Quick, what’s better than free stuff?!  If you said anything other than “nothing” then you must not be as poor as I am.  Still, free stuff is always groovy, and that’s why it’s awesome that Galcon, the developers of Dynamite Jack, are giving you a free PC/Mac copy of their game when you buy the iPhone version.

The iPhone port of Dynamite Jack is set to hit the App Store tomorrow.  For the first 48 hours, as a special introductory offer, Galcon will be giving away a DRM-free copy of the game for PC/Mac/Linux as well as a Steam code for PC/Mac.

If you’ve never heard of the game before, it can only be described as a stealthy dungeon crawler with a healthy amount of puzzling.  You play as the titular character, an imprisoned space marine armed only with a flashlight and more bombs than a stick can reasonably be shaken at.  You job in each level is to escape your captors without being detected.  The title mixes so many genres that it’s impossible to say you’ve seen anything else like it.  Additionally, a simple map creation and sharing system makes for near limitless replayability, with over 250 community maps out there so far.

“I always get a handful of emails from people saying ‘I bought it on the iPad, can I get it on the PC free?” wrote a Galcon rep in an email to IGM.  “So I figure, hey, this is a great way to sort that ”

Dynamite Jack is available for $2.99 on the iPad App Store now and for $4.99 on Steam.  It will hit the iPhone App Store tomorrow.  You can learn more about Galcon on their official website.

Psyonix wowed the audience at PAX East last August when they showcased their iOS space shooter ARC Squadron, but since then we’ve heard almost nothing on the project.  Just because nobody’s let the cat out of the bag, though, doesn’t mean there’s no cat in there.

A recently released trailer shows off the title’s combat mechanics and states that the game is “coming soon to the iOS.”  ARC Squadron looks decidedly Star Fox-esque, right down to the debris-ridden battlefields and copious barrel rolls.

The trailer doesn’t feature any sort of virtual buttons, possibly suggesting a tilt or gesture based control scheme.

In the video, the game runs as smoothly as a hot knife through butter and isn’t too hard on the eyes, either.  This is due, of course, to Psyonix’s use of the Unreal Engine, which has been gaining some serious popularity on the iOS as of late.

In terms of actual gameplay, it seems likely that ARC Squadron is mission-based with a heavy emphasis on its arcade aspect, as noted by the colorfully flashy score multipliers in just about every screenshot.

Technical talk aside, there’s very little information available about ARC Squadron.  Even the game’s website doesn’t tell us anything more than that it’s a “space shooter for mobile platforms”.  But of course, knowing what we do so far, the mystery only heightens the appeal.

No release date has been given, but the game’s website says that we can expect a finished product to make its way to the App Store sometime in the fall of 2012.  Until then, keep an eye here for the latest updates on this camera shy thriller.

You can learn more about Psyonix on their official website.

It seems as though everywhere you look there are video games about space, shooting things, or shooting things in space. Clockwork Pixel’s latest game, Darkside, gives you all three of those things, all in the palm of your hand!

Darkside’s premise is simple. There are a bunch of bad guys who want precious resources found within your asteroid belt. To put it simply, this does not make you a happy camper, so it’s your job to blast them to hell and back! Don’t let the simple gameplay fool you. Darkside features some spectacular graphics, and the simple gameplay makes it easy to pick up and play. Plenty of different in-game modes should keep you coming back for more, each presenting its own objective and strategy.

Gameplay in Darkside is based on a dual v-stick set up, one to maneuver your mini fighter around game’s environment, the other to swivel and fire your turret in whatever direction you deem necessary. Enemies, as in any shoot em up, should be the main focus of your blasting spree, however, the game’s environement is also quite fragile, so expect more than a few stray shots to send something unintentionally up in smoke. The environment fights back too, that random destructable object could break up and begin hovering about the asteroid’s surface in search of revenge, so at least be thorough in sweeping the asteroid’s surface clean. The total package is reminiscent of console hits like Super Stardust Delta, and that’s about as high a compliment as you could pay any game, seeing as it was one of the most popular PS Vita launch titles by far and away.

If Darkside sounds like your cup of tea, it’s available now on the App Store for only $0.99 for your iPad and iPhone, and be sure to Like Clockwork Pixel’s page on Facebook. Happy blasting!

Still need more information? Check out Clockwork Pixel’s official website.

If you’re a fan of NES-era platforming games such as Castlevania, you’re going to love Astronot. Released on June 21st, it is the latest creation from the mind of developer Wade McGillis. Astronot takes the best of your favorite 8-bit games and blends them together for your iPod, iPhone, or iPad.

Astronot features several boss fights and power-ups to keep you coming back. Each boss is notably difficult, yet fun, perfect for when you’re on-the-go. Don’t go into this game expecting amazing, eye-popping graphics. Further, don’t expect a map or anyone to hold your hand. Rather, the journey is all about exploration and the novelty of the fully experience. While taking in that experience, enjoy the simple and nostalgia-inducing 8 bit graphics that the game offers during your trip down memory lane!

If Astronot looks like your cup of tea, check out Astronot Lite for free, or purchase the full version for only $1.99.

Also, be sure to check out Wade’s website and blog for additional information about Astronot and other projects. Happy playing!

The graphics of Velocity are reminiscent of several games, but it mainly consists of crisp 2D sprites, torn up walls and circuitry which reminded me of Portal 2 in some sense, combined with a generic, simple, nostalgic starry background.  The enemies look like they are out of a Megaman Zero game, which is more or less a good thing.  The music is also very epic and tense, made of classic sound-bytes that scream just that.

Velocity takes from old-school arcade roots, as a top-down shooter.  Though every level is generally the same thematic look, the level design itself is enough variety to offer several new challenges in gameplay.  There are a total of 50 levels, each with an 8-13 minute time-limit, which are unlocked as you obtain experience points through certain objectives.  Three main objectives may be present in any given mission: Search and Rescue, where you rescue (collect) survivors, Hostile Forces, where there is a unforgiving amount of enemies, and Critical Urgency, where you have to speed run the stage to less than two minutes or so.

The missions in Velocity actually have an intense level of strategy.  The main goal in EVERY mission is to collect survivors (which I found out the hard way), which are blue, pill-shaped things that I assume are capsules.  There is a set amount of survivors, and you get ranked and awarded with experience the more you rescue.  In many areas, there is glass, which can be broken with bullets, or more effectively with bombs.  There are also several uncross-able walls, which require the quick teleport function.  To control it, it can be extremely hard at times, because of the precision needed.  Also, the position of your teleport marker changes constantly due to the auto scroll.

At times there are numbered colored switches, which you have to activate in order to open instant death laser fields of corresponding color, which usually house survivors or different color switches of similar purpose.  This becomes even more strategic when the game puts them impossibly out of order, and they introduce an element called a telepod, deployed using the TRIANGLE button.  You are meant to place them when the screen turns blue, or at any obvious junction for that matter.  The way this works is you go one direction (I recommend left) and do what you can on that side. When you realize you are at the end of the road and are about to die, you press the L button to bring up the map, with all your telepods, and the starting point, available for teleporting to.  Later on, you can check the map for small alcoves off on the side, that may house extra survivors or a trophy to unlock extra missions, which I will explain later.

The enemies in this game are classic: they shoot flurries of bullets and fly in a set pattern.  They become ridiculously annoying and bullet-hell in later stages, but it’s tolerable with your ships amazingly small hit box and health bar.  Your bullets are surprisingly weak, but they are still a better choice than your super strong infinite bombs, because you can stand still when firing the bullets, and with the required directional input, you could die from enemy contact.

At the end of levels, as said before, you are rewarded on your survivor acquisition and time.  One of the more negative points, you are awarded experience (XP), which unlocks more levels. If you do too badly, you may not have enough XP to unlock the next level, and will be forced to replay levels to earn more XP.  However, the level design was so good, I didn’t mind.

Velocity also has an “extras section” called Flight Computer.  The minor components are trophy/achievements, mini-games that rip-off Minesweeper and a memory card match, a bestiary for the enemies, a calculator (strange enough), and an extra area to view artwork and communication logs, the sad excuse for story.  The real reason you’d go to this section is the Missions.  You unlock them by fulfilling a certain objective in levels.  They come in three types: Blue Zones, which seem to focus on glass breaking, Red Zones (personal favorite), which focus on high speed frantic dodging, weaving, and teleporting, and the Special Zone, which has such crappy control, it’s not worth any time.  In these missions, you cannot touch the walls, which in Red Zone’s case, works well.  However in Blue Zones, where you are forced to use directional-input bombs to destroy glass, can lead to may deaths.

Velocity is honestly an amazing game. It does so many things right in level design, and only slightly messes up in control. The achievement system is also fun to fill up. I would definitely recommend it to anyone with a PSP, PS3 or PS Vita, or anyone with PS Plus, because you can even get it for free.

Angry Birds by Rovio Entertainment Limited, is a game that has addicted so many people that it has reached a milestone of 250 million downloads over all of it’s different mobile platforms. The App Store, however, has 450,000 different apps many of them even free, so why does a game that burdens the user with a 99 cent fee have such popularity in comparison to a free game? Do you ever find yourself absorbed in a game, to the point you have no idea what is going on around you? And when you finally come back to yourself, an indeterminable amount of time has gone by? That’s how I felt when I was playing Angry Birds.

There’s just something about attacking poorly built structures with birds in a sling shot, to kill the green pigs, that is incredibly more-ish. Even when you say to yourself, “just one more go and that’s it”, you find yourself still playing 10 minutes later. There’s just something about games, whether they are on partycasino.com or your Android/iDevice that is extremely attention grabbing.

Well to put it simply, Angry Birds is a new type of game in the gaming market. Similar to the Nintendo Wii, Angry Birds had a new feel to the game that made it so popular among the youth and adult age groups. The control is completely touch based on all platforms, even those with keyboard functionality. Most importantly, anybody that can move their arm can enjoy Angry Birds. The control scheme is two movements at the most. The game is based on a plot where Green Pigs steal bird eggs, in order to retrieve them the birds fling themselves to attack. This is where the user is involved. The player uses their finger to flick the birds to hit the pigs. The game style has slight differentiations after beating the first few levels in which the player can only use the Red bird. At World 1 Level 10 the player is now introduced to the blue bird. At any point after the Blue Bird is launched if the player taps the screen the blue bird splits into 3 pieces and the range of attack increases. After personal use the blue bird works best on ice obstacles in the game.6 levels later, in World 1 Level 16 the Yellow Bird is unlocked. The Yellow Bird also has a power up and is used the same way the Blue Birds power up is however the effect is different. After the screen is tapped the Yellow bird speeds up and has a powerful impact. Personal experience leads me to conclude that the Yellow Bird is best on wood obstacles.

After advancing through World 1, the next bird is introduced in World 2 Level 5. The “Black” bird is a very powerful bird that explodes when the user touches the screen, or after the bird lands. It is the most powerful of the bird effects, when compared to impact of bird. The Black Bird is strong enough to blast through any obstacle but is most effective on Stone obstacles.9 levels later the White Bird appears. It shows up in World 2 Level 14. The white bird is like the black bird except the user must aim differently. Where as the Black bird explodes when told to the White bird drops an egg that explodes once it hits the first obstacle it hits. It is significantly harder to use but comes naturally after many retrials when playing Level 14 and onwards. Good with all obstacles but the bird can be used as a Red bird if the screen is not tapped after launch.The next bird does not appear for 4 more worlds. It is called the boomerang bird and it makes its first appearance in World 6 Level 5. The boomerang bird is used the same way as the previous birds but, the boomerang bird requires the most skill. The boomerang bird is very useful if correctly welded. The bird can avoid obstacles by moving around them. The bird however only hits as a red bird once it is used. When the player taps the screen the bird immediately starts to fly in the opposite direction in a loop.This bird is the last bird in the game, unlocked in World 9 Level 1. Called the Big Brother, the bird packs the punch of a black bird and the accuracy of the red bird. This bird, unfortunately, can only be used once. Every level in this world only permits the use of the Big Brother so using him requires great mastery in the game. But, by the time the player reaches World 9 he/she would have mastered the game anyway.

Angry Birds is a great game for many reasons. One of the reasons it’s better than other games is longevity. The game takes a long time to fully complete and as the player continues through the worlds he/she are enticed by the gaming experience provided by Angry Birds. Even when the game is finished the player can always strive to complete the golden egg challenges which extends the game to an even longer play time. Along with longevity, Angry Birds provides the player with simple controls. “It’s so easy even a caveman can do it.” Another reason to play Angry Birds is the support Rovio puts behind it. The updates for Angry Birds are almost endless. Though the original game has less updates nowadays the company creates spin-offs with different that make more players scramble to the App Store icon.

Wrapping it all up, the reason Angry Birds is so popular, for the most part, is due to the simplicity of the game. You are essentially just pulling a slingshot back and flinging a bird in the air, in the hopes it destroys the structure. You don’t need an instruction manual to figure out how to play, which is where the least successful games fall flat. Angry Birds is absorbing because there is a level of concentration required to get the angle right. You need to hit the structure just so, in order to kill the pigs and get the maximum points. Figuring it out is part of the fun. Angry Birds is absorbing because there is a level of concentration required to get the angle right. You need to hit the structure just so, in order to kill the pigs and get the maximum points. Figuring it out is part of the fun. Others might call this frustration, but I call it determination. When you don’t win the level, there is only so much self control a person has to resist replaying it. You end up determined to get to the next level. No matter what.

The only cons to the great game is repetitiveness. Though it is mentioned as good previously in the article, the game can become repetitive if the gamer does not fall for the game immediately. Their truly is no other con to prevent people from experiencing the game.The game Angry Birds is a game that any iPod Touch or iPad owner should experience. Though the full game costs 99 cents, the game is worth more than a dollar. Angry Birds is the true meaning of getting a bang for your buck.

More information on Angry Birds is available on their official website. The iOS version can be downloaded at the App Store for iPhone for $0.99. The Android version can be downloaded at the Play Store for free.

Another day, another physics based puzzle game.  This time, it is in space!  Wait, I think I have heard of a massive franchise that just flew into space, but I swear, Gravity Fleet is not a quick flip of that famous franchise.  Filled with a gluttony of weapons, a unique invasion force, and a multitude of upgrades, this title does separate itself quite well.

Coffee Powered Machine, the developer behind this app shows from the star screen that art direction and interface design is a huge part of their process.  From the selection screen to the gameplay field, to even the upgrade screens, the game looks and feels great.  Even with this excellent design, there are still some hiccups and stuttering throughout when switch between screens.

The systems here are also very familiar, there is a scoring system based on the amount of stuff that is not destroyed along with how many projectiles are let when the enemies are blown up.  Stop me if you have played something similar before.  But what makes Gravity Fleet different here is the amount of weapons, ships and crew members available in the storefront.  Credits, which is the currency is slowly accumulated overtime and the higher your 1-3 score, the more credits you accrue along with bonuses for other tasks completed within each level.

The sheer amount of levels and weapons here make Gravity Fleet’s appeal last for a long while.  Passing the level, by eliminating all the aliens, is easy, but doing so with a single shot is possible, keeping replayability something to consider.  With over 90 levels over 8 unlockable missions you will continue to be challenged over and over.

With a cost of only 99 cents, Gravity Fleet has a lot to offer the player.  If you are one of those who likes to skip the credit grind, you can buy credits through the in-game store.  This is not a free-to-play game, so it is not necessary, but you can throw the devs a huge payday of thirty dollars for 50 thousand credits.

Underrated, but needs to be talked about is the soundtrack, the sci-fi feel has been hit right on.  The sounds feel like they are right out of any of your favorite sci-fi franchises.  If you do not choose to listen, you can definitely use your own music in the background, which to me is a very underrated feature (I hate being forced to listen to sometimes bad sound effects in other titles).

Coffee Powered Machine has themselves a solid entry into the App Store with Gravity Fleet.  An aesthetic that does not disappoint.  Yes, there are some technical hiccups and game crashes that you will probably encounter (at the time of review).  The value propisition with this titles is simple.  Tons of levels, and a challenge that can give you tons of satisfaction.  Unless you are turned off by sci-fi you may want to skip this one, but if you love physics based puzzle games, Gravity Fleet is worth your hard earned buck.

More information can be found on their official website. The iOS version can be downloaded at the App Store, universal for iPhone and iPad for $0.99. The Android version is coming soon.

We’ve been following infinite for a little over a month, and it’s finally almost hitting the shelves for beta-testing. infinite has been going recent optimizations and bug fixes, including many performance upgrades. Nexus Game Studios have been busy improving memory and texture management, and utilized all available system RAM. To compare the previous builds to the recent builds, infinite was running at 15-24 FPS. Now, infinite is running at a solid 60 FPS (on iPhone 4 and iPad 1st Gen), where everything is running at optimal speeds and playing feels polished and smooth. Currently, RAM usage is using only around 20 percent of system texture memory, in contrast to the 80-90 percent used previously.

More of the visual style of has been revamped, with new background updates, and less “bloom” in terms of color saturation. Placeholder artwork has been updated, including new visuals. The game has a different feel, and appears to be more spacious than before. The updated backgrounds aren’t final, but it’s going to be the in-game music visualizer, changing to the beat of the music. It’s still under-construction, but it does add more striking visual elements to infinite. The HUD has also been update, but will still have a few minor tweaks. The countdown timer was removed with a timeline bar.

“So what is next? Currently we’re updating our colour system to improve the pallet choices, the flux system and galaxy map needs some minor work, mainly visually, and general gameplay fixes, and pacing. Still a little bit to go in terms of work, but we’re at the point where everything is coming together. We hope you like what you see so far,” says Stephen Boyce, head of Nexus Game Studios.

For more information on infinite, visit their official developer diary (blog).