Group Demos Fling-like Controller That Uses Camera
Thinkers, entrepreneurs, and manufacturers of all shapes and sizes are still trying to bring us useful, physical controllers for iPad and iPhone. We’ve seen a lot, over the years, but none have struck as novel as the one currently in an early development stage at in Japan. It’s an analog stick similar to the Fling, except it uses the iPhone’s front camera to control the action on the screen.
Here’s what makes it possible, according to the following video from :
There are small markers in this elastic device and the markers are detected by this built-in front-facing mobile phone camera. By tracking how the markers move as the elastic device deforms, this system enables a variety of inputs. Basically, the system’s precision depends on hardware factors, like the camera resolution and refresh rate.
It’s a neat idea, and while it has a couple of obvious issues working against it, we’d love to see this end up as an actual product. Who knows, maybe it’ll catch on.
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Popular PC Military Strategy Series ‘Combat Mission’ Hits the App Store for the Newest iPads
If you’ve been a PC gamer for the past dozen years or so, and you’re into military-themed strategy games, chances are pretty good you’re familiar with the Combat Mission series. Known for its attention to detail and realism, the Combat Mission series has spanned several titles since the first release in 1999 and has allowed gamers to reenact both real and fictitious battles from throughout history.
Yesterday, series developer teased an iPad version of Combat Mission on their website. Given the date of the announcement, we were taking the news with an incredibly enormous grain of salt. However, despite the looming possibility of an April Fool’s joke, it turns out that Combat Mission: Touch [$4.99] is a real, actual game, and it’s available in the App Store as we speak.
One of the hallmarks of Combat Mission is the way it handles its turn-based gameplay. It employs the “Wego” system, which basically means that both sides in a battle set up all of their moves at the same time during a planning phase, and then they both sit back and watch as everything plays out during an actual combat phase. This makes for a great 2-player experience, and Combat Mission: Touch boasts online multiplayer as well as the ability to battle solo against an AI.
We’ll have to sit down and spend some quality time with Combat Mission: Touch to see how the iOS version turned out, but if you’re a fan of the series then you’ve probably already dropped the $4.99 to check it out for yourself. Just keep in mind, it’s only compatible with the iPad 2 and the newest iPad if you’re considering picking it up.
[Thanks Christopher!]
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The Original ‘Infinity Blade’ is On Sale for Just a Buck
It’s hard to believe that it’s been more than a year since Epic Games and Chair Entertainment released Infinity Blade [99¢], an Unreal Engine-powered sword battling RPG that redefined what we could expect from visuals on the iOS platform. They released the sequel, Infinity Blade II [$6.99], this past November, and basically improved upon everything in the first game. However, the original Infinity Blade is still really great, and I still find myself playing both titles regularly.
If you’re one of those people who haven’t dived into the whole Infinity Blade thing yet, now would be a good time to check out the series yourself without much risk, as the first game is on sale for its lowest price ever at just 99¢. Even if you don’t think the Infinity Blade style of game is for you, you at least owe it to yourself to drop a buck on it and find out for sure. I really didn’t think much of the game when it first came out, if truth be told, but I continued playing and somewhere along the line something just “clicked” and I found it almost impossible to put the game down ever since.
You can read our full review of the first Infinity Blade if you need some more insight, and if you like it and want some more, you can check out our review of Infinity Blade II as well. This sale is advertised as an April Fool’s sale, so be sure to grab it quick as there’s no telling how long it will last.
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‘Gunman Clive’ is an Action Platformer with a Unique Look
Last October, indie developer released Helium Boy [$1.99], a colorful 3D platformer about a boy and his balloons. Helium Boy was a pleasant surprise with its cheery visuals and gameplay that revolved around filling up balloons in order to float the protagonist around each of the game’s levels. Unfortunately, an awkward camera made it difficult to properly navigate the terrain, which led to us being hesitant about fully recommending the title in our review.
Still, Helium Boy had flashes of brilliance, and we really wanted to enjoy it more. Now, Bertil is taking another stab at a platforming game with the upcoming Gunman Clive. This time around he’s sticking with a more traditional 2D side-scrolling gameplay while still retaining 3D visuals. Gunman Clive also has a really interesting sketchbook-style look, which you can see in the trailer (it’s also pretty darn funny).
Bertil says his main influences for Gunman Clive were Megaman and other classic platformers of that ilk, and he’s aiming for a more straightforward platforming and shooting game as opposed to the kind of gameplay that was in Helium Boy. I’m pretty much a Megaman fanatic, so hearing this really has me excited to see how it turns out. Look for Gunman Clive to launch with the usual slew of new releases later this week.
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Team Meat Announces ‘Super Meat Boy: The Game’ for iOS
It’s really tricky covering anything that happens on April Fool’s Day, so take this news with the caveat that tomorrow it’s entirely possible that Team Meat could just reveal that they were trolling. Anyway, what makes me think this might actually be real is that it fits in with recent news. First that Team Meat would “probably” be making an iPhone game then via a tweet-storm later mentioned that a Super Meat Boy prototype was in the works.
, they’ve just started working on the game, and they’re sure a lot will change in the development. However, they’ve clarified that this isn’t a port, and instead is a total feature-length touch-controlled total remake specifically designed for touch-based devices. It doesn’t sound like they’ll use any virtual controls, and Super Meat Boy: The Game will be “a brand new game with new art, new sound, everything.”
I can’t wait to see what they come up with.
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Team Meat Announces ‘Super Meat Boy: The Game’ for iOS
It’s really tricky covering anything that happens on April Fool’s Day, so take this news with the caveat that tomorrow it’s entirely possible that Team Meat could just reveal that they were trolling. Anyway, what makes me think this might actually be real is that it fits in with recent news. First that Team Meat would “probably” be making an iPhone game then via a tweet-storm later mentioned that a Super Meat Boy prototype was in the works.
, they’ve just started working on the game, and they’re sure a lot will change in the development. However, they’ve clarified that this isn’t a port, and instead is a total feature-length touch-controlled total remake specifically designed for touch-based devices. It doesn’t sound like they’ll use any virtual controls, and Super Meat Boy: The Game will be “a brand new game with new art, new sound, everything.”
I can’t wait to see what they come up with.
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The TouchArcade Show – 45 – Crystal Charge Level: MAXIMUM
This week on The TouchArcade Show, we have to force ourselves out of discussions about WrestleMania and other stupid junk in order to bring you the latest, hottest, and best in iOS. At the top, we dive into several new releases: Hunters 2, Ow My Balls XL, and Motoheroz take center stage. Later, we discuss what Baldur’s Gate for iPad means to us, and we even dabble on the ever interesting subject of why AAA publishers don’t seem to care about the App Store, and why we don’t bug them about it.
There’s much, much more, so feel free to listen if we’ve tickled your interest. You can do so via the handy-dandy links just below, or hey, subscribe to us on iTunes or Zune. We’ll love you forever if you do the latter.
iTunes Link: The TouchArcade Show
Zune Marketplace: TouchArcade.com Podcasts
RSS Feed: The TouchArcade Show
Direct Link: TouchArcadeShow-045.mp3, 42.7MB
… And here are your show notes:
GAMES
- Hunters 2 [$4.99]
- Ow My Balls XL [Free]
- Motoheroz [$.99 / HD]
JARED’S KITTY KORNER
- Kitten Sanctuary [$.99 / Lite]
JARED’S KITTY KORNER REDUX
- Drop a Cat [ Free ]
FRONT PAGE
- Sega To Release ‘PSO’ On iOS… Kinda
- Rovio Gobbles Up Futuremark Games Studio
- ‘Baldur’s Gate for iPad’ Hitting Every iPad and Maybe iPhone, Too
- ‘Dark Meadow’ Free-To-Play Finally Hits
This week’s episode Was Sponsored By Stamp Art Fever.
Stamp Art Fever, Free Stamp Art Fever by independent developer Francesco Chessari is a unique strategy game in the App Store. In the game, you are an art-stamp collector, building your virtual stamp collection by searching over 700 exclusively-designed stamps.
In Stamp Art Fever your objective is to acquire and collect artistic stamps, build up and manage your collection gallery, and trade and compete against other players from all over the world for the most valuable collection. It is not a game just for stamp lovers – if you have a collector mindset and you love art and management games, Stamp Art Fever will strike an immediate chord with you.
Stamp Art Fever for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad is available now in the App Store for FREE.
IMPORTANT EDITORIAL NOTE: Eli will be going to Medieval Times on Saturday, not Sunday. We are sorry for any confusion this mix up may have caused.
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‘Final Freeway 2R’ Review – The ‘OutRun’ Homage that We’ve Been Waiting For
Way back in the summer of 2010 (wow, where does the time go?), I was very pleasantly surprised with ’s Final Freeway [Free], an homage to Sega’s classic OutRun arcade racer. You could tell straightaway that there was plenty of love put into Final Freeway by somebody who absolutely adored the source material, and unsurprisingly this love translated into fun gameplay for those craving an on-the-go OutRun-alike.
While we praised Final Freeway in our review, it was missing a couple of core components that make an OutRun game, well, OutRunny. First was a lack of branching paths when you reached the end of a track segment, which normally would allow you to choose your own path to the end of the race. Instead Final Freeway was just a straight shot through its 6 environments.
The second big thing that was missing was the ability to crash and flip your ride. Sure, this is just a visual thing that doesn’t really affect gameplay, but it can’t truly feel like an OutRun game unless you can barrel into a tree at 160mph, flip your vehicle through the air several times while the passengers are ejected, and have both the car and the people come out completely unscathed. Also, where was the pretty blonde riding shotgun? Maybe she was there, but since the car wasn’t a convertible in Final Freeway, I’ll never know for sure (these things matter).
So there you have it, Final Freeway was an awesome OutRun clone with a few minor flaws. Fast forward to earlier this month, and Oyatsukai has taken all the feedback from the original Final Freeway and put it into the sequel, Final Freeway 2R [99¢], which truly is the OutRun game we’ve been waiting for. All the things we felt were missing from the first game? Those are in Final Freeway 2R, and it even does a couple of neat new things that really differentiates itself from OutRun while still retaining the feel of that series.
The first big thing in Final Freeway 2R is that there are now 13 different environments to race through in total. Each complete game has you racing through 5 of them, with a branching path at the end of each that lets you pick which route to take. It’s super OutRunny! Also, the graphics look a lot better this time around, with more detailed sprite work and a greater draw distance. The sense of speed in Final Freeway 2R is just ridiculous, and puts most other racers to shame. All the while it runs at a rock-solid framerate.
Of course, you can also now flip your ride in Final Freeway 2R, which as I’ve explained is incredibly crucial to the experience. You get a convertible faux Ferrari this time too, so you can actually see your blonde lady friend sitting in the passenger seat. In a cool twist over the original, you can now choose from 3 different drivers in Final Freeway 2R, each with their own set of stats. One of these drivers actually is the blonde cutie, and when you pick her one of the other fellas ends up riding shotgun. Equality!
One other interesting change from OutRun is now you actually have a rival of sorts shadowing you through each environment as you race towards the end goal. If you manage to reach the end of a track segment before he does you’ll get an additional bonus. It’s not integral to the overall experience, but it does add a nice bit of extra motivation to actually have an opponent to race against rather than merely trying to beat the clock.
Overall, Final Freeway 2R is a huge improvement over the original, and I just can’t believe how hooked I’ve been on it since it came out. It’s just pure, simplistic, fast-paced, arcade racing fun. If you’re not really an original OutRun fan but are curious if this sort of gameplay is your thing, then for today only you can grab the first Final Freeway for free to see how it grabs you. If you like that, then just know that Final Freeway 2R improves on everything from the first and will set you back just a buck.
TouchArcade Rating: 
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Kerosene Games Answers the Question of "What the Heck Happened to ‘Bladeslinger’?"
If you’re anything like my roommate who asks me multiple times a week, “Whatever happened to that western-themed Infinity Blade?” …We now have an answer. Well, sort of. The “western-themed Infinity Blade” in question, if you weren’t around for its original reveal back in September of last year is Bladeslinger. Maybe the trailer will jog your memory:
It was originally slated for release in Q4 2011, which, for any of you playing along at home, has already passed. Communication with LumaArcade and excited players went dark, leaving the abandoned by anyone other than random people bumping it. The good news is that a representative from Kerosene Games (Bladeslinger’s publisher) recently in that very same thread.
Here’s the cliffsnotes: The game has since become bigger and longer, and they’re doing some ultra-cutting edge stuff with Unity. A specific example cited was dynamic shadows on everything, which Infinity Blade II doesn’t even do. Good news for the anti-rails crew, the game itself isn’t on rails at all. Launch plans are still a little wishy washy, but they’re currently shooting for a May release.
The iPhone 4S, as well as the new iPad and iPad 2 will definitely be supported, and it sounds like they’re not making any promises but have their fingers crossed for iPhone 4 and O.G. iPad support.
So, there, that’s what happened to “that western-themed Infinity Blade.”
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Kerosine Games Answers the Question of "What the Heck Happened to ‘Bladeslinger’?"
If you’re anything like my roommate who asks me multiple times a week, “Whatever happened to that western-themed Infinity Blade?” …We now have an answer. Well, sort of. The “western-themed Infinity Blade” in question, if you weren’t around for its original reveal back in September of last year is Bladeslinger. Maybe the trailer will jog your memory:
It was originally slated for release in Q4 2011, which, for any of you playing along at home, has already passed. Communication with LumaArcade and excited players went dark, leaving the abandoned by anyone other than random people bumping it. The good news is that a representative from Kerosine Games (Bladeslinger’s publisher) recently in that very same thread.
Here’s the cliffsnotes: The game has since become bigger and longer, and they’re doing some ultra-cutting edge stuff with Unity. A specific example cited was dynamic shadows on everything, which Infinity Blade II doesn’t even do. Good news for the anti-rails crew, the game itself isn’t on rails at all. Launch plans are still a little wishy washy, but they’re currently shooting for a May release.
The iPhone 4S, as well as the new iPad and iPad 2 will definitely be supported, and it sounds like they’re not making any promises but have their fingers crossed for iPhone 4 and O.G. iPad support.
So, there, that’s what happened to “that western-themed Infinity Blade.”
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