As things begin to stabilize around the office, I find myself relaxed and glad I can finally take up the reins on the Friday News Wrap-Up once again. As you can imagine, we were in a tight-pickle last week, but I stand by my choice to provide the review that was much needed at the time. As such, we have a glut of great news for this week, but we've picked some of the juicier ones just for you.
This is the Friday News Wrap-Up for the 27th of July, 2012.
Armed Heroes MMO - An odd response to asset theft claims
Lets kick off the week with good, old drama. Armed Heroes, an upcoming MMO for the iOS platform has been looking utterly amazing of late, with features that put it closer to the Free-MMOs available for the PC. However, the artwork had a familiar feel to it - no surprise when Travis Baldree of Runic Games fame came out and declared developer EGLS of art asset theft. You can see for yourself that Travis isn't making claims without good reason, however Serena Zhang responded to the allegations in an odd way. Instead of refuting the art theft, they made it clear that Armed Heroes Online is not the same game as Torchlight - something Travis never claimed. Further investigation by Touch Arcade forum goers have revealed identical sound files (complete with the original misspellings from Torchlight's files). EGLS has subsequently said they will end up removing 'some parts' of the game before its final release, however I wonder if the damage is already done.
Jet Set Radio iOS - 'This Summer'
SEGA fan-boys be on alert - not only is Jet Set Radio HD making its way to the console, PC and Vita, but the developer has also said that iOS devices including the iPhone and iPad will be included in the final release schedule. Apparently players will be able to create graffiti with their camera - something we'll be excited to check out. The game is slated for 'this summer'.
Happy Street - Cute freemium management title launching August 2nd
As much as everyone likes to rage about 'freemium' titles, there's a subset of the games that continues to do well because it provides a near endless amount of goals to complete, which is all some people are after in their distraction of choice. Happy Street from iBlast Moki developer Godzilab puts players in control of a 2D town that grows ever-more vibrant and busy as more buildings are added. The game is currently in an open-beta of sorts, but will be officially available from the 2nd of August.
Mr. Dreamer - Latest title from 'Deo' creator Strapped to a Meteor
Here at AppSpy, Deo by Strapped to a Meteor left us wanting for more. While the game could have benefited from more variety, it still managed to hook us in and ponder what would be next from the developer. Thankfully the wait is over as the company has just released info about their latest title, Mr. Dreamer - a line-runner where players must stay above the line and collect candy to stay in the day-dream world. Once again it feels like a short and limited release - with only 8 worlds on offer - but is cute style may be too hard to ignore. Mr. Dreamer will be out on the 31st of July.
Mini-review: MANOS - The Hands of Fate (FreakZone Games) $1.99 Univ.
Not that I'm going to recommend watching Manos: The Hands of Fate, but if you're a fan of comedy commentary you should watch MST3K's cult-classic episode that covers this atrocious film. Of course they used a somewhat imperfect copy of the film and fans of bad cinema can find a color version in all of its glory floating around the Internet (or even the App Store if you so desire). The last time we saw FreakZone their rather trippy homage to Super Mario Brothers managed to attract our attention, but now their retro (and dare I say it, less than perfect) platform engine has been used to great effect, acting as an homage to a complete train-wreck of a film. The pseudo-Castlevania style visuals are a perfect match for the Master's creepy mansion and you can expect more than a few platforming traps to keep you on your toes. It's far from a platforming classic, but then again it doesn't hang around for very long either - getting you in and out with a few chuckles under your belt.
Pick of the Week: Fieldrunners 2 (Subatomic Studios) $2.99
It's that time of year - the one where it gets harder and harder to find a game to hold our interest during the quiet release schedule. Thankfully there was one bright and shining star in the last fortnight - Subatomic Studio's return to the limelight with Fieldrunners 2. Although it's utterly brutal in its challenge, it's not unfair and those who have been begging for a tower defense title with more meat can expect to chew over this title for some time to come. It's a shame a universal or iPad release was not available on release, but the developer promises to provide one in the future.
For those itching to hear what we have to say about The Walking Dead, be assured we'll have something for you early next week. We're so happy we can continue to provide you with quality reviews, even if the quality of the games of late isn't as amazing. To keep track of all of our news, reviews and features, hit us up on Twitter and Facebook, and don't forget to slap the Subscribe button above the video if you're on YouTube.
Have a great weekend!
Additional Links:
Armed Heroes Sound File Listing (via Touch Arcade) - https://forums.toucharcade.com/showpost.php?p=2349850&postcount=156
Joystiq Preview of Jet Set Radio - https://www.joystiq.com/2012/07/20/jet-set-radio-also-broadcasting-to-ios-and-android-this-summer/
Happy Street Gameplay Trailer - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZ1WpJA1h7E
Mr. Dreamer - Official Trailer - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGuF7Cxkz00
Fieldrunners 2 Review - https://www.appspy.com/fieldrunners-2-review
MANOS - The Hands of Fate Review - https://www.appspy.com/manos-the-hands-of-fate-review
Manos: The Hands of Fate (Film App) - https://itunes.apple.com/app/manos-the-hands-of-fate/id378084492
