Home » Articles and Reviews by 'Peter Willington'
Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen is headed to Western smartphones
During an announcement of its Gamescom line-up, Square Enix dropped a massive bomb for fans of JRPGs - Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen will be released on mobiles and tablets in the West. It's a port of the Nintendo DS remake, and includes the additional and changed content from that version, such as the extra story chapter. We're also hearing that it features quick saves, and multiple combat speed options, which will be a blessing for adventurers on the go. If you're yet to play a Dragon Quest, then this could well be a great place to start. The plot follows multiple characters from very different walks of life, as their stories all begin to weave into one another's, and this ad…
JRPGHands-on with Sharknado: The Video Game, in which we discover that a tornado full of sharks does not a good game make
Don't be fooled by the “hilarious” “joke” that Sharknado: The Video Game is making. You may think it'll be a giggle to play as a man wielding a chainsaw while riding a gigantic shark as it flies through a tornado. But once the novelty of the above has worn out, you soon realise you're down $2.99 / £1.99, and all you have to show for it is a clunky and banal auto-runner. Here's a video going into more depth than you will ever need on Sharknado: The Video Game.…
Hands-on with Crazy Taxi: City Rush, in which I ask you if you're ready to make some crazy money
Well, are you? If you are, then I have good news: Crazy Taxi: City Rush is really rather fun (if a little stingy with the energy system). I went hands-on with the game to bring you this early look, based on the soft-launched version, just before the game launches on 31st July 2014, take a look.…
Temple Run - EncyclAPPedia
Turn the EncyclAPPedia to page four and you'll find the entry for Temple Run, Imangi's superbly simple perennial auto-runner with a forgotten past, which celebrates its third birthday, in just a few days time. EncyclAPPpediaɛnˌsʌɪklə(ʊ)ˈpiːdɪənounA video or set of videos giving information on many mobile games or on many aspects of one game and typically arranged entirely at random.…
Plants Vs. Zombies 2 Dark Ages Part 2 update is blooming well out right now
If you've been fighting off the undead in Plants Vs. Zombies 2 for a while, you'll be well aware that the first part of the Dark Ages update has been out for a while, with Part 2 held tantalisingly close but just out of reach. As of today you can now grab the second part of the adventure with two decaying hands, continuing this epic quest, set in the medieval period. The free update includes 10 more levels to battle through, and two new plants added to the roster, plus an endless mode called Arthur's Challenge. New zombies complete the gruesome package: the Wizard Zombie (who does nefarious things with sheep), and the King Zombie (who transforms zombies into knights). So, AppSpies, whi…
Hands-on with Jacob Jones and the Bigfoot Mystery, Episode 2: Field Trip, the brilliantly written puzzle adventure sequel
We were fortunate enough to grab an early code for this new episode in the Jacob Jones and the Bigfoot Mystery series, and we definitely wanted to bring you a first look video before the game's release. The sparkling writing is delightful and hilarious in equal measure, the voice acting is excellent, the puzzles challenging, and the visuals gorgeous, and frankly I can't wait to play a bit more. Oh I guess the video below does contain extremely minor spoilers.…
Hands-on with Deep Loot, a pixel perfect treasure of a diving game
The excitement of finding a sunken treasure in Deep Loot is palpable. When you happen upon a big golden chest full of goodies, or a precious lost artifact, or a rare dinosaur bone, and then add them to your ever-growing collection, it's like filling out the best sticker album ever made. Only the sticker album is comprised of pixel-rendered rarities, rather than this sort of thing. Deep Loot will surface on the App Store on the 31st July, but I've made an early little video of some of my first dives for you for a sneak peek. Here's how I got on.…
Hands-on with Puzzix, the blissful shape matching game
Puzzix tasks you with matching corresponding shapes with one another, picking from a conveyor belt of candidates, and matching enough of them to remove them from play. It's a rather zen experience: the gradually shifting colour scheme, the slow fall of the puzzle pieces, and the tranquil music all combine to create a game that's very, very chill. I went hands-on with Puzzix, here's how I got on with it.…
Hands-on with Cubama, the fast-paced action puzzler that'll fit perfectly on your iOS device
The idea of Cubama is deceptively simple: get a specific shape through a specific hole in a wall. The reality of doing so is far from simple. You rotate the shape with a single tap of the screen, and must do so quickly, lest your shape smash against the wall and a “game over” screen appear. Cubama is fast, often frantic, and it's rather good too. Here's my hands-on with it.…
The Sailor's Dream is the next game from developer of Year Walk and Device 6, and this is what it looks like
Simogo has announced its latest game: it's called The Sailor's Dream, and it'll be out late 2014 on iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. If you're not in the know as to who Simogo is, it's the developer of critically acclaimed iOS releases Year Walk and DEVICE 6, as well as Beat Sneak Bandit, Bumpy Road, and Kosmo Spin. We're therefore setting our bar of expectation pretty high on this one, especially after having seen the new trailer. The game is apparently "a challenge-free experience in which you explore a non-linear story through words, music, sounds and illustrations". The team's blog expands on this further;"In some ways The Sailor’s Dream is the culmination of ideas and concepts we…
Hands-on with Quizzolve, the neatly designed quiz game
Quizzolve is a straightforward, nicely put together but basic quiz game. It's got smart leaderboard support, a range of questions, some subtle uses of its premium currency, and though it's lacking sound, the visuals are minimal and neat. Quiz games don't often get much attention, so I decided to do a quick hands-on video of Quizzolve for those of you looking for a decent (and free-to-play) stab at the genre.…
Hands-on with Badass Trial Race, the Trials-esque racer from the Sky Tourist peeps
I got all excited when I heard that the folks behind Sky Tourist were making a new game, and doubly so when I heard it was a bit like the recent spate of high quality trials games, such as Trials Frontier, Urban Trial Freestyle, and Bike Trials. So it was a little disappointing when I went hands-on with the game - titled Badass Trial Race - only to find that it's a very simplistic effort that also has some crushingly aggressive free-to-play elements crudely bolted on. Oh well. Here's what Badass Trial Race - currently in soft-launch - looks like...…
Hands-on with Noah Ark Builder, the official... match-3 puzzler... of the new disaster movie
You might not immediately think a match-3 puzzle game would be suitable as the official movie tie-in of the new Noah movie. That's because it isn't, as evidenced by Noah Ark Builder. It's a fairly standard match-3 affair, and the only real ties to the silver screen source material are a few snippets from the film. The gigantic fictional flood barely seems to have any affect on the mechanics of this lacklustre tie-in.…
Marvel Contest of Champions lets you play as Deadpool, Spider-Man, Hulk and more
San Diego Comic-Con was full of big announcements for big franchises this year, such as the Angry Birds Transformers news we posted about on Friday. Over on the Marvel Video Games panel, the folks at Kabam (The Hobbit: Kingdoms of Middle-earth, Wartune, Fast and Furious 6: The Game) announced Marvel Contest of Champions, a brand new mobile game set for release on "mobile" (read: iOS and Android) in Autumn 2014. The above teaser makes the game look like a one-on-one fighting game, like Tekken or King of Fighters, but we're yet to confirm that with Kabam. We do also know that it's being made by Kabam's Vancouver studio, and that players will battle heroes and villains from the Marvel univ…
Hands-on with The Phantom P.I. Mission Apparition, the spooktacular puzzle adventure
Combining the best bits of Tiny Thief, Broken Sword, and Scooby-Doo, The Phantom P.I. Mission Apparition is a charming, hilarious, and occasionally touching side-scrolling adventure. Packed with puzzles and rammed full of ghosts, it's your job to navigate haunted houses, solving mysteries and zapping ghouls. I went hands-on with the game recently, here's what I made of it.…
