Home » Articles and Reviews by 'James Gilmour'
Sega releases Rhythm Thief & the Paris Caper, then pulls it from the App Store within 24 hours
I was meant to preview Rhythm Thief & the Paris Caper yesterday. I was looking forward to it, too, as the 3DS game it's based on, Rhythm Thief & the Emperor's Treasure, is a quirky, entertaining serving of dance-based larks. However, once I'd hooked up my video capture device and cleared the game's tutorial, I found myself trapped in a weird update loop. According to the onscreen prompts, the date had changed on my iPhone, and the game needed to download new data to compensate for this sudden shift in timezone. Of course, the time on my iPhone hadn't changed. The problem was with the game itself - specifically, with the game's constant need for a network connection in order to work…
Worms 3 gets physical with updated controller support
Q: How many worms does it take to update a popular multiplayer strategy sequel? A: None - they have to get a human to do it, because worms are terrible at coding and can't use keyboards properly and are worms. Objectively hilarious jokes aside, though, Worms 3 has actually been updated (by humans) to address some shortcoming highlighted by fans of the game. Apparently, what Worms 3 players wanted more than anything was the ability to play the game with one of those new iOS 7 controllers. You know, like the MOGA Ace Power or Steelseries Stratus. Well, in addition enjoying the newly-added cloud saving options, you can now launch airstikes at you wriggly foes with real physical butt…
Creepy kids and sinister surgery in upcoming psychological thriller In Fear I Trust
Developer Black Wing Foundation is preparing for weird out iOS gamers with its incoming episodic psyschological thriller In Fear I Trust. We got our first glimpse of this horror-inflected adventure last year when the team posted a short video showing the intro to the first episode. Now, having partnered with publisher Chillingo, the folks behind the weirdness have published the game's first official trailer (below). Thematically, it looks like In Fear I Trust is riffing on a whole bunch of horror archetypes. You've got the creepy hospital ward, strange experiements on human test subjects, and references to buildings being erected on sacred ground. In terms of actual gameplay, though, it…
RoboCop | Hands-On
So there was this great movie from the '80s called Robotic Policeman Man. It was all about this policeman who lost some of his man bits in a harrowing paperwork accident, and had to be fused with the office photocopier at a molecular genetic level so that he could carry on with his filing. As with all moderately successful films from the '80s, Robotic Policeman Man has fallen victim to Hollywood's first Prime Directive: Ignore all new and potentially interesting ideas in favour of rehashing old ones. They've decided to call the new film RoboCop, and have inserted a load of guns and Samuel L Jackson. Presumably, there will be a post credit scene in which Jackson will recruit RoboCop into th…
Bring forgotten toys back to life in eerie 3D puzzler Lost Toys
What would you get if the took the rotatable 3D artifacts found in Zen Bound, and combined them with the twisty-turny mechanisms at the heart of The Room? We reckon you'd probably wind up with something that look a lot like Lost Toys, the eerie new 3D puzzler from developer Barking Mice. The aim of the game is to re-engineer a series of discarded wooden toys into their original forms. For some reason, these abandoned playthings have been distorted into unrecognisable shapes, and it's your job to rotate heads and reposition limbs until the wooden knickknack is back in working order. The challenge of Lost Toys is to fix each object in as few moves as possible, thereby turning the grey and…
Take the LaFerrari for a spin with the latest Asphalt 8: Airborne update
Gravity-defying arcade racer Asphalt 8: Airborne has just received a virtual fuel injection in the form of some additional in-game rewards, and some shiny new supercars. Specifically, anyone who downloads the free update will be able to tear up the tarmac in a Pagani Huayra, and take a spin in the 2014 Lykan Hypersport. You'll also have the option to get behind the wheel of the Ferrari-in-chief, the LaFerrari. As well as delivering these shiny new motors to your garage, Gameloft is now gifting daily bonuses to players who log in on a day-to-day basis. Apparently, if you play the game daily, the bonus will build and build, probably culminating in the delivery of a real car to your actual ad…
[Updated] PlayStation Now streaming service to bring PS3 and PS4 games to tablets and smartphones
![[Updated] PlayStation Now streaming service to bring PS3 and PS4 games to tablets and smartphones](https://images.appspy.com/articles/8082/playstationnowappspy_jpg_240x140_q85.jpg "[Updated] PlayStation Now streaming service to bring PS3 and PS4 games to tablets and smartphones")
Updated at 12:56, January 8th: SCEA marketing executive John Koller has just told CVG that all PlayStation games streamed to touchscreen devices via PlayStation Now will require the use of the DualShock 3 controller. "We didn't want to utilise touchscreen or anything like that," Koller said in the interview. "It requires the DualShock. The DualShock 3, specifically. To enable tablet and smartphone play, you've got to have the DualShock 3." Original story follows: Sony has revealed that PlayStation Now, the company's newly announced game streaming service, will eventually allow you to play PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 games on internet-connected smartphones and tablets. The anno…
Joe Danger Infinity | Hands-On
The iOS version of Joe Danger is a cracking little stunt racer, and a prime example of how to successfully adapt a console game for a touchscreen device. Joe Danger Infinity, which is due to hit US and UK App Stores tonight, keeps its predecessor's acclaimed controls and physics intact, but shrinks Joe down to miniature proportions. Now roughly the size of a salt shaker, Joe has to perform his extensive array of jumps and stunts on the top of kitchen surfaces and pool tables. He has 96 new races to tackle, and 15 vehicles to collect, including a firework and a specially modified duck. Hello Games is also teasing "infinite gameplay," though we haven't yet encountered an endless mode during…
Archangel | Hands-On
Though better known for creating the Unity engine, the company behind the game development tool is about to publish its very first game on the App Store. Titled Archangel, the game is to be released under the Unity Games banner at midnight tonight. It has been created by first time developer Black Tower, and is set to bring a healthy dose to tap-based dungeon-crawling action to your touchscreen. Taking control of an armoured angel, you have to battle your way through a series of isometric environments. You'll launch fireballs, perform gesture-powered special attacks, and level-up your divine warrior in true RPG fashion. At least, that what I'm told will happen. The first four levels (the…
World War Z goes free-to-play, existing players short on ammo told to 'use the store'
First-person zombie shooter World War Z has just gone free on the App Store. What's more, it looks like the price drop is permanent, and will change the mechanics of the movie tie-in for current owners. World War Z's apparent shift to the free-to-play model comes as part of the latest update. As well as alerting us to the price drop, the changelog on the game's App Store listing contains this disclaimer for anyone who has already purchased the shooter with real money: "For users who have previously purchased the game, you will notice that ammo is more scarce, but if you are careful you'll still be able to make it through the game." However, the folks at Paramount Digital have some advice…
See Glu Games upholding the law in the debut trailer for RoboCop
After a lengthy soft launch on the Canadian App Store, it seems that free-to-play peddler Glu Games is preparing to release its movie tie-in shooter RoboCop onto iOS devices worldwide. As you might expect, the titular cyborg won't be protecting the innocent with hydraulic hugs, or upholding the law by giving criminals a stern talking-to in the style of a Daft Punk sample. No, as you might expect, this is an all-guns-blazing affair. In fact, a cursory glance at the debut trailer (below) reveals more than a few similarities with another gun-tastic Glu Games title, Frontline Commando. I'll be going hands-on with RoboCop in the very near future, and will let you know when a concrete release d…
Super Stickman Golf 2 to receive Super Meat Boy course, chat support, and more on Thursday
Noodlecake is teeing up to update its crazy golfing sequel Super Stickman Golf 2 with a decidedly meaty chunk of free content on January 9th. You see, alongside a new turn-based chat feature which will let players insult each other's trousers mid-stroke, the popular putting sim is set to receive a new level based on the extremely gory twitch platformer Super Meat Boy. "What would such a thing look like?" I hear you cry! Well, it'll look a lot like this: Beyond the result of this unlikey collaboration, the Super Stickman Golf 2 team is adding three more new courses to the game (see the trailer below). What's more, if you have earned enough virtual dough, you'll be able to make your ball…
Cut the Rope 2 Review
It's taken Om Nom four games to escape the confines of his various cardboard prisons, but Cut the Rope 2 finally sees him out in the wild, and making new friends. These extra characters and their unique abilities help to define Cut the Rope 2 as more ambitious puzzler with a slightly broader scope. However, the additional gameplay permutations - and new in-app purchase system - also run the risk of diluting the simple but potent formula which made the original game so compelling. The…
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Republique | Hands-on
The future is a terrifying place. At least, that's the assessment I've made based on every science fiction novel and Hollywood movie ever written. Whether it's murderous robots, overpopulation and drizzle, or a full-blown nuclear holocaust, it seems that those Orange adverts were fibbing about what lies ahead for the human species. The future isn't bright - it's darker than a black hole's broom closet. Republique's vision of the future comes from the Orwellian school of paranoia, constant surveillance, and Big Brother. The game is a stealth-based strategy adventure which sees you liberating a young woman called Hope from the clutches of a totalitarian regime plucked straight from the pages…
Vertically-scrolling sequel Mega Jump 2 leaping onto iOS next week
Vertical platforming sequel Mega Jump 2 is preparing to bound onto the App Store next week. Following on from the enormous success of its Doodle Jump-style predecessor Mega Jump, this second adventure removes the glass ceiling from little red monster Redford's once level-based world, allowing him to jump endlessly upwards and chase greater and greater high scores. Rather than have you simply rack up the points, however, the new Adventure mode will give you tasks and challenges to accomplish as you propel Redford up the screen. Developer Get Set Games has also decided that its rouge protagonist was getting a little lonely leaping all by himself. To combat this, the team has expanded the…
