Hiển thị các bài đăng có nhãn iphone games. Hiển thị tất cả bài đăng
Hiển thị các bài đăng có nhãn iphone games. Hiển thị tất cả bài đăng

Thứ Tư, 14 tháng 12, 2011

PopCap to set fire to iPhone, iPad this winter with Popcorn Dragon

Look, PopCap, first you give us a lust for diamonds, and now you're just making us downright hungry. Bejeweled Blitz maker PopCap Games just announced Popcorn Dragon during an EA event in New York City. The game will have players shoot fireballs at flying popcorn kernels by touching the screen, and that adorable dragon will try to eat it all, according to Joystiq.

Popcorn Dragon has no specific release date nor were any other platforms mentioned during the game's reveal. Adding to the mystery, PopCap has yet to reveal a price, though we doubt it will stray far from the coveted $.99 price point. Actually, the EA-owned studio has become quite the fan of microtransactions as of late, so "free" is certainly a possibility.
Popcorn Dragon logo
But back to the game: It looks as if players will feed their miniature dragon across several movie scenes, earning stars and bumping up the infamous score multiplier for quick, accurate fireball shots. Players will be able to buy upgrades with "Tickets," reinforcing the assumption that microtransactions will be a major component to Popcorn. Well, that and growing that cute little whelp's tail. Now, where in the world is the Pop Secret?

Are you excited for PopCap's next big game? What do you think of the studio's next crack at an original idea?

Thứ Sáu, 9 tháng 12, 2011

The Sims FreePlay on iOS takes cues from The Sims Social next month

The Sims FreePlay
Are you ready to live two lives with no escape? Then step right into The Sims FreePlay. EA's brand new Sims game for iPhone and iPad will live up to its title, taking a cue from the largely successful The Sims Social for Facebook. However, this game will operate differently than both traditional Sims games and its social counterpart in that it will operate on a 24-hour cycle.

According to PocketGamer, this will entice players to check out what their Sims are up to throughout the day, rather than play for extended sessions. Well, if you ask the 6 million daily The Sims Social players, that sounds more like the Facebook game than we thought. Of course, the game will be supported by microtransactions for things like furniture and in-game speed boosts. (This little factoid leads us to believe your progress in the game is limited somehow.)

But here's where the differences begin: Players will be able to manage up to 16 Sims at a time. Better yet, you'll also get to customize your Sims' town with shops and parks--neither of which you can do in The Sims Social. Based on early screens, this version of The Sims looks more like its traditional counterparts than what's on Facebook. In other words, it looks a helluva lot better. The Sims FreePlay hits iPhone and iPad next month, and we'll be all over it like Sims on Simoleons.

Are you psyched about a free version of The Sims on your iPhone? Are you still digging The Sims Social?

Thứ Tư, 26 tháng 10, 2011

PopCap to set fire to iPhone, iPad this winter with Popcorn Dragon

Look, PopCap, first you give us a lust for diamonds, and now you're just making us downright hungry. Bejeweled Blitz maker PopCap Games just announced Popcorn Dragon during an EA event in New York City. The game will have players shoot fireballs at flying popcorn kernels by touching the screen, and that adorable dragon will try to eat it all, according to Joystiq.

Popcorn Dragon has no specific release date nor were any other platforms mentioned during the game's reveal. Adding to the mystery, PopCap has yet to reveal a price, though we doubt it will stray far from the coveted $.99 price point. Actually, the EA-owned studio has become quite the fan of microtransactions as of late, so "free" is certainly a possibility.

Thứ Sáu, 30 tháng 9, 2011

CrowdStar, others dock in Sibblingz Spaceport for mobile social games

If we haven't driven home yet that mobile will be massive in the future of social games, we clearly haven't done our job. Luckily, news like the fact that Sibblingz has signed on It Girl creator CrowdStar and a number of other developers to use its Spaceport service helps us make good on that.

TechCrunch reports that--in addition to CrowdStar--BitRhymes, IKIGames, LuckyLabs, Fortune Planet and DeezGames have signed on to use Spaceport to create mobile versions of their Facebook games. Spaceport is Sibblingz's cloud-based game development platform that allows developers like CrowdStar to create mobile games that work on both iOS and Android devices.

Essentially, it allows developers to create a mobile game once and have it run on multiple mobile devices. The platform makes use of coding languages like Javascript and HTML5, but neither of which are known for making robust or fully-featured games on iPhones or Android phones. However, Sibblingz claims that games built on Spaceport feature an app-like experience.

What Sibblingz means is that, while these games are built using simpler code languages, they will perform like, say CityVille Hometown by Zynga. That game was built using tools specifically for iOS devices and is thus more visually impressive and feature-rich than mobile browser games. However, according to TechCrunch, developers can even create games specifically for iPhones and iPads through Spaceport.

Sibblingz also says that developers can make games for Facebook's worst-kept secret, Project Spartan--an initiative to bring Facebook to mobile devices through browsers using HTML5 complete with full-featured apps and games--through Spaceport. Jeez, on paper it sounds like Spaceport can do anything but make the cash flow.

Regardless, what's important to take away here is that social game developers realize that mobile is where it's at. Frankly, it's one area where clear winners have yet to be defined, much unlike Facebook (ahem, Zynga and EA). At this point, anyone could come out a winner on mobile, and perhaps the companies that embrace cross-platform game creation like CrowdStar will have the upper hand.

Do you think these developers have a chance at winning the mobile race these social game creators are running with Spaceport? Who do you think will ultimately win the mobile social gaming war? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment

Thứ Năm, 15 tháng 9, 2011

Why are we so hooked on Angry Birds? It's science [Infographic]

We already know that Rovio and its Angry Birds are poised to do battle with Zynga for global gaming domination. The iPhone-game-turned-everywhere-game has become millions' preferred time-waster on the run. But there's one thing we just can't seem to put our finger on: Why? An infographic put together by Ask Your Target Marketing attempts to answer this question with two forms of science (though, the latter of which is debatable in some circles): psychology and sociology.

But before we get into that, some basics. According to 1,000 surveyed Angry Birds players, men are 35 percent more likely to buy Angry Birds than women, and 18 to 24-year-olds are 33 percent more likely to buy the game than those 25 or older. Here's an interesting finding: gamers collectively play Angry Birds an average of 200 million minutes per day--that amounts to 16 collective years of flinging agitated avian creatures every hour of every day.

While just 15 percent of players feel addicted to the game often when playing and an even smaller 13 percent say they feel addicted always, a whopping 54 percent say they feel addicted occasionally. OK, so we get it: We're hooked by their angry talons. Now, how in the world did this happen? Simply put, it makes us feel good.

Out of 1,000 people who played Angry Birds 25 or more times, 32 percent of them felt "somewhat relaxed" after an Angry Birds session, while 23 percent said to have felt "very relaxed" after launching the birds into the amorphous green pigs. But generally speaking, 58 percent of Angry Birds players reported their mood to be improved after playing the game, while 37 percent said their mood was unchanged.

This is thanks to an amazing strange little thing called dopamine, which our brains put out on overdrive in anticipation of reward, according to the infographic. This massive release of dopamine makes us want to know just what will happen after letting that next bird careen into some wooden planks.

For 12 percent of players, the addiction has been so bad that they were forced to delete the game from their phones, while another 12 percent have merely considered that drastic measure as an option. The other 76 percent just keep playing, apparently. Good idea, you not-so-jovial bird junkies. Find the full infographic below, and click it to make it larger.

[Via Scribbal]

[Image Credit: ThinkGeek]

Are you hooked on Angry Birds? Do you think this infographic does a good enough job of explaining why you're addicted to the game? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment.
Angry Birds infographic