One of the wonderful things about the App Store is that it provides an opportunity for developers to refine their games as time goes on, often to the point of a game hardly resembling what was released in the first place. As such we've had a look at the following titles and we've given them the nudge they deserve as they remain relevant thanks to listening to their respective communities. (Some of the reviews are taking their sweet time to update correctly - they have been edited, please be patient!)
One of the major weaknesses of Kard Combat when it was released was its lack of customization - something further exascerbated by only having a handful of mages to play with, limiting the overall amount of unique cards to try out. Instead of adding in deck manipulation, Hothead Games has opted to add more mages (albeit at a cost) while also adding in local hotseat (a boon for friends who don't own iDevices). We still feel the lack of customization makes it hard to consider it a serious competitive card game, but it's updates do deserve recognition. (Final Score: 3.6 -> 4.0)
For some, Flip Riders was everything they wanted in a time-trial, hardcore moto-x style stunt game, but for us at AppSpy it presented a lot of frustrations that managed to pile upon themselves, resulting in a less than stellar first outing. However, in what is certainly a praiseworthy effort of retooling, Agimat has updated their game to not only separate the weaklings from the heroes (thanks to a new difficulty selection), the levels themselves have also changed to emphasize its aerial fun. Instead of deadly blind traps players will have to skillfully manipulate their speed, flips and jumps to maximize their score, while all new checkpoints mean you're not cheated at the last moment. What was fun to try has turned in to a game fans of the genre should definitely try their hands at. (Final Score: 3.4 -> 4.0)
Muffin Knight (Angry Mob Games)
This update has been a long time coming, though some may feel it should have retained this score from the get-go. Unfortunately the reviewer had completely overlooked Muffin Knight's inspirations, resulting in a retraction and in a first, a minor score change that bumped it from a 5 to a 4. As each update adds to the roster of champions and arenas to battle in, Muffin Knight steps further and further away from its roots to forge a path on its own and deserves a place on any arcade gamer's iOS device. (Final Score: 4.0 -> 4.2)
Dungeon Defenders: Second Wave (Trendy Entertainment)
Dungeon Defenders holds, dubiously, one of the most hotly contended scores on AppSpy.com if only because I, the reviewer of the game, wanted to love it to bits. At the time Dungeon Defenders was a whirlwind of magical catchphrases that made my inner-gamer tingle with excitement: Unreal Engine graphics, Tower Defense Gameplay, Hero Defense gameplay, Online Co-Op, Persistent and Personalized Character Development. What wasn't to like about this game? Sadly the iOS release suffered greatly for the heavy requirements of the 3D engine and poor user interface designs that resulted in a game that felt cluttered, clunky and jerky all at the same time - the fact that an excellent game was burried beneath this was simply a shame. Update after update the client grew more stable, eking out solid framerates and fixing balance/bug issues, but earlier this month something even better happened - Dungeon Defenders was reborn. Now under the title of 'Second Wave' the game has polished its engine even further, running as smooth as silk on the iPhone 4S, but more importantly its controls and interface have been completely retooled. Almost the exact same amount of information is available despite the increased visibile play area thanks to clever use of sliding menus, clustered buttons and new, intuitive swipe controls to manipulate your character and camera, making the experience far easier to enjoy and lowering the entry requirements from dedicated hardcore fans to just about anyone willing to give it a try. The addition of new content including a PvP arena only helps to clinch the new high score for this game. If you haven't given it a try, do yourself a favor and grab it now - I often say 'things can only get better' and I couldn't be more glad about how far this game has come. (Final Score: 3.4 -> 4.4)
If you believe a game has undergone enough changes to warrant an updated score, let us know by using our contact form or emailing the Editor directly via [email protected]
