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Tuesday, May 31, 2011

ZX Nostalgia - Adventure edition vol.4

Having already blogged about the pretty excellent vol.1 of the ZX Nostalgia Adventure edition, the one containing the Balrog's classic Zenobi text-adventures, I thought I'd let you know that ZX Nostalgia has gone on and released three more adventure filled compilations, with the latest -obviously- being the aptly named ZX Nostalgia - Adventure edition vol.4. Here's the App Store link for the thing. The app costs less than a dollar/euro/pound and includes an excellent and constantly updated ZX Spectrum emulator and ten more classic Zenobi text-adventures. Retro gamers and lovers of interactive fiction should grab it immediately. They will, after all, be getting the following:
Cloud 99
The Dogboy (Parts 1 and 2)
Lightmare - The Village of Delvhorn
Meltdown
One Of Our Wombats Is Missing
Phoenix
Stranded
The Golden Sword Of Bhakhor (Parts 1 and 2)
The Islands Of Sinbad
The Lost Temple
The Mapper + Guide
Why Is The World Round Anyway (Parts 1 and 2)

Friday, May 27, 2011

Xperia Plays Minecraft

Minecraft, the indie, world-crafting phenomenon, will apparently and according to Game Set Watch make its handheld debut on Sony's Android-powered Xperia Play today. Though the game wont sync with its excellent PC version, the button-rich and powerful Xperia should make for a most authentic experience. Oh, and if you never heard of Minecraft before, well, here's a link to help clear things up.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

GBA Berzerk

I've been browsing the excellent GBADEV.org Game Boy Advance homebrew site and happily discovered a lovely Berzerk remake for Nintendo's classic handheld. Arcade lovers should download it by clicking themselves over to Berzerk GBA. It's a happily freeware offering. 

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Spectaculator iOS

Spectaculator, the best ZX Spectrum emulator on the PC for quite some time now, has finally been ported to iOS and is now available via Apple's App Store. For less than 2 pounds you can now have a full emulator on your phone, complete with some excellent 8-bit games, a built-in hint system, fully working BASIC and a ton of most impressive features. To grab it, follow this oh-so-aptly named link: Spectaculator iOS; the app runs on iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch devices. Oh, and you can enter POKES too!

As for them bundled games, they include (among others of course) classic 3D space-shooter 3D Starstrike, Tau Ceti, Dynamite Dan and a selection of Jonathan Cauldwell's more impressive offerings. You might also want to take a look at the Spectaculator official site.

Mission FaileD (Wiz)

Ah! A new freeware shmup for the Wiz, is it? Well, it quite frankly is and its name is Mission FaileD. It's quite enjoyable, freeware and intriguingly sports a ton of ripped sprites from more than a few classic shoot-'em-ups, including Axelay, Gradius and R-Type. Grab it! 

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

The Free iOS Candy Train

PopCap Games, the casual gaming behemoth that has given us such addictive mega-hits as Peggle and Plants vs Zombies, has gone on and released one of its older games for them iOS devices. Apparently, one of the company's programmers loved Candy Train so much that simply had to come up with a version for iOS. In her very own free time. The game, a lovely, colorful, action puzzler is now available for free. Where? There.

Monday, May 23, 2011

The Invasion of the Blobs

If you are into free, simple and happily mindless games to brighten up that commute, well iBlobs should be a most interesting proposal. You can grab it here for free and enjoy it on any iOS and Android device. 

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Custom Batman Returns Lynx

Excellent gaming blog Game Set Watch just discovered an astonishingly beautiful Atari Lynx and, well, Gaming on the Go is very happy indeed. It is after all a luxuriant and quite sizable Lynx Mark I that sports top quality custom artwork based on the  Batman Returns game. You can see more pictures of the thing over at Oskunk's blog.

Monday, May 16, 2011

Wonderswan Color Emulator

The Wonderswan and the Wonderswan Color didn't set the handheld gaming world on fire, though they probably should have. They were excellent consoles, with more than a few great games and an incredibly sensible price-tag. What's more, you can now find out what all the fuss was about on your PC and Win CE machine with the help of the excellent, freeware Cygne emulator.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

101-in-1 Games free for Android



100-in-1 Games, the tongue-in-check iPhone hit compilation, has finally made it to Android. It apparently not only retains its 100 mini-games glory, but is also very free to grab/download. Expect to enjoy more than a few spoofs of well known games and a fine selection of genres. Get it here

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

PlayStation Emulation for Wiz/Caanoo

I still remember reading about the amazing specs of the then-forthcoming original PlayStation and being thoroughly impressed. Never thought the day would come when the PSOne would be considered a retro machine, but, well, time does indeed fly. On a happier note, both you and I can now enjoy the games of this classic console on your/our highly portable Wiz and/or Caanoo handhelds. For free! Just follow this PCSX4ALL link and  download the emulator. It works much better than expected.

Monday, May 09, 2011

The 7th Guest for iPad

Ah, the App Store... such a wonderful jungle of revived classics; such a place of wild indie experimentation; such a lovely gaming platform. Then again I never expected to see a version of The 7th Guest for the iPad up there. I had actually forgotten all about this old and almost classic CD-ROM killer-app, that happily sported a selection of elaborate puzzles and tons of primitive FMV horror action. I'd grab it immediately (if I had an iPad apparently), but for less than two dollars it's absolutely worth checking out. Clicky, clicky!

Friday, May 06, 2011

Top 10 iPhone adventure games

If you ask me, and you really should, the iPhone (and, yes, the iPod also) truly is the perfect adventure gaming handheld device. Its large memory and excellent multi-touch screen, combined with them low game prices, should have helped adventures bloom. So far, unfortunately, this has not been the case, though admittedly more than a few excellent offerings have made it to the App Store. Here (in no particular order) are the 10 you really shouldn't miss:

Broken Sword: Director's Cut
This is the first of several classic adventures to make this list and rightly so, as Revolution software has gone beyond just touching up the graphics, interface and sounds. It has added extra scenes and new puzzles, and actually managed to add gaming value to an already excellent cartoon adventure. In case you were wondering it's a tale of mystery, Templars, conspiracies and lovely humorous touches, that sports some really good puzzles and a truly excellent interface.
(Link)

Beneath a Steel Sky: Remastered
Another adventure by Revolution that has been gloriously updated for the iOS point-and-click (or, well, touch) crowd and a rare game that sports the visual talent of Dave Gibbons of Watchmen fame. Beautiful graphics, a brilliant dystopian setting, funny dialog and some pretty original puzzles, should be all that you need to enjoy while waiting for that accursed bus.
(Link)


Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery
And now for a brand new and highly innovative game. Shocked, are you? Well, you should be, for Sword & Sorcery is a rare game indeed, that effortlessly combines point-and-click gaming with combat and a ton of highly experimental ideas. It's artistically impressive too, what with its incredibly stylized visuals and downright brilliant soundtrack. 
(Link)

Gobliiins
A quirky and absolutely beautiful puzzle game, successfully impersonating an adventure for 15 years now. You get to simultaneously control three goblins (on a grand quest no less!) and solve screen after screen of devious puzzles while admiring the lovely, retro, cartoon-like SVGA graphics. A most excellent port indeed. 
(Link)

Monkey Island 2 Special Edition: LeChuck's Revenge
This, ladies and gentleman, is the best adventure game ever made and the magnum opus of legendary game designer Ron Gilbert. Then again, you do know just how beautiful, funny, dark, original, groundbreaking and good looking it has always been. Well, know it looks even better now, while also sporting a brand new UI that works like a dream. Oh, and the classic Monkey Island cast has provided it with an excellent voice-over, whereas Ron Gilbert, Tim Schafer and Dave Grossman offer an amazing dev-commentary.
(Link)

The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition
This, the prequel to Monkey Island 2, might not reach the lofty heights of LeChuck's Revenge, but it's an excellent game on its own right and a turning point in adventure gaming. It introduced both frustration-free adventuring and the darkly humorous story of not-so-mighty pirate Guybrush Threepwood. Obviously, Lucasarts created a great update of this classic too.
(Link)

HECTOR: Badge of Carnage Ep1
Quite possibly the most cynical and gritty adventure available on the App Store. It's funny, good looking and -shockingly to younger gamers- quite a bit difficult. 
(Link)

Simon the Sorcerer
Ah, proper British humour in the finest of Pythons' traditions combined with excellent adventure gaming in the finest of Lucasarts' traditions (only vastly more challenging). Guide Simon through a wardrobe and into a brilliantly humorous fantasy world, where lots and lots of pixel hunting awaits you. Capacity for lateral thinking is essential. 
(Link)

Puzzle Agent
Deeply atmospheric, beautiful in its rather unique way, wildly surreal, oddly funny and only sightly disturbing this is the Twin Peaks of iPhone gaming. Well, almost. Then again, Puzzle Agent is a great collection of puzzles with an excellent plot. 
(Link)

Flight of the Amazon Queen
An almost obscure, but actually great adventure game of the classic-era that happily found itself to your iPhone. It's sort of a Lucasarts-inspired point-and-click that subtly parodies Indiana Jones movies and games, while successfully creating its very own, interesting and believable game world. The VGA graphics are lovely, as are most of the puzzles on offer.  
(Link)

Tuesday, May 03, 2011

Proper iOS arcade fun

And when I say proper I do mean properly proper! Fast Striker by the NG:DEV.TEAM was originally developed for the NEO GEO MVS, meaning it's a full-blown arcade scrolling shoot-'em-up by a truly talented and experienced team. The game sports a couple of control methods, 6 stages, over 40 unique enemies, huge bosses, online ranking support and some glorious 2D graphics on 3D backgrounds.  

Monday, May 02, 2011

Hey, that's my fish!

Fantasy Flight Games having published some of the best board games ever, including all-time favourite Arkham Horror, seem to have decided to try their luck on smartphones and tablets. After a couple of admittedly excellent apps to support their games, they have finally come up with Hey, That's My Fish! A digital board game for 1 to 4 players available for iOS and Android devices, that should apparently shine when played by 4 people on one iPad...