Mobile Apple Me

Section: iPhone / iPod touch / iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, iDevice Apps, Reviews

Category: Adventure game
Seller: Chillingo
Requirements: iPhone OS 2.0 or later
Compatibility: iPhone and iPod touch
File Size: 338MB
Version Reviewed: 1.0
Price: $0.99
Age Rating: 9+

I’m happy to see more adventure games being released for the iPhone and iPod touch. They’re well suited for these devices in regards to both graphics and controls. A prime example of this is Dracula: The Path of the Dragon - Part 1 from Chillingo. It’s the first of a three part series, and it does a great job of laying the groundwork for adventure games to come.

The game takes place in 1920 in…wait for it…Transylvania. You play Father Arno Moriani, having been sent there to investigate a potential candidate for sainthood. Guess what you find instead. Go on, guess.

So, this is neither a game version of the classic novel nor a modern twist on vampire lore as with Twilight. In fact, it’s not even a port of the PC version of the game. This new tale has been completely rebuilt from the ground up for the iPhone, allowing for easy controls and a simple inventory system. This is a good thing, because we all know by now that straight ports of PC games never work, right?

Movement is based on nodal system, as you warp from point to point. At each point, you get full 360° movement, which you achieve by sliding your finger around the screen. If you can interact with an object, the icon will change to let you know. To move to the next node, you simply tap the screen when the arrow icon appears. It’s very easy to manage, and unlike many other iPhone games, everything works as it’s expected, every time. However, the inclusion of a map would certainly help. It’s easy to get discombobulated as you try to work your way through the village.

The graphics at each node are nicely detailed. They’re dark, but I guess that’s to be expected in a vampire game. The dialog is acted out, and fairly well, I should point (voices and text are available in English, German, French, Italian and Spanish). However, it’s not always well recorded. Some of it sounds too heavily compressed, as if it were recorded in an empty basement. When speaking to the various characters, you’re presented with questions to ask. Aside from “Leave,” none of them send to affect the conversations; you can ask all of the questions in any order, and even go back and have the same conversation again.

Now, the puzzles themselves are typical of what you’d find in a PC adventure game; find things, combine things, use things. None of the puzzles are too tough or completely illogical, so hardcore gamers may be put off by the ease of getting through this. Indeed, you’ll spend more time looking for the next item/character/location than you will in figuring out what to do when you’ve found it, but this exploration provides a good opportunity for the developers to show off the moody graphics.

The only real complaint most adventure gamers will have, then, will be about the length. Chillingo will tell you that part one only offers about three hours of gameplay, but for $0.99, this is fair. What’s key is that the game offers a fun, immersive experience in the timeframe that it gives you, and Dracula: The Path of the Dragon does just that.

Buying adventure games in episodes makes sense, and it’s a set-up I’d like to see continued (especially if you can elect to continue the game through an in-app purchase, as opposed to buying and downloading a separate app). As I mentioned, the iPhone and iPod touch are perfect vessels for these types of games that require more thought and fewer awkward control schemes. And games such as Dracula: The Path of the Dragon will look even better on the iPad, so hopefully Chillingo is keeping that in mind for parts two and three.

Full Story » | Written by Kirk Hiner for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

Section: iPhone / iPod touch / iPad, iPhone, iDevice Accessories, Reviews

Provides: Protection from scratches and scuffs
Developer: XO Skins
Minimum Requirements: iPhone 3G
Price: $24.95 (Full Body) or $14.95 (Screen)
Availability: Now

I knew the XO skin was going to be a high quality product before I even opened the box. The packaging alone gave me some good vibes, and I was quite surprised by the contents inside as I opened it. I was expecting a plastic skin and nothing else (as per usual when buying skins), but instead got a few more items I soon found out were for applying and maintaining the skin, which confused me. I figured it would be as simple as putting the skin onto the iPhone, but I was wrong.

The XO skin comes with a very detailed installation instruction sheet (with pictures!) that makes the process of applying the skin quite simple as long as you follow them properly. The included bottle of application spray and squeegee may intimidate you at first, but they actually make the process easier than applying some of the competing products that require you to continually lift and reapply the skin until you get the positioning perfect. It only took me about two minutes to apply the skin to my iPhone 3G.

It is recommended that you wait overnight (12 hours) to let the skin set properly (something which I didn’t realize until after I applied the skin), which can be inconvenient to some. Also, if you do not follow the installation instructions properly, you’re at risk of water damage to your device due to the solution that you must spray on before applying the skin, which would be a pretty big price to pay for not following instructions.

When it comes to quality, XO definitely went all in. This skin has to be one of the sturdiest that I have ever seen or used for the iPhone 3G. Scratching your screen is next to impossible with the skin on, I tried (not too aggressively, obviously) with a set of keys and a screwdriver, and couldn’t produce even the tiniest scratch, which is definitely a very good sign.

All in all, the iPhone 3G skin by XO Skins is definitely worth the slightly expensive price tag if you’re really looking for quality in an iPhone skin.

Full Story » | Written by Patrick Lutz for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

Section: iPhone / iPod touch / iPad, iPad, iDevice Apps, iTunes

Along with the tablet announced on January 27th, Apple also stated that they have created an application known as iBooks. This app not only allows users to read digital books, it also integrates with a store from which to purchase them. Even thought the iPad doesn’t have a e-ink display, reading books on it will still most likely be a pleasure as the display it does have is gorgeous and allows for editing the font styles and size. The only unfortunate aspect of the iBooks application so far is that it may only be available in the US when the iPad is actually being sold this March. This information is according to the Australian Apple website which claims in a footnote at the bottom, “iBooks available in the US only.”

This is most likely due to the deals that Apple made with the various publishers for iBooks. And unlike the networking and 3G side of things for the iPad, Apple has made no statement on whether this will change. It’d be unfortunate if it didn’t, but there are still ways to get books from the App Store outside of the US. For instance, Amazon’s Kindle application is free, and many people enjoy Classics.

Via The Unofficial Apple Weblog

Full Story » | Written by Josh Holat for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

Section: iPhone / iPod touch / iPad, iPad, Originals

Yes, it happened, and yes, the iPad is here. And while it does have a gorgeous 9.7 inch multi touch display, it is also lacking in certain areas. For a first generation product, Apple certainly did hit the nail on the head in terms of how well the hardware was manufactured. That said, there are also certain features missing in this device.

No USB port - For a device that claims to be perfect for almost anything, it is sort of sad to see it lacking a USB port (and when I say USB port, I don’t mean the pin connector). To me, simply adding one standard USB port would increase the functionality of the device in a great way. For example, with a USB port the iPad could plug into a disc drive and enable the user to watch videos via a physical disc. It would also make it much easier to import images from cameras instead of throwing down more money on an adapter. But most of all, it could allow Pages, Keynote, and Numbers documents to be loaded and saved to a USB drive and more easily shared with others. Instead, they now must be e-mailed around the cloud if you aren’t near the computer to which they sync.

No Cameras - While I’m sure we’ll see this in a future generation of the device, I was disappointed it wasn’t included in this one. With such a large screen, a front facing camera along with an app for it would be perfect for video conferencing. Furthermore, while it would be a little awkward to hold the whole device up to take a picture with a camera on the back, it’d be nice to have that decision. This could, for instance, be useful when adding a contact and wanting to take his picture for the address book. Furthermore, simple video editing could be made extremely fun and easy on this device if it had the ability to take video clips.

No HDMI Out - For a device with such a gorgeous screen, it seems as if you wouldn’t want to send the video it is playing somewhere else. However, HDMI out would be nice for those occasions in which you do need to do that. Since you can’t play video through a disc drive (it doesn’t have one), the only way is through stored files. It’d be nice to have a way to view those simply by plugging the device into a TV as well.

Still No Flash - While I know Apple claims that Flash can make browsers unstable and kill battery life, it should be on the iPad if it claims to be the best mobile browsing experience. Apple could’ve at least made it an option in the Settings.app to turn on or off at our discretion if they really hate it that much.

Full Story » | Written by Josh Holat for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »