Sonic the Hedgehog is one of the more popular gaming franchises for Sega, so naturally it was just a matter of time before the company made it available in the App Store. Sonic the Hedgehog for iPhone and iPod touch retails for $5.99, which costs more than traditional apps, but seems to be well worth it. The side scrolling game looks as if you figured out a way to wire a Sega Genesis to the iPhone, which for many is good thing. The graphics are well done and the gameplay is very good. As some of our iPhone forum members noted, the gameplay does experience some frame rate issues. Like many iPhone games, the touchscreen d-pad controls can leave you wanting physical buttons. Sega did not use the accelerometer and I'm guessing it's to allow for more immediate control of Sonic. If Sonic is a success, perhaps future incarnations of the Hedgehog would provide end users the option to select between the accellerometer and the standard on-screen d-pad controls.
Apple's mobile OS X devices are sexy, innovative entertainment packages. When the success of the App Store surprised the world, Apple began pushing the platform as the most fun you can have with your clothes on, especially in the case of the new iPod touch, by showing ads on TV and on the web, in no uncertain terms, that it's got game. It's certainly the best mobile OS X gaming device, with the faster processor bringing smoother frame rates and quicker loading time. They overlooked an important detail, however -- can you actually play unplugged? In my experience, the device has some great potential, and developers have already forged some gems in the rough, but the iPod touch needs a serious battery in order to be a serious competitor to the incumbents, Nintendo DS and Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP).
I came to this conclusion after a series of tests I performed, beginning with checking the baseline. No sound, no Wi-Fi, minimum brightness, and minimum enjoyment. How long does it last at the very most? 4 hours and 20 minutes of constant, solid gameplay is the most you can expect if you don't plan to be in the sunlight, hear the game, or be on the Internet.
For a limited time, Glu Mobile is offering up Space Monkey (iTunes link) for free. Space Monkey normally retails for $9.99 and has received great reviews from IGN and PocketGamer. Glu Mobile calls this a "very limited time offer", so head on over to iTunes and grab it.
If you read the reviews for an app on the App Store before you buy it, you’ve probably been frustrated by the reviews posted by people who don’t even own the app. iPhone developers have also expressed frustration with this process, since poor reviews can lead to lower sales for their app. Well, no more! Apple has finally set up requirements to review apps - if you try to review an app that you have not purchased, you’ll see this message pop up in iTunes:
It’s unknown whether Apple will go back and remove the existing reviews from those who did not purchase or download the app in question (which could be quite a daunting task), but at least we now know that reviews from this point on will most likely be based on actual experience with the app.
First and foremost, iPhone 2.1 firmware will be out on Friday, September 12. Steve said it's a big update that includes many bug fixes, addressing dropping calls, crashing apps, long-backups, and battery life. And it's free to all owners! I am quite excited for this update, and have my fingers crossed that it will work as promised and that the issues many users, including me, have been experiencing are addressed.
Kevin Rose was spot on with iTunes 8, including the new grid-like view and Genius functionality. HD TV shows has also come to the iTunes store, though they are only viewable on your computer or through your Apple TV - there goes putting HD shows on my iPhone to output to our home entertainment center! Shoot!
iPods continue to kick ass in marketshare with 73.4%, with "Other" players a distant second at 15.4%. The iPod Classic is now offered in one size only - 120GB at the same price as the previous 80GB model, $249. The new iPod Nano is indeed like the leaked pictures that have been circulating on the internet - tall and skinny with a curved front and back. It features a new UI and has an accelerometer like the iPod Touch and iPhone, allowing you to turn it sideways to switch automatically to cover mode view. And the new Genius functionality works right on the Nano without needing to be connected to iTunes, and shaking the Nano puts it in Shuffle mode.
A nice accessory upgrade is a pair of headphones that have functionality similar to that of the iPhone's - a control button that allows you to double-click to get to the next song, and a microphone that will work with the built-in voice recording function. And it has volume controls! I sure hope those will work on the iPhone too.
The time for Best Buy to begin selling iPhone 3G's in their stores is drawing near - you now have only a couple of days to wait before you can saunter into your local Best Buy to be misinformed by salespeople who rarely know much about Apple products. Be sure to do your research ahead of time - both Apple's and AT&T's sites have lots of good information on how to get ready for your iPhone 3G purchase. Beware of one thing at Best Buy - Gizmodo talks about some extra services offered by the Geek Squad when you purchase some accessory packages. These extra services include setting up your new iPhone 3G and getting your email up and running. I wouldn't recommend you take advantage of these services either - doing both is incredibly easy and already well-documented by Apple here and here .
Yesterday, I mentioned that TUAW had the scoop on Spore for the iPhone, but EA has officially confirmed that they are working on 9 more games in addition to Spore for the iPhone. According to Macworld , those other 9 games are Yahtzee Adventures, EA Mini Golf, Lemonade Tycoon, Mahjong, Monopoly: Here & Now The World Edition, SimCity, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09, Need for Speed Undercover and The Sims 3. That's a lot heading our way - start saving your pennies now to indulge in some game purchases from the App Store!
Kevin Rose, founder of Digg.com, has been the source for most of the Apple product rumors surrounding the September 9 event. He's elaborated a bit more on the rumored iTunes enhancements in his blog . While we don't see a reference to faster iPhone syncing to cure those back-ups that can take up to several hours for some users, it does sound like more HD content will be coming and available to all of us without an Apple TV at home. I often use my iPhone as a media source to watch movies rented from iTunes through our home entertainment system and I'd love to watch them in full HD glory. I hope Kevin's right on this one (and that the iPhone will be capable of putting out that HD video)! [Via TUAW ]
While I love the iPhone’s accelerometer and how current apps and games take advantage of it, Super Monkey Ball is just plain hard. Hand me a controller with a D-pad or joystick and I could make short work of it, but tilting the iPhone like a madwoman isn’t working all that well for me. Enter iControlPad - they’ve been working on a gamepad for the iPhone for a little while now, but it looks like they are closer to a working model that would be sold for around $30. Sound good? Yeah, I thought so.
TouchArcade has anonymously received pictures of another iPhone gamepad that could also be in the works and they’ve posted these images. There’s no other information on this second possible gamepad, so its validity is uncertain, to say the least. It’s reasonable to think that there’s more than one company out there looking to capitalize on the iPhone as a gaming device, so the idea isn’t that far-fetched.
While we’re on this topic of gaming on the iPhone, I have to admit that I don’t play games all that often on my iPhone. As I did before the advent of the 2.0 firmware and the App Store, my iPhone is primarily my phone, personal information manager, portable email and web-surfing device, and iPod, and games are something I do only when I need to kill time while waiting in line or when I’m too antsy to focus on anything else. So, if any gamepads are released in the $30 range, that might be too steep for a casual iPhone gamer like me. But what about you? How much would you be willing to pay for a gamepad for your iPhone? Tell us in the Comments section!
