The iPhone thread

The Wii is gathering dust with the Xbox.
My breif relove with the NS died again after I got back into australia.
Is the iphone the one gaming platform that will finally last more than 3 months at snake mountain? I suspect YES, as it lives in my pocket making it easy to play a game when I have a shit at work.

So here is a thread for game stuff for the iphone, or other cool apps.

With games I divide them into 2 categories - 'portable' games are the types of games that are great for portable devices, traditional phone games if you like. They are normally repetative, simple, quick and have a ton of replayability as you try and get a better score. Good gaves more a 5 minute bus ride.

'Proper' games are games which I feel more like a game on a console such as a DS or even a computer. I'm really surprised at how good they are on the iphone - it came as quite a shock to me that these things were even available. These are games you actually need to sit down with rather than play in 5 minute bursts.

Word for Free (portable).
I have never played scrabble and since I can’t spell for shit I’d probably hate it, but this implementation of it is so good I love it. It’s basically play by mail – I set a game up with a friend and we play the one game over a week, taking a few turns each every day. Since iphones travel with you this makes this style of turn based play PERFECT! It really got me excited for boardgames on the iphone, but from what I have heard no other boardgames out there play this way. It’s crap, I don’t want to play an electronic boardgame in the one session, I want to play it in 5 min bursts so I can think over my strategy. Shit like Game of Thrones and Warrior Knights would be awesome in this style.

Fieldrunners (portable)
Dudes run across the map and you have to build turrents to kill them. Very slick implementation, and rather hard. Great fun I and highly recommended.

Flightcontrol (portable)
Planes fly around the map and you have to draw lines to make them land. The gameplay is retardedly simple and cockpunchingly addictive. This is the best ‘5 minute’ game I have ever played. It has such a strong “just ONE more go” feel to it you’ll end up sitting on the can for an extra half an hour. An essential iphone game if you ask me.

Robocalypse (normal)
I got this on special for $1.19 Australian which was the best $1.19 I have ever played. This was the game which really made me say ‘holy shit’ when I got it on a whim – it still amazes me that a game like this is available on a fucking phone! I still remember playing snake for fucks sake! Anyway it’s a RTS in the style of starcraft, but with less micromanagement (a good thing for a phone) has cut scenes and everything. Been hooked on it all weekend and it’s become my ‘demo’ game for showing off the iphone. I think its still on special, go fucking get it now!

Beneath a Steel Sky (normal)
I remember hearing about this adventure game back in the days we were playing Amiga. Saw it on special in the appstore so grabbed it, since I figure an adventure game would be perfect for a portable device – you could try cracking puzzles when you have 5 mins to spare. Haven’t played it yet (waiting till I finish Robo) but it looks spectacular.

Wolfenstien 3D lite (normal)
This is pretty much a perfect port of the old video game, and the controls are as good as can be expected for an iPhone – which basically isn’t that good. I wanted to like it but in the en the iphone just isn’t suited to first person shooters – not being able to ‘feel’ the buttons was a major problem. Didn’t buy the full version, so robot Hitler will never be stopped.

Fling for Free (portable)
Some puzzle game where you fling furballs around to try and clear them off the board. Thought I’d try it since it was the number 1 game at the appstore, and after beating the ‘free’ version (it stops at level 4) saw utterly no reason to buy the full version. It was OK at best.

I have to say that since I've gotten an iPhone, I've barely played the DS at all- and I loved the DS. But the thing is, the qualities I really liked about DS (portability, the ability to get into/out of a game instantly, "full" video game feeling) are all on the iPhone, but more so. I'm actually finding that the last bit, full video game feeling, isn't quite so important and I'm getting more out of 99 cent titles like SQUAREBALL, HOOK CHAMP, and DOODLE JUMP than I am out of the $5+, more fully realized games. I'm also really getting into the "indie" nature of it all, and that there's actually more unique concepts in gameplay than what the DS offers. The only knock on the iPhone is that control is a huge issue. Neither touch controls nor acceleromater are perfect for anything, it seems, and the virtual D-pad thing needs some serious refinement.

When I was in California last week, I brought the DS and I played a little FINAL FANTASY TACTICS but I got bored...played a lot of HOOK CHAMP instead, and dl'ed BENEATH A STEEL SKY and started on it.

I kind of wish that I had gotten a 3Gs so I could stay up to speed with some of the more advanced games that will inevitably be coming out, but $200 extra didn't seem worth it. It may be in the long run if the DS gets mothballed.

Granted, the iPhone doesn't have any CASTLEVANIA games, NEW SUPER MARIO BROS., or some of the better AAA titles like the DS. But the DS doesn't have 99 cent games either.

But anyway, here's my current iPhone favorites...since the games are pretty bite-sized, my "favorites" tend to rotate in and out.

1. HOOK CHAMP- kind of cross between BIONIC COMMANDO and SPELUNKY. I've always thought that games with swinging were fun for some reason. Grab treasures, avoid traps, and get upgrades like cool hats. It's fun, and you can play it for a minute or an hour. Perfect iPhone game.

2. SQUAREBALL- incredibly hard platform game with an innovative concept- you don't control the character (in this case a bouncing ball), you control the scrolling. A serious, old-school challenge with great chiptunes.

3. UNIWAR- A great turn-based wargame, very board gamey, with three distinct STARCRAFT-y sides and some pretty tough AI. And it's got a full multiplayer suite. I prefer it over the more ADVANCE WARS-ish MECHO WARS, but that's a good pick too.

4. MR. AAHH!!!- The swinging thing again...one-touch control, get Mr. Aaahhh!!! from platform to platform. Platform gets smaller, wind and gravity change, and it gets really freaking hard. It's sort of "get as far as you can" game, but with a little extra drama.

5. ALIVE 4 EVER- LEFT 4 DEAD as a top-down, dual stick shooter (think SMASH TV). It even has Smokers and Hunters. Tons of upgrades, varying missions, and intense gameplay. One thing I really like is that the missions are pretty short, you can go through one during potty-time no problem. Sucks that multiplayer is only local though.

6.TYRIAN- the best shmup in the appstore, bar none. It's a 1:1 port of the old PC game with everything intact. Tons of levels and equipment to see, and pretty challenging to boot.

7. SPIDER- a really great example of innovative design. A subtle, understated story and completely original gameplay. You're a spider eating bugs. Weave webs and find the exits. Pretty simple, but very compelling and fun to play.

8. ORIONS- HEROES OF MIGHT AND MAGIC crossed with a CCG. It's kind of simplistic, but I find myself going back to it a lot. One of the better TBS games, apparently there was an expansion planned but never released.

9. HORROR RACING- really fun RC PRO AM/ROCK AND ROLL RACING thing. Controls are pretty good, and it's pretty fun to run through a couple of tracks in a sitting. Spooky theme always appreciated.

10. GEODEFENSE SWARM- FIELDRUNNERS-style TD with open placement. Hard as balls. I prefer the vector graphics art style to FR, and I also think the game has a little more depth.

Some of the near-misses- MINIGORE, which is cute but incredibly shallow and boring; DUKE NUKEM 3D is the full game but the control is awful; HERO OF SPARTA was one of the first "console" style games and it really shows- clunky as fuck; STRONGHOLDS promised CCG-style gameplay but it's really, really dumb; MR. DRILLER is an awesome game on other platforms, the control issue sinks this one too; THE DEEP makes me question if a good pinball is possible on the platform.

Barnes, you namedropped Rock and Roll Racing. Truly, we are soulmates...just don't tell Black Barney.

Oh man, ROCK AND ROLL RACING was like the ultimate living room multiplayer game...we played the SHIT out of it.

It was one of Blizzard's first games, too.

is the iphone still just on at&t?

the company is supposed to be footing the bill on a new blackberry/smartphone this christmas for me, but Verizon or Alltell are the only carriers out here.

Yep, still only ATT.

Michael Barnes wrote:

Oh man, ROCK AND ROLL RACING was like the ultimate living room multiplayer game...we played the SHIT out of it.

It was one of Blizzard's first games, too.

To this day, I cannot hear "Paranoid" without thinking in my head "The GREEN FLAG DROPS!"

Geared is a really fun iphone game for 99 cents.

Mr Skeletor wrote:

Fieldrunners (portable)
Dudes run across the map and you have to build turrents to kill them. Very slick implementation, and rather hard. Great fun I and highly recommended.

This is still my favorite.

Robocalypse (normal)
I got this on special for $1.19 Australian which was the best $1.19 I have ever played. This was the game which really made me say ‘holy shit’ when I got it on a whim – it still amazes me that a game like this is available on a fucking phone! I still remember playing snake for fucks sake! Anyway it’s a RTS in the style of starcraft, but with less micromanagement (a good thing for a phone) has cut scenes and everything. Been hooked on it all weekend and it’s become my ‘demo’ game for showing off the iphone. I think its still on special, go fucking get it now!

I got this for 99 cents yesterday. I'm still working through the tutorial missions, but I think it's going to be a winner.

I also got the new Catan app. It's OK, but I'd like it better if it had the Cities and Knights rules (it's base game only). The user interface is good, but not great. Overpriced at $4.99.

I got the 99 cents ROBOCALYPSE too. It reminds me a little of MAJESTY, which is a good thing, I loved that game. Also got one of those Knizia games, MONUMENTAL. It's pretty good, way better than the usual match three stuff. It has that weird Knizia thing where you wind up with only one or two choices and they both suck, though.

Also got SOOSIZ. It's pretty neat, I prefer it to ROLANDO. It's very much a 2D SUPER MARIO GALAXY.

Clocked robopocalypse - thats another thing I like about this platform, games dont overstay their welcome.
Will probably play it again on hard, and there are ton of multiplayer maps you can play with the AI, so still a lot more play to go.

Started Beneath the steel sky - what a phenominal game. Fucking hilarious. They don't make games like this anymore.

I found Romance Of The Three Kingdoms Touch. Seems to work great so far. I predict I'll be spending many hours playing this one.

It's expensive though...is it worth it you think?

On my phone lately- ISLE OF 8-BIT TREASURE. It's a super simple roguelike, pretty fun to play. It's closer to SHIREN than the classics, but that's OK because it's more casual.

Also messing around with iNETHACK and the free ROGUE. Pretty decent implementations. Now if somebody would do ANGBAND and CRAWL...

Michael Barnes wrote:

It's expensive though...is it worth it you think?

If it was one of your dream iPod games that you never thought would happen like it was mine then yeah. Otherwise you should probably wait for a sale if KOEI has those.