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I was surprised to find out at yesterday's Capcom event that the company is readying another game from the Resident Evil series for iOS, but I was even more surprised to learn that it will be a multiplayer-focused game with online play through Game Center. It's called Resident Evil Mercenaries Vs., and it's based on the Mercenary mode that is found in several other Resident Evil games. I was able to play around with a work-in-progress version of the title, and although the technical performance seemed pretty lacking the foundation of the game was a lot of fun, and could prove to be an entertaining alternative to first-person shooters when you are in the mood for some online fragging.

Resident Evil Vs. will feature 4 player online play, either in teams of 2 or free-for-all. Besides shooting at each other, all 4 players will also have to deal with the constant threat of zombie attacks as there are a number of them roaming the map at any time. Killing zombies or your human opponents will earn you points, and the player with the highest score at the end of the timed round is the winner. Dying will reset your score to zero, but various first-aid items can be picked up and used to help prevent that. Also, if you're getting whooped pretty hard you'll be able to summon an AI helper to battle with you, like the creepy chainsaw guy with the burlap sack on his head from Resident Evil 4.

The game uses the same control scheme from Resident Evil 4: Platinum [$4.99/Lite/HD], with a virtual control stick for movement and a set of context sensitive buttons for performing everything else, so if you're already familiar with that game you'll be able to jump right into this title. When you're not able to venture online, Resident Evil Vs. will still have things for you to do. If you have an iOS owning buddy nearby who has a copy of the game then there is a local Bluetooth multiplayer mode which supports two human players and two AI players, and functions identically to the online mode. In addition there is a Score Attack mode which is single player with 3 AI controlled opponents, and a Coin Shooter mode which has you hunting down and shooting coins like in Resident Evil 4.

The gameplay in Resident Evil Vs. is surprisingly fun, but some definite drawbacks were apparent in this preview build. Connecting for local multiplayer provided a horribly laggy experience, which may be due to having two Bluetooth devices in such close proximity to one another but even then it didn't instill confidence for the local play. I will be very interested to see how the game performs online using Game Center for matchmaking, as this can easily make or break the experience. On a more positive note, the game ran really smooth when playing a single player game with AI opponents, which was incredibly fun and is what you can see in this video:

Other slightly disappointing aspects to Resident Evil Vs. are the lack of characters and maps. The game will launch with just two playable characters, Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine, which isn't much but they do at least have slightly different weapons. More unfortunate is that there will only be one map initially, and although it's a large map with plenty of intricacies it's bound to get old pretty quickly. Capcom is keen on adding more characters and stages down the road, so hopefully the lack of variety gets improved. The important thing though is that there are flashes of brilliance with Resident Evil Vs. It may not be the prettiest or most full-featured game around, but it sure can be a lot of fun.

If performance issues get smoothed out and Game Center matchmaking is solid, this could be a real winner. Our members are currently discussing the game in our forums, and you can look for Resident Evil Mercenaries Vs. to launch sometime in February if all goes well with Apple approval.

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Strapping my iPad into a faux arcade cabinet is the last thing I want to do with my tablet. Oh, I can get behind PAC-MAN and Space Invader ports, for sure, but the device has become much more than a toy for me over the last year — it’s become a browser, an e-reader, and a respectable game machine capable of offering some compelling modern experiences.

But for those of you who do actually want to relive those coin-op days, know this: Ion and Atari are teaming up to put out the “iCade,” an arcade cabinet for the iPad this Spring ($99).

The cabinet, as you can see from the following Engadget video from CES, features a full-sized joystick and eight arcade-style buttons. The apparatus itself is gleefully decorated in a retro style, though it’s missing the scratches and smoke damage that we’ve started to associate arcade cabinets with.

According to Ion, the iCade “ensures safe loading and unloading of your iPad,” as well as a secure fit. It also positions the iPad at a decent viewing angle for arcade play. The stick and buttons, by the way, will operate via Bluetooth.

The kicker here is that Ion’s business partner, Atari, will be publishing “a huge suite” of classic games to market with the device. In the press release, the only game name-dropped is Asteroids, but I’d imagine that we’ll also see ports of Centipede, Tempest, Missile Command, Crystal Castles, Super Breakout, and Gravitar at the very least. Curiously enough, some of these games have already been released by Atari, but were pulled early last year. We'll have to wait and see how different these re-released games turn out being.

OK, so maybe I do kinda want to strap my iPad into an arcade machine. Anyone with me?

[via Engadget]

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Orbotix is an unconventional developer with a project we posted about a while ago. Its mission is to bring smartphone controlled, open devices to market. The first of these is Sphero, a robotic ball that responds to inputs from an iPhone or iPod Touch via Bluetooth and an device-specific app.

It’ll be about six months before Sphero is ready for store shelves, but the lack of polish didn’t stop Orbotix from taking their balls on the road to CES in Las Vegas where, of course, Mac Rumors got their hands on them.

The demonstration, which took place in a mini-arena of sorts, yielded some neat pieces of intel about Sphero. Most relevant to us is the fact that Orbotix wants to release the API to App Store creators, allowing anyone with the knowhow to sculpt games around the device.

At the event, Orbotix suggested soccer or bowling games could be made, which yeah, I totally could see that happening if the device took off. But will it take off? I don’t know. I lost my fortuneteller license in a fire. But I do know that people like crazy little devices that can move around.

Orbotix hopes to launch Sphero in “late 2011” for under one hundred bones — and hopefully well under $100 if it hopes that more than 12 people will take a look at it.

[via Mac Rumors]

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In 2009, our game of the year was Spider: The Secret of Bryce Manor [99¢ / HD], a title that perfectly embodied what we loved about iPhone gaming. After weeks of deliberation, lists, email chains, and IM conversations we've settled on the official TouchArcade iPhone game of the year for 2010: Venan Entertainment's Space Miner: Space Ore Bust [$1.99 / Lite / HD].

In our review we called it "one of the best games [we've] played since the App Store went live over a year and a half ago." Looking back on the game releases of 2010 trying to pick what we thought was the best lead to us continually coming back to Space Miner. We loved the classic Asteroids-style gameplay, the clever storytelling, and the degree of customization that kept us coming back for more through multiple play throughs. Depending on how you load your ship out, the game plays much differently. For instance, you can be a glass cannon prioritizing asteroid-pulverizing guns, or take a more slow and steady approach prioritizing shields and cargo space for huge hauls of ore.

Space Miner HD is great on the iPad, and we also really enjoyed Space Miner Blast [Free], a game based on Space Miner with much of the depth of the original game stripped out to instead focus on quick arcade-style gameplay. Also, the original Space Miner has been updated to include some really great looking Retina Display graphics. If you played through the game when it was originally released earlier this year, we hope this serves as a good reminder to reinstall this game and enjoy it again. If this is the first you've heard of Space Miner, it is a game that simply must be part of your game library.

Runner Up: Carcassonne

The Coding Monkeys have two Apple Design Awards under their belt for their two Mac programs, SubEthaEdit and BoinxTV. Taking this in to account, it's no surprise at all that the overall design and presentation of Carcassonne [$9.99] could not possibly be better. Based on the classic board game of the same name, Carcassonne is without a doubt the best adaptation of any board game that we've seen on the App Store. Instead of implementing unnecessary 3D graphics like EA has with their Hasbro classics, The Coding Monkeys focused on how the game plays.

Carcassonne starts with a fantastic completely voiced over tutorial to guide new players in to the game, and game modes that allow you to either play in massive single player games with many types of AI players or a number of different multiplayer modes. These modes include single device hot seat multiplayer, local Bluetooth or WiFi, and even online asynchronous play utilizing push alerts. Honestly, the only thing we could even ask for is that they eventually implement the various Carcassonne expansions as in-app purchase. We've be all over that.

If you've had Carcassonne on your device since it was released, be sure to swing by the thread where people are still looking for others to play with. Otherwise, it recently saw an update which added universal compatibility, making this game a must-have for both iPhone and iPad owners.

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Pixelocity Software is a development team of two brothers who have previous experience in the game industry working on big name console titles. They decided to branch out and form their own studio in an effort to create smaller, more fun-focused titles. Based on their first iOS offering Disc Drivin' [$2.99/Free], they're off to a pretty fantastic start.

Disc Drivin' is a turn-based racing game that can be played locally or online with up to 4 players in each race. If “turn-based racing game” sounds weird to you, you're not alone, as I had trouble envisioning how something like that could work or even be fun when I first heard of the game. However, once I actually tried Disc Drivin' it quickly became clear just how brilliant an idea it is. If you've ever played the board game Pitch Car, this is essentially the video game equivalent. It's missing a couple of online features that keep it from realizing its full potential, but the foundation is solidly in place for what I can only describe as Words With Friends [99¢/Lite/HD] meets racing.

In Disc Drivin', cars are replaced with tiny discs that are advanced down a race track one flick at a time. Choose what direction to aim your disc, and the power and angle of your flick determines the course the disc will take. Physics play a role as your disc will slide along the ground like a shuffleboard puck and bounce off of walls and other objects along the track. Once you've flicked your disc and it finally comes to rest, it's the next player's turn, and play continues like this as you each make your way around 3 laps of a track to complete a race.

Various special move can also be used to spice up the racing. Sliding your disc along the track or bumping into other players' discs fills up a power gauge, and once this gauge is full you can unleash one of the 6 special moves in the game. These include a speed burst, the ability to stop on a dime (handy if you're about to fly off a track), and a jump for leaping over obstacles or taking shortcuts, among other moves. Also, each of the 12 different tracks are filled with obstacles, like speed boost pads, pinball-like bumpers, and ramps.

The way that players each take turns moving is what makes Disc Drivin' a perfect fit for the asynchronous online play it contains. You'll take your turn, close out of the app and go about your business, and once the other players have taken their turns you'll receive a push notification that it's your turn again. In addition to online play, there is also local play over WiFi or Bluetooth and a single-device pass-and-play mode for up to 8 players. Sadly, there is no single-player component with computer AI to race against, and Disc Drivin' is strictly a multiplayer-focused game at the moment.

What's funny about Disc Drivin' is that it has actually been out for a couple of weeks, but I didn't start to notice it until practically everybody in my Twitter feed was talking about the game and setting up matches with each other. And this brings me to my biggest complaint about Disc Drivin', which is that there is no built-in way to find new players or match up with random people. You have to know the username of who you'd like to add to an online race beforehand, and there's no friend list to keep track of who you play with. Both of these problems could be handled with the use of Game Center, but for now you'll need to rely on reaching out to your fellow Man using social networks and the like for exchanging usernames.

There are a couple of really nice features included in the online games, though. First there is a simple text chat that is easily accessible anytime during a game, and while in my experience it's mostly used for trash talk it can occasionally come in handy to compliment an opponent on a particularly nice move as well. The other great feature is the ability to watch a replay of each opponent's previous move, which is extremely helpful to get you up to speed when jumping into a game after a period of time. Also worth mentioning is that while the graphics are fairly simple, they're actually quite attractive. The tracks and landscapes are colorful and support the Retina Display, and the game runs at an incredibly smooth frame rate.

Even with the somewhat limited matchmaking, Disc Drivin' is a total blast to play. The flicking mechanic works well and the physics in the game are floaty and fun. The special moves and the extensive number of well-designed tracks adds a lot of variety to the gameplay, and you'll no doubt experience a lot of epic moments during races, like blasting into the lead with a speed boost, knocking an opponent off a track, or nailing a perfect shortcut jump to take a huge lead. Something about the gameplay is just so satisfying, and the turn-based nature fits into a busy lifestyle. In fact, I've been playing almost the entire time while I've been writing this review, and you can have up to 20 games going at once if you wish.

If Pixelocity can find a way to streamline matchmaking and add a friends list, and possibly even a single-player component for offline play, then Disc Drivin' could be really huge. For now, you can check out the game's thread in our forums to pick up some usernames and start up some matches. Even in its current form, Disc Drivin' is still a fun and unique experience, and the free version is actually the full game supported with ads, so there's no reason not to download it and take these discs for a spin.

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The App Store has continued to grow in leaps and bounds in 2010. The number of apps in the App Store soared past 300,000 with hundreds of new games being released every day.

We sat down trying to figure out the best iPhone games of 2010 and found the task of narrowing down the list to a select few to be near impossible. Instead, we've organized our year in review into categories with what we feel is an excellent cross section of games from 2010. If you just got an iPhone or iPod Touch for Christmas, this list is an excellent starting place to catch you up. Note that many of the games also have iPad versions which are also linked.

Casual

Cut the Rope, $0.99 – [Lite / iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – Proving that a cute main character, clever level designs, and simple touch screen controls are a formula for success, Cut the Rope has ridden the top of the charts practically since it was first released. The goal is to navigate a dangling bit of candy into the mouth of the adorable and hungry Om Nom by cutting the correct ropes to set it free. Just feeding the lil' guy isn't so hard, but getting 3 stars and a high score on each level can be, and is what has brought people back to Cut the Rope time and time again.

Fruit Ninja, $0.99 – [Lite / iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – When Fruit Ninja was first released, it was novel for using a simple swiping mechanic to slice fruit out of the air. It was hard to explain the appeal, but it was an oddly satisfying experience and quickly shot up to the top of the charts. Since then it's gained new modes, unlockable items, and online multiplayer, and has become a mainstay on my device. Who would have though slicing fruit could be so much fun?

Robot Unicorn Attack, $0.99 – [iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – The iOS port of this popular Flash game from Adult Swim meant you could have all the rainbows, fairies, unicorns, and as much Erasure's Always in your pocket with you at all times. This endless running game adds additional moves like double jumps and dashes to the formula, wrapping everything in a sugary sweet graphical package that is the epitome of “ironically cool” and also a ton of fun.

Tilt to Live, $2.99 – [Lite / iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – In its intial release, the game was based around a simple but fun formula of frantically avoiding red dots and using various power-ups to dispatch them. Since then, several updates have been released adding great new power-ups, game modes, and more.

Solipskier, $0.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – A universal game where you draw the slope for a skier to ski down. To make him speed up, you draw a downward slope, and to make him jump you simply draw a ramp. It works incredibly well both on the iPhone and iPad.

Platformer

Bounce On 2: Drallo’s Demise, $3.99 – [Lite / iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – Bounce On 2: Drallo's Demise succeeds in delivering highly enjoyable platform gameplay to the iPhone. The original was fun, but the sequel goes well beyond, feeling notably more "fleshed out," with a good deal more eye-candy. While there's certainly room for more quality platformers in the App Store, Bounce On 2 is among the best.

Fastar!, $1.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – Fight angry squares in this action RPG. The name of the game is speed runs, and the goal of Fastar is to play the game faster and faster. There's a cool magic system, online leaderboards, and squares that explode coins when they die. What's not to love?

Dark Nebula – Episode Two, $1.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – We loved the first installment, and the second is even better. You control a disc-like object by tilting, but to call this game a simple ball roller hardly seems to do it justice. The level design is amazing, and there's even a new combat system to allow for boss fights.

Babylonian Twins Premium, $1.99 – [iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – Sixteen years in the making, Babylonian Twins delivers an amazingly challenging yet satisfying iPhone and iPad puzzle platformer. In many modern platformers, I've felt like I'm just mindlessly going through the motions to make it to the end of each level. Babylonian Twins, however, really keeps you enthralled throughout.

Hook Worlds, $0.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – Developer Rocketcat Games practically perfected the “hooking game” genre with their previous two App Store releases, and Hook Worlds is a culmination of that expertise. Offering 3 (soon to be 4) endless running games injected with the hooking mechanic, Hook Worlds manages to make each one feel unique despite using the same core gameplay. This is topped off with tight controls, charming pixel art, and the humorous tidings that Rocketcat is known for.

Retro

Pix’n Love Rush, $0.99 – [iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – Like a platforming game with ADD, Pix'n Love Rush offers bite sized levels with constantly changing themes. The themes run the gamut of retro consoles, including the greyscale screen of the Game Boy and headache inducing red of the Virtual Boy. The jumping, shooting, and coin collecting is complemented with solid virtual controls, and every facet of the visuals just ooze style. On top of that Pix'n Love Rush is just a frantically fun good time.

The Incident, $1.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – This curious tilt-based game has you climbing a seemingly never-ending pile of junk all the way in to space. It's packed with some really great pixel art, and is even universal with some cool interaction between devices allowing you to do things like use an iPhone to control the iPad game via Bluetooth.

Vector Tanks EXTREME!, $1.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – We're not entirely sure it's possible to pack more retro charm in to this game. As the title may hint, you compete in battles against other tanks, and the whole game is drawn in glorious vector graphics. If you were around during the 80's to play Battlezone, you need this game.

FINAL FANTASY, $3.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – A great port of the classic NES title that started it all. Final Fantasy II is also available, but this is the game you should start with. If you were around for the original release of the game, hearing the opening theme again will likely be worth the price of admission alone.

Secret of Mana, $8.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – One of the timeless role-playing games from the bygone SNES era, Secret of Mana is a huge fan favorite among RPG gamers and has finally arrived on iOS. Practically everything you remember about Secret of Mana is intact in this new version, both the good and the bad, and has been reworked effectively for virtual touch screen controls. If you loved this classic title nearly two decades ago, then it's practically essential to have in your iOS library.

Role Playing

Infinity Blade, $5.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – ChAIR's amazing gesture-based swordfighter which utilizes the Unreal Engine to provide the best graphics we've seen so far on the platform. Sadly, you'll need a 3rd generation iPod, iPhone 3GS, or later to enjoy them. If you've got a recent device, this is not a game to miss.

Aralon: Sword and Shadow HD, $6.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – There have been many RPGs released on the App Store, but none with the depth and scope of Aralon. The game is home to an epic game world complete with multiple races, classes, mounts to ride, crafting recipes to master, and quests to complete.

LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4, $4.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – A fantastic port of Years 1-4. It's universal, has Retina Display support, and just as much content and depth as the full console counterparts. Unfortunately, since it's a port it also retains the console-style save system which isn't as mobile friendly as we'd like it to be.

CHAOS RINGS, $5.99 – [iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – One of the most ambitious RPG games we've seen so far for the iPhone. The graphics and gameplay are exactly what you'd expect out of a Square Enix RPG. Battle in parties of two in classic turn-based battles as you make your way through a story that's just as ridiculous as any other Japanese RPG.

Strategy / Sim

Sword & Poker, $2.99 – [Lite] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – At the core Sword & Poker is a card-based strategy/adventure game where battles take place by making poker hands on a 5×5 grid. The "Sword" portion of Sword & Poker comes from the roleplaying game layered on top of these poker battles. The strange blend of genres works quite well and is a game we really loved.

Warpgate, $4.99 – [Lite / iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – A space conquest game with an amazing sense of scope. Warpgate has cool graphics, an interesting faction system to get involved in, and a dynamic in-game economy that can keep you busy for as long as you remain interested in the game.

Plants vs. Zombies, $2.99 – [iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – Popcap's casual tower defense game hardly needs an introduction. Plants vs Zombies is a game that's easy enough to appeal to everyone, yet fun enough to warrant multiple play throughs without issue.

Game Dev Story, $2.99 – [Lite] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – At first glance this appears to be an abysmal port of a J2ME game… Then you play it. A few hours later you will be looking for your charger to keep playing. In the game you run your own game studio, managing staff, making games, and even releasing your own console. Once Game Dev Story sucks you in, it's impossible to put down.

Monkey Island 2 Special Edition: LeChuck’s Revenge, $0.99 – [Lite / iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – Few games inspire more heartfelt nostalgia than the classic LucasArts adventure games of the late 80's and early 90's. The improved iOS control scheme in the sequel which works like many other iPhone adventures games where you just touch areas in the game world that you want to move to, or objects you want to interact with. Fans of the series are in for a treat with this installment.

Osmos, $0.99 – [iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – In this award winning indie game, you control a tiny organism called a "mote". By tapping in a direction, you expel mass towards where you tapped, and your mote goes zooming off the other direction. With each tap you lose a little bit of your mass, so it doesn't take long before you're making extremely calculated taps to get exactly where you want to go with minimal loss of size. Your mote can absorb any mote that it smaller than it, but it also can be absorbed by any mote that is larger than it. The gameplay translates beautifully on both the iPad and iPhone and is a great great experience.

Action / Shooter

STREET FIGHTER IV, $6.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – We were incredibly skeptical of how Street Fighter would work with touch screen controls, but have been pleasantly surprised. Also, since the original release, Capcom has consistently updated the game with new characters to play as. Also, if you've got a friend nearby who also owns the game you can play against each other using Bluetooth.

Chopper 2, $4.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – The long-awaited sequel of one of the most popular action games of the original App Store launch. It also has all kinds of crazy control options utilizing its universal nature on both the iPhone and iPad, and it's everything a great sequel should be. It expands on everything that made the original great, with some new things thrown in to the mix.

Archetype, $0.99 – [iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – Five on five online deathmatch, capture the flag, and more. Archetype has Retina Display graphics, and the HD version looks great on the iPad. If online FPS games are your thing, this isn't one you should miss.

Dodonpachi Resurrection, $8.99 – [Lite] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – When it comes to bullet hell shooters, it doesn't get much better than Dodonpachi Resurrection. There is so much going on at once in this game that it can be entirely overwhelming at times (in a good way), but this also prevents it from running on devices older than the iPhone 3GS and 3rd generation iPod touch.

Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, $9.99 – [Lite / iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars is by far the best open world crime game available on the platform. The sheer amount of content, the amazing graphics, and gameplay that will keep you coming back for more whether you choose to follow the story or rampage through Liberty City on your own is absolutely fantastic.

Racing

Real Racing 2, $9.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – A marvelous sequel to Firemint's original Real Racing, which improves upon the first in every way imaginable. A career mode, licensed cars, and 16 player online multiplayer are just a few of the new features. It also will run on any device, even the first generation iPod touch.

Cubed Rally Racer, $1.99 – [Lite / iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – A wonderful homage to isometric racing games, Cubed Rally Racer is completely randomized, so you'll never play the same track twice. Similarly, if a particular track is too difficult, you can simply generate a new one to play. The iPad version features split screen single-device multiplayer which is a ton of fun.

Reckless Racing, $0.99 – [Lite / iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – An incredibly enjoyable top-down arcade racer with multiple cars, game modes, and even online multiplayer. Retina Display graphics and an excellent physics system heighten the experience, although we wish there were more tracks to race on as Deliverace is one of those games you never want to end.

Puzzle / Board

Carcassonne, $9.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – There are many board games that have made their way to the App Store, but Carcassonne is by far the finest. Online asynchronous multiplayer, Retina Display graphics, universal compatibility, and classic gameplay. It doesn't get much better than this.

Trainyard, $0.99 – [Lite] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – A puzzle game based on laying train tracks to route multi-colored trains around the game board. Solutions can be shared online, and after you beat a level it's even more fun to see the zillion other ways that everyone else solved it.

Zen Bound® 2 Universal, $0.99 [Forum Thread] – Zen Bound 2 is filled with relaxing gameplay supplemented by one of the best (if not the best) soundtrack I've heard in an iPhone game, and the gameplay mechanic of rotating string around a 3D object to cover it in paint works phenomenally with the multi-touch controls of iOS devices– and even more so when you throw the gyroscope of the iPhone 4 in to the mix.

Helsing’s Fire, $0.99 – [Lite / iPad] – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – Helsing's Fire sends you on a quest to destroy Dracula, placing you in 90 randomly generated, dungeon-like levels across three different worlds. The challenge is to eliminate said beasties by moving your torch about the screen, which casts brilliant beams of light and dark shadows about the play area. It's one of the most unique games I've ever played and is a true App Store gem.

Sports

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2, $0.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – A surprisingly competent port of the classic skateboarding game. Everything is included from the original, and once you get used to the virtual controls, you'll be performing endless combos in no time in the many included skating locations.

MADDEN NFL 11 by EA SPORTS™, $0.99 – [iPad]- [Review] – [Forum Thread] – The Madden series hardly needs an introduction, as football player turned coach turned commentator John Madden has had his name on football games for the better part of 20 years now. EA introduced a new featured called GameFlow this year which will intelligently chooses plays for you. It is absolutely insane how much this changes both the feel and the pace of the game. Using GameFlow, endless submenus of plays are a thing of the past. Instead, you just play football.

X2 Soccer 10/11, $4.99 – [iPad]- [Review] – [Forum Thread] – X2 Soccer 2010 brings improvements to graphics, controls, computer AI, new game modes and more teams. X2 Soccer 2010 has over 150 club teams to choose from in 10 different leagues, plus international teams from all over the world. X2 Soccer 2010 is one of the top soccer game experiences right now on the App Store.

X2 Snowboarding, $4.99 – [Lite / iPad]- [Review] – [Forum Thread] – X2 Snowboarding from Exient is a highly enjoyable romp on the slopes that sets itself apart from the crowd in a number of ways. All of the aspects of X2 Snowboarding come together to deliver a highly enjoyable game with a surprising sense of speed and immersion.

Odds and Ends

Sketch Nation Shooter, $0.99 – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – While it isn't that great of a game in itself, Sketch Nation Shooter is one of the most creative uses of the iPhone camera we've seen yet. You sketch a doodle on a piece of paper, take a photo of it, and then import it in to little mini games you create. Gameplay is a little limited, but does it really matter if you turn a drawing of your cat in to an end boss?

Godville, Free – [Review] – [Forum Thread] – Godville is a "zero-player game" in that it requires absolutely no interaction from the player at all. Your character in Godville plays himself, all by himself, and you take the role of an omnipotent god and can either encourage or punish your hero, or do nothing at all. It's surprisingly amusing to just be able to load up your Godville character and vicariously live through his randomized adventures without needing to actually do anything at all.

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Given the incredible success of Street Fighter IV [$9.99] since its release on the App Store, I've always wondered if its 90s arcade competitor Mortal Kombat would ever grace our touch screens. Just a few days ago, it was confirmed that indeed an iOS version of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 was in the works from the folks at EA Mobile. And just like that, yesterday Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 [$6.99] was released in the App Store.

I'm a diehard Mortal Kombat fan, going back to the very first release in arcades almost two decades ago. I've since owned just about every version of every Mortal Kombat game for every console over the years. I even bought and suffered through the abomination that is Mortal Kombat Advance on the GBA, so I can definitely recognize a terrible MK game when I see it. And Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 for iOS is far from terrible, and in fact it's pretty good. It gets a lot of things right, and even does some interesting new things, but some of the changes will alienate longtime fans who are looking for a trip down nostalgia road, and the poor execution of the controls can make the game difficult to enjoy.

The most significant thing to notice about Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 is that despite its name this is in no way a direct port of the arcade game. The biggest change is that the game is completely rendered in 3D. Purists will likely cry foul at this design choice, but I have a more positive feeling towards it. The characters are comprised of fairly basic 3D models but they look like their originals for the most part, and this also allows them to appear extra crisp, especially on the Retina Display. I can't imagine the old digitized sprites looking especially great on iOS screens, and the many frames needed to animate them would likely cause performance issues. Because of these points, I understand and accept the decision to go 3D.

One huge disappointment though is the lack of available characters. Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 in the arcades boasted a healthy roster of 22+ fighters, whereas the iOS version only has a selection of 11 including two unlockable characters, and I believe the two bosses are playable though I have yet to verify that myself. Hopefully they take a page out of Street Fighter IV's playbook and offer frequent updates with new characters, because as it is now the roster feels lacking.

The best part about the game being in 3D is that the redone backgrounds look downright gorgeous. Again there is only a selection of 10 stages from the original arcade game's 16 or so, but the ones chosen here are the best of the bunch and contain all of the levels with stage fatalities. There's really nothing like knocking someone in front of a subway train or into a pit of spikes in 3D. On that note, all of the fatalities, babalities, friendships, and animalities are included for each of the characters. Some of these look better in 3D, and some I would prefer the original, but either way it's still hugely satisfying to pull off a finishing move on a defeated opponent, and that's what's important.

Regardless of your feelings about the graphics, none of it would matter anyway if the game didn't control well. Here is where Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 slips up the most. It offers two control schemes and the ability to move the buttons for each wherever you want on the screen. The joystick remains fixed, but it's in a pretty good default position anyway.

The first “pro” control scheme has all 6 buttons of the original arcade game, and all the moves are performed just like in the original. This is my preferred way to play because it's what I know, but it also makes it difficult to pull of moves that require multiple buttons to be held down at the same time, like Sub-Zero's slide for example. The second “easy” control setup features only 5 buttons – punch, kick, block, run, and special. This scheme changes all the special moves and fatalities into simple combinations of the special button and joystick directions. Both setups have their strengths and weaknesses, and neither is completely ideal, but they are both competent enough to get the job done.

The real problem with the controls has to do with the responsiveness. It's a strange phenomenon, really, because at the beginning of the match they work just fine. But as the match prolongs they stop responding as well. Button presses have a way of getting bunched up, and moves that you were trying to perform will play out much later than you intended. There's no way to stop this from happening either, so you'll just have to sit there until the string of button presses is completed before you can focus back on the action of the current moment. It doesn't render the game unplayable, but it's a frustrating problem that definitely needs to be addressed.

Content-wise, Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 contains an arcade mode with 4 tiers of difficulty, a local multiplayer mode over WiFi or Bluetooth (complete with the 6 symbol code entry functionality of the arcade game), a survival mode, and a Shao Karnage mode. Shao Karnage mode is brand new, and is actually pretty neat. It pits you against Shao Kahn using the character of your choice, sans health bars for either character, to see how many points worth of damage you can do to him in 99 seconds. There are supposedly online leaderboards for both survival and Shao Karnage modes, but for some reason I have yet to get them working.

Initially I was turned off by Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, but I stuck with it and the game grew on me by leaps and bounds. I've had a lot of fun playing it, and there's all sorts of potential here for it to be a stellar Mortal Kombat game. Assuming you can get past the lack of characters and the new look of the graphics, the only actual problem with the game is the laggy controls. They're workable now, but I'd really like to see them improved in the future. Of course, adding more characters couldn't hurt either. For being the first Mortal Kombat game on the App Store, I ended up being pretty impressed, and there's a lot of positive impressions of the game in our forums as well.

If you're a fan of Mortal Kombat then you'll likely get enough enjoyment out of this version of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 to justify the purchase, but if you're looking for a comparable fighting experience to the iOS version of Street Fighter IV then you may want to hold off and see how this game evolves over time.

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I always like the good news first, so here it is: Secret of Mana for the iPhone will be released this year, presumably before the App Store freeze on the 23rd. The bad news? That's really all we know. The game's producer, Masaru Oyamada, isn't giving out any details on the Squre Enix Facebook page aside from the fact that it's done, and he's happy. Look how happy:

In addition, they're also not discussing pricing aside from the fact that it won't be 99¢, and it will cost less than Chaos Rings. So, basically, what we know for sure is that the game is being released at some undetermined point in the future, and it will cost money. Also, here are three new screenshots:

Secret of Mana was one of the many classic RPGs that SquareSoft released for the Super Nintendo. Instead of turn-based battles like previous games, Secret of Mana is played in real time, similar to a Zelda game. Also, Secret of Mana had a really awesome coop mode where you could play through the game with the help of another player. Last month, I would have doubted that this mode would make its way to the iPhone, but with Sega implementing Bluetooth multiplayer in their Genesis games, I'm not even sure what to think anymore.

At least it sounds like we won't have to wait much longer to find out.

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Today is the eve of the final Thursday in December before the pre-holiday iTunes Connect freeze. Starting on December 23rd and running until the 28th, developers won't be able to release new games or updates, or change any of the prices of their games. Last year the top sales charts also got frozen, and no one knows if that's going to be the case again this year or not. What we're seeing now is the mad rush to get everyone's games released before the freeze. If you were looking forward to a game with a holiday release date that isn't in this list, it's still possible that it will get released, but it's looking more and more unlikely as we get closer to the 23rd.

All of these games should now be available worldwide. Get mashin' that buy now button-

Aralon: Sword and Shadow HD, $6.99 – [Forum Thread] – The highly anticipated collaboration between Crescent Moon Games and Galoobeth Games is almost upon us. We were impressed with the depth of the game in our preview last week, and the excitement for Aralon couldn't possibly be higher in its massive thread in our upcoming games forum.

Real Racing 2, $9.99 – [Forum Thread] – Last week Firemint revealed the full details on just what to expect in Real Racing 2. A career mode, licensed cars, and tons of track are all some of the goodies that we're going to be in store for. Oh, yeah, and there's also 16 player online multiplayer that basically rewrites what to expect of iPhone online multiplayer gaming.

World of Goo for iPad, $9.99 – [Forum Thread] – As mentioned in our recent review, World of Goo on the iPad is simply incredible. It was a remarkable game before it hit the App Store, winning buckets full of awards and scoring many 10/10 reviews… and the touch interface only serves to make the game even better. I've been unable to put this game down since we scored our preview copy. If you have an iPad, you need this game.

Dungeon Defenders: First Wave, $2.99 – [Forum Thread] – This is the second game available on the App Store that utilizes Unreal Engine 3, but the graphics aren't what's impressive about Dungeon Defenders. What's truly awesome about it is the Game Center-powered multiplayer that allows four players to play together in a cooperative mix of tower defense-like gameplay mixed with an action RPG. It's even universal.

N.O.V.A. 2 – Near Orbit Vanguard Alliance, $6.99 – [Forum Thread] – Gameloft is back again with a second installment in the N.O.V.A. series. This one will have you battling through 12 chapters in the singleplayer campaign, which I have a feeling will take a back seat to the 10 player online multiplayer. 10 maps are included for online play with 5 different game modes which include standard and team based deathmatch, capture the flag, freeze tag, and instagib.

Geared 2, 99¢ – [Forum Thread] – We loved the original Geared, and its sequel seems better in every way. Gameplay amounts to figuring out how to place gears to make the target gears spin, and unlike other gear-based games there isn't any kind of grid for the gears to lock on to, allowing you to place them wherever you like. Oh, and to make things better, it's launching at a buck and is universal.

Battlefield: Bad Company 2, 99¢ – 15 missions are included as well as 4 player online multiplayer. In comparison to other games being released today, that doesn't sound like a whole lot, but it's a game from a popular franchise that's also launching at 99¢– A price I'm not sure many expected.

Shadow Guardian, $6.99 – [Forum Thread] – Gameloft's take on the Uncharted series. Gameplay involves lots of running, gunning, jumping, climbing, and of course, treasure hunting.

Hook Worlds, 99¢ – [Forum Thread] – Evolving the Hook Champ and Super QuickHook world even further is Hook Worlds, a swinging game that Rocketcat Games is calling four games in one. Four game worlds are included, and while they all rely on swinging of some sort, each world looks and plays different thanks to four different characters with their own abilities.

Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light, $6.99 – [Forum Thread] – An incredibly unexpected release by Square Enix, especially as I (and I doubt I'm alone on this) were expecting their next games to be their classic ports of RPG's they've been talking about forever now. Sadly, the port leaves much to be desired as mentioned in our first impressions post. Definitely wait for an update to fix critical issues before buying.

Altered Beast, $2.99 – [Forum Thread] – My mother would literally murder me if she had any idea just how many quarters I pumped in to the local Altered Beast machine. I'm surprised it took Sega this long to release this game, as in my eyes it's just as classic as Sonic. Either way, it comes loaded with their new bluetooth multiplayer compatibility for two player beasting.

Broken Sword – The Smoking Mirror: Remastered, $6.99 – [Forum Thread] – The continuation of the Broken Sword series, in a universal app. We loved the first installment, and are expecting great things from its sequel.

The Game of Life for iPad, $6.99 – [Forum Thread] – While The Game of Life is nowhere close to as near and dear to my heart as Monopoly is, I love board games on the iPad. This version has a few exclusive features such as being able to view the whole board and local multiplayer with up to 6 players at once. I'm still waiting for my iPad version of Mouse Trap!

Pix'n Love Rush DX, $3.99 – [Forum Thread] – I still can't get enough of the original Pix'n Love Rush for the iPhone, and the iPad version seems to be dripping with even more high scoring retro charm.

ZombieSmash HD, $2.99 – [Forum Thread] – We thought the original was great in our review, and from the looks of it, the iPad version provides even more zombie punishing action. The HD version adds multitouch controls for even more zombie mayhem.

Pocket God: Journey To Uranus, $4.99 – [Forum Thread] – This not-so pocketable version of Pocket God comes with an awesome new space interface, two new minigames, and other fun things. And of course, Bolt Creative is promising tons of updates.

Space Miner HD, $2.99 – [Forum Thread] – We absolutely adored the original Space Miner in our review, and while it would be cool if the game was universal, this is one HD we don't mind re-buying.

Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, $6.99 – [Forum Thread] – Mortal Kombat with Retina Display graphics? Street Fighter proved that a fighter could work well on the iPhone, and hopefully Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 continues that tradition.

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