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I’ve made no attempt at hiding my love affair with the Azkend series of puzzle games. The original Azkend [$2.99 / $4.99 (HD)] was (and still is) one of my favorite puzzle games of all time. It had a great difficulty curve, a constant stream of unlockables to keep you interested, and did a fabulous job at dangling the next unlockable in front of you to endlessly keep you playing one more game. Oh, and the chain-forming matching mechanic is pretty sweet too. Not too long ago, Azkend 2 [$2.99 / $3.99 ] hit, and I was ready to shout out my window and tell the world how incredible it was… That is, until I got a little deeper into the game.

As Nissa explains in our review, the sequel features everything we loved about the original Azkend, and provides some great first impressions. Then the difficulty curve ramps up, and the game introduces more types of tiles. It’s at this point that Azkend 2 turns into the best part of any LMFAO song, which, in a puzzle game, is not a good thing. In other words, you’d reach a point where there were just too many types of tiles, leaving no available matches, forcing the game to re-shuffle the tiles. Sometimes you’d even get multiple re-shuffles in a row.

Well, an update hit earlier today which seems to totally fix this. The puzzles are now rebalanced in a way that you’re not hunting for the single match before the board reshuffles. If you were (understandably) holding off on the game after reading our review, it’s safe to pick up now. Or, if you were like me, and just shelved the game after getting frustrated, snag the update and give it another shot.

They’ve made some other tweaks and bug fixes too, including doing some logging to potentially further improve game balancing as well as adjusting the colors of some tiles to make them more distinct. The one down side of this update is that I’m pretty sure that Azkend 2 is now going to completely suck up my free time this evening.

I’m OK with that, I think.

NOTE: Right now I’m only seeing this update for the universal HD version, but it’d make sense that the iPhone-only version should be following very shortly.

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I’ve never really been able to figure out what Square Enix’s deal is with the App Store. They go from releasing full iOS-exclusive titles like Chaos Rings [ $12.99 ] to flat-out weird “games” like Voice Fantasy [ $2.99 ] (among other zany titles). The just-released 774 Deaths [ $0.99 ] seems to come from the same “why does this exist” department as Sliding Heroes [ $0.99 ].

Billed as a “murderously difficult action platformer” 774 Deaths, according to Squeenix, is “certain to chew up and spit out even the world’s best gamers.” The format of the game goes a little something like this- You play a pixelated little dude going through rooms filled with locked doors. To progress through the doors, you need to complete the mini-games that each room has to offer you.

So far, I’ve been given the choice of four games, each with the same basic principle of navigating your guy to the end of the level while avoiding what appear to be blood covered blades. Each “game” has a different control method. There’s an auto-runner style game where you tap the screen to jump, a platformer style game with virtual controls, a vertical falling game controlled via tilting, and a similar tilt controlled top-down maze-style game.

None are particularly interesting, and I really can’t quite decide if the game itself is difficult, or if the controls are just terrible. Either way, you beat two of the games inside the room you’re currently in, the next room unlocks, and you repeat the process. Admittedly, I’m stuck on the third room right now, but there hasn’t been much variation to speak of yet. Per the iTunes description, there are 9 rooms in all.

I’m reluctant to call this a “review,” since, as mentioned, I’ve basically reached a stopping point in the game right now. With that being said, I haven’t really found what I have been able to get through to be that enjoyable, and like way too many things that Square farts out on to the App Store, 774 Deaths just has me wondering why an iOS port of Final Fantasy VI doesn’t exist. I’d buy that at a high price. (And I’d even say that in the same tone of voice as the merchant dude in Resident Evil 4.)

For what it’s worth, people in our forums seem to be enjoying 774 Deaths. So, if you’re a glutton for punishment, give it a shot…?

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Earlier this month we caught wind that Phosphor Games was planning to give the paid version of Dark Meadow [ $5.99 ] a free to play extreme makeover. Our community caught wind, formed up the all too predictable angry mob, and the next day Phosphor decided that the free to play version would come as a separate app instead of updating the existing paid version.

Last night, two things happened. First off, Dark Meadow: The Pact [ Free ] hit the App Store, offering players who never tried the original game a free opportunity to dip their toes into the Dark Meadow universe. Secondly, Dark Meadow was updated to have all the improvements of the free version. This includes Retina Display support for the new iPad and some new content which comprises both new areas and enemies as well as weapons. Getting around in the game is also easier, as they’ve not only added an in-game map, but also the ability to warp around so you don’t have to totally start over when you die.

Regardless, I’d still back up your original Dark Meadow .ipa file before updating in case you ever want to go back, especially if you’re the kind of person who hates shoehorned IAP currency. The way I (and a lot of our community it’d seem) read the original explanation from Phosphor on how they were going to split the free and paid versions was more along the lines of “We’re going to add the tweaks and new content from the free to play version to the existing paid version, leaving all the wacky micro transaction stuff to the free version.”

Unfortunately, what we got is an update which adds all the IAP currencies as well along with a consolation prize of sorts which amounts an ability to toggle the ads off along with some normal coins, sun coins (the IAP currency), along with some consumable health packs and bombs. (Bombs destroy enemies without needing to fight them.)

The IAP currency balancing is also crazy. If you want any of the new items which are purchased with sun coins, even in the paid version, you have three options:

1. Grind for eternity farming up kill streaks to earn sun coins.
2. Buy sun coins via IAP.
3. Complete referral offers like signing up for credit cards and online dating sites among other things.

Weirder yet, the way these referral offers are balanced against the actual IAP makes no sense. For instance, one of the referral offers asks you to buy a PC or Mac game from Big Fish Games for $2.99. This rewards you with as much IAP currency as the $9.99 bundle of sun coins, but you also get a PC/Mac game out of the deal. Normally I’d say this isn’t that big of a problem because you can just try to ignore the IAP items and play the game with what you can get with in-game coins… BUT.

The problem with this line of thinking and Dark Meadow is that character progression in these Infinity Blade-like games hinges on gear unlocks, while both saving up and looking forward to the next weapon you can afford. Yes, it’s entirely optional, but looking at what you can buy with the non-IAP currency from the in-game item shop feels like ordering off the kids menu when compared to the substantial difference in power found in the premium IAP-currency items.

That being said, if you can deal with this proverbial carrot being dangled in front of your face while you play through both the free and paid versions of Dark Meadow, the gameplay is actually legitimately better than it was before. IAP schemes aside, combat feels much more responsive, the ability to warp back to near where you were when you died was sorely needed, and it looks great on the new iPad.

The good news is that the guys from Phosphor are all over the thread on our forums responding to user feedback, and seem genuinely interested in making players happy. That counts for something, although I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed in this trend on the App Store. Dark Meadow was one of the early games powered by the Unreal engine, and it’s sad to see the game go down the same free to play path as everyone else instead of just proudly existing as a premium showpiece title.

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As if you need another reminder to download Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP [$4.99 / $2.99 ] if you haven’t already, nominations for the 2012 Canadian Videogame Awards were just revealed and Sworcery was nominated for basically every category that even vaguely applies to the game. This includes game of the year, best game on the go, best downloadable game, best game design, best visual arts, best writing, best indie game, best original music, and… innovation award.

I have no doubts that the game will soak up at least some of those awards, which is just extra crazy when you look at the list of other games that were nominated. In your wildest dreams back when the App Store launched in mid-2008 did you ever think that four years later an iOS-exclusive indie-developed game would be standing toe to toe with massive budget AAA console titles for awards?

What a wild time to be a gamer.

Oh, and if this somehow is the first time you’ve heard of the game (really?) check out our review.

[via Gamasutra]

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Hey Daniel Johnston fans, there’s another Johnston-centric game on the App Store. Daniel Johnston’s Space Ducks [ Free (HD)] joins Hi, How Are You [$2.99 / Free ] with another look into his art and music. This time around, it’s much less of a game when compared to the puzzle elements of Hi, How Are You, and instead could be described as an “interactive comic book experience.”

Space Ducks is free, and as you play through it you slowly unlock all the songs from Johnston’s upcoming album. If you’ve never heard of Daniel Johnston, Hi, How Are You is likely a much better gateway drug than Space Ducks (Check out our review of Hi, How Are You.), but, either way, I dig these sort of gamified comic book apps.

Getting access to new music early (and for free) is just icing on the cake.

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Following the release of Portal 2 on Steam and home consoles came Geoff Keighley’s “The Final Hours of Portal 2″ [ $1.99 (HD)] which, as mentioned in our news post on its release provided a really cool highly interactive look behind the scenes of the game’s development. Well, Keighley is at it again, this time with the recently released Mass Effect 3. “The Final Hours of Mass Effect 3″ [ $2.99 (HD)] follows the same interactive magazine article approach as its Portal 2 predecessor, and provides a really cool behind the scenes look at the game’s development.

If you’re a Mass Effect fan, and you haven’t completely written off the series following the horrid ending of Mass Effect 3, you should give this app a look. New iPad owners should be aware that like most magazine-like apps out there right now, “The Final Hours of Mass Effect 3″ has yet to be optimized for the Retina Display. Some text looks pretty pixelated compared to the ultra-crisp text found in Retina-ready apps.

Seriously though, that ending. Yeesh.

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In case there’s still a person out there who is shocked by the runaway success of the Angry Birds series, secure your monocle and try this news on for size: According to a recent tweet from Rovio, Angry Birds Space has been downloaded over ten million times in three days. Now, before you go multiplying that ten million by ninety nine cents, consider that Rovio has been historically vague with the platforms their download figures are from. Angry Birds Space launched as a 99¢ iPhone version, a $2.99 iPad version, and a free ad-supported Android version. Free versions of anything seem to be downloaded exponentially more than apps with a price tag, so it doesn’t seem that far out there to assume that a hefty chunk of those downloads came from the Android side of the fence, but still.

If you still haven’t downloaded Angry Birds Space for whatever reason, check out our review. The game is seriously just phenomenal, and as I’ve spent more time with the game I’ve been having an absolute blast attempting to three star the 99¢ IAP “Danger Zone” ultra-difficult levels. If anyone from Rovio is reading this, please keep releasing level packs like this. Heck, make ‘em more difficult, I dare you.

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Back in January, developer Spry Fox released Triple Town [Free], an iOS version of their immensely popular Kindle, Facebook, and Google+ matching game. Triple Town was widely loved by gamers and gaming critics, including our own 4.5 star review, and it was great to see a developer that was able to innovate so heavily in what has become a stagnant match-3 genre.

Since its release, Triple Town has received several updates, but they have mostly amounted to maintenance type stuff. Over the weekend, another new update was released, this time adding some very welcome new gameplay maps.

First is the City on a Lake map, which you can see in the screen below. This gives you the standard 6×6 grid found in the original mode only this time there is an L-shaped body of water smack dab in the middle. Obviously this is going to affect your strategy by limiting the amount of space you have to make matches, since the water is unusable space. It puts a nice challenging spin on the regular Triple Town formula.

The second new map is called Peaceful Valley, pictured below, and is a much friendlier, casual experience. It gives you a 5×5 map grid to work with, but here there are no bears or ninjas to muck up your carefully planned town layout. This is another nice departure from the original mode like City on a Lake is, only instead of being more challenging it’s actually much less challenging, and really lets you concentrate on thinking ahead and making smart matches instead of dealing with those pesky bears.

Aside from the big addition of two new maps, there are some minor tweaks in this update as well. High scores are now saved locally in addition to online through OpenFeint, and can be viewed from the options screen. There is also now an in-game orientation lock for people like me who like to get their game on while laying in bed. Finally, there are even more optimizations and bug fixes.

There is one tiny catch, though. The two new maps are only available for those who have paid to unlock unlimited turns from within the game. If you aren’t one of those people then there’s some good news for you: to celebrate the new update the unlimited turns IAP is on sale for $2.99. I paid the original $6.99 for Triple Town when it first came out and felt it was completely worth it, so from where I stand 3 bucks is a fantastic deal for one of the finest match-3 games available, even more so after this latest update.

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