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iOS Gaming November 2014: GLORIOUS!™

M

More_Badass

Member
Flunkie said:
Its taken me awhile to realize but PocketGamer and Pocket Tactics > TouchArcade 90% of the time.
Click to expand...
The only two mobile game sites I read 90% of the time. And if you see a Pocket Gamer article with "Thanks Christian V" at the bottom, it's because I send them a ton of tips about releases and upcoming games

Matt Frost said:
The guy who runs PocketTactics is too impartial to count. In the weekly roundups he just goes like "I like this game and nothing else, so there is nothing else worthy this week" kind of mentality, which is completely wrong if you run a gaming website.
Click to expand...
I like Pocket Tactics due its narrow focus. It's a site focused on tactical/strategic games, so that rationale in its roundups and articles is expected.
 
K

killercow

Member
Flunkie said:
I don't dislike it, because it cuts a majority of the crap out. The TA release posts give every free to play crap game.
Click to expand...
More_Badass said:
I like Pocket Tactics due its narrow focus. It's a site focused on tactical/strategic games, so that rationale in its roundups and articles is expected.
Click to expand...

Yep exactly. The major difference between Pocket Gamer and TouchArcade though boils down to the forum (which is a large part of TA's history). So every game that gets posted there is then in the recap. At the end of the day that's a choice and something that you might not find "fun" could be great for somebody else.
 
M

More_Badass

Member
killercow said:
Yep exactly. The major difference between Pocket Gamer and TouchArcade though boils down to the forum (which is a large part of TA's history). So every game that gets posted there is then in the recap. At the end of the day that's a choice and something that you might not find "fun" could be great for somebody else.
Click to expand...
And I'm kind of biased, but PG puts the spotlight on a lot of smaller or under-the-radar titles that other sites don't cover.
And they're super stingy about perfect scores. Wayward Souls was their first 10/Platinum in a year. When perfect scores are that rare, they have weight.
 
K

killercow

Member
More_Badass said:
And I'm kind of biased, but PG puts the spotlight on a lot of smaller or under-the-radar titles that other sites don't cover.
And they're super stingy about perfect scores. Wayward Souls was their first 10/Platinum in a year. When perfect scores are that rare, that have weight.
Click to expand...

Agreed and agreed.
 
A

awp69

Member
killercow said:
Yep exactly. The major difference between Pocket Gamer and TouchArcade though boils down to the forum (which is a large part of TA's history). So every game that gets posted there is then in the recap. At the end of the day that's a choice and something that you might not find "fun" could be great for somebody else.
Click to expand...

If TA's forums didn't exist, I don't think anyone would have much reason to go to the site (and we all know that those forums, sadly, are not run in an appropriate manner as the disappearance of many of its senior members attests to). Shaun Musgrave is really the only reviewer I have any trust in there.

PG, as others have said, is my go to site for reviews and news. 148apps isn't very good, but I still trust them over TA any day of the week.
 
Z

Zodzilla

Member
My opinion on TA is that they seem to live in too much of a world where they proselytize the greatness of the platform without weeding out the games that lack any real lasting value.

They have 5 star games that have mechanics that are only entertaining for about two days.

As an aside, one thing that really bugs me about the site is that they constantly admonish and belittle Nintendo's immovable stance on mobile gaming without actually analyzing the fact that Nintendo's goals are very different from that of the mobile space.

For instance, they go on and publish an article about Candy Crush making more money than Nintendo, without looking at the long term picture of what happens to these flash in the pan franchises that the mobile world puts out.

They then go ahead and publish a link to emulators without discussing or disclaiming the moral ambiguity of stealing games.

TA just seems kind of dodgy/unprofessional to me at best. The forums are a good resource though.
 
J

JCho133

Member
M

More_Badass

Member
JCho133 said:
OH MY F*CKING GOD TA JUST GAVE CANDY CRUSH SODA SAGA 5 STARS.

http://toucharcade.com/2014/11/12/candy-crush-soda-saga-review/

Edit: Let me rephrase that. ELI gave candy crush soda saga 5 stars.
Click to expand...
Case in point, when perfect scores are handed out like...candy, they become meaningless

Zodzilla said:
TA just seems kind of dodgy/unprofessional to me at best. The forums are a good resource though.
Click to expand...
Uh huh...you're on the right track there.

Anyway, started a thread for Framed
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=931771
 
Frostt

Frostt

Member
JCho133 said:
OH MY F*CKING GOD TA JUST GAVE CANDY CRUSH SODA SAGA 5 STARS.

http://toucharcade.com/2014/11/12/candy-crush-soda-saga-review/

Edit: Let me rephrase that. ELI gave candy crush soda saga 5 stars.
Click to expand...

LOL

But it makes sense since Eli was invited to the offices of King.com not so long ago and there King probably bathed him in money. Cause there isn't any other explanation for this. At least the first part of the above is true. The other remains uncertain?

Can someone reply to that guy who asks about different sites please? (Edit: they removed that comment. A guy was asking for help finding new iOS gaming website since he didnt trust the place anymore fyi)
 
D

Dalek

Member
JCho133 said:
OH MY F*CKING GOD TA JUST GAVE CANDY CRUSH SODA SAGA 5 STARS.

http://toucharcade.com/2014/11/12/candy-crush-soda-saga-review/

Edit: Let me rephrase that. ELI gave candy crush soda saga 5 stars.
Click to expand...

fLgQxaI.gif
 
L

LossLess009

Member
+1 for Muertitos.
The game is highly enjoyable; quite stylish, nice music, entertaining, good value.
Give it a try, it's definitely worth it.
Thanks a lot to Jchoo for sharing a code!
 
Frostt

Frostt

Member
Mr. Musgrave, ask for a job at PocketGamer and there out of there while you can, this just happened to TA after that review:

iGLInC2WOwagu.gif
 
J

JCho133

Member
Matt Frost said:
Can someone reply to that guy who asks about different sites please? (Edit: they removed that comment. A guy was asking for help finding new iOS gaming website since he didnt trust the place anymore fyi)
Click to expand...

Hahah, I saw that. Decided I like not being banned though so didn't comment back (came reeeeaally close to though)

Dalek said:
fLgQxaI.gif
Click to expand...

Hahaha

LossLess009 said:
+1 for Muertitos.
The game is highly enjoyable; quite stylish, nice music, entertaining, good value.
Give it a try, it's definitely worth it.
Thanks a lot to Jchoo for sharing a code!
Click to expand...

;)

What can I say, I have good taste ¯_(ツ)_/¯
 
M

More_Badass

Member
LossLess009 said:
+1 for Muertitos.
The game is highly enjoyable; quite stylish, nice music, entertaining, good value.
Give it a try, it's definitely worth it.
Thanks a lot to Jchoo for sharing a code!
Click to expand...
Seems like I'm the only one who didn't enjoy the game. I'll have to give it another try later
 
Frostt

Frostt

Member
More_Badass said:
Seems like I'm the only one who didn't enjoy the game. I'll have to give it another try later
Click to expand...

You are not alone. It just does nothing for me. I dont know, its polished, the music is excellent, a good take on Threes while being fresh and all that, but it didn't click with me. It may have something to do with me being completely addicted to 10000000 at the moment. Not sure. Will give it another opportunity in the future.
 
M

More_Badass

Member
JCho133 said:
Good good good.

So guys, XCOM EW or Wayward Saga?

Playing on a 5S.
Click to expand...
Wayward Saga if only because your phone will hate XCOM. Drains the battery insanely fast and makes the phone get really hot. But both games are fantastic. XCOM is probably best experienced on PC, due to the better visuals and less crowded UI.

Wayward Souls is my favorite action roguelike on IOS. Hoplite and Nightmare Cooperative being my favorite turn based roguelikes

JCho133 said:
Good good good.

So guys, XCOM EW or Wayward Saga?

Playing on a 5S.
Click to expand...
Btw, I posted some Muerititos impressions a few pages back
http://m.neogaf.com/showpost.php?p=138409150
So...Muertitos...

I really like the visual style and presentation. No doubt it's a polished, finely-crafted game, with its colorful Day of the Dead-inspired aesthetic. The gameplay is simple but strategic, where you want to plan two or three moves ahead to avoid finding yourself with a gridlocked board. Like Threes, you always have an idea about what tile is coming next, allowing you to strategize.

But maybe I'm just Match 3'ed out, because the game is doing nothing for me. Muertitos is a well-made fun game, but it's just not appealing to me in the slightest. I foresee it being one of those games that I'll come back to in a few weeks or months and be like, "Oh, now I get it" and it'll hook me then.
Click to expand...
 
J

JCho133

Member
More_Badass said:
Wayward Saga if only because your phone will hate XCOM. Drains the battery insanely fast and makes the phone get really hot. But both games are fantastic. XCOM is probably best experienced on PC, due to the better visuals and less crowded UI.

Wayward Souls is my favorite action roguelike on IOS. Hoplite and Nightmare Cooperative being my favorite turn based roguelikes


Btw, I posted some Muerititos impressions a few pages back
http://m.neogaf.com/showpost.php?p=138409150
Click to expand...

Yeeeeeaahhhh.... That's what has held me back from buying it for so long.

Screw it. I'm gonna buy an iPad mini. I'll find a deal somewhere good.

And where did the random Wayward Souls and Hoplite talk come from? Haha.

And yup saw those ;)

Also: XCOM should be on Wii U.
 
L

LossLess009

Member
Matt Frost said:
You are not alone. It just does nothing for me. I dont know, its polished, the music is excellent, a good take on Threes while being fresh and all that, but it didn't click with me. It may have something to do with me being completely addicted to 10000000 at the moment. Not sure. Will give it another opportunity in the future.
Click to expand...
Please don't mix things like that...
Muertitos is fun; 10000000 is GLORIOUS :)
 
PittaGAF

PittaGAF

Member
The new Monument Valley levels are just outstanding.
So consistent with the original game, yet so much better....they really outdone themselves.
 
K

killercow

Member
JCho133 said:
Holy cow! (No pun intended)

Spent a lot of time in this back in the day... Way back. Like around the time when I was playing Eliminate.

Thanks for the heads up!
Click to expand...

I used to be quite good at eliminate, seems so long ago now... When F2P wasn't really there and Eliminate had to make you buy apps that actually were in game currency (energy)! I was really sad when they turned off the servers on this one.
 
H

Hoggy110

Neo Member
JCho133 said:
OH MY F*CKING GOD TA JUST GAVE CANDY CRUSH SODA SAGA 5 STARS.

http://toucharcade.com/2014/11/12/candy-crush-soda-saga-review/

Edit: Let me rephrase that. ELI gave candy crush soda saga 5 stars.
Click to expand...

Which is ironic, since they now have an article up complaining about the people giving Monument Valley 1/5 on the App Store due to the paid levels, and urging people to purchase it to stop devs going freemium

That article was also written by Eli by the way

I don't even know what the hell is going on there anymore. Are they for freemium games? Are they against it?

I do think that they review games based on what they try to achieve, which is a bad system because it means they think Candy Crush is on the same level as Monument Valley. I don't consider Sharknado to be as good as Quentin Tarantino movies just because it achieves being crappy

Again, you can say there are different reviewers and they all have different opinions, but when someone writes a review for that website, they represent the entire website. Not themselves.


*sigh* nice to see 2K porting XCOM: Enemy Within to iOS though. Framed seems like a pretty stylised game as well like Monument Valley, so that could end up being quite good
 
M

More_Badass

Member
killercow said:
4.99$. Bear in mind that the game is apparently quite short (between 35 and 70 minutes)
Click to expand...
Here's a second opinion on the game from the TA forums
A little bit short overall but it is one hell of a well crafted game.
Amazingly good and just wholly engrossing.
A perfect fit for mobile and just extremely well thought out and tailored for the platform.
As to whether it's worth the price, well it's a little bit of design genius in you're pocket so I'd have to say absolutely worth the price.
It's a proper standout experience on mobile that is an easy recommend at any price.

Note: the "little bit short" refers to only a single play through at max puzzle solving speed. And it's really dependant on how you explore you're options while playing. It can be a lot longer dependant on the player.
As with any game of this type, to play it only once leaves out a lot of the brilliance and nuances within it.
So as a multi play through option, it's not short at all and will actually provide hours and hours of entertainment and a better experience each time.
Much in the way that the brilliance of Monument Valley also shone through in replays and just added to the game experience.
So don't look at it as a once play through game, expect an equally satisfying experience each time you play through and explore all the options available.
Click to expand...
 
PittaGAF

PittaGAF

Member
The story about people 1-starring Monument Valley because expansion isn't free is really really sad.
For a freaking 2 dollars that I'm betting they won't even shrug if they lost said 2 dollars while walking.
On a over XXX dollars device,no less (if you have an iOS device, or even if someone gifted an ios device, chances are you aren't starving).

I feel I robbed ustwo instead...new levels are so well thought and clever and meticulously hand crafted....

Also, totem.

Totem totally rules.
 
K

killercow

Member
PittaGAF said:
The story about people 1-starring Monument Valley because expansion isn't free is really really sad.
For a freaking 2 dollars that I'm betting they won't even shrug if they lost said 2 dollars while walking.
On a over XXX dollars device,no less (if you have an iOS device, or even if someone gifted an ios device, chances are you aren't starving).

I feel I robbed ustwo instead...new levels are so well thought and clever and meticulously hand crafted....

Also, totem.

Totem totally rules.
Click to expand...

Yep. As I've also said on TA I would be happy to pay more for it. It's one of the only thing that is always so freaking sad with mobile gaming...

Ps: Totem totally rules.
 
S

Smiley90

Stop shitting on my team. Start shitting on my finger.
PittaGAF said:
The story about people 1-starring Monument Valley because expansion isn't free is really really sad.
For a freaking 2 dollars that I'm betting they won't even shrug if they lost said 2 dollars while walking.
On a over XXX dollars device,no less (if you have an iOS device, or even if someone gifted an ios device, chances are you aren't starving).

I feel I robbed ustwo instead...new levels are so well thought and clever and meticulously hand crafted....

Also, totem.

Totem totally rules.
Click to expand...

Totem? Like... the boardgame totem? You'd be the first person in this thread to mention that game (and I own and like it, but it's so under-the-radar). It's like Othello with animals and lands :lol super easy and short time killer.

Or what totem are you talking about
 
D

Dalek

Member
PittaGAF said:
The story about people 1-starring Monument Valley because expansion isn't free is really really sad.
For a freaking 2 dollars that I'm betting they won't even shrug if they lost said 2 dollars while walking.
On a over XXX dollars device,no less (if you have an iOS device, or even if someone gifted an ios device, chances are you aren't starving).

I feel I robbed ustwo instead...new levels are so well thought and clever and meticulously hand crafted....

Also, totem.

Totem totally rules.
Click to expand...

They did the same thing with Tiny Thief when that game released DLC.

Some people, man.
 
J

JCho133

Member
Smiley90 said:
Totem? Like... the boardgame totem? You'd be the first person in this thread to mention that game (and I own and like it, but it's so under-the-radar). It's like Othello with animals and lands :lol super easy and short time killer.

Or what totem are you talking about
Click to expand...

Hahah, the Totem in Monument Valley.
 
K

killercow

Member
So if you guys pick up Space Age tonight ( and you should, it looks like day of the tentacle had a baby with an adventure game, as in non point and click) do put on headphones because it uses a kind of neat stereo system.

The game has so much potential. I'm not far enough into it but between the quality of the writing and the amzing 50+ songs, it can't be bad. And I know it will be pretty much ignored everywhere else so...

FRAMED's animations are out of this world and as good as Ghost Trick's. And the soundtrack is A-mazing. Oh boy, 3 scenes and I'm already in love...
 
A

awp69

Member
Hoggy110 said:
Which is ironic, since they now have an article up complaining about the people giving Monument Valley 1/5 on the App Store due to the paid levels, and urging people to purchase it to stop devs going freemium

That article was also written by Eli by the way

I don't even know what the hell is going on there anymore. Are they for freemium games? Are they against it?

I do think that they review games based on what they try to achieve, which is a bad system because it means they think Candy Crush is on the same level as Monument Valley. I don't consider Sharknado to be as good as Quentin Tarantino movies just because it achieves being crappy

Again, you can say there are different reviewers and they all have different opinions, but when someone writes a review for that website, they represent the entire website. Not themselves.
Click to expand...

Eli contradicts himself all the time. I really wouldn't be at all surprised if it's all about money. To give five stars to a match-3 game that will make MILLIONS preying off of people who will pay whatever it takes to just get through that next level is just sickening. It's almost as bad as saying gambling or alcoholism is good for you.

Frankly those games don't even deserve any press, let alone a 5-star review. Even if it was a "good" game the intentions of those creating it are not something that should be condoned.

I wish the TA forums could break off from the "business" side of the site and let that side go down in flames.
 
M

More_Badass

Member
I don't mind F2P games if the gameplay is fun or the art style is good, etc. Credit where credit is due. Quadblast, Only One, Quadropus Rampage, Retry, the list goes on

But Candy Crush Saga? The kind of game where the very titles are churned out of an assembly line of phrases (Candy Crush Saga, Candy Crush Soda Saga, Pet Rescue Saga, Bubble Witch Saga, etc.)? The kind of gameplay that's practically the same from game to game, save for some tweaks here and there? From the company that took legal action against developers because they were scared that people would somehow confuse games in totally different genres, because they share a word in the title?

I don't like scores, but 5 stars/a perfect score, the highest accolade a site can give? I understand that reviews are subjective, but what does a perfect score mean? A game that excels, goes above and beyond, displays mastery of a certain element like story or gameplay or perhaps is a masterpiece on all levels, that exceed all expections. Experiences that stick with you for days and weeks. Games like Shadow of the Colossus, The Last of Us, Broforce, Splinter Cell Chaos Theory, Red Dead Redemption, Journey. The Monument Valley's and Device 6's and Badland's and Hoplite's of gaming.
 
M

Mario

Sidhe / PikPok
More_Badass said:
But Candy Crush Saga?
Click to expand...

Candy Crush Saga is a really good game that elevated the genre at the time with new ideas around progression and usability in a way that was very well executed.

I haven't played Candy Crush Soda Saga, but I'm not going to dismiss a 5 star review out of hand or question the credibility of a website just because "OMG King! OMG freemium!". Has everybody slamming Eli for his opinion even played the game?

Seriously, the reaction here is just like uberGAF dismissing smartphone gaming in general.
 
J

JCho133

Member
Mario said:
I haven't played Candy Crush Soda Saga, but I'm not going to dismiss a 5 star review out of hand or question the credibility of a website just because "OMG King! OMG freemium!". Has everybody slamming Eli for his opinion even played the game?
Click to expand...

Are you familiar with Eli's.. Um... "legacy?"

If you're not, I can understand how this might look to an outsider.
 
M

Mario

Sidhe / PikPok
JCho133 said:
Are you familiar with Eli's.. Um... "legacy?"

If you're not, I can understand how this might look to an outsider.
Click to expand...

I'm familiar with Eli. Our company corresponds with him, we advertise on TouchArcade, and we interact with the community there.
 
A

awp69

Member
Mario said:
Candy Crush Saga is a really good game that elevated the genre at the time with new ideas around progression and usability in a way that was very well executed.

I haven't played Candy Crush Soda Saga, but I'm not going to dismiss a 5 star review out of hand or question the credibility of a website just because "OMG King! OMG freemium!". Has everybody slamming Eli for his opinion even played the game?

Seriously, the reaction here is just like uberGAF dismissing smartphone gaming in general.
Click to expand...

Everyone is entitled to think what they want, but seriously, can anyone realistically say that King cares about their customers? Freemium may not have the bad name it has today if it wasn't for devs like King. There are many devs that have used freemium responsibly, including PikPok.

Devs like you are about creativity and giving gamers an experience. King, to me, is no better than casinos, hoping people lose so they can win more.

I'm not anti-F2P. I'm anti- abuse of the power and taking advantage of people while doing so.
 
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