a more intuitive use of action buttons, and there is a slider for movement as opposed to directional arrows which gives you more control over running or walking. The controls aren't perfect, and they make an already difficult game that much more frustrating, but I think they're the best they can be while still being true to how the original game played and they certainly shouldn't prevent you from playing through the game with a bit of practice.
So if you're in the mood for some good old fashioned Prince of Persia gameplay, but want an extra dose of shiny, then Prince of Persia Classic is where it's at. From my limited time with the game, it appears to be a very faithful port of the 2007 remake with virtual controls that are about as good as you can expect from a touch screen. You'll get a headache from some accidental leaps to your own death, but after a bit of play it's pretty easy to work within the confines of the controls in order to play through the game.
As an aside, some players in our forums seem to be having trouble installing the game on an iPod touch device. Indeed, the App Store notes that it's compatible with "iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S" only, with no mention of any iPod touch or iPad devices. I'm not sure if this was just an oversight when uploading the game to iTunes or if the game really does require the two latest iPhones in order to run. If you own an iPod touch or iPad, it might be worth waiting a few days to see what the final verdict is on that, but if you're an iPhone 4 or 4S owner and enjoy yourself some Prince of Persia, then I'd jump all over Prince of Persia Classic for just 99¢.
As far as premises go, two dogs that are tied together by the tongue is a bit of an oddity. But on a platform that regularly sees us flinging birds at pigs or feeding candy to monsters, it's best not to ask too many questions. Besides, Tongue Tied's [$1.99] adorably vacant duo Mick and Ralph are so much better together than they could be apart.
Their predicament sets them up for all sorts of physics-based platforming challenges. You can slingshot them off each other, or send them flying in circles. One can hang by the tongue and swing below while the other walks. It's your job to shoot them over hazards or into tasty bones and keep them from harm, because they'll just keep on walking inexorably to their deaths. These dogs are really, really dumb. The game's developer Mojo Bones, on the other hand, is a very smart team. They've created a game that's both charming and challenging, packed it with replayability and promised a year's worth of free updates. Hard to say no to that.
During GDC this year, Team Phobic released Undead Ocean [$1.99], an action platforming title built from their experience with the excellent Bounce On series and a healthy nod to classic action platformers from the bygone 16-bit era. We liked Undead Oceanquite a bit when it initially launched, especially due to the fantastic level designs and copious amounts of hidden areas. It really felt like the kind of game I would have gobbled up back in the day on my SNES.
Originally, Undead Ocean was built with expansion in mind by way of adding additional islands with new levels via updates. It might have taken a while, but the first major addition to Undead Ocean has hit the App Store. This update includes a new island with 15 brand new levels, new enemy types and boss fights, new powerup items, new story cutscenes, and of course something that any good island adventure needs: a huge volcano. You can see most of these new goodies in the following trailer:
Undead Ocean is one of the better action platformers available on iOS, and today's update practically doubles the amount of content from the original release. If you're looking to try before you buy, you can grab Undead Ocean Dojo [Free], a free spinoff title that features an intro level not contained in the regular game which should give you more than a good idea whether or not you'll be interested in the full, and is a pretty cool game on its own merits as well.
Our all-seeing eye is fond of artistically gifted games, and Catch the Princess is the latest to be caught in its steely gaze. Imagine, if you will, a side-scrolling puzzle game that tries to capture all the essence of rustic fairy tale imagery, and then pairs that with deliciously crafted Cut The Rope-style play. That's the pitch for Catch the Princess in brief, and we're thinking this is something you'll want to look out for, too.
As you'll see in the reveal trailer, Catch the Princess is dark and gloomy in all the right ways, and appears to have the mechanical might to match its inspired tone and art direction. The game launches next week for the iPhone and iPad and will boast around 60 levels filled with rusty chains, bellows, soft lighting, and princess-saving action. Get your eyeballs on these screens:
In case you wanted to know, this is being crafted by Robots and Pencils, an outfit based in Calgary. If you're big into Minecraft World Explorer [$.99], then you already know these guys. We've been told that we'll be hearing a lot more about this studio in the near future, and provided Catch the Princess rocks, we'll pair some ears with our eye. Somehow.
The only way I can start this review is with a little history lesson, both for people who aren't familiar with Sonic CD, as well as those of you who might not have been reading TouchArcade since the summer of 2009. Let's start at the beginning, so everyone can truly appreciate just how wonderful the very existence of this game is.
Sonic CD, or Sonic the Hedgehog CD was originally released in late 1993 for the Sega CD, Sega's CD-ROM accessory for the Genesis console. Sega CD had actually come out earlier that year, and many gamers (myself included) couldn't wait to get their hands on one as the promise of full motion video powered gaming seemed incredible. Unfortunately, both due to the many technical limitations of the system, as well as the games themselves just not being very good, the Sega CD never really took off quite how I imagined Sega wanted it to. (There's actually a bunch of reasons I could also get into, but I digress.)
We've been giddy for the Sonic CD iOS release since it was finally officially announced back in August, Sega has finally revealed the release date for the game: and it's tomorrow! This will coincide with the release of Sonic CD on the console digital download platforms Xbox Live and PSN this week as well. Pricing on consoles will be $4.99, but iOS gamers get a special introductory price of $1.99. Sega has also confirmed via their Twitter that Sonic CD will be coming to Android and Windows Phone 7, but not until early next year.
This was going to be an absolutely insane week for releases already, but when you throw a heavy hitter like the beloved Sonic CD, coming with all sorts of enhancements and bonuses over the original, into the release mix then things quickly get turned up to 11 and beyond. We'll let you know as soon as Sonic CD officially hits the App Store, and you can be sure we'll be playing the heck out of it with a review soon to follow.
Stretched [99¢] is a new physics-based slingshot-platformer from Chillingo, which has been receiving praise in our discussion thread. The objective is to fling a ball between various slingshots, collecting as many bubbles from each level as possible, before reaching the exit portal. There's no time limit or restriction on the number of turns, so there's no hurry, but each time you fling yourself you need to land safely, as there's no ground or safety net.
The best feature of Stretched is that new gameplay elements are constantly being introduced as you progress through the 80+ levels and 4 worlds (Sunrise, Monochrome, Misty and Desert). Each world has it's own features and music and it's often a pleasant surprise to discover what comes next.
Back in late October we posted an update on Elite Systems' coming Elite Collection (iPhone) and Elite Collection HD (iPad)Â apps, which will offer a bundled collection of classic Commodore 8-bit home computer games, as well as an in-app game store for purchasing additional singles and bundled arrangements of games. At that time, Elite indicated that these applications would be delayed due to a trademark complication. We're now happy to report the studio has informed us that the titles will land in the App Store on Friday, December 16th, and at a one-week promotional launch price of $0.99 each. [ UPDATE: Apologies to readers in our overlooking the fact that the stated release date does not apply to the Americas. These titles will see release there in mid-to-late January. ]
Most gamers are probably familiar with The Behemoth from their Flash game turned console game turned HD remake XBLA title Alien Hominid, and their subsequent XBLA release Castle Crashers. You might even remember that earlier this year they released a game for the App Store called Super Soviet Missile Mastar [Free], which was a strange and humorous mini game straight out of Alien Hominid that was turned into a standalone iOS game that we thought was pretty cool.
Well, The Behemoth is back in the iOS space with their latest offering called Alien Hominid: PDA Games [Free], which as the title suggests is a compilation of the PDA mini games that you could play in Alien Hominid. It's basically a simplistic platforming game where  the goal is to collect the gems and kill the enemies in each level, which will unlock the door to the next level. It has a pretty cute grey and white color scheme which is a throwback to the PDA devices of yesteryear, and some well designed levels that will occasionally rough up your brain as you determine how best to complete them.
At heart, Catball Eats It All [Free] does not have a unique premise. At all. At heart, all you do is battle physics with your thumbs to keep a fat cat rolling around big shapes and eating stuff. Sounds a bit boring, doesn't it?
However, great execution is all about a clever take and excellent design, as fans of standout iOS titles will tell you. And if Catball Eats It All has anything nailed, it's in presenting a title that looks so wacky that you can't help but be drawn to its inherent weirdness and wonder what the gameplay will be like. It's actually like someone chopped up a bunch of weird photos of animals on the internet and made playable levels out of them. And you get to play one too. You're sold, right?
For what seems like forever now, gamers have been clamoring to have the indie arcade platformer Super Crate Box ported over to their beloved iOS devices. And who can blame them, the game is awesome. This past August Vlambeer, the developer of Super Crate Box, made the official announcement that they would indeed be bringing their game to the App Store, with the help of The Blocks Cometh [99¢] developer Halfbot. And there was much rejoicing.
The plan was to have Super Crate Box ready for iOS the following month, but in the world of game development almost nothing ever goes as planned. Yesterday, Vlambeer updated their blog with word that at long last, Super Crate Box for iOS was finished and had been shipped off to Apple for their approval. Again, there was much rejoicing.
LostWinds [
Our all-seeing eye is fond of artistically gifted games, and 
Back in late October we posted an update on 
