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Gameloft Sells Over 6 Million iPhone Games

Cory Bohon — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 15:41:28 -0500

With over 35 games in the App Store, Gameloft has sold over 6 million games on the iPhone platform. GameLoft said in their press release that the iPhone platform is their number one platform. “From the distribution model to the types of games available, the App Store has completely revolutionized the way handheld games are played, perceived and received,” said the Gameloft CEO, Michel Guillemot.

Some of the 2009 top-selling games are: Assassin’s Creed: Atlair’s Chronicles, UNO, Terminator Salvation, and Let's Golf. And the games don't stop there, as Gameloft plans to release 15-30 more titles before the end of the year. Before the iPhone came along, Gameloft produced several games for the iPod classic and iPod nano. Of their 35 titles, 18 of them have appeared on the top-ten paid apps worldwide.

Gameloft PR via iPod NN

The Oregon Trail

Susie Ochs — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 06:10:00 -0500

This eagle is about to steal my baby.

What better way to spend a commute than reliving the ultimate commute, pioneers’ deadly journey from Independence, Missouri, to Oregon? Now that Gameloft’s brought adventure classic The Oregon Trail to the App Store, you can.

The game is pretty straightforward and linear, requiring nearly no skill. Minigames have you tap the screen to hunt game, catch fish, pick berries, send telegrams, pan for gold, and maneuver your wagon down raging rivers, but mostly you just trudge down the trail, balancing your desire to go faster against the risk that little Timmy will break his leg again. There’s only so much you can do to succeed, too—we tried to be ultra-cautious, and our baby was carried away by an eagle. Seriously, an eagle.

You do get to make some choices, mostly in resource management, and the game has two endings for some replay value. The graphics and sound are pretty adorable, down to funny details like the kids whining, “Are we there yet?” And the loading screens include some educational trivia, but the sheer number and length of the loading screens turned us off. By the time we got to Oregon we weren’t exactly eager to start the trek again. (Pretty realistic in that sense, huh?)

He sure was.

In the fishing minigame, you can hook supplies as well as fish. The boots aren't considered useful, which is silly since we're, um, walking to Oregon here.

When you stop at forts, you can play this telegraph minigame (repeating the pattern, like Simon) for cash money.

Fix your wagon by tapping the nails when the circle around them in green. Nice 'stashe, by the way.

The quintessential dilemma we remember from playing this in the '80s: Ford the river? Or...

...take the ferry? Or...

...float down the river, using the currents to guide you and watching out for obstacles? Or...

...just hire a nice man to help?

Real Soccer 2009

Zack Stern — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 14:03:53 -0500

When animated, white and yellow jersey blobs looks like players.

Real Soccer 2009 is a surprising kick on the iPhone. Similar to soccer titles for other videogame systems, you control the action from a sideline, 3D perspective; the camera even cuts to different angles for goal highlights. While we found several flaws in its control and AI, Real Soccer is dramatic and exciting.

When paused, the graphics are ugly. Blocky blobs of color represent players, and the ball is shown as a polka-dot disc. But those splotches come to life with 3D animations. Running, tackling, dribbling, and other constant moves look fluid and natural. Black dots on the white ball spin as it rolls. If it’s waist-high, a player will meet the ball with his foot, instead of recycling the same ground-kick motion. These effects make the game feel realistic even though the graphics are rough.

Instant replays show highlights from new angles.

The actual play usually rises to this level; we felt in-control of the action. Gamers press a permanent, on-screen directional arrow to move, and tap “A” and “B” on-screen buttons to shoot and pass. We wish we could find the positions by touch and occasionally missed the correct points. The screen also uses gestures for a few trick moves, such as a quick circle to spin, often making full use of the iPhone’s abilities. Hold either button for a harder kick, double-tap to give-and-go, or slide right off A to fake a shot, for a surprising amount of depth. Tutorial modes help explain everything, and brief instructions give a reminder when paused.

In the game’s other flaw, its AI can get winded. Your defender is automatically selected by being the closest to the ball, but you can toggle to another by tapping the screen. However, when an attacker approaches a tight cluster of defenders, the game quickly swaps between each person; we frequently ran the wrong way, being disoriented. And when beating weak teams, we could sometimes hold the ball in one place to run out the clock without being contested.

Gameloft Unveils Six iPhone Launch Titles

Zack Stern — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 10:26:48 -0500

Gameloft has announced the release of six iPhone and iPod touch titles, available through the App Store today. You might be familiar with most of them, since each has already been published on the Classic iPod, to web browsers, on general mobile phones, and possibly even advanced refrigerators. (Oh, we kid. Those fridges aren't out yet.) We initially had low expectations for these conversions, but after hearing more, we're excited about some of the iPhone-only tweaks to these titles.

Diamond Twister is a tile-matching game, where you swap two adjacent tiles with a swipe of your finger; match three or more, and the like-tiles disappear. While the game mechanic isn't original--Bejeweled and others use the same scheme--Diamond Twister reads the iPhone's orientation to change the game's direction of gravity. This addition lets you chip away at hard-to-reach bottom tiles with just a twist of the phone. Diamond Twister costs $7.99.

Chess & Backgammon Classics returns from its iPod iteration, adding a touch-sensitive interface on the iPhone. In these two games, you can adjust between a portrait and landscape orientation by how you hold the phone. And in Backgammon, you shake the dice by shaking the phone. Just hold on tight. Chess & Backgammon Classics costs $9.99

Brain Challenge runs you through a battery of mental tests and activities, scoring--and potentially improving--memory, reflexes, and more. We're looking forward to the touch interface, since our main gripe with the iPod version was its difficult controls. Sure, it's a knock-off of the Brain Training craze, but one new mini-game responds to the way you twist the screen. Brain Challenge costs $9.99.

Bubble Bash taps a familiar game type Mac players might recognize from Snood. Like the iPod version, you launch colored bubbles up at a grid, popping matches of three-or-more. Finger taps aim and fire the projectiles, while iPhone tilts adjust the position of the bubble canon. Bubble Bash costs $7.99.

Platinum Solitaire mixes single-player card games--including Yukon, FreeCell, Golf, Pyramid, and more--with casino glam. You'll spend real time earning virtual payouts for completing the card challenges. It uses fingertip controls as expected, plus you can shuffle the cards by shaking the phone. Platinum Solitaire costs $7.99.

Platinum Sudoku packs 20,000,000 number puzzles into an iPhone, including a mixture of Kakuro boards. Tutorials train you in the basics of both game times, while you can write answers on the board with your finger. Additionally, you can use the built-in solver to cheat at newspaper puzzles, should your friends be easily impressed with your (supposed) Sudoku skills. Platinum Sudoku costs $7.99.

We're churning away, testing and evaluating new App Store releases. Come back soon for reviews of these and other App Store games.