Mac game news and reviews, arcade and casual games, real-time strategy, and more

Gameloft to cut back on Android development

Nicholas Bonsack — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:21:00 -0800

Mobile games developer Gameloft has announced it's cutting back on development for the Android, citing a lack of revenue.

Review: Geared for iPhone

Lex Friedman — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:19:00 -0800

In spite of some flaws -- it can be hard to position pieces and the game is a little picky about when you're allowed to move things -- Geared is a perfectly fine puzzler that satisfies after its too-easy early stages.

Review: Mad Skills Motocross

Rob Griffiths — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:05:00 -0800

Mad Skills Motocross is an addictive, fast-paced, and entertaining side-scrolling motocross racing game. 40 tracks spread across five levels provide tons of play time, and a track editor and time challenge mode make the fun last even longer.

First Look: Super Monkey Ball 2

Chris Holt — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:00:00 -0800

Super Monkey Ball 2 not only intends to improve upon the original, but to live up to the considerable potential of the popular monkey-rolling franchise. I sat down with Sega’s associate creative director Ethan Einhorn to discuss this new game for the iPhone. Slated for a Holiday 2009 launch date, the price for this game still has not been revealed.

Review: Mini Golf Wacky Worlds for iPhone

Tim Mercer — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:25:00 -0800

This fun miniature golf game lives up to its wacky moniker. More important, with five courses and three modes of play to chose from, there's plenty of replay value to be found.

iPhone to drive mobile game adoption

Macworld UK staff — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 13:23:00 -0800

Apple will drive the game market with the iPhone, according to a survey of 8,000 gamers in North America, Europe and Australia.

Review: Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning

Chris Holt — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 08:33:00 -0800

Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning is one of the better MMORPGs we've played for the Mac.

Review: 10 Pin Shuffle for iPhone

Tim Mercer — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 07:08:00 -0800

Gorgeous graphics make this mobile version of the sports bar classic a fun addition to your iPhone or iPod touch.

Apple looks for 'AAA developer' for internal video game team

Dave Rudden — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 13:14:00 -0800

A job posting at Apple's Website calls for a Game/Media Software Engineer, fueling speculation that Apple may be looking to bolster its mobile gaming efforts.

Star Wars iPhone game: More fun than bagging womp rats

Dan Moren — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 08:53:00 -0800

Star Wars: Trench Run re-creates the climactic dogfight from the classic sci-fi film, complete with authentic sound effects, music, and scenes from the movie.

Call of Duty now on iPhone

John Davison — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:39:00 -0800

Activision has just released the first official iPhone game in the franchise in the shape of Call of Duty: World at War: Zombies.

Review: Archmage Defense for iPhone

Chris Holt — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 11:36:00 -0800

Archmage Defense is a darkly humorous, clever, addictive, and beautiful tower-defense game that puts you in the shoes of an evil necromancer. An in-app purchase option ratchets up the difficulty and the fun.

id Software's John Carmack talks iPhone games, Doom

Chris Holt — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:23:00 -0800

Few names are bigger gaming than John Carmack's. The co-founder of id Software talks to Macworld's Chris Holt about making games for the iPhone and what it took to bring Doom to Apple's mobile platform.

Storm8 says phone-number lawsuit lacks merit

Lex Friedman — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 07:58:00 -0800

The company claims legacy code meant to identify iPhones mistakenly used phone numbers instead of device codes.

Review: Orbital for iPhone

Jason Snell — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 06:33:00 -0800

Orbital is a fun retro puzzle game with simple controls and a devilish concept.

Review: Earthworm Jim for the iPhone

Chris Holt — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 07:41:00 -0800

Gameloft has resurrected this lovable '90s video game character for the iPhone and iPod touch. It's a strong effort that preserves the look-and-feel of the original while adding some iPhone-specific touches.

Review: Gangstar for iPhone

Tim Mercer — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 09:44:00 -0800

It may be an imitation of Grand Theft Auto, but Gangstar delivers intuitive controls, sophisticated graphics, and the kind of quality gaming you'd expect from a console, not a mobile app.

Review: The Secret of Monkey Island for iPhone

John Brandon — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:18:00 -0800

Whether you embrace this iPhone version of the classic adventure game depends on how you feel about adventure games in general and Monkey Island in particular. If you love both, this game will feel like discovering pirate treasure. If you're not a fan, you'll find this occasionally dull pirate's life is not for you.

Review: Brain Train Unotan for iPhone

Chris Holt — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:28:00 -0800

This iPhone version of SoftBank Selection's popular brainteasing games entertains your noggin while also attempting to improve your memory and concentration. It's unlikely to stay on your iPhone or iPod touch for long, but while it's there, it's an entertaining enough diversion for quick-play sessions.

Lawsuit claims iPhone games stole phone numbers

Lex Friedman — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 09:24:00 -0800

Storm8 is accused of gathering phone numbers from any iPhone where its free games were installed.

Review: FaceFighter for iPhone

Tim Mercer — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 09:05:00 -0800

With great graphics, cool kung fu sounds, and a multi-player mode, FaceFighter is really entertaining. Add in the ability to create custom foes, and hilarity quickly ensues.

Review: The Deep Pinball for iPhone

Ben Boychuk — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:30:00 -0800

OOO Gameprom returns with another pinball adventure, this one set in a watery underworld. It's a fun game, with the 1.1 update improving upon the original release.

Interview with the producers of Warhammer Online

Chris Holt — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 03:39:00 -0800

A chat with two of the producers of this new MMORPG.

Review: 9 The Mobile Game for iPhone

John Brandon — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:51:00 -0800

The animated motion picture 9 may have come and gone from theaters, but its iPhone game remains. Unfortunately, this platform game misses the mark because of simple gameplay and weak graphics.

New Mac 'game' plays Russian roulette with your files

Tony Craine — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:42:00 -0800

An artist tries to get gamers to think about their actions by creating an arcade-style game for the Mac that purposely deletes files from your hard drive as you score points.

Review: Alive 4-Ever for iPhone

Tim Mercer — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 09:52:00 -0800

Everything about this zombie survival game is highly polished, from the music and effects to the controls. Alive 4-Ever is the king of its genre.

Review: Toy Bot games for iPhone

Lex Friedman — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 05:38:00 -0700

The Toy Bot Diaries series improves sequel-by-sequel, but Iugo Mobile Entertainment really gets the gameplay right with Spy Bot Chronicles, a spinoff from the physics-based platform game.

Review: Words With Friends for iPhone

Ben Boychuk — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 11:25:00 -0700

Words With Friends is a two-person crossword challenge that takes advantage of the networking capabilities of the iPhone and iPod touch to help you take on far-flung opponents in a Scrabble-esque word showdown.

Review: FIFA 10 for iPhone

Chris Holt — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 10:25:00 -0700

This soccer game offers engrossing competition and graphics that far out-pace what we've seen on the iPhone and iPod touch. Now if only Electronic Arts could do something about FIFA 10's wonky artificial intelligence.

Classic board game Catan arrives for iPhone

Dan Moren — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 07:45:00 -0700

Catan - The First Island brings the classic German board game to the iPhone, with multiplayer action in either human or computer form.

Review: Medieval for iPhone

Tim Mercer — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 10:59:00 -0700

The App Store features plenty of castle defense games. Medieval is one of the more stellar offerings.

Iconfactory releases Pickin' Time game

Jason Snell — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:27:00 -0700

The Iconfactory released Pickin' Time, a fast-paced pattern-matching game for iPhone.

Review: Moonlights for iPhone

Lex Friedman — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 09:55:00 -0700

With challenging levels and spacey visuals, this tower-building puzzle game is a fine addition to the iPhone. The ability to create your own levels and play levels created by other users, though, pushes Moonlights toward greatness.

GameFly launches GameCenter App for iPhone

Chris Holt — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 18:43:00 -0700

Video game rental service Gamefly launched Thursday their GameCenter App on the App Store. This free application gives iPhone and iPod touch users access to data on over 5,000 video games as well as news, videos, screen shots, release dates, user reviews, and cheats. While not designed to actually play the games themselves, the application serves as a pocket library for gaming information as well as a quick way to research, rent, and buy titles.

Review: Must Eat Birds for iPhone

Tim Mercer — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 16:26:00 -0700

This original game offers a good challenge and even some laughs, as you try to keep birds from devouring your delectable desserts.

X3: Terran Conflict launches on the Mac

Chris Holt — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:13:00 -0700

The immersive sci-fi space simulator and strategy game from Virtual Programming is now available for download.

Halloween games for the iPhone

Lex Friedman — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 14:57:00 -0700

We take a look at a trio of iPhone games with a Halloween twist. Zombie Pizza delivers ghoulish fun, Halloween Chicktionary is an enjoyable word game (though its holiday trappings feel tacked on), and Scarecrow falls short.

Review: Rock Band for iPhone

Chris Holt — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 10:49:00 -0700

It's not that this iPhone version of the console sensation is a bad game -- it's just disappointing. Instead of pushing the genre forward, Electronic Arts has delivered a game that's not all that different from the many other tapping-interface apps you'll find in the App Store.

Earthworm Jim hits iPhone

John Davison — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 04:00:00 -0700

Earthworm Jim, originally released on the Sega Genesis 15 years ago, has made its iPhone debut courtesy of Gameloft.

Review: Crazy Machines for iPhone

Tim Mercer — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 10:58:00 -0700

This physics-based puzzle game requires you to build elaborate machines out of all kinds of objects. Crazy Machines offers loads of challenging puzzles that put your problem solving skills and creativity to the test.

Review: Toy Story Mania for iPhone

Philip Michaels — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 05:32:00 -0700

If you've been to Disney's California Adventure or Hollywood Studios theme parks recently, you've doubtlessly seen the Toy Story Midway Mania ride. This game delivers a lot of the carnival-style fun of that attraction to your iPhone or iPod touch.

Review: Word War for iPhone

Ben Boychuk — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 10:35:00 -0700

This game lets you flex your command of English as you and an opponent build words, letter-by-letter, until you can't build anymore. And who knows -- the game just might have some educational value too.

Ace Combat XI coming to iPhone

John Davison — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:13:00 -0700

Namco is using its Facebook fan page to communicate more and more about its upcoming titles these days, with a post this week promoting the upcoming release of Ace Combat XI for the iPhone.

Red Alert has an October surprise for iPhone gamers

Chris Holt — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 11:46:00 -0700

Electronic Arts plans to bring the Cold War-themed Command and Conquer: Red Alert to the iPhone and iPod touch later this month -- October 23 to be precise.

Review: Inkvaders for iPhone

Lex Friedman — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 05:42:00 -0700

If you're in the mood for a cathartic alien annihilation, you can't really go wrong with this side-scrolling shoot-'em-up from Chillingo.

Review: Game of Life for iPhone

Lex Friedman — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 05:15:00 -0700

How you feel about this game for the iPhone and iPod touch will likely depend on how warmly you feel toward the classic board game on which it's based. If you're a fan of the Game of Life, you'll be more than pleased with Electronic Arts' mobile offering.

Review: Worms for iPhone

Tim Mercer — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 11:09:00 -0700

First released in 1995, this turn-based combat game has arrived on the iPhone. There are some small annoyances, mostly with controls, but overall, Worms is a pretty good game with its own unique charm.

Review: Bowman for iPhone

Omaha Sternberg — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 09:20:00 -0700

The simple graphics and limited audio of Bowman might turn some off, but this is made up for by the focus on the physics of archery within the game. It's a fun way to pass the time.

Review: Scrabble for iPhone

Jeff Phillips — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 09:50:00 -0700

Despite some quirks with the mobile version, this is still the classic Scrabble game, and it is a lot of fun to play.

Rock Band ready to rock out on the iPhone this month

Chris Holt — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 16:53:00 -0700

EA Mobile says the iPhone version of the popular music game should hit the App Store sometime this month.