It stands to reason that as soon as I begin talking about a lack of  diversity in mobile games, that a game would be released that would make me want to take it all back. Combo Crew by The Game Bakers (the studio behind the tactical RPG SQUIDS) is a beat ‘em up for iOS and Android with fully-integrated touch controls, as opposed to the usual virtual d-pad utilized for similar games.

Inspired by classic beat ‘em ups such as Street Fighter and Final Fight, Combo Crew has controls completely designed around touch-based gameplay: one-fingered swipes result in punches and kicks, tapping results in a counter-attack, and two-fingered swipes unleash devastating combo moves upon your opponents. There’s no need to fiddle about with on-screen buttons in order to attack: your fingers do all the fighting.

Another unique aspect among mobile beat ‘em ups is the inclusion of asynchronous multiplayer. While the game certainly can be played by yourself, it’s much more fun to fight your through a level to rescue one of your friends from K.O., or to compete for high scores as you smash your way up to the top of the tower. Even better is the fact that none of your friends will be left out of the fun: multiplayer features are compatible between both iOS and Android version, allowing you to brawl together in harmony.

Combo Crew is due for release on the 23rd of May on iPhone, iPad and Android. Until then, you can keep yourself busy by checking out The Game Bakers’  website, Twitter and Facebook pages.

Those of you who keep up with mobile game news will doubtless know of Attack of the Wall Street Titan, the people-squishing, car-crushing, building-smashing game from independent studio Dark Tonic. Rather strangely, however, this robot-themed smash ‘em up was not originally released for Android phones, to the great disappointment of many fans. Well, now there’s good news for all of you Android owners out there: starting today, Attack of the Wall Street Titan is available from the Google Play Store.

As with the iOS version, the Android version of the game features a very unusual free-to-play model: as you reach three-star scores in levels as you progress through the game, you’ll be able to permanently remove advertisements from the game, leaving you with a fully-unlocked copy. “It felt wrong not to release a game about a giant robot onto Android first, but we got here as fast as we could!”  says Creative Director, Eric Boosman. “We want to thank all the Android users for sticking it out with us.  Now it’s time to get robo-stomping!”

For those of you unfortunate enough to not have tried this on iOS yet, Attack of the Wall Street Titan has you control the titular ‘Wall Street Titan’, a giant robot on a rampage against the evil CEO of Wall Street. It’s your job to smash your way through the neighbourhood, destroying the evil bankers and liberating their loot while at the same time protecting the innocent masses from becoming collateral damage.

Attack of the Wall Street Titan is currently available for free from the Googe Play Store. You can read our full review for the iOS version of the game here. For more information about both the Android and iOS version of the game check out the Dark Tonic website, Facebook and Twitter pages.

iOS players have long had their own multiplayer matching and achievement tracking service, GameCenter, but until this week, Android players have been out in the cold as far as a native system goes.  There are 3rd party systems such as Mobage and Gree, but these require users to sign up for separate accounts.  Well on May 15, that all changed when Google announced Google Play Game Services at their annual developer conference, Google I/O.

Like GameCenter, Google’s service will offer leader boards, achievements, cloud saving, and multiplayer matching and hosting.  Where Game Services differs however is in its cross-platform support.  Mobile Android gamers will be able to play with iOS and web based gamers, making the service all the more appealing to both developers and players alike.  In addition, the Google cloud service will also be cross-platform compatible, so for example, players will be able to start a game on an Android device and then continue it on an iOS device.

Of course another benefit for users of Google’s service is the use of Google+ accounts.  Players will no longer need to sign up for multiple 3rd party accounts to take advantage of these popular features.  Using a single Google+ account, a player will be able to seamlessly play on multiple devices across multiple games and share their progress, achievements, and interests with their Google+ circles.

Google+ Play Game Services is live, and the following games have already been updated or are working to include the service: Eternity Warriors 2, World of Goo, Kingdom Rush, Beach Buggy Blitz, and Osmos.  Developers can find out more and download the SDK on the Google Developer site.

It remains to be seen how widely accepted this new service will be, especially on the iOS side, given that Apple’s GameCenter already has 150 million user accounts.  However, the cross-platform capabilities and Google+ account integration will no doubt be very appealing to both players and developers alike.

Finally, as a result of the launch of Google’s new service, Google+ Games will be shutting down on June 30 according to the Google+ Games support page.

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It’s likely that anyone who plays mobile games at least reasonably often will have begun to notice a significant trend in what kinds of games are being released, both on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. While there’s certainly a large number of mobile games on the market, there is a also a strong tendency to lean towards certain genres. Every time a genre experiences that surge in demand, other genres tend to get pushed aside in favour of the flavour of the month. After all, why would an indie developer with little time and money risk it all on an unproven game genre when it’s clear that Action/Adventure titles are raking in the big bucks at the moment. It’s a fair choice, but it is beginning to lead to some rather worrying repercussion.

If an mobile developer knows they can make a quick buck off a cheap knockoff of Minecraft – Pocket Edition or Fruit Ninja, then it’s likely that that’s exactly what they’re going to do. Unfortunately, this means that most mobile games are very similar, all falling into the most popular categories such a Physics Puzzle,  Action/Adventure, or Sports/Racing, while truly original mobile games in other genres are few and far between. This trend isn’t limited to the mobile industry, of course: there are plenty of franchises which churn out near identical games every year only to have them eagerly snapped up by consumers, but it is more prevalent here, due to the relative simplicity of developing a mobile game, and the comparative ease of getting it out on the market.

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We touched on this topic in an article a few weeks ago, but it bares exploring further: this sort of situation can be rather damaging for the mobile gaming industry. Having a few, extremely popular genres means that developers are less likely to produce games in less popular genres, leading to over-saturation in certain genres, and a complete lack of variety in others. Of course, this isn’t entirely the fault of the developers. Not all genres work well on all platforms, for example. While racing, platforming and action games all tend to work quite well on smart phones, a realistic flight simulator probably wouldn’t. The same is true for certain other genres, of course; fighting games, shooters and MMOs are often hard to translate to a mobile platform, and poorly executed when they finally are attempted (the exceptions are few and far between).

This doesn’t mean that such things shouldn’t be attempted, however. Certainly, attempting to create a brand new online, turn-based cake simulator has its risks; but so does all innovation. The danger of failing a task is what spurs people on towards even greater achievements. If no-one ever took any risks in the gaming industry, then classics such as Shadow of the Colossus and Journey would never have been made. Sure, there’s a chance that your game will be a flop. But there’s also a chance that people will love it, thus opening up a whole new world of turn-based cake simulators.

To be fair though, there are benefits to genre saturation. With so many similar games available, it all but ensures that only the truly outstanding will rise above the rest. The majority of people don’t want the same thing over and over again with only a different colour of paint, which means that anyone wishing to truly succeed will have to have at least some original ideas if they want their game to stand out. Repetition also leads to refinement; the more developers there are working on one genre of games, the more the genre itself will improve. Mechanics will get tightened, gameplay will be polished, and the all-around experience will improve.

So, head over to the forums and tell us what you think. Is genre saturation beneficial or detrimental to mobile gaming? Should developers continue to put out games as fast as possible for a wider variety of choices in each genre, or take their time and wait until they have something truly unique to show off? Let us know what you think either in the comments below, or over on our forums.

In Tug of Gore, players take on the role of hungry DuDus, alien monsters trying to chow down on a Gore. Players each put one hand on the iPad itself and must tap their DuDu to tug on the Gore in order to eat it.

The hand that’s NOT being used for DuDu feeding can be used in any other way, as long as it doesn’t touch the game screen. Want to tickle another player? Shout distractions? Block the iPad from view? Sure! It’s all part of the game. In fact, the game offers suggestions, like stealing the iPad away, for any Tug of Gore players who might need some encouragement to try these evil tactics. I’m a huge fan of goofy and creative one-button games like B.U.T.T.O.N. and of hilarious multiplayer games like Space Team, so Tug of Gore sounds like a perfect party game.

Tug of Gore was originally created and developed as part of the  2013 Global Game Jam, just like Bossa Studio’s 100% Scientifically Accurate Surgeon Simulator, The Unseen Evil, and many other creative indies. Tug of Gore was developed in 48 hours, and ended up taking third prize at the Hilversum meetup of the Global Game Jam.

Tug of Gore is now available as a free download from the App Store. If you’re reading at work, and don’t have three friends to be recruited to play RIGHT NOW, you can check out the video of Tug of Gore in action here:

I mentioned not too long ago the five things indie developers need to take a closer look at when it comes to creating their next mobile game. This time, I’m going to take a look at one specific issue I raised within that article that’s just gaining some extra momentum in the news of late, thanks partly to the words of one Jonathan Blow.

If the name doesn’t ring a bell, it should. Jonathan’s 2008 hit Braid placed him on a rather high and worthy pedestal upon its release, along with his appearance in the successful film Indie Game: The Movie. Never one to pass away the chance to speak his mind, Blow has now criticised the indie industry for simply copying other ideas in a recent interview on Gamasutra, in a very similar way to the AAA console/PC race.

“Some indie developers innovate, but strictly speaking by quantity, most indie developers are just copying other peoples’ games with minor changes, just like mainstream developers do,” says Blow, “Look at all those iPhone games! The difference is just that you notice the indie games that are innovative because they make bigger splashes than the copies.”

It’s a very valid point, something I hinted on myself previously. The ‘cashing in’ phase is becoming an increasingly worrying trend, one that sees at least a handful of new games released each week on mobile platforms that mimic or outright steal ideas from other more successful releases, in order to catch the attention of the growing user base.

Cloning has been around for as long as games have existed. No doubt you’ve played some kind of weird hybrid of Pac-Man or Space Invaders that feels like the real thing but looks or sounds just that little bit different. But the problem here is the excessive use of cloning that’s trying to cash in on a younger audience or parents trying to keep said kids happy over a long car ride. It’s exploitation in it’s purest form and, sadly, it will only get worse before it gets better.

But outside of re-using game mechanics or visual ideas, for me what’s worse are developers who specifically name their title very similarly to the big hits. Names and brands are important, they always have been, but the trend lately has more to do with search results than trying to stick out from the crowd. Tell you what, go ahead and search for Angry on the app store for a moment. Go on, I’ll wait…

…

See the results? Yes, Angry Birds takes top billing and rightly so, but take a closer look at some of the apps that appear within that result. Angry Gran, Angry World War 2, Angry Hippo, even Angry Fruit! I’ll bet you whatever you have in your wallet that most of those games are either forgetful or just plain poorly developed (though there will always be an exception to that rule, of course).

Now search for Jetpack. Again, a similar set of results occur with Jetpack Joyride the first result and then followed by a number of similarly titled games.

If you’re a talented developer looking to get your name out there, I implore you to use your wits instead of cloning your easy way to profit. Oh, and for God’s sake, don’t go turbo.

The most important aspect of any Halfbrick title is presentation, combining an elegant visual quality with an easy, pick up and play control mechanic. Yup, it’s got that.

The evolution of their products have added an extra layer of ‘incentive’ programming, creating an addictive reason to continue playing the game for many moons to come. Certainly has that.

And finally every Halfbrick game is, pure and simply, fun. Tick.

So Fish Out Of Water passes all three criteria rather easily, but it has to be said that Halfbrick has clearly targeted its latest towards a younger, perhaps less experienced audience than previous efforts. You can argue that they’ve done this all along, but given how easy the controls are here, it’s even more obvious than before.

Simply put, you must fling three fish across the ocean as best as possible, taking into account both distance and the amount of skips they make across the water, in order to attain as high an overall score as possible. There’s five fish to choose from, each with slightly different statistics that can alter your overall result. You also have to take into account the different weather conditions, which change every real time hour. From there, it’s a mix of chance and timing, with a boost meter that can be activated at any time to increase your little dude’s speed, though only if you collect tokens which litter the play field.

I say chance since you don’t really have much control beyond the initial fling. If you get your angle and speed right, your fish will fly some way before skipping to a halt. If you do time it right, you can boost your fish further forward. Time it wrong and he’ll go flying high into the air, but probably straight up and down without going much further or skipping at all.

There’s a number of collectible items and unlocks to be had. In a similar vein to Jetpack Joyride, if you complete various tasks during play you’ll increase your overall level and unlock gems which can be used to improve your result among other stat improvements. There’s also plenty of stats to keep an eye on, along with competitive ladders and social involvement over Facebook and Twitter so you can bloat about your success.

For the price you pay, Fish Out Of Water is a fair package. It all comes down to how much time you put into it, really. Once you start to figure out the different abilities of each fish and combine them with the right weather conditions, you’ll eventually score rather highly more often than not. Safe to say, if you like having your name at the top of the leader board, this one will keep you going for a while.

Whilst Fish Out Of Water may not reach the same incredible heights of its predecessors (though that remains to be seen), it’s certainly set to continue the high standard that Halfbrick has set itself. The presentation is clean, colourful and fun, something kids will no doubt love. The adults, both male and female, aren’t left behind either thanks to its addictive nature. That’s the perfect kind of balance every game should be aiming for, especially on the mobile platform.

It might be considered too easy for some, but Fish Out Of Water is a fun and worthwhile distraction.

66 development teams will be showing off their wares across mobile, online and console based platforms, with the chance to compete for cash prizes, game promotions and an opportunity to have their game ported to the Blackberry 10 by Blackberry themselves.

You might recognise some of the contestants too, with the likes of Pixel People and Puzzle Retreat amongst the crop of chosen titles, with developers hailing from all corners of the world including Australia, China, Sweden and Singapore itself.

Indie Prize is a scholarship based program that provides for a number of indie studios the world over, organising workshops and funding where possible, with financial support provided by industry sponsors, conferences and volunteers. You may not have heard of the organisation before, but I’m sure you’ve heard of some of the previous winners of the showcase, including Devil’s Attorney.

The Indie Prize Showcase will be venturing to the upcoming Casual Connect Asia this May 21-23, a long running event for the casual asian gaming industry. There’s also still time to submit for future showcases as well if you’re keen, which will be held at San Francisco, Kyiv and Amsterdam over the course of the next year. If you want to know more, be sure to visit the official website.