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The Year of the Gamer

12 Dec

I would have to say that this is certainly the age of the gamer. There are so many different types of games these days, and such a wide variety of people playing them, that it’s hard not to someone playing something. So what are your favorite games? Where do you spend your time? Here’s where I’ve been spending mine.

Browser based games – I haven’t started playing any poker sites for money yet, there is only one browser based game that I have been playing, and it’s Glitch. Even though the game is being brought back to its beta stages in order to further development, the game is still a huge hit with me.

PC based games – as always the largest number of games I’m playing happen to be for the pc. These include Skyrim, Sims 3 (pets is a fantastic expansion), World of Warcraft, EverQuest II, and a few others that are not constants but are still on my desktop (there’s a good 15 titles in that category depending on my whims).  I filtered to and from League of Legends for a little while, but it got a tad bit frustrating to me. Magicka was the same way.

Mobile Gaming – these games always have a hard time trying to keep my attention. I really like bejeweled for some strange reason that I can’t even pinpoint, but I don’t enjoy angry birds at all. Plants vs. Zombie is a great title, and I actually have it on my PC now thanks to a generous Christmas gift. My ipad and iphone are almost empty of any games, I seem to prefer using those systems for organizational tools and media. If you know of any mobile games that I may enjoy, please feel free to let me know in comments! I’m especially fond of RPG games, although I have been known to play a few other types as well.

Mobile Gaming: Pirates and Traders

29 May

This is one that’s been in the Android Market for a while but I’ve been spending a lot of time with it recently and thought it deserved a look. Pirates and Traders is a non-linear strategy game in the same vein as games like Wing Commander: Privateer. It’s a game in which you make your own way, choosing to play nice and be a trader between the outposts of the four Caribbean powers or playing as an outlaw boarding and taking control of other merchant ships you encounter.

You start the game as a young captain in a ship of your choice and are cast out into the world to make a career for yourself. As a Frenchman, I began my career in Tortuga with the choice between a Barque with a large cargo hold or a Sloop with fast sails and extra cannon. The game is played by moving from port to port with your ship, maintaining food stores to keep your men happy and stave off mutiny, and making money trading goods you’ve bought or stolen. By carefully listening to rumors in taverns you can capitalize on shortages of one trade good in a port and surplus in others. Occasionally you will find someone in a tavern who wants goods moved or a transport to another port of call, which are often easy money but you should check first if you can complete the job in the allotted time.

Life as a pirate is a hard one. Ship combat is modeled in a turn based fashion where you begin trading cannon fire at range, then close the distance to either pelt your opponent’s rigging to prevent them running or decks to destroy their cannon and crew. In the beginning of your career you will encounter captains who are more skilled at ship combat than you and who often defeat you. I had better luck after I made enough money as a trader to buy a bigger ship, a Large Brig to use in my piracy career. There are no pirate ports of call, so even as a pirate you must still play nice with at least one of the four factions to have a place to sell your ill-gotten gains.

As a strategy game Pirates and Traders has depth to keep you coming back for more. I would like to see it expanded, with more missions available and perhaps more ship upgrades. If you’re looking for a good trade simulation this one is worth checking out. The game is available in a free (ad supported) version and a gold version on the Android market.

Mobile Gaming: Tangram Moment

30 Nov

In my quest for new ways to waste time with my Android phone I’ve recently found a puzzle game by the name of Tangram Moment. Created by H.Jin and free to download from the Android Market, this app is a version of the popular puzzle known as Tangrams.

 

In Tangrams, the goal is to use seven geometrically shaped blocks called tans to recreate a given design. Some designs, like the one in the image above are easy while some are quite tricky. Tangram Moment has been recently updated to include over 450 designs which are arranged into categories and are progressively unlocked as you complete them.

It’s nothing new, but it’s well done in that the controls to rotate and move your tans are very smooth and the puzzles offer a good mixture between simple and tricky. It scratches the puzzle itch I’ve had lately, and it’s good for when you have a few moments and want to do something to relax. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a puzzle to work through on their phone.

Mobile Gaming Review: Alchemy

30 Sep

Today we have a rapidly expanding and pretty popular puzzle game available on Android called Alchemy, created by Andrey Zaikin (Blog mostly in Russian) Alchemy is a simple concept puzzle game that has surprising depth once you dig into it.

Alchemy begins as a black screen with four icons representing the four elements, Earth Air Fire and Water. For example, dragging your starting Fire icon onto the Water icon makes Alcohol, while dragging your Water icon onto the Earth icon makes a Swamp. Doubletap in a blank area to get a new set of four elements and you can combine Air and Earth to make Dust, or Fire and Air to make Energy. By combining these you make ever more complex items, eventually making Life and Man, as well as fun things like Vampires, Frankenstein, Walking Trees and 1UP Mushrooms!

Dragging an icon to the ? symbol will give you information about it (usually a Wikipedia link) and combinations that create or use it. When dragging an icon the + symbol becomes a trash can you can use to discard excess icons and unclutter your workspace. Tapping the + opens a menu listing the elements you’ve created which you can use to bring one onto the workspace as an icon without having to recreate it from the basic four. On the list of your unlocked elements ones marked with a red * are end line creations that can’t be used to make anything new.

The joy in this game comes from deducing what combines to make something, and in the current version there are 300 elements to puzzle out. I have to admit I am still under 150 elements, but really enjoying jumping back in with a clear mind and trying new things when I have spare moments.

If you’re looking for a puzzle game with an interesting twist then give Alchemy a try! It’s a free download on the Android Market.

Android Gaming: Void Defence

14 Aug

This week I’m highlighting another tower defense style game for mobile phones that I’ve been spending time with when I can sneak a level or two. This one is called Void Defence, by Craig Hart (funqai.com). It puts a spin on the usual tower defense game by not involving roads or chutes, instead enemies come at you through the void.

You control a ring with twelve positions for towers, initially all empty. Enemies start in the center of the circle of which your ring is the circumference and move in a spiral position until crashing into the ring and taking your lives. You have the choice of six types of towers to use in your defense, which range from light damage rapid fire towers to towers that chain damage among several ships with each shot to towers that deal heavy damage and have a change to ‘reap’ enemy lives to add to your own but are very slow firing. All towers can be upgraded for range and statistics and also have a setting for target preference; either closest, highest health, lowest health or fastest enemy within range.

As you progress in levels the enemies have progressively more health and are worth more cash when killed. This is a game that has no end, it is a test of your strategy and survival to see how far you can go and points you can earn. Every eight levels you reach a checkpoint, from which later games can be started and the enemy resets to the slowest type (with ever increasing health). My record is 50, at which point the enemies have well over 100,000 health.

You have some assistance in your struggle, though it is random and forces you to make the best of what you are given. Every other level an enemy will spawn that when killed gives you a one use power to pass a tough level; these include freezing all enemies on screen, bombing the onscreen enemies to explode within a few seconds, doubling the range of all your towers, doubling the damage of all your towers, increasing the point value of enemies and increasing the cash value of enemies. When you pass an 8 level checkpoint, an enemy spawns that gives you a bonus that can be extra lives, extra points or an increase to the interest rate paid at the end of each level.

This interest rate is where your strategy becomes important, as it is the way to survive at higher levels of play. Any unspent cash gains you interest at the end of each level, so you are rewarded by being thrifty with your upgrades. The rate begins at 6% but can increase with the bonuses you get as you play. Planning a strategy to make your money work for you is essential to reaching higher levels in the game.

Ultimately this one is an achiever style game, as your reward for your well executed strategy is always a painful death and a points score. But the strategy elements and improving upon my play have kept me interested through all the levels available in the demo version. If you’re interested in something a little different and fun then try this one, I bet you’ll like it.

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