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Apple Events. It’s like having more than one Christmas each year. And according to my clock, it’s about time Apple comes out with new iPods.
Oh! What do we have here? Yes, it’s the yearly (pretty much, now) September event. I’m eagerly waiting for new iPod touches. I can only hope these will pack the same “S is for Speed” power Apple gave the iPhone 3GSes. A camera is pretty much a given at this point, as well. Anyway, I’m going to be close to an Apple store on Wednesday so if they become available on the 9th, I might be able to make a few videos about the new touches. Or just play with the new touches and let other people record stuff.
One game that I’ve been getting into recently is Beat Rider for iPhone/iPod touch. Here’s the iTunes link. While it’s somewhat a competitor to Tapulous’ Tap Tap Revenge 2, since both make you tap to music, it has an advantage and/or disadvantage: You can use what ever song you want. Because of this freedom, the gameplay resulting from songs isn’t always very good. On the other hand, there are some songs that shine. Try out Coldplay’s Viva La Vida. It works surprisingly well.
Another game that might be worth checking out is Chris Sawyer’s Locomotion for Windows. It’s not new but it’s pretty fun, if a bit demanding at times. You connect with trains, boats, road vehicles, planes and trams, cities, factories and resources to make money. It’s not bad for $10. Plus it’s from the guy who brought you RollerCoaster Tycoon.
I’ve almost stopped using my DS at all. Why should I use it? It’s just another thing in my pocket and the only games I have left for it is Elite Beat Agents and Brain Age 2. With the App Store, I’ve been playing a bunch of games. Unfortunately, there’s been a recent surge in interesting games in the store and now I have a whole list of games I’d like to get. I’m not sure which I’ll choose… they all look pretty good.
Sim City (Get it)
I love Sim City. The love started with Sim City 2000 and went on up until Sim City 4 and its Rush Hour expansion. Then came Sim City DS. It seemed good but after having a few issues with it, I stopped playing it at all. But here comes (what I understand to be) a full Sim City 3000 experience for the iPod touch. I’m no longer as interested with simulation games as I was before but hey… I thought the same thing of MMORPGs. Then City of Heroes came along.
i Love Katamari (Get it)
I’ve never played a Katamari game but I was always fascinated by the series. You roll a ball around and collect items that stick to said ball. Simple, yet interesting. The original release on the App Store apparently sucked but a new update has the game back on my radar.
Puzzle Quest (Get it)
I loved the DS version and I was excited to get it for my iPod. It’s a shame then the game is being split up in to 3 instalments. How much will each chapter cost? How much of the game do I get with the 1st chapter? This “Must-Buy” has been downgraded to a “Maybe.”
Monopoly Here and Now: The World Edition (Get it)
I really love Monopoly. Like, really love it. That’s all you need to know.
Here are some other interesting games:
Tap Tap Dance (Get it)
Tap Tap Revenge is a great free game and Dance seems to bring it to a whole other level.
Rolando (Get it)
It’s been getting some high praises and it looks well done. Who knows? I might get it.
Heroes of Sparta (Get it)
This one looks interesting too.
I’m really hating iTunes right now. Not only because of Apple but because of other parties involved.
-Let’s start off with Apple. Wouldn’t you know that Canada has laws that forbid Apple to sell Apps with anything but a credit card. Apparently the same rule applies for the 2.0 upgrade… despite the fact I was able to give them $20 using a iTunes Card in January for that upgrade. I’m just glad I knew this before buying a $50 card…
Yeah, I actually didn’t know. Fun.
-Now for Nickelodeon and/or YTV. I’ll admit it. I love Avatar : The Last Airbender. I bought Seasons 1 and 2 on DVD… before they came on iTunes for about half the price. But that’s not why I’m annoyed. The series just ended on Nick in the States but the final episodes are rolling into Canada right now through YTV. Unfortunately, none of the latest episodes are available at iTunes Canada. Not even the ones that already aired. And I missed them. Fun.
-The Doctor has arrived in iTunes. You can download series 1 to 3 of the new Doctor Who. Well, you could if you lived in the States. Despite the fact that they fund the damn thing, neither CBC or BBC offer Who in Canada or the UK. So much for our tax dollars at work…
*sigh* And what do we get? American Gladiators. It seems that it’ll be joined soon by other MGM shows on iTunes Canada, with entries for Dead Like Me (which rocked) and In The Heat of The Night appreaing, although no shows are available as of yet. Well, at least we got something, right?
Name – Trism (Version 1.0)
Price – $4.99
Controls – Touch Screen, Tilt
The App Store is here and it brought a few games with it. Today, I’ll be looking at one : Trism. The idea behind the game isn’t new. You line up groups of 3 shapes, in this case triangles, by sliding rows into place. What sets Trism apart is its use of the iPod touch’s or the iPhone’s accelerometer.
You are able to choose from which direction the board gets filled. Let’s say you clear three triangles at the right side of a horizontal row. By tilting downwards the device to the left, new triangles will appear from the right of the screen. By tilting to the right, the part of the row already in play will fill the void. With this new mechanic, the genre receives a new aspect of strategy. While you previously only wondered which piece to move, now you also have to choose which way to tilt the device.
The game also has special pieces such as locks which block movement and bombs that make you loose the game if they aren’t eliminated. Some pieces and combos have abilities that aren’t covered in the game’s tutorials. Nothing to make you unable to play but you’ll certainly score better and play longer when you learn about them. I’ll leave you to discover what they are.
The game comes with a classic mode where you play until you are unable to disarm a bomb, another where you must complete matches quickly or have locks and time-delayed bombs appear, a free play mode without any obstacles, levels or score and a puzzle mode where you tilt the play field to eliminate the triangles. These give you the chance to play however you want.
Trism lets you post your score to an online leaderboard and collect achievements. You can even let multiple people do so by creating multiple Trism accounts. You’ll be able send in scores and achievements (even those you got previously while you were offline) after completing a game. Be warned: make sure to send in your info before switching users. I learned that the hard way and lost some achievements. Your game is saved if turn off the screen or exit the app, a useful feature for busy people. If you are colour bind, Trism also has you covered.
The controls act a bit buggy at times. They seem to “stick.” When letting go of the touch screen, a triangle might stay selected and triangles that should slide, according to the orientation of the device, don’t. In the puzzle mode, the game nags you to restart if you go over the number of recommended moves to complete a level. It’s annoying but the glitches have a minimal impact on the gameplay.
The game’s visuals are simple but of high quality. The game has no soundtrack and only has some unobtrusive sound effects which go great with the fact you can play while listening to music. I found the battery performance to be very good (with an iPod touch) even when playing with the music on.
Final Verdict
Trism isn’t based on anything new but it does bring something different to the table. And even if it didn’t, the game is only $5, a bargain compared to other App Store games. It’s an easy purchase if you enjoy casual games or are just looking for a time-waster.
EDIT: I added information about the battery and the colour bind mode and a few pictures.
EDIT 2: Corrected a spelling mistake, cleared up the explanation for the freeplay mode and specified that the battery life was tested with an iPod touch.
iPhone 2.0 is now available for both the iPod touch and the original iPhone. So is the iPhone 3G. Hope you’re having fun. I do have a warning to any Canadians out there : The Canadian App Store doesn’t accept iTunes Cards as a payment option for some unknown reason. I sent an e-mail to Apple to learn more but I haven’t gotten a response yet.
Anyway, I was able to upgrade to 2.0 and download a few pay and free apps and games. I definitely want to review :
-Trisim, a match and tilt casual game
-Super Monkey Ball, Sega’s tilt-o-rama launch game
- Crash Bandicoot Nitro Kart 3D, a racing game based on the video game series
-Tap Tap Revenge, a rhythm game that uses both the touch screen and the accelerometer.
I’m also playing around with other apps and games and might talk about those too.
This might just be for Canadians. Heck, it might have just been at my location, but Costco is selling $50 iTunes cards for $34.97. That’s $15.03 of free money, enough to cover the price of the $9.95 upgrade to iPhone 2.0 for iPod touches. Best of all, it’s charged tax free.
In one week, Apple will launch the iPhone 3G, and with it, the iPhone 2.0 software. Canada’s an interesting place to be with the launch since we’re getting a raw deal. But, there’s still stuff to get excited for and I’ll be covering it.
-Getting ready for the Canadian launch.
-Where to send comments and complaints.
-An iPhone 2.0 for iPod touch review.
-App reviews.
-Maybe even a look at the 3G.
Pre-launch coverage goes on until… well, the 11th. Then, I’ll keep going and review the software and a few apps.
I said I wanted to. So I did. I turned the lights off, put my speakers at full volume and rented Cloverfield from iTunes. I told myself I had to watch it at least once since it was produced by J.J. Abrams : Mr. LOST himself. So how was it? Well let’s start off by putting it this way : The movie starts off by referring to the “Area formerly known as ‘Central Park.’” Yeah.
It’s a monster movie, the monster being known by its codename “Cloverfield.” But unlike what you might expect, it’s not about the monster. After watching you will still not know why it’s attacking New York, where it came from or even what happened to it. The movie is about a group of people trying to escape it, shown by the point of view of their video camera. It’s not a movie version of LOST, though, even if it takes some elements from it. You know nothing about the monster and, at the start, you only see it in a few frames. The characters were just having a good time at a party (much like enjoying a routine Sydney-LA flight) when all Hell breaks loose. Much like every week on LOST, the movie’s ending leaves you wondering. On the other hand, it lacks any mystery to develop. Cloverfield is simply shown to the audience after a while without any understanding as to what it is. And again, you’ll never know or be given any clues to know more. It’s just there so live with it, OK?
Regardless, the movie is enjoyable and worth renting (or buying, if you’re into that) but be warned : no one’s kidding about the camera work. I was able to stomach it, but then again, I wasn’t watching it on a big screen.
I whine a bit more about the movie and its predictable moments but it’s mildly spoiler-ish. To read it, just click on the link right here. Read the rest of this entry »
I spotted a link for this show, of all places, on the iTunes Canada homepage. This is odd since it’s an Autrailian show all about advertising. The host chats with four people from the ad industry about how ads work and what happens if they don’t. They even get people to make hilarious mock ads for simply unsellable stuff such as Baghdad holidays or whale meat. The show’s fun to watch and it’s free. That’s easy to sell, isn’t it? Check it out on the iTunes Podcast Directory. It’s rated M and is, as they say in an Ausie accent, ” not recommend for persons under 15 years.”
