Developer: MUMBOJUMBO GAMES
Price: $9.99
Version Reviewed: 1.0.1
Device Reviewed On: iPad
Graphics / Sound Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Game Controls Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Gameplay Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Replay Value Rating: 3 out of 5 stars Overall Rating: 3.25 out of 5 stars
There’s an inherent flaw in games like Luxor HD. No matter how good the game may be, no matter how crisp the graphics or how clever the sound effects or how spot-on the controls, it’s still a game that has been done before. It’s a copy, and not even one that brings anything particularly new to the genre. Add to that a price point that is way out of line with most games on the App Store and you have a game that defies recommendation.
If you’ve never played Popcap’s Zuma, you may find Luxor HD new and interesting. Otherwise, all you’ll think when you start playing the game is, “Oh! This is Zuma!” and maybe you’ll mutter a few curses for paying for a game you’ve played a million times before. Truth to tell, however – Popcap has yet to translate Zuma to the iPad, so if you are looking for that exact sort of gaming experience, you could certainly do worse than Luxor HD.
Like Zuma, the object of Luxor HD is to fire colored marbles into rows of ever-encroaching marbles. Match three of the same color and they are removed from the board as the remaining marbles retreat a bit from their final destination. The object is to keep these rolling hoards of marbles from ever reaching your home base. You can fire your marbles using a reticule (a difficult task using the iPad’s touch interface) or the more conventional “beam” pointer like Zuma. This latter alternative was much more effective for me and showed that this type of game can work fairly well on the iPad.
The trappings surrounding Luxor HD – graphics, sounds, etc – are all well done and as thematically sound as they can be in a game about firing colored marbles at other colored marbles. There are achievements in the game, but oddly there is no integration with Gamecenter or any similar service. This is a very bland PC port given only the slightest upgrade for a touch interface, and things like Gamecenter have become the defacto standard for all games released today.
Finally, I cannot emphasize enough how overpriced Luxor HD is. $9.99 for a simple arcade-style game, no matter how well realized, is just too much to ask. I suggest waiting for the inevitable release of Zuma for the iPad.
Developer: ERWIN JANSEN
Price: $0.99
Version Reviewed: 1.1
Device Reviewed On: iPhone
Graphics / Sound Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Game Controls Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Gameplay Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Replay Value Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars Overall Rating: 3.25 out of 5 stars
For the moment, at least, Doodlegate 2011 has passed. And so begins yet another slew of games that co-opt the name “doodle” in hopes of recapturing some of the lightning in a bottle that is Doodle Jump. The latest of these is Doodle Arcade Shooter, a game that is fun in and of itself, but just doesn’t need the whole “doodle vibe” surrounding it at all.
So what is the “doodle vibe”? I think it’s the idea that somehow the monstrous success of Doodle Jump is primarily due to its graphical presentation. This is preposterous, of course, as the game is simple, easy to pick up and play and unquantifiably addictive. The fact that it has a doodling theme is nice, but it doesn’t make the game sell a jillion copies. The developers of Doodle Arcade Shooter just don’t get this.
Doodle Arcade Shooter is, indeed, an arcade shooter, like several others on the App Store. You control a vaguely WWII-era fighter plane as wave upon wave of enemies descend upon you from the top of the screen. Clear a set of enemy fighters and you are rewarded with a power-up – shields, maybe, or wingmen or upgraded weapons. The game just keeps on hurling enemies at you until you make a mistake and run out of health. It’s the latest version of a genre that has been around at least as long as the Atari 2600′s River Raid.
The game is entertaining, though highly derivative, but the main problem is marketing it as a “doodle” game. I just don’t see much of the doodle motif present in the game at all. The background has a sketched black and white appearance, but nothing I immediately associate with doodles, and your main fighter (as well as your enemies’) is rendered in color exactly like every other shooter out there. How, exactly, does that make this a doodle game?
If it seems as though I am making too big a deal out of this mis-theming of the game, it’s only because there was an opportunity here for something, if not original, at least clever and entertaining. As it is, try something else. There are plenty of other arcade shooters out there.
Developer: MUMBOJUMBO
Price: $9.99
Version Reviewed: 1.0.0
Device Reviewed On: iPad
Graphics / Sound Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Game Controls Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Gameplay Rating: 3.75 out of 5 stars
Replay Value Rating: 4 out of 5 stars Overall Rating: 3.94 out of 5 stars
I wasn’t very accommodating of developer MumboJumbo’s iPad game Luxor HD in my recent review, mostly because it was extremely derivative and offered nothing particularly new. Now I’m reviewing Chainz Galaxy from the same developer, but while it’s a match 3 game, and there is no shortage of those on the App Store, there is enough of a novel approach here to warrant a recommendation – particularly to those of you who are fans of match three games (myself included).
There is a theme and story of cosmic proportions that attempts to bind all of the gameplay elements of Chainz Galaxy together, but the real meat of the game lies in the gameplay itself. Rather than taking the typical match three route – switching/flip-flopping jewels or symbols or the like – Chainz Galaxy features a board covered in multicolored chain links. You aren’t able to swap pieces (which took me a small bit to get used to). Instead, you must rotate the links until they hook together. Hook three of the same color together and you clear them from the board. Along the way you can unlock power-ups (rainbow-colored chain links that can connect to any piece, for example) and charms for a charm bracelet that runs alongside the right-hand corner of the screen. This latter feature skews the game more towards female players, but it’s still a fun game for any gender.
While Chainz Galaxy won’t dazzle you aurally or visually, both the graphics and audio components enhance the game play. Where the game is truly lacking, however, is with Gamecenter integration. At this point, I just can’t understand why developers (and particularly developers of the size of MumboJumbo) aren’t incorporating Gamecenter achievements into their games. Apple has made it relatively painless to accomplish this, as is evidenced by the scores of indie-developed games that have Gamecenter support, so why aren’t we seeing it in some bigger releases?
If you’re looking for a new “take” on match three games, you may find Chainz Galaxy appealing, though at $9.99 it’s way out of line with similar games on the App Store. Still, there’s some good gameplay here, but don’t look for anything too innovative.
Sprint has recently made some changes to its Premier program to save customers some money.
For those who aren’t familiar Premier program is made for those for “any customer who’s been around for at least 10 years or who pays at least $69.99 a month for an individual plan and at least $99.99 a month for a family plan”.
Premier membership are going to be split into Silver and Gold memberships on April 1st. He is what else my Source says:
Gold members are either customers who’ve been around for more than 10 years, or those who pay at least $89.99 a month for an individual plan and at least $169.99 a month for a family plan. Gold members will be eligible for all of the same benefits as the previous Premier customers. However, those who don’t meet those minimum requirements will be downgraded to a Silver membership. Silver members will no longer qualify for the annual early upgrade; they will have to wait at least 22 months into a two-year contract. Other benefits remain the same.
I thought you might like this video that looks like it is from Make Magazine or a definite plug of it.
This is a mailbox mod that can send push notifications when the mail is in. It has an Arduino sensor, a snap-action switch, and a signal when the mailbox is opened.
From there, it takes a signal to request a URL from a PHP-enabled a server, and pushes an alert using an App to the iPhone known as Prowl.
So, if you want to see your mail on your iPhone as well as your email, you might want to try this out. I could use one of these for checking my mail.
There’s an inherent flaw in games like Luxor HD. No matter how good the game may be, no matter how crisp the graphics or how clever the sound effects or how spot-on the controls, it’s still a game that has been done before. It’s a copy, and not even one that brings anything particularly new to the genre. Add to that a price point that is way out of line with most games on the App Store and you have a game that defies recommendation.
Like Zuma, the object of Luxor HD is to fire colored marbles into rows of ever-encroaching marbles. Match three of the same color and they are removed from the board as the remaining marbles retreat a bit from their final destination. The object is to keep these rolling hoards of marbles from ever reaching your home base. You can fire your marbles using a reticule (a difficult task using the iPad’s touch interface) or the more conventional “beam” pointer like Zuma. This latter alternative was much more effective for me and showed that this type of game can work fairly well on the iPad.
For the moment, at least, Doodlegate 2011 has passed. And so begins yet another slew of games that co-opt the name “doodle” in hopes of recapturing some of the lightning in a bottle that is Doodle Jump. The latest of these is Doodle Arcade Shooter, a game that is fun in and of itself, but just doesn’t need the whole “doodle vibe” surrounding it at all.
Doodle Arcade Shooter is, indeed, an arcade shooter, like several others on the App Store. You control a vaguely WWII-era fighter plane as wave upon wave of enemies descend upon you from the top of the screen. Clear a set of enemy fighters and you are rewarded with a power-up – shields, maybe, or wingmen or upgraded weapons. The game just keeps on hurling enemies at you until you make a mistake and run out of health. It’s the latest version of a genre that has been around at least as long as the Atari 2600′s River Raid. 
I wasn’t very accommodating of developer MumboJumbo’s iPad game Luxor HD in my recent review, mostly because it was extremely derivative and offered nothing particularly new. Now I’m reviewing Chainz Galaxy from the same developer, but while it’s a match 3 game, and there is no shortage of those on the App Store, there is enough of a novel approach here to warrant a recommendation – particularly to those of you who are fans of match three games (myself included).
While Chainz Galaxy won’t dazzle you aurally or visually, both the graphics and audio components enhance the game play. Where the game is truly lacking, however, is with Gamecenter integration. At this point, I just can’t understand why developers (and particularly developers of the size of MumboJumbo) aren’t incorporating Gamecenter achievements into their games. Apple has made it relatively painless to accomplish this, as is evidenced by the scores of indie-developed games that have Gamecenter support, so why aren’t we seeing it in some bigger releases?
Comments