SpellTower drops to .99 in last-ditch effort to topple Angry Birds, Draw Something

"Okay internet. It is the last day of my feature," tweeted SpellTower creator Zach Gage. "There's no chance I can tackle Angry Birds and Draw Something at this price ..." Gage asked if his Twitter followers would "have his back" or "get mad" if he chose to drop the price for one final push. His followers reassured him that they would not mind the promotional effort, and so Gage has done just that.

And so, at about 12PM EST today, Gage kicked off the "1/2 OFF 24hr Sale Holy Crap, I'm Near the Top, This is Crazy! Help an Indie Take On Rovio+Zynga!" deal. If you want a well-regarded, beautiful word game, and you want to help a tiny indie triumph briefly over the titans of iOS, check it out on the App Store. And go ask Gage anything on Reddit - he's there answering questions to promote the promotion.SpellTower drops to .99 in last-ditch effort to topple Angry Birds, Draw Something originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 19 Apr 2012 14:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Joystiq Indie Pitch: Bean's Quest

Indie developers are the starving artists of the video-game world, often brilliant and innovative, but also misunderstood, underfunded and more prone to writing free-form poetry on their LiveJournals. We at Joystiq believe no one deserves to starve, and many indie developers are entitled to a fridge full of tasty, fulfilling media coverage, right here. This week, Australian development team Kumobius adds a little Latin flavor to its gaming experience with Bean's Quest.
What's your game called and what's it about?

Bean's Quest: It's a retro platformer for iPhone, iPad, Mac and PC. In the game you play a man who's been cursed and transformed into a magical jumping bean.

So in the game you're constantly jumping and you just control the left and right movement. This allows for some surprisingly tricky level designs when you need to dodge enemies, spikes and other stuff. The controls also mean it's easy to pick up and learn, but it has some really hardcore achievements layered into it.

Graphically it is reminiscent of 16-bit platform games. Imagine SNES mixed with Sega Master System but with a modern physics engine. Lastly, it has a killer soundtrack by Flashygoodness.

Were you wary of the possible racial repercussions of making a game about a latino man being turned into a bean? Has anyone felt offense or hesitancy to play Bean's Quest because of that?

South American culture was just a point of positive inspiration for us and we genuinely meant no offense with it. This concern was only recently brought to our attention.

We've found the majority of customers don't interpret anything beyond the concept of the Mexican jumping bean. They see it as a light-hearted story and fun game, which is what we were going for - Emilio is without a doubt the hero of the story!

Continue reading The Joystiq Indie Pitch: Bean's Quest

The Joystiq Indie Pitch: Bean's Quest originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 22 Apr 2012 22:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jetpack Joyride adds attractive coin magnet in next patch

Halfbrick has been teasing gadgets and gizmos aplenty for Jetpack Joyride's upcoming version 1.3 patch, with its latest animated short featuring the irresistible "Coin Magnet." The free update will be available this month and adds 15 gadgets to keep Barry Streakfries flying for as long as possible.Jetpack Joyride adds attractive coin magnet in next patch originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 17 Apr 2012 03:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sam & Max: Beyond Time & Space Episode 4 now on iOS

The fourth episode of Sam & Max: Beyond Time and Space is now available on your iDevice, granted you have an iPhone 3GS and above. Episode 4: Chariots of the Dogs includes a playable Whack da Ratz mini-game and a Sam & Max soundboard. (Because ordering a large pepperoni from Domino's is less depressing when you do it as Max.)

It'll set you back $4.99 - about three quarters the cost of that Domino's pizza.Sam & Max: Beyond Time & Space Episode 4 now on iOS originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 14 Apr 2012 03:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Kickstarter alternative 'Gambitious' coming to Europe this summer

Kickstarter has, for better or worse, blown up the entire indie gaming scene, with everyone and their dog taking to the service in the hopes of being the next Double Fine. Kickstarter does have one major thing holding it back, however, and that's the fact that U.S. residency is required to enroll on Amazon Payments - the e-commerce backbone that powers the website.

European indie developers may have an alternative fairly soon, albeit with a few fundamental differences. Dutch company Gambitious seeks to fill the crowdfunding void across the pond with its own service, but rather than donating funds to receive gifts like a pledge drive, Gambitious users actually purchase shares of a game's development. Upon successful completion of the game, the user receives dividends like a traditional investor, rather than a copy of the game or a lunch date with one of its art directors.

The service is scheduled to launch sometime around E3, and while it will initially be limited to European territories, international expansion is part of Gambitious' long-term game plan.Kickstarter alternative 'Gambitious' coming to Europe this summer originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 22 Apr 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Portabliss: Amoebattle (iOS, DSiWare)

Did you know that you can download handheld games now? That's amazingly convenient! The only inconvenient part of it is finding the right games to buy -- and that's where we come in, with our Portabliss column. In each installment, we'll tell you about a downloadable game on the iPhone, iPad, Android device, DSi, 3DS, PSP, etc. Today: Amoebattle.
Traditionally, real-time strategy games have been the domain of the PC. Attempts have been made to move the genre to other platforms in the past, some more successful than others, but demanding complexity and mouse-centered control schemes have typically kept it from flourishing elsewhere. Enter Amoebattle, a real-time strategy game for iOS (with a DSiWare version on the way next month). Cute though it may be, the heart of real-time strategy definitely beats below its adorable exterior.

Continue reading Portabliss: Amoebattle (iOS, DSiWare)

Portabliss: Amoebattle (iOS, DSiWare) originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 20 Apr 2012 21:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Star Command beams in this summer

Star Command is estimated to launch this July or August, according to the co-founders of developer Warballoon. The game, which had its first public showing this past weekend at PAX East, will launch with the "Rise of Antorians" story, followed by the "Cortexian Campaign" in October.

Warballoon co-founders Justin and Jordan Coombs told us updates will be free for the game, as they plan to expand the Star Command universe and want to bring everyone along for the ride.

The PAX East demo for the starship simulation showed off how combat in the game works, as Antorians (a humanoid ant race) invaded the ship and started a blaster fight with the crew. The Antorian ship also got into the action and attacked, while members of the engineering crew had to handle fires and loss of cabin pressure. The Warballoon team already told us they are switching to a far more context-sensitive interface system after observing players at PAX East.

The game is also officially heading to iPad, since the team ported it to the platform after realizing they didn't want to pass around their personal phones to demo the game at the show.

Gallery: Star Command (iOS/Android)

Star Command beams in this summer originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 09 Apr 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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