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We've posted at length regarding all the other gamebooks available on the App Store, but they all (or at least the ones I've read) are set in fantasy worlds with orcs, dragons, wizards, and other mystical things. Star Breed [$2.99], as the title may hint, is a two part episodic story with a glorious sci-fi setting. Initially, it can be run on either the iPhone or iPad with pixel doubling, but a universal update is in the works that will make it look even better on the iPad.

The developers explain the premise of the story:

By the year 2387 AD, Mankind has spread across the stars leaving a destroyed Earth behind.

A now unified human government, the United Dominion of Man (UDM), spreads unchallenged, marshaled by its most powerful agency, its Armed Forces (UDAF). The UDAF spends billions each year on weapons and technology to accelerate this colonization of the stars. Man now reigns supreme over a thriving new world, one encompassing hundreds of star systems. His progress has gone unimpeded – he has yet to come upon intelligent alien life.

Man's civilization is at its peak in this era of expansion when the game begins. The player takes on the role of an Officer in the Armed Forces. When a human survey ship operating in fringe space goes silent while exploring an uninhabited planet, the results are far-reaching and threaten to alter the course of human history forever. The player is at the forefront of the horrific turn of events that follow. The choices he or she makes will decide the outcome of the story … and the fate of mankind.

Something that's really cool about Star Breed is that dice-based challenges have been replaced with skill-based mini-games. While this is somewhat of a departure from the random nature of traditional gamebooks, it's so much nicer to actually feel like you're controlling the outcome of things instead of slowly watching a set of dice allow a pair of goblins to bring your tale to an end. Also, since this gamebook was designed from the ground up to be played on the iPhone, the decisions you make can often result in subtle differences in the story that go beyond turning to two different pages depending on which path you want to take.

I've been amazed by just how much I've found myself enjoying gamebooks on both the iPhone and iPad. Be sure to check out some of the other ones we've posted about if this is the first time you've heard of gamebooks, otherwise, Star Breed – Episode 1 is a worthy download for any fan of interactive fiction.

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Halfbrick, creators of Fruit Ninja [99¢ / HD], Monster Dash [99¢] released a new trailer for their next iPhone game today, Age of Zombies. This dual stick shooter actually started its life as a PSP Mini earlier this year, and while it was yet another zombie game and yet another dual stick shooter, it still was reviewed quite well.

The iOS version of the game is launching on the 28th as a universal app, and features new graphics, controls, and content not found in the original PSP game.

Check out the trailer:

I had a great time with Monster Dash, so it's hard to not get excited to see yet another game starring Barry Steakfries. We'll post a review as soon as the game is available.

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Battle for Wesnoth [99¢ / HD] is an open source turn-based strategy game originally released on the PC in 2003. Since then, both the iOS and PC versions of the game have seen substantial improvements as well as seemingly a constant supply of new content created by a massive community of Wesnoth fans that build characters, maps, individual battles, and all-out campaigns.

The PC version is available as a free download and can run on both Windows and Mac OSX. The iPhone version of the game was a little rough around the edges when we first reviewed it, it has improved substantially with each update. Also, each update has brought additional content to the game and currently there are 15 full campaigns which include nearly 200 scenarios. If turn based strategy games are your thing, Wesnoth will keep you busy for a long, long time.

If you're lucky enough to own an iPad, I'd totally spring for the HD version of the game. Battle for Wesnoth makes great use of the bigger screen, and while playing it on the iPhone is still fun, the overall experience is much better on the iPad. For more information on Wesnoth, strategy discussion, and other tips, check out the absolutely massive thread in our forums.

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One of the big announcements last week from Apple was the announcement of a Mac App Store — coming soon to both Snow Leopard and Mac OS X Lion (due in 2011).

Now we realize that not all of our readers are Mac users, but the announcement definitely makes waves in both the iOS and Mac communities. The App Store model has been a huge success with both developers and users. Users enjoy a centralized repository of apps that provide a seemingly endless stream of cool new toys. Meanwhile, developers are able to leverage the massive App Store audience to sell their goods and (hopefully) make a living.

Applying that model to the Mac seems like a natural extension. We've heard both users and developers reacting favorably and cautiously about the new system. We're not entirely sure the type of apps that will gain the most steam on this newly created ecosystem, but I do think that many iOS apps will find their to the Mac.

Firemint has already announced that Flight Control HD will be Mac-bound soon:

It's hard to say how Flight Control will fare using (we presume to be) mouse controls. But, Apple's invested heavily in laptop and desktop multi-touch pads which open up some really interesting possibilities.

Illusion Labs demoed this Multi-touch MacBook version of Touch Grind months ago, well before the launch of the Mac App Store.

We hope they'll dust off this code and see what they can do for the Mac App Store.

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Villain and Munkyfun's online first-person shooter Archetype [99¢] received a massive new update over the weekend, adding some new features to the original game for free and and even more new stuff through an available in-app purchase. The game has once again dropped to 99¢, and it sounds like that may be the new permanent price for the “base model” of Archetype, which is now referred to as Chapter 1. This new update adds a new arena for multiplayer called Shotgun Arena and a new advanced training level.

Buying the IAP Chapter 2 will add even more content to Archetype. The major addition with this purchase is a capture the flag mode, which has been oft requested since the game's release. There are also 3 brand new environments in this chapter, and 6 new arenas. Crimson Moon and Aqua Lock each have team deathmatch and capture the flag variants, Obsidian Skirmish adds a brand new team deathmatch arena, and previous arena Avarice has been reworked for capture the flag play.

Both chapters now feature story elements that are gradually unlocked as you play through multiplayer matches and earn experience, adding a cohesive campaign to go along with your online fragging. Game Center support has also been added for unlocking achievements and tracking high scores. Rounding out this giant update is a number of fixes and optimizations to Archetype, which smooth out the entire experience and improve matchmaking speeds considerably.

Perhaps the best part of all this is that the additional chapter available through IAP launched on Saturday for $2.99, but has since been discounted to just 99¢. This move was probably made to increase the amount of people playing the capture the flag mode. If you already own Archetype I would definitely recommend updating to the latest version and purchasing Chapter 2 while it's only 99¢. If you don't yet own Archetype, but like first-person shooters, check out our original review as we think it's one of the best ones available in the App Store.

You can drop by the game thread in our forums for more information or to find some people to add to your Archetype friends list. As it seems the new game model for Archetype is this downloadable chapters system, we're eager to see what more will be added to the game in future updates. The enhancements found in this latest update to the iPhone version of Archetype are expected to hit the iPad version soon too, presumably after the release of iOS 4.2 sometime next month.

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Freeverse has recently released — in the Canadian App Store — a social arcade-style bowling game called We Bowl [CA App Store] that utilizes Flick Bowling mechanics and lets you play friends online with integrated Plus+ awards and leaderboards. It's a freemium game that serves as the launch platform for the studio's Wii-like avatar system that could see use in many upcoming Freeverse titles.

Trigger crazy game changing power-ups (or whammies) in head-to-head competition with friends, or hone your skills to level up and win great prizes. We Bowl is fast paced frenetic action — bowling has never been this much fun!

Features include the following, listed by Freeverse:

• Awesome Powerups: Why bowl boring when you can bowl gonzo? Aim for the powerup icon and trigger an amazing assortment of powerups like Shotgun Ball, Thumper Ball, Boulder Ball and more! But watchout for those Whammies!
• Flick Fun Avatar System: Customize your avatar with cat eyes, ponytails, X-Ray glasses and crazy moustaches, then show ‘em off in head to head play with friends
• 2 Great Game Modes: Unlimited multiplayer games with friends, or solo bowling whenever you want, the action never stops.
• Unlockables, Prizes, Collectibles and Achievements: Collect tickets to buy decorations for your lane and whacky accesories for you Avatar

Our forums members are digging it. The game should land in other App Stores shortly.

(Canadian)

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Freeverse has recently released — in the Canadian App Store — a social arcade-style bowling game called We Bowl [CA App Store] that utilizes Flick Bowling mechanics and lets you play friends online with integrated Plus+ awards and leaderboards. It's a freemium game that serves as the launch platform for the studio's Wii-like avatar system that will see use in many upcoming Freeverse titles.

Trigger crazy game changing power-ups (or whammies) in head-to-head competition with friends, or hone your skills to level up and win great prizes. We Bowl is fast paced frenetic action — bowling has never been this much fun!

Features include the following, listed by Freeverse:

• Awesome Powerups: Why bowl boring when you can bowl gonzo? Aim for the powerup icon and trigger an amazing assortment of powerups like Shotgun Ball, Thumper Ball, Boulder Ball and more! But watchout for those Whammies!
• Flick Fun Avatar System: Customize your avatar with cat eyes, ponytails, X-Ray glasses and crazy moustaches, then show ‘em off in head to head play with friends
• 2 Great Game Modes: Unlimited multiplayer games with friends, or solo bowling whenever you want, the action never stops.
• Unlockables, Prizes, Collectibles and Achievements: Collect tickets to buy decorations for your lane and whacky accesories for you Avatar

Our forums members are digging it. The game should land in other App Stores shortly.

(Canadian)

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Here are a few sales and price drops that have just landed, to hopefully help deliver a bit of low-cost, weekend gaming fun.

Archon, $0.99 [ review ], Archon: Conquest, Free [ review ] — React Games has brought the classic 1983 EA action strategy game Archon to the iPhone in two different flavors. Archon for the iPhone is, well, Archon — for the iPhone, more or less a straight remake. Archon: Conquest replaces the chess board of the original with a variety of different environments in which to play — four maps or campaigns with 60 different quests or puzzles to complete in all, visually similar to EA's 1984 sequel, Archon II: Adept. Both titles are on sale until the end of October in honor of the release of Archon PC through Steam.

Archetype, $0.99 [ review ] — We've been in love with Villan's superb online first-person shooter Archetype since we first got our hands on it — and it's a love that shows no sign of fading. Villain has dropped the price of the iPhone version to $0.99, down from $2.99, so if you're a FPS fan and somehow don't yet have this on your device, get to the App Store. Archetype is also available in an iPad version [link].

The Sims 3, $2.99 [ review ], The Sims 3 Ambitions, $2.99, The Sims 3 World Adventures, $1.99 [ review ] — Will Wright's The Sims series is one of the best known in gaming history. EA is currently running a sale on all of the Sims titles in its App Store catalog. The base title is currently reduced in price by $4, while Ambitions is down $2 and World Adventures is down $1.

SimCity™ Deluxe, $0.99 [ details ] — Before The Sims came another extremely well-known and respected series, the city-building simulation SimCity, also by Will Wright. EA is currently running SimCity Deluxe, a follow-up to the original SimCity for the iPhone, at $0.99, down from $4.99.

Pro Evolution Soccer 2010 (US), $0.99 [ details ] — Sports game fans out there may appreciate Konami's recent price drop on their Pro Evolution Soccer 2010, which has just gone from $5.99 to $0.99. The game offers classic virtual-pad controls as well as AI-supported touch controls for those just learning the ropes of the title.

Raging Thunder 2, $2.99 [ video ], Raging Thunder 2 for iPad, $2.99, Wave Blazer, $1.99 [ review ] — Polarbit, who were putting out iPhone games before there was an App Store, have discounted three of their iOS racing titles. Raging Thunder 2, both the iPhone and iPad versions, have dropped from $4.99 to $2.99, while their aquatic, power-boat racer Wave Blazer has sunk in price from $3.99 to $1.99. All three are high-speed fun.

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Our sister site's AppShopper App has recently seen a few updates, including the much requested addition of Push Notifications.

AppShopper tracks all the major changes to the App store, including new apps, updates and sales. For example, with the right combination of filters you can find every app that has gone from Paid to Free. For a less overwhelming view, you can just view popular changes amongst other AppShopper readers.

It's what we use to keep track of interesting game sales, and now you can monitor them on your iPhone or iPad.

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If you're looking for a couple games to play over the weekend for the low price of, well, free– Here are a couple you should try.

Cubed Rally Racer – Back when this game was first released, I gushed like crazy in our review. It's an isometric 3D racer with completely randomized tracks. You can do all kinds of awesome things like endlessly generate tracks to always have something new to race on, then you can even send those tracks and your associated ghost data to any of your friends via OpenFeint. If you've got an iPad, Cubed Rally Racer HD [$1.99] is also worth checking out because the two player spitscreen mode is really cool.

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Giant Moto – We thought Giant Moto had tons of potential when it first was released, but a limited number of tracks and weird controls were hard to overlook. Since then, new tracks have been added along with OpenFeint support for some extra replay value via leaderboards and achievements. If you have fond memories of Excitebike, don't miss this one while it's free.

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