A long time ago in a world filled with pirates, one pirate united all
the various crews under one banner, bringing peace and prosperity.
However, one day a sea monster attacked Seabeard's island home and he
disappeared without a trace. As his descendent you are charged with
replicating his success by rebuilding his island and reuniting the
scattered pirate citizens of your world. Seabeard features an astounding
amount of content and works on the freemium model.
Thursday
Tales From The Borderlands iPhone Review
Tales from the Borderlands is Telltale's spin on the world of Pandora.
The first episode, Zer0 Sum, does a great job of establishing the
familiar manic tone of the Gearbox games and matching it to Telltale's
tried and true adventure game formula. The game follows Rhys, a manager
at a Hyperion factory who has just been passed over for a promotion, and
Fiona, a con artist trying to stay alive on the harsh world of Pandora.
The Good
Unlike their recent Game of Thrones release, Telltale has avoided alienating players new to the world of Borderlands by establishing the setting without explicitly throwing out references to the main series. The plot plays out as a verbal retelling of the story by the two main characters, each character telling their own version of events leads to a very interesting episode and allows for some of the games most hilarious moments.The Bad
Those that are used to Telltale's standard darker dramatic tellings will not find their fix here. Tales from the Borderlands, although featuring plenty of gratuitous heartache and violence, has its roots in manic humor and randomness.The Verdict
Telltale knocked it out of the park with this one. The main series, although humorous and fun, sometimes lacks the immersion that helps drive the unique setting for Pandora home. Tales from the Borderlands remedies this by connecting players to two of the regular citizens of the forsaken world and lends a sorely needed personal connection to the series. The approachability of this entry is also fantastic, allowing veterans of the series or newcomers to get equal amounts or enjoyment from it.Top tips for Warhammer 40,000: Space Wolf
Warhammer 40,000: Space Wolf - the seventeen millionth iOS
game with the Warhammer license - is a clever mix of turn-based tactics
and collectable card battling.The fights take place on a grid, and play
out like a mission in XCOM. But your potential moves and
abilities are dictated by the cards in your hand. So building a good
deck is as important as building a good squad.
Juggling the two mechanics can get tricky. So we asked HeroCraft to give us a few tips to get us started.
You can move using almost any card in your hand - You don't need to wait for Move card, since any card (except for ‘Effort – X’) can be used to move your soldier during the battle.
You just need to select it and press the ‘boot’ icon. You can also turn 90/180 degrees by selecting the movement action and then double tapping your current position.
Plan your effort and manage turn order - Effort is the key concept to understand and manage the turn order of your soldiers and the enemies. Each time the character performs any action the respective amount of effort (specified on upper right corner of the card) is added to his current effort.
After the character finishes his turn the next character with the lowest effort is activated (including all enemies, the members of your squad, wolf and other companions and allies). Wisely planning of your actions and using ‘Effort – X’ cards can allow you to perform a few turns continuously by the same soldier without interruption by enemy actions.
Defence is vital for your survival - Use defensive shields as soon as you receive them. But remember that the maximum armor level is three and can’t be exceeded regardless how many cards you applied. Usually using shields requires large amount of effort (10+), but it can be reduced significantly by upgrading shield cards.
End turns with unspent action points when necessary – As said above, controlling the turn order by managing everyone's effort stats is vitally important.
One of the widely used tactics is to end your current turn after your first action, if your effort is lower than your enemy effort. This will allow you to make second turn before your enemy. This tactics is also very useful after throwing a grenade to ensure that it will explode before enemies move away.
Know each weapon's firing range and plan your movement respectively - Most of your ranged weapons can hit only single target and have a firing range that's four squares long and three squares wide. But there are exceptions that are worth remembering.
Select the location that allows you to hit enemy soldier, but do not allows enemy to hit your without additional movement or turning - Move your soldier to the left or right side of the enemy rather than in front of him, so the enemy soldier will need to spend one of his actions on turning in order to hit you.
Keep you squad mates together - Do not rush with one of your soldiers, because your together your squad is much stronger as a team. Separate your team only when it is either safe or if you decide to sacrifice one of your soldiers to give more time for another one.
Use Overwatch weapon to receive an additional free shot – If the enemy finishes his movement in the firing range of your soldier with an equipped overwatch weapon, you have the chance to automatically shoot him. This shot spends your ammo, but it doesn’t spend any action or effort.
Use your Fenrissian wolf to divert enemies’ attention - You will receive wolf companion card when you unlock Scout armor class. This card requires a lot of effort, but gives you a companion that not only diverts the attention of all surrounding enemies, but can also easily kill them with a bite. Wolf can be extremely useful during first and second campaigns.
Avoid having too much effort at a time – Usually it is not a good idea to get your effort level to more than 20 (achieved by using high-effort cards or performing more than two actions during one turn) when you are in the battle and enemies are close.
It can easily freeze you for two or even tree enemy turns and result in being shot.
Use Rage efficiently – Your Rage bar fills when you receive damage. There are specific armor class perks upgrades that allows to fill it more often (for example, when your squad members receive damage). When your Rage bar is full your effort amount is zeroed and your next attack has 100 percent accuracy and can be boosted by fast screen tapping.
It means that when you expect that Rage bar will be filled during next enemy attack, you may obtain any amount of effort, since all this effort will be zeroed.
Scout and Terminator armor classes give you 30 more cards to play - Unlocking Scout and Terminator classes is quite expensive, but it not only provides you with new classes that can use their own unique weapon, it also adds new squad members and new cards that are not class specific and can be used by Power armor (like Wolf companion, Sprint, Ambush, Shields).
There are different ways to acquire new cards, and some of them do not require credits - You can acquire new cards by buying boosters, forging them, earning them in missions (you get one card for each fulfilled mission objective), and unlocking new armor classes (30 cards for each class).
You can significantly increase your chances to forge better cards by selecting higher craft difficulty - However, remember that higher difficulty also requires more weapon parts (from 100 on simple to 250 on extreme) and lower chances for success. Iron runes gives you 100 percent success chance, so use them together with Extreme craft difficulty.
Upgrade cards to improve their characteristics - If you have two or more equal cards you can combine them into one card with better characteristics (such as less effort, more damage, or more accuracy).
Later on when you will have more rare and epic cards with superior characteristics it will be more efficient to dismantle common and uncommon cards, rather than upgrade them (whenupgrading cards, you cut in half the amount of weapon parts that you can receive from their dismantling).
Dismantle the cards that you don’t need any more - Dismantling the inferior cards not only makes your deck smaller and easier to manage, but it will also give you working parts that can be used to forge new cards.
Improve your squad members - Three of your squad members are available from the beginning, and two more will be available when you unlock the Terminator and Scout armor classes.
All soldiers have different specialisation, so you can select the ones that match you playing style. Improvement and upgrading of squad members is expensive (starting from 800 credits for level two to 5600 credits for level eight upgrade), but it will:
Einar (Tactical Marine) has a little bit of everything plus jump packs, which are really useful for getting behind enemies and getting to hard to reach objectives (forge crates).
Kai (Flamer) has good area of effect damage by Flamers and armor breaking Meltas with the occasional shotgun for single target punch.
Ray (Devastator) has access to some unique heavy weapons that are quite powerful, like the powerful area of effect damage Rocket launcher and range six (but only in a straight line) armor-ignoring Lascannon. You can also unlock Heavy Bolters, which are strong overwatch weapons.
Harald (Terminator) has more HP than the other squadmates and gets Shields, making him much more like a tank. He also gets Stormbolters which do great ranged damage and several powerful melee weapons. If you invest enough into him, he can also get Heavy Flamers for some sweet area of effect damage and a few teleport cards, which are effectively the same as jump packs.
Yngvar (Scout) gets a pack of range-five Sniper rifles and a few Sprint cards, but has less health than other squadmates. He makes for some good tactical long range play, but do not leave him alone in front of enemies.
You can move using almost any card in your hand - You don't need to wait for Move card, since any card (except for ‘Effort – X’) can be used to move your soldier during the battle.
You just need to select it and press the ‘boot’ icon. You can also turn 90/180 degrees by selecting the movement action and then double tapping your current position.
Plan your effort and manage turn order - Effort is the key concept to understand and manage the turn order of your soldiers and the enemies. Each time the character performs any action the respective amount of effort (specified on upper right corner of the card) is added to his current effort.
After the character finishes his turn the next character with the lowest effort is activated (including all enemies, the members of your squad, wolf and other companions and allies). Wisely planning of your actions and using ‘Effort – X’ cards can allow you to perform a few turns continuously by the same soldier without interruption by enemy actions.
Defence is vital for your survival - Use defensive shields as soon as you receive them. But remember that the maximum armor level is three and can’t be exceeded regardless how many cards you applied. Usually using shields requires large amount of effort (10+), but it can be reduced significantly by upgrading shield cards.
End turns with unspent action points when necessary – As said above, controlling the turn order by managing everyone's effort stats is vitally important.
One of the widely used tactics is to end your current turn after your first action, if your effort is lower than your enemy effort. This will allow you to make second turn before your enemy. This tactics is also very useful after throwing a grenade to ensure that it will explode before enemies move away.
Know each weapon's firing range and plan your movement respectively - Most of your ranged weapons can hit only single target and have a firing range that's four squares long and three squares wide. But there are exceptions that are worth remembering.
- Pistols have only a three square firing range
- Sniper rifles have a five square firing range
- Hand flamers and Flamers can hit all targets that stay in their damage area
- Assault cannons hit all targets in their damage area, but it is only one square wide
- Missile launchers and Grenades explode and damage all surrounding units
- Legendary weapon can have extended firing rangePistol versus sniper rifle
Select the location that allows you to hit enemy soldier, but do not allows enemy to hit your without additional movement or turning - Move your soldier to the left or right side of the enemy rather than in front of him, so the enemy soldier will need to spend one of his actions on turning in order to hit you.
Keep you squad mates together - Do not rush with one of your soldiers, because your together your squad is much stronger as a team. Separate your team only when it is either safe or if you decide to sacrifice one of your soldiers to give more time for another one.
Use Overwatch weapon to receive an additional free shot – If the enemy finishes his movement in the firing range of your soldier with an equipped overwatch weapon, you have the chance to automatically shoot him. This shot spends your ammo, but it doesn’t spend any action or effort.
Use your Fenrissian wolf to divert enemies’ attention - You will receive wolf companion card when you unlock Scout armor class. This card requires a lot of effort, but gives you a companion that not only diverts the attention of all surrounding enemies, but can also easily kill them with a bite. Wolf can be extremely useful during first and second campaigns.
Avoid having too much effort at a time – Usually it is not a good idea to get your effort level to more than 20 (achieved by using high-effort cards or performing more than two actions during one turn) when you are in the battle and enemies are close.
It can easily freeze you for two or even tree enemy turns and result in being shot.
Use Rage efficiently – Your Rage bar fills when you receive damage. There are specific armor class perks upgrades that allows to fill it more often (for example, when your squad members receive damage). When your Rage bar is full your effort amount is zeroed and your next attack has 100 percent accuracy and can be boosted by fast screen tapping.
It means that when you expect that Rage bar will be filled during next enemy attack, you may obtain any amount of effort, since all this effort will be zeroed.
Scout and Terminator armor classes give you 30 more cards to play - Unlocking Scout and Terminator classes is quite expensive, but it not only provides you with new classes that can use their own unique weapon, it also adds new squad members and new cards that are not class specific and can be used by Power armor (like Wolf companion, Sprint, Ambush, Shields).
There are different ways to acquire new cards, and some of them do not require credits - You can acquire new cards by buying boosters, forging them, earning them in missions (you get one card for each fulfilled mission objective), and unlocking new armor classes (30 cards for each class).
You can significantly increase your chances to forge better cards by selecting higher craft difficulty - However, remember that higher difficulty also requires more weapon parts (from 100 on simple to 250 on extreme) and lower chances for success. Iron runes gives you 100 percent success chance, so use them together with Extreme craft difficulty.
Upgrade cards to improve their characteristics - If you have two or more equal cards you can combine them into one card with better characteristics (such as less effort, more damage, or more accuracy).
Later on when you will have more rare and epic cards with superior characteristics it will be more efficient to dismantle common and uncommon cards, rather than upgrade them (whenupgrading cards, you cut in half the amount of weapon parts that you can receive from their dismantling).
Dismantle the cards that you don’t need any more - Dismantling the inferior cards not only makes your deck smaller and easier to manage, but it will also give you working parts that can be used to forge new cards.
Improve your squad members - Three of your squad members are available from the beginning, and two more will be available when you unlock the Terminator and Scout armor classes.
All soldiers have different specialisation, so you can select the ones that match you playing style. Improvement and upgrading of squad members is expensive (starting from 800 credits for level two to 5600 credits for level eight upgrade), but it will:
- Increase their health
- Upgrade their cards (upgrading a soldier to level three to five automatically upgrades his uncommon cards to level two to three respectively)
- Provides new cards (for each level you can select one of two new cards)
Einar (Tactical Marine) has a little bit of everything plus jump packs, which are really useful for getting behind enemies and getting to hard to reach objectives (forge crates).
Kai (Flamer) has good area of effect damage by Flamers and armor breaking Meltas with the occasional shotgun for single target punch.
Ray (Devastator) has access to some unique heavy weapons that are quite powerful, like the powerful area of effect damage Rocket launcher and range six (but only in a straight line) armor-ignoring Lascannon. You can also unlock Heavy Bolters, which are strong overwatch weapons.
Harald (Terminator) has more HP than the other squadmates and gets Shields, making him much more like a tank. He also gets Stormbolters which do great ranged damage and several powerful melee weapons. If you invest enough into him, he can also get Heavy Flamers for some sweet area of effect damage and a few teleport cards, which are effectively the same as jump packs.
Yngvar (Scout) gets a pack of range-five Sniper rifles and a few Sprint cards, but has less health than other squadmates. He makes for some good tactical long range play, but do not leave him alone in front of enemies.
Wednesday
Playworld Superheroes
Liverpool-based studio Starship has revealed its upcoming crafting and action-based adventure game Playworld Superheroes.This is to be the first in the Playworld series, which is clearly a child of Minecraft's popularity in as much as it aims to inspire creativity through crafting and adventure.
This first superhero-themed game is due to be released on mobile in January 2015.
The series is aimed at anyone aged five years and up. But Starship has stated that one of its main aims is to provide a "safe playing experience [for children] free from in-app fees and hidden dangers."
Each adventure starts off in the Playworld treehouse before bounding off to the world of imagination.
In Playworld Superheroes we can see a kids outfitting themselves with superhero outfits made from cardboard boxes.
There are no screenshots of the game beyond the treehouse yet, but we presume it will be a more vivid land of fantasy.
We do know that you're able to create your own superhero and customise their look to your liking.
We also know that your mission is to defeat the monstrous alien Golumites in real-time action, hopping back to the treehouse to craft new items, to then use them in battle.
Hopefully, this proves to be a compelling experience - we can't say more than that without further evidence.
Look out for updates on Playworld Superheroes on the game's official website.
This first superhero-themed game is due to be released on mobile in January 2015.
The series is aimed at anyone aged five years and up. But Starship has stated that one of its main aims is to provide a "safe playing experience [for children] free from in-app fees and hidden dangers."
Each adventure starts off in the Playworld treehouse before bounding off to the world of imagination.
In Playworld Superheroes we can see a kids outfitting themselves with superhero outfits made from cardboard boxes.
There are no screenshots of the game beyond the treehouse yet, but we presume it will be a more vivid land of fantasy.
We do know that you're able to create your own superhero and customise their look to your liking.
We also know that your mission is to defeat the monstrous alien Golumites in real-time action, hopping back to the treehouse to craft new items, to then use them in battle.
Hopefully, this proves to be a compelling experience - we can't say more than that without further evidence.
Look out for updates on Playworld Superheroes on the game's official website.
Dragon Quest 3 iPhone Review
Hearkening back to the olden days when pixels were all developers had to
work with instead of a particular styling, Dragon Quest 3 has finally
came to iOS. Confusingly enough, this version of the game is a remake of
a 2009 Japan-only cellphone release, which was in turn a remake of the
2995 Super Nintendo remake of the 1988 JRPG classic. It's represented
here in all its glory, featuring the venerable turn-based battle system,
beautiful 2D sprites, and is a wonderful example from the era when the
RPG reigned supreme.
The Good
For fans of the series this is one entry closer to having the entire Dragon Quest series available via phone. The gameplay is some of the most solid that the early JRPG era had to offer and is the game that made Dragon Quest (Dragon Warrior in the US) a household name. Although the game is over 20 years old, it is from the era when JRPGs matured into the form that would remain common until the early 2000's, so even new players won't have to depend on nostalgia to enjoy the title.The Bad
This is not a game to be played lightly. Unfortunately, traditional JRPG gameplay doesn't fit the mobile market well as these games are meant to be played an hour or more at a time. It's very easy to play a segment and come back a few days later and forget what you were doing. Also, there is no new content for the iOS version, the game is pretty much a straight copy of the 2009 Japanese cellphone version. This means several things are missing that were in the 1995 SNES remake, which unfortunately never saw Western shores, including monster animations, and a dice game.The Verdict
If you're a huge JRPG fan or just enjoy playing on mobile for long bouts of time this game may scratch your itch. However, with the high price and time investment, this game isn't particularly conductive to mobile gaming. Those who are used to playing Threes, or endless runners in their spare moments aren't going to find much here. Comparatively the gameplay is slow and very seldom gives the quick reward that mobile gamers are so used to.Checkpoint Champion skids on to Android
Like a child that's been playing in muddy puddles, Checkpoint Champion has just brought its dirt-skidding time-trial racing to Android.It was released on iOS last month and picked up a Bronze Award in our review.
"Behind the bright cartoon graphics lurks a black heart of pure gaming evil, and for some that makes Checkpoint Champion essential," we said.
For the most part, it's a game that pits you against time and terrain. You squelch through pud, splash through water, and skid on tarmac to beat each challenge.
If you fancy giving it a shot, you can download it for free on Google Play right now.
Tuesday
Review: The Witcher Adventure Game
The Witcher Adventure Game is a fully functioning version of
Fantasy Flight's recent physical game, transported to touchscreen, and
it works surprisingly well.Rather than rolling dice, collecting fiddly
chits, and moving plastic pieces around a board, you're tapping on the
screen. It takes a good deal of the tangible nature of the boardgame
away, but leaves you with enough meat to sink your teeth into.
But it isn't one for boardgame novices. There are some complex rules in play here, and if you're expecting some simple dice rolls and a bit of card tossing to see you through, you're in for a rude awakening.
Chits, chits everywhere
There are four heroes to choose from at the start of a game, each with its own set of victory conditions. The game is all about completing quests, but which quests you can choose depends on your hero.
Geralt is all about violence, Dandelion the bard is all about diplomacy, Triss focuses on magic, and Yarpen can pick either dark arts or combat quests.
Quests involve you moving around the board, finding a set number of items, then heading to the relevant region. On the way you’ll get in scraps, solve quarrels, and have to nerf your own moves if you do badly.
You can play against AI opponents, try the game solo, or take on friends in either online multiplayer or pass and play.
However you choose to play it's smooth and well put together, and there's a helpful rulebook section so you can work out what’s going on.
It's a surprisingly deep system, and the digital dice rolls and an air of cruel luck to proceedings. The game plays like a mix between the best Ameritrash games and a lighter-take on sterner European boardgames.
Game of chance
And that's no bad thing. But if you don't know what it means you're probably not going to enjoy The Witcher Adventure Game all that much.
If, on the other hand, you were weaned on Talisman or Descent, you're likely going to find a lot to like here.
This is a great adaptation of a great boardgame, and saves you a lot of packing away. But it's unlikely to sway anyone to the joys of sitting around with friends, rolling dice, and getting murdered by brigands.
But it isn't one for boardgame novices. There are some complex rules in play here, and if you're expecting some simple dice rolls and a bit of card tossing to see you through, you're in for a rude awakening.
Chits, chits everywhere
There are four heroes to choose from at the start of a game, each with its own set of victory conditions. The game is all about completing quests, but which quests you can choose depends on your hero.
Geralt is all about violence, Dandelion the bard is all about diplomacy, Triss focuses on magic, and Yarpen can pick either dark arts or combat quests.
Quests involve you moving around the board, finding a set number of items, then heading to the relevant region. On the way you’ll get in scraps, solve quarrels, and have to nerf your own moves if you do badly.
You can play against AI opponents, try the game solo, or take on friends in either online multiplayer or pass and play.
However you choose to play it's smooth and well put together, and there's a helpful rulebook section so you can work out what’s going on.
It's a surprisingly deep system, and the digital dice rolls and an air of cruel luck to proceedings. The game plays like a mix between the best Ameritrash games and a lighter-take on sterner European boardgames.
Game of chance
And that's no bad thing. But if you don't know what it means you're probably not going to enjoy The Witcher Adventure Game all that much.
If, on the other hand, you were weaned on Talisman or Descent, you're likely going to find a lot to like here.
This is a great adaptation of a great boardgame, and saves you a lot of packing away. But it's unlikely to sway anyone to the joys of sitting around with friends, rolling dice, and getting murdered by brigands.
Earn to Die 2 iPhone Review
Earn to Die 2 is the simple tale of a man, his car, and the zombie
apocalypse. You'll have a blast in your journey to get to Florida to
evacuate from the hellish waste the United States has turned into. On
the way you'll get cool new cars to upgrade and enjoy the solid gameplay
and physics system.
The Good
The game has attractive graphics that remind me of a cleaner version of Metal Slug. The multiple vehicles are super fun to get and upgrade, and the branching story paths give quite a bit of replay value to the game. In addition, the game is quite long, so if players find themselves in love with the drive, then they will have quite a time getting to their destination.The Bad
Once you've upgraded a few vehicles, the days can seem to drag on as the difficulty is lowered. The physics system is also underutilized, it would have been nice to see more challenges utilizing it.The Verdict
Whether you're a fan of zombie games or not, you'll find plenty of content here that is fun. The gameplay is tight and lacks really any sort of gimmick. The only qualms I had was that the gameplay wasn't varied enough for the length of the game, but it was still a blast till the end.God of Light iPhone Review
Physics puzzle games have become a big hit on mobile devices. Light
manipulation is a very intriguing subject and God of Light needs your
help to light up the galaxy and save it from the darkness.
The Good
God of Light is a physics puzzle game in which you control a light source and you need to bounce the light of mirrors to light up the map and collect the three life crystals on every stage. Your score is based on how long it took you to figure out the puzzle and if you collected all the crystals. Visually, the game is very pretty. The lighting effects of the game are very unique and every level begins in darkness. Once you start using the light source to light up the map you begin to reveal the ins and outs of it and you need to think of the best way to use the mirrors to find the crystals. The music also helps immerse you in the experience. There are a lot of puzzles for you to play and the game keeps track of your scores so you can share them with your friends.The Bad
The games touch controls are a bit imprecise and a little over sensitive. In a game in which you are manipulating light with mirrors, precision is a key factor. In the early levels it isn't that big of a problem, but as you progress and need to be a little more exact it can be an annoyance and cost you a lot of time. You need to tap on the different mirrors to take control of it. When you take your finger off the screen to try to tap a different mirror, sometimes the light moves and then you need to try to reposition it and tap the next mirror, which can cost you valuable time. Many of the puzzles are a little too easy as well and the only difficult part it positioning the mirrors because of the controls.The Verdict
God of Light doesn't shine bright enough to break away from other established puzzle games. The game has an interesting concept, but its imprecise controls and lack of challenging puzzles hold it back from being great.December Problems follows up 99 Problems with more minimal arcade action
December Problems is a follow-up to 99 Problems, a
blocky arcade action game that we covered back in September.It's a
simple, free game much like its predecessor, meant for anyone looking
for some plain old twitch reflex action.
You can download it for free on the App Store or Google Play.
In December Problems, you control a block, bouncing from left to right and back across the screen.
Tapping makes the block leap slightly upwards. Letting it hit the wall leaves the block to bounce down.
You'll need to use both to your advantage, navigating the block around a series of static and dynamic obstacles to the eventual end of each level, which all flow together quite naturally.
If you don't want to download anything on your phone just yet, you can play December Problems in a browser on Game Jolt.
You can download it for free on the App Store or Google Play.
In December Problems, you control a block, bouncing from left to right and back across the screen.
Tapping makes the block leap slightly upwards. Letting it hit the wall leaves the block to bounce down.
You'll need to use both to your advantage, navigating the block around a series of static and dynamic obstacles to the eventual end of each level, which all flow together quite naturally.
If you don't want to download anything on your phone just yet, you can play December Problems in a browser on Game Jolt.
