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iPhone games are front and center at WWDC

June 10, 2008
When Apple brought developers on stage at WWDC to show off native iPhone apps, game makers led the charge. Peter Cohen finds this to be a heartening development.

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International Herald Tribune

Video-game review: Online play makes "Mario Kart Wii" a must-have

It's not often that a series installment can stray so little from its past and still make a mark, but "Mario Kart Wii" waves the checkered flag with a 12-player online racing mode that makes the best use of the Wii's Wi-Fi capabilities to date.
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AppleTell

Appletell review: Wingnuts Moto Racer for iPhone

Section: iPod + iTunes, iPod touch, iPhone + Communications, iPhone, iPhone SDK & Apps, Features, Review Genre: Racing Developer: Freeverse File Size: 15.1MB Version Reviewed: 1.0 Requirements: iPhone 2.0 software Compatibility: iPhone and iPod touch Rating: 9+ (infrequent/mild cartoon or fantasy violence) Price $9.99 Was there ever a doubt Freeverse would be right there on the launch of Apple’s App Store? I imagine they had their iPhone games programmed and ready to go before the iPhone was even announced. The original iPhone. I picture a closet full of games in boxes marked, “Waiting for Accelerometer,” “Waiting for Mac OS Touch,” “Waiting for Post-Robot Apocalypse Transference Gaming.” For today’s technology, Freeverse had two games in the App Store on launch day: Big Bang Sudoku is based on the Sudoku game in their Big Bang Brain Games package for the Macintosh, but the subject of this review—Wingnuts Moto Racer—is built from the ground up for the iPhone, despite the Wingnuts name. In fact, that’s a bit confusing, as Wingnuts Moto Racer seemingly bears little resemblance with its namesake, either in gameplay or characters. In fact, the only connection I can find is that they’re both tremendously fun. Wingnuts Moto Racer is a racing game, of sorts. It’s actually more of a time trial game, as the point is to race through checkpoints in order to...save a cat? Let’s consider this again; a cat has been stolen, and it’s up to one of three motorcyclists to race through various locales around the world, avoiding traffic, biker thugs and nature in order to save the day. Why’s this cat so important? I guess it doesn’t matter, just as long as it gives you an excuse to race. The controls are easy to pick up and play, but quite hard to get comfortable with. I suppose there’ll come a point when we’ll all be masters of using the iPhone as a steering wheel, but right now it’s a study in overcompensation and frustration in just about every game that uses the accelerometer. I constantly found myself steering too hard to avoid an object, only to quickly find myself doing the same on the other side of the road. It doesn’t help that there’s no course map on the screen, nor that the road is often not presented until you’re right on top of it. In other words, hills behave like hills, and it’s only after numerous attempts that you’ll have memorized turns and be prepared to handle them. Perhaps it’s a good thing, then, that crashing into rocks and buildings barely even slows you down. It’s only after you get comfortable with the controls that you can appreciate the cinematic flair to the game. It’s a perfect choice for showing off your iPhone’s capabilities. Yes, the graphics are sweet, but it’s more important that Freeverse knows what do with them than how to program for them. So, we get pretty cool cut scenes of your biker’s hang time, slick shots of the bikers before the race (so dramatic are they in their poses that I have to assume they’re European; let’s say...Toulouse, just because it sounds sexy in that exotic, 1960s sort of way), and environments that are more about the “cool” factor than about logic. (Building roads through trees? Viva Toulouse!) Sadly, it’s not all action and fun, as the game does hit a couple of snags along the way. First off, as mentioned above, it’s terribly frustrating at first as you learn to master the accelerometer. I made it through the first level in one shot, but not even three hours of standing in line for an iPhone 3G for my wife was enough for me get past level two. Perhaps I was distracted by all the complaining. Regardless, be prepared to invest some time in the game, especially since you can’t pause the action. The only way out of it is to hit the Home Button, which ends the game completely. You can hop back into any course you’ve unlocked, but if you were having a particularly good run before you were interrupted, you’ll lose it. Second, the ability to punch other bikers is really cool, but it doesn’t work as it should. You accelerate by pressing the “Gas” button on the lower left of the screen, and you’re supposed to punch when the “Fist” icon appears in the upper left. I tried reaching this with my finger so I wouldn’t have to let up on the gas, but that didn’t seem to work. So, I pull my thumb off the gas to hit the fist, which causes me to slow down, which causes me to fall out of range with the guy I’m trying to hit. It seems to me the fist would’ve been better placed on the lower right of the screen. Or, maybe Freeverse really wanted this to be has hard as it is to punch someone while you’re actually driving a motorcycle. This isn’t a racing game, it’s a racing sim! And if there’s one thing Moto Racer made perfectly clear to me, it’s that iPhone case developers are going to have to start including headphone compartments. Moto Racer sounds great, especially the music, but you don’t get this from the tiny speakers in the iPhone. You really need to play the game with headphones to get the full effect, so be sure to have some handy. Wingnuts Moto Racer is a fantastic introduction to iPhone gaming. I imagine a plague of racing games will soon sweep across the iPhone, at which point Moto Racer may get lost amongst the masses. Right now, though, it’s exactly what an iPhone game should be; quick, fun, and great for showing off. Who knew that as early as iPhone 2.0 launch day we’d have games like this to make it quite clear iPhone gaming his here to stay? I mean, other than the gang at Freeverse, of course. Appletell Rating: Purchase Wingnuts Moto Racer Full Story » | Written by Kirk Hiner for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »
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Macworld - EVE Online premium graphics pack...

EVE Online's premium graphics pack was finally shown running natively on the Mac, and is due soon.
11/12/08
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Macworld - Review: Call of Duty 4: Modern...

From its visually stunning beginning to its emotionally wrenching ending, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is a surprisingly deep, rich, and unique approach to the first-person...
10/24/08
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Macworld - Cro-Mag Rally for iPhone

While the novelty of this racing game can wear off quickly, Cro-Mag Rally is a fine game for the iPhone and iPod touch that really demonstrates what this early generation of...
07/24/08
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Yahoo! News Microsoft, Sony Copy Nintendo's...

Investor's Business Daily - Nintendo raised the bar for casual, easy-to-play video games again Tuesday, as rivals Microsoft and Sony scrambled to imitate the family-friendly...
07/16/08
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AppleTell Appletell review - Enemy Territory:...

Section: Software + Apps, Games, Mac + Computers, Software, Features, Review Genre: Team-based first-person shooter Format: DVD Developer: Splash Damage and Nerve Software ...
08/12/08
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Macworld - World of Warcraft Preview: Up close...

Blizzard has released its second full World of Warcraft expansion, Wrath of the Lich King. Chris Holt talks to Blizzard’s Alex Afrasiabi about the state of the World of...
11/14/08
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iLounge

Backstage: Wii Reconnects with Super Smash Bros. Brawl

No game company on the planet has been more successful at building marquee-quality franchise titles than Nintendo. And, on a related note, no game company has been more successful at finding a way to integrate most of its franchises into a single, “everybody needs to buy this” sort of game. Nintendo achieved the first feat with Super Smash Bros., a simple “knock your enemies off the screen” fighting game developed by trusted…
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Arstechnica

Racing à la Kart: a review of Mario Kart Wii

Mario Kart makes its debut on the Wii with some great new elements and a strong online offering. The kart racer is still surviving in the HD era.Read More...
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The Wall Street Journal Keeping Up Nintendo's Momentum

After overseeing several years of rapid growth at Nintendo, President Satoru Iwata faces new challenges: how to keep players of the company's videogames interested, and how to...
08/04/08
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AppleTell Appletell Review - Fable: The Lost...

Section: Software + Apps, Games, Mac + Computers, Software, Features, Review Genre: Action/RPG Format: DVD Developer: Lionhead Studios Macintosh Developer: Robosoft...
07/25/08
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Macworld - City of Heroes MMO is Mac-bound

City of Heroes, the massively multiplayer online game featuring superheroes, is at long last coming to the Mac.
10/30/08
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The Wall Street Journal 'Grand,' but No 'Godfather'

Critics have hailed 'Grand Theft Auto IV' as equal to great movies and books. But here's what it's missing.
06/28/08
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Macworld - Ambrosia releases Aquaria game for...

Aquaria, an award-winning 2D scrolling underwater action game, is now available for the Mac.
11/13/08
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Macworld - Review: ToCA Race Driver 3 game

Deep and varied races make ToCA Race Driver 3 a compelling game for any fan of racing.
12/03/08
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macNN

Instant Action gaming portal to gain Mac support

Garage Games' Instant Action portal should soon open to Mac gamers, according to the company. Instant Action is a web-based gaming service, but one which concentrates less on casual puzzlers, and more on the action games PC and console users are familiar with. Titles use a modern 3D engine, and include games like Marble Blast Online and the futur...
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Engadget

Logitech unveils Speed Force Wireless racing wheel for Wii

Up until now, Wii-owning racers have been stuck with the Wii Wheel, Brando's Wii Multi-Axis Racing System or something they cooked up in arts and crafts. Now, however, Logitech is providing a much better option for serious track stars. The Speed Force Wireless racing wheel is the first force-feedback wheel for Nintendo's latest console, and while it was designed to work with Need For Speed Undercover, it'll do just fine with future force-feedback racing titles as well. Disgustingly, you still have to plug a USB receiver into your Wii before this thing will work, but we guess that's the breaks, huh? Look for this one to pop up in November (US and Europe) for $99.99. Full release after the break.Continue reading Logitech unveils Speed Force Wireless racing wheel for WiiPermalink | Email this | Comments
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Macworld - FlatOut 2 driving carnage game coming...

FlatOut 2, the carnage-laden driving game, will be available for the Mac soon.
08/22/08
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AppleInsider Live coverage notes from Apple's WWDC...

Apple on Monday held its opening keynote at its Worldwide Developers Conference where it talked all things iPhone and unveiled its new-generation 3G handset. Rough and dirty...
06/09/08
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AppleTell Appletell review - Battlestations:...

Section: Apple, Software + Apps, Games, Features, Review Genre: Action, real-time tactics Format: DVD Developer: Eidos Interactive Mac Port: Robosoft Technologies Mac...
08/26/08
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Yahoo! News Xbox 360's Wii-Style Controller:...

TechWeb - InformationWeek - Previous Internet reports have suggested Microsoft is working on a Nintendo Wii-style controller for the Xbox 360 under a project code-named Newton.
05/21/08
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Macworld - Penny Arcade Episode Two game released

Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, Episode Two is now available for download.
10/30/08
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Macworld - Aspyr delays Mac Call of Duty 4 to...

Call of Duty 4 is going to take a while longer to come to the Mac, according to Aspyr.
06/03/08
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