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Tonight, the folks at Team Phobic released a video of their next App Store installment, the forthcoming game GravBot. If you aren't familiar with Team Phobic, they are most well known for the excellent platforming games Bounce On [$1.99/Lite] and Bounce On 2: Drallo's Demise [$3.99/Lite], as well as the collaborative effort with Backflip Studios on the colorful tunnel shooter aptly named Tunnel Shoot [99¢]. This new game will be a physics-based puzzle-platformer with an emphasis on manipulating gravity to navigate levels filled with switches, buttons, elevators, and traps.

Here is the gameplay trailer for GravBot that shows some of these mechanics in action:

Team Phobic has proven they have a knack for first-rate level design with the Bounce On series, and they are known for the charming visuals in their games as well. The main character in GravBot already seems to show quite a bit of personality for what is essentially a TV with a unicycle wheel (which immediately gave me that GizmoDuck vibe). The game is slated for a September release, and we'll have more on GravBot as it becomes available. In the meantime you can check out the thread in our upcoming games forum or the GravBot Facebook page for additional screenshots of the game.

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It was all the way back in October of last year that we were intrigued by a gorgeous animated trailer for the upcoming game A Skeleton Story. Then, months and months passed by with nothing more about the game, until last month when A Skeleton Story reappeared with some new in-game screenshots. We even had some hands-on time with a preview version of the game, which revealed itself to be a Canabalt-esque run and jump affair. After a turbulent journey, A Skeleton Story [99¢] has finally arrived in the App Store. While it contains some interesting ideas that attempt to set it apart from similar games in the genre, unresponsive controls and slow, repetitive gameplay keep it from being anything special.

The most notable drawback in the game are the lackluster controls. The directional stick that controls your character's movement is often unresponsive, and for a game that demands quick reactions this results in many frustrating deaths. Also there is an odd delay when firing your weapon, so most the time you will have already passed an enemy that you intended to kill before the shot fires. This causes you to have to stop, turn around, and fire in the opposite direction than you are traveling, which breaks the flow of the gameplay and is never a good sign in a game where the goal is to be constantly moving forward. These problems are even more pronounced due to the slow pace of the game to begin with.

One cool aspect to A Skeleton Story is the upgrade shop that lets you spend the coins you earn during play on enhancements to things like speed, life, and firepower. Upgrading these attributes alleviates the problem of the slow gameplay somewhat, but not much. It also doesn't help that less than a week ago we were treated to the sublime gameplay that is Monster Dash [99¢], which really nailed the controls and pacing that A Skeleton Story seems to have been shooting for. The art in A Skeleton Story is well done, although it's a shame that all the potential of the trailer never gets fully realized with such shallow gameplay. For a dollar you may get enough enjoyment from the visual style alone, but in terms of fun factor and functionality it's just too little too late for A Skeleton Story.

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New Potato, who brought us the Jackpot Slots [App Store] game / accessory for the iPhone, has just released another such bundle for the iPhone and iPod touch — but this time around, the game in question is pinball.

Pinball Magic is a gaming accessory that is intended to transform your iPhone or iPod touch into a realistic pinball machine, albeit a rather diminutive one. The pinball table-shaped accessory sports flipper buttons, a ball-launching plunger, a credit / select button,an animated LED backbox display, and foldable legs for easy transport. The device mates with your device's 30-pin dock connector and delivers a pinball experience by way of New Potato's free Pinball Magic [link] app.

Game features, listed by the developer:

• Multiple classic and unique playboard layout
• Advanced multi-level and multiplayer competition
• Four possible multi-ball modes
• End-of-ball and replay bonuses
• Tilt detection, tilt warning and activation
• Ball saver

Pinball Magic is currently available from Best Buy, online and at certain retail locations at a price of $39.99. And don't bother downloading the game app if you don't have the accessory — it won't play at all.

[ via ChipChick ]

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When Sega first started releasing its emulated games like Sonic the Hedgehog [$5.99], Golden Axe [$2.99] and others, everyone wondered where Sega's array of classic RPG's were. Sega responded by releasing Shining Force [$2.99], leaving commenters and forum posters happy, but asking for the Phantasy Star series next… Which is exactly what Sega is delivering this Thursday.

Much like Shining Force, Phantasy Star II is a turn-based RPG that works marvelously with Sega's emulator. Text entry is a little dicey, but otherwise navigating the game world and engaging in battles works wonderfully. The emulator also does a great job of saving the game state when you quit the app, making Phantasy Star II surprisingly workable as a pick up and play game.

I still need to spend more time with Phantasy Star II, as like most RPG's the game is quite epic, but so far things are looking very good with this classic Genesis game on the iPhone. Just like Shining Force, all the down sides of Sega's emulator fade away when you're playing a game that doesn't require precise control or high frame rates. Stay tuned for a more comprehensive review when the game arrives on the App Store this Thursday.

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The curious thing about the App Store is that while some areas are completely overloaded (I'm looking at you, puzzle section.) others are surprisingly barren. Aside from Tiger Woods PGA Tour [$4.99], Let's Golf [$4.99 / Free / HD] its sequel Let's Golf 2 [$4.99 / HD] and various mini golf games like Mini Golf Wacky Worlds [Free] or Tiki Golf 3D [99¢] there isn't a whole lot of really great golf games.

We don't know much about Real Golf 2011 yet, but according to Gameloft it will feature golfers such as Sergio Garcia, Natalie Gulbis and Anthony Kim along with "prestigious courses" from around the world. The following trailer was released today which shows a surprising amount of gameplay video compared to Gameloft's previous trailers:

Real Golf 2011 is scheduled for release in September, and as someone who enjoyed both Let's Golf and Let's Golf 2 quite a bit, I'm excited to give it a try.

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