Home » Articles and Reviews by 'Alex Beech'
Classic '90s adventure game Little Big Adventure is coming to the App Store at midnight
Twenty years after its original PC release, the classic adventure game Little Big Adventure is being re-released on the App Store at midnight tonight. Little Big Adventure follows the story of Twinsen, an inhabitant of Citadel Island. His world is ruled over by the evil - and oddly named - dictator Dr. FunFrock. When Twinsen starts to have dreams about the destruction of his planet, the doctor throws him into an insane asylum. Taking control of Twinsen, it's up to you to help his escape from captivity, and discover his destiny as protector of his world. The new iOS release features a host of updates for touchscreen. Firstly, the dev has streamlined the interface for touchscreen, and thr…
iOSHan Solo and R2-D2 tables coming to Star Wars Pinball this spring
The next table pack for Star Wars Pinball - known as Heroes Within - will pay its respects to some of Star Wars’s most beloved characters. The pack will contain four new tables in all. Three of the tables will be character focused, starring Han Solo, R2-D2, and C3PO. The final table will feature the whole cast, and be based around the destruction of the Death Star. The first trailer for the pack (above) shows off Han Solo’s table. It's clear that Zen Studios is drawing heavily on the movies, including a host of famous one liners, and the toe tapping cantina theme. Joined by Chewbacca, the pair comically tinker with the Millennium Falcon, which translates in game to power…
Star Horizon Review
There is something oddly retro about Star Horizon. It harkens back to a past era of arcade gaming - a fast-paced on-the-rails action shooter revamped for 2014. For whatever reason, it seems everyone in the universe wants to kill John, the hero of the tale, and his friendly AI, Ellie. Frozen in space after a battle between Rebels and the Federation, he is a man out of time, swept along by events he doesn't understand. You are able to make choices for John throughout the story which cha…
Watch The Video Review
Joe Danger Infinity gets a new Daily Challenge mode in latest update
Hello Games’s stuntman extraordinaire Joe Danger just got served. If beating the Joe Danger Infinity's numerous levels and obstacles wasn't enough, he must now content with a new Daily Challenge mode, which has been added via the game's latest update. The mode will offer a new track every day for Joe to jump, explode, and rocket his way through. Completing the new tracks will earn you even bigger coin prizes to help you purchase more boosts, allowing you to secure your domination of the leaderboards. The update also delivers a few bug fixes, including one to the aggressive AI Dummy racer. We already thought that Joe Danger Infinity offered plenty of content, with more than 20 v…
Jetski racer Riptide GP2 currently on sale for 69p / 99c
Riptide GP2, Vector Unit’s fast paced jetski racer, is currently on sale for 69p / 99c on the App Store. Riptide GP2 has you speeding around aquatic tracks, pitting your skills against the AI - or up to four players online - in a series of aquatic races. Beating the later tracks demands judicious use of your jetski's boost system, which can only be charged by performing stunts off each track's many jumps. An XP system lets you level-up your rider and jetski as you work through Career mode, while the optional decals let you customise your water-spraying ride to suit your tastes. We really enjoyed Riptide GP2 when we reviewed it last year, thanks to its frantic gameplay a…
Lionheart Tactics Review
It is easy to like Lionheart Tactics. Unlike similar Japanese tactical RPGs, it hurls you straight into combat avoiding the long-winded intros and back-story that can limit the genre's appeal. The expectations set by Lionheart Tactics's anime portrait art make its opening pace jarring, as it shatters genre conventions. Taking control of a sleeping king, you are awakened by a sound, and thrown straight into battle. Each arena serves as a tutorial to various elements of the game, i…
Watch The Video Review
Turn-based spin-off Hitman GO is now available in Australia
Hitman GO, Square Enix's turn-based strategy take on the Hitman series, has just been soft launched on the Australian App Store. You take control of the lethal hunter Agent 47 as he hunts down and eliminates his targets. Like the other Hitman games, you can choose to stealthy stalk your target, or launch a full-on assault to get the job done. The difference this time around is that in Hitman GO, everything is turn-based. Watching patrol patterns, selecting weapons, making your way undetected through levels - these have always been staples of the Hitman series. In Hitman GO, however, you can take a little more time planning your executions, as the game will wait patiently for you to fini…
Twisty avoidance puzzler Duet gets new daily challenge mode
Duet, Kumobius’s excellent loop-based reaction-tester, has just received a line-up of new challenges in its latest update. Charging you with rotate two coloured orbs through deadly obtacle courses, Duet already offered a sizable challenge when it was released back in October. But, for those of you whose minds were left unwarped by its abstract action puzzles, Kumobius's new daily challenge mode will be welcome news. Each daily challenge includes three new waves to spin your way past. Different days will see different levels of challenge complexity, with Mondays and Thursdays setting a nice relaxed pace, ramping all the ways up to nearly impossible on Sundays. This new ch…
Braveland Review
Braveland embraces its cliched fantasy setting with a gusto we usually reserve for our first coffee of the day. A young man's village attacked by bandits. With everything he holds dear ripped from him, he dons his father's armour and heads after them. It is a wonderfully predictable fantasy story, but one that sets the perfect stage for Braveland's turn-based strategic gameplay. Taking control of the would-be town hero, you fast begin to form a troop of militia from the world’s…
Watch The Video Review
CCG tower defence game Defenders is out now on the App Store
Nival’s take on the tower defence genre, Defenders, has just made the jump from PC to iOS. Adding a collectible card game element to the standard tower defence gameplay, Defenders has you build and customise a selection of towers over 23 levels. You collect cards - and in turn towers - by completing levels. You can also choose to fuse cards you are not using, creating towers with new abilities. All of the original PC game's visual and audio seems to be present in this port. This means on smaller screens that the combat can become quite busy. Luckily, a pinch of the screen will zoom you into the action to ensure that you aren't accidentally throwing up towers in the wrong places. P…
See the first gameplay footage of upcoming RTS The Ember Conflict
Substantial Games has just released the first footage of The Ember Conflict. The real-time multiplayer strategy game is currently in development by the studio, and is set to be released on iPad this Autumn. The Ember Conflict will focus on the multiplayer side of the RTS genre, with players battling it out in one-on-one or two-on-two matches. Each player will take control of a small squad of characters which they must guide around the tight, single screen arenas. As the video below shows, you perform a series of taps and sweeps to move units. This use of the touchscreen will be familiar to anyone who has played Autumn Dynasty or Autumn Dynasty Warlords, both of which used the system to gre…
Frontline Commando 2 Review
Frontline Commando 2 is the latest shooter to emerge from Glu's freemium blaster factory. But, even though it takes the same structure as many of the company’s other titles, it does try to stand apart from its stablemates. Though Frontline Commando 2’s standard near-future battlefields don't help stand out from the crowd, their visual clarity does. Though the locations and soldiers may look familiar, every environment, enemy, and boss looks crisp and clear on the touchscre…
Watch The Video Review
Deadlings Review
Zombies have a rough time in video games. They spend most of their afterlives getting mauled, shot, impaled, and dismembered. However, in comic-styled platformer Deadlings, the aim is to actually keep the walking dead walking, as you try to guide a troop of brain eaters through lethal laboratory mazes. Each of the 2D mazes are filled with doors, spikes, saws, and other obstacles. There's a blueprint view of the current area which you can call up at any time to help you plan…
Watch The Video Review
Seabound shooter Skallywags out on iPhone and iPad tomorrow
Funday Factory’s new free-to-play target-tapping game Skallywags just went live in New Zealand. Which means that the rest of us will be able to enjoy its pirate-themed fun from midnight tonight. Having had your treasure thieved by the titular skallywags, you have to scour the seven seas to find the critters and reclaim your gold. The Whack-a-mole styled gameplay has you blasting all of the mischievous creatures with your ship’s cannons over five environments. Over the course of the game, you'll sail through fiery gullies icy caves, each with their own enemies and bosses to battle. The free-to-play game offers you the chance to buy powerful cannon upgrades. You can even inves…
Solitaire and golf fusion Fairway Solitaire Blast will go live globally on April 3rd
Sporting crossovers are a risky business. However, while the aquatic shotput is a risk we're not prepared to take, we think Big Fish Games got it right with Fairway Solitaire's blend of cards and golf. Now the developer is back with Fairway Solitaire Blast, its equally zany free-to-play follow up. As before, you'll be flitting between different golf courses, and trying your hand at numerous variations of solitaire. You'll also encounter some new power-ups which will help you avoid the rough by obliterating any cards that threaten to ruin your swing. Though there's plenty of focus on the card game portion of Fairway Solitaire Blast, the golf aspect of the game appears to be hiding in a sand…
