Category Archives: Mobile

Double Fine has announced a new rhythm action game called Dropchord. IGN reports the title will be available on iOS and PC, and the latter will be compatible with the Leap Motion Controller, allowing for Kinect-like controls. Dropchord is due later this year and will be on show at SxSW and PAX East, at the Leap booth.

Liberation Maiden, Goichi Suda’s 3DS shooter, has made a surprise appearance on iDevice.

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Twisted Metal developer Eat Sleep Play has released a social endless runner called Running with Friends. Published by Zynga, the free-to-play iOS title is available on the App Store now. Traditionally at home to a more mature audience, Eat Sleep Play had to tone down its gory plans, but VentureBeat reports the game remains unusually competitive and includes destructible environments.

Thanks, Shack News.

Dragon Age: Legends developer BioWare San Francisco has been closed, with all jobs lost, according to reports citing anonymous sources.

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Richard Garriott is teasing a reveal later this week, with all signs pointing to a crowd-funded project inspired by his influential RPG series, Ultima.

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XSEED has released Ark of the Ages on Android. The first mobile title from the company is an action-RPG developed by Meteorise. Ark of the Ages has players taking on the role of a young knight who has been sent to investigate a series of incidents at a local village. Upon his arrival, he finds a massive ancient tower constructed by a wizard known as the Tower of Magic. You can guess where things go from there, as you meander through 24 dungeons. You can pick the game up through Google Play for $1.99 and soon on iOS.

High Voltage Software’s The Conduit is getting an HD makeover for Tegra powered mobile systems, according to GoNinteno. Set for release during Q1 2013, the game’s Tegrazone page states the first mission will be free, but you’ll have to pay $2.99 for packs consisting of three-levels each for the rest. Alternatively, you can buy the six level bundle for $4.99. Have a look for yourself.

The late, great Kenji Eno believed that the “instant gratification” offered by mobile games could only be beaten by making games people would set aside time for.

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Red Hot Labs has won $1.5 million in start-up funding in order to build a new mobile gaming platform. GamesIndustry reports the new tech is designed to allow for quick publication across multiple devices. Red Hot Labs was founded by Amitt Mahajan and Joel Poloney, whose social game developer MyMiniLife created technology later used to power Farmville after Zynga sensibly snapped the company up.

A group of staff laid off when Zynga shuttered its Boston studio last year have formed a new team, Proletariat (“games for the people”). Polygon reports the team has experience at Insomniac Games, Turbine and Harmonix, and will focus on core experiences for mobile and tablet. Follow its progress and check out its first projects, LetterRush and Hug the Sloth, here.

Deep Silver has announced its plans to expand into the mobile market this year, and is looking into hiring for the space.

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Android has once again overtaken iOS as the best-selling mobile operating system in the US. VentureBeat reports Apple regained its hold for just three months before the cheaper price tags of Android phones brought it back on top. A price drop on Samsung’s Galaxy S3 was cited as a contributing factor; the Galaxy S4 will be revealed in March. Go ahead and put “what does this have to do with GA3MS” in the comments, then go check out Epic’s new Android version of Epic Citadel.

Epic has released an Android version of its mobile Unreal Engine tech demo, Epic Citadel. The explorable environment shows off what Epic’s graphics tech can do with the limited power of smartphones and tablets, and now includes a benchmarking mode. It’s the first Epic-produced release on Android, and may herald the release of Epic’s previously iOS-exclusive Infinity Blade games. See a trailer and screenshots through the break.

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Zynga has closed its Baltimore studio and shuffled staff around in New York and Texas, resulting in “minimal” job cuts.

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An interesting business tidbit: Venturebeat reports new data out of China suggests Android has overtaken iOS in terms of popularity as a gaming platform. The news is just one in a recent string of statistics and figures suggesting Google’s platform is gaining serious ground on Apple’s almost ubiquitous iOS. The Chinese market is flippin’ enormous and of rising importance to the industry, especially in the mobile, social, and free-to-play spheres.

Real Racing 3 is hitting mobile platforms next week, and publisher EA has just released the game’s teaser trailer. It shows off superb car models and quite superb HD visuals. And they say mobile games can’t look good…

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PS4 got a glittering reveal last night in New York, with plenty of talk about connectivity, and making Sony’s format accessible across all devices. As it happens, Sony will launch ‘PlayStation App’ on iOS and Android, that will let gamer user their mobile device as a second PS4 screen.

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A single mobile game is believed to be generating incredible sales figures in Japan.

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Nvidia has announced the Tegra 4i, a mobile processor with integrated LTE modem. “How is this games,” you snarl into your comments field. Well, it means Nvidia’s top-notch Tegra graphics capabilities can be slotted into upcoming smartphones compatible with the most modern networks, which in turn means mobile gaming could ramp up a notch. GamesIndustry has a full report, but more details are expected following the tech’s public debut at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona later this month.

Mobile publisher Gree and Yahoo Japan have teamed up to open a new developer of social and mobile games, GxYz Inc. GamesIndustry reports the two companies began laying the foundation for the new developer in November 2012, and have fronted ¥200 million ($2.1 million) in capital. Gree holds 51% of shares in the new company, while Yahoo holds the remaining 49%. The board of directors is composed of two members of each company, and Gree’s Tomoyuki Isaka will act as CEO. Social network provider Gree is a major force in mobile gaming in Japan and is expanding operations in the west. It’s responsible for Metal Gear Solid: Social Ops.