Sep 22, 2010

Last month, sources reported that Google Ventures (money, money) invested somewhere in the realm of $3-5 million dollars into popular iPhone/iPad game developer Ngmoco. Why would they do this? I’ll let you guys ponder that. Of course, Google Ventures denies any direct correlation between money-money and Ngmoco’s recent announcement to start developing for Android but I’m not buying it (Google is buying it, ba-da-bump). Either way, it’s more good news for Android users.

Has anyone else noticed the recent influx of game developers jumping on the Android bandwagon? One would see it as the next logical step for game developers but why all of the sudden? This brings me to another rumor floating around. The one about Android supporting in-app purchases in the next couple of months. Now these rumors are starting to add up. It just makes sense that highly popular and profitable game developers such as Ngmoco (who rely heavily upon in-app purchases) would be flying over to Android. Another recent addition to the Android gaming market is that of EA Mobile who coincidently develops games that support in-app purchases. You get my point.

Another plausible explanation for this rush of new development could be due to Apple’s recent launch of its new online social gaming service “Game Center” We now see developers of popular Apple iOS games such as Ninja Fruit (which integrate social networking platforms like OpenFeint) heading over to Android. Ngmoco is another huge player who integrates its own social networking platform “Plus+“. It could be possible these once juggernaut social gaming networks are foreshadowing their own demise on iOS and are smartly deciding to search for other ways of survival. More speculation but sensible in my opinion.

What does this mean for us Android users? It means now we too can enjoy the once iOS exclusive games and no longer have to settle for the cheesy knock offs that litter the Android Market. If rumors are true it also means more free games which will support in-app purchases. The only constant I keep hearing is “More Games”. I don’t know about you but every time I say that I get goose bumps.

With that said, I would start working out those game fingers and prepare for the onslaught of gaming greatness that should be hitting the Android market very soon. Rumor also has it the first game Ngmoco will be releasing for Android will be their hit title, “We Rule.” How’s that for an obvious reference to Android and its users. *wink*

So what have we learned today. We’ve learned that some simple math + some reliable rumors = Android awesomeness.

Sources: MobileCrunch, mocoNews

Sep 21, 2010

Hotel Mogul surprised me. I’ve never liked “Simcity” style games, and a game entirely dedicated to building fake hotels sounded boring. I read the comments on the Android Market, and there were several words repeated:

“Addicting!”
“Worth the money!”
“Stuck on level…”

Really? A game dedicated to hotels was that good?

After three days of playing, I’d have to agree. I’ve played it on car rides, during movies, and on my back in bed. I’ve played this game a lot.

Hotel Mogul places you as the unseen helper to the protagonist, Lynette. Lynette is in charge of the ridiculously named development company, “The Golden Company,” until (cue muted trumpet) her husband cheats on her with her best friend, and divorces her. He then proceeds to steal the company from her.

What should you do, as her dedicated friend? Of course, you help her build her own company, from the ground-up, and teach that no-good cheater a thing-or-two.

To begin with, Lynette guides you through the building, selling, and building again of several campgrounds. The gameplay is slow to begin, but within a few levels, you’ll be franticly selling, buying, improving, fixing, collecting, and demolishing real estate. Soon I was raking in millions, and feeling rather accomplished. I wish making money in the real world were this easy!

The game has a somewhat strange side-story, involving the Lynette-love-triangle, complete with comic-book style storyboards and a mini-game involving collecting scattered pictures of her cheating husband. Don’t ask. I didn’t get that either.

The graphics of the game are pretty phenomenal. As you watch a hotel being built, construction crews helicopter in supplies, tiny cars drive the highways, water flows through the streams, and more. The detail is impressive.

This game is not very easy to learn, but after a few levels, you’ll get the hang of it. The best part of the game is that it actually uses real principles of real estate selling and buying. Playing the game actually feels like you’re accomplishing something, and that is important for maintaining a player’s interest.

There is a demo version of the game, so try it out. Don’t give up if you don’t understand what you’re doing at the start. You’ll get it. If you like this type of “fast-paced-simcity” game, then Hotel Mogul won’t disappoint.

Sep 21, 2010

A highly debatable topic within the gaming and app world is that of in-app purchases/DLC/microtransactions and other ways of essentially picking our pockets -can you tell I’m a cynic? Whether you agree with my point of view or not really is inconsequential. The truth of the matter is that these methods of bringing people content are very real and as of late seem to be growing. While these concepts have been around for many years (mostly within the gaming console world) they are fairly new among the handheld community.

Over a year ago, Apple decided to join in with its announcement to support in-app purchases on its devices running iOS 3.0 or greater. If Apple was willing to give more choice to developers, one would certainly believe Google (the mother of choice) would be all for it. Well, here we are, and still no in-app support on Android. This may be due to the fact that until recently Android’s App Market was really reminiscent of a small mom and pop corner store compared to Apple’s big box store. Times have changed and the Android Market now has 10,000+ apps and continues to grow every second. Does that mean we will soon see in-app support for Android? Rumor has it the answer is “yes,” but only time will tell.

Since I opened this can of worms, I’ll go ahead and look at what this added support could mean for Android developers and users. Good or Bad? Avoidable or inevitable?

Sep 21, 2010

Who would have thought the game of soccer would one day be played with hands only? Gamevil certainly did and they have convinced the little green Android that Soccer Superstars, their latest addition to the Android Market, is the way to do it.

I wouldn’t consider myself a vuvuzela weilding uber soccer fan but I do enjoy the game so I was eager to try this out. Demoing this RPG style sports game became sort of an oxymoron considering there were more features than, well, this thing:

Sep 20, 2010

Google has released a new update for Google Maps which will have us all “Walking the Line.” This new feature merges the already familiar “Navigation” with the “Walking Directions” to create well, umm, you guessed it: “Walking Navigation!”

Walking Navigation can be used by clicking on the “Walking” option of the “Navigation” menu (Keep in mind this is a Beta and may not have the most current information or best routes). Google did a really good job optimizing the features to the environment they will be used in. This includes automatic map rotation to ensure you have a correct point of view while turning. Another new feature is a vibrate notification to let you know when to make a turn. There is an option to mute the voice navigation and use text notifications only. This brings a sigh of relief for those of us who don’t enjoy broadcasting the fact that we’re tourists or that we have a high-end phone worth stealing.

Sep 20, 2010

Battery life. We all want it, yet we don’t want to sacrifice our thin, light, and always connected phones for it. So what’s the answer? Well you can slap on a big fat extended battery. But why go through all that trouble when you can just install an app for $0.99 and be done with it? Well that’s what Power Manager Full might lead you to believe. However, what looks too good to be true usually is.

Power Manager Full is a profile manager that lets you toggle different options for different circumstances. For example you can set your screen brightness and screen time out to different levels for when your phone is plugged in or at different battery levels. You can also turn on or off wifi, bluetooth, or gps. The app also claims to add a “new setting,” allowing you to set a screen time-out when you are on a call.

The real question here is: does this actually translate into increased battery life? Well, it depends. Yes, setting your screen at a lower brightness will prolong battery life. Also, turning off bluetooth and wifi will also increase battery life. But you might be asking: I keep my brightness on auto and my bluetooth and wifi off anyway, will this app help me? Probably not. Also, claiming that a in-call time-out is a new setting is a bit of a stretch. There is a proximity sensor for that very reason.

I also found that the default settings on this app were too aggressive. My screen kept dimming when I was reading in my RSS reader. Not only that, but editing the profiles is a bit confusing. When you tap on a profile there is a pop-up that says what profile you just tapped on – but nothing actually happens. You have to long press the profile to edit it.

Power Manager full does give you some added automation if you want different things to happen when you plug your phone in. However, there are apps that use your location as a trigger that I find much more useful. For example: turning your wifi on while at home. As far as battery savings, this app will do nothing for you if already do the most prudent things such as keeping your screen brightness down and you wifi and bluetooth off.

I’ve got an idea. Instead of paying $0.99 for an app like this we can put that money towards funding scientific research for new battery tech. Because it seems like this problem just isn’t going away on its own. And while I applaud developers attempting to assuage the problem, I think more honestly marketing ones product is a better approach.

Sep 20, 2010

Sweat is dripping off your nose, pooling on the red martian rock below, where you’re huddled in the fetal position. You’re afraid. Rocks explode around you, and you know that the Martian MegaBot is zeroing in on you and your elite troop unit.

“Sign up for the Mars invading force, and be a hero!” they said. “Be part of saving the Human Race’s future!” was their recruiting cry, and you signed up, thinking it would be the best option for your future. Two months of training, and two years of cryo-sleep later, you’re questioning if you have a future at all.

If you live, you’ll see this kind of action again tomorrow.

Set in 2152, Battle For Mars is a turn-based game combining the strategy and tower defense genres. You are part of the human force and your goal is to conquer Mars. This is not an easy feat. In fact, this is one of the hardest games you may ever play. It also might be one of the most creative and fun.

If you’ve ever played Command And Conquer, you’re familiar with the real-time-strategy (RTS) genre. Battle For Mars isn’t exactly “real-time” because it’s turn-based. This is actually a blessing, when you have to command an entire army on a screen that measures in mere inches.

Overtaking cities and factories will give you more resources and eventually allow you to win the level/map. Your factories produce troops, artillery, and vehicles. Once you’ve played for a while, you’ll discover more and more depth to the game. Certain units can travel over certain terrain, and others can’t, and some troops fire more effectively on other types. Building enough troops, battling back the defending Mars force, and overtaking their factories gives you the victory.

The gameplay may seem slow to begin with, but once a player gets used to the control and battle scheme, the turn-based play is nail-bitingly exciting. The graphics are reminiscent of an old-school SNES, but it works with the overall aesthetic of the game. The sound is basic and forgettable; I turned if off when playing, because it got annoying.

The multiplayer options are deep, and allow for different types of games on different types of maps. Multiplayer is vital to keep a player interested in the long-term, and Battle For Mars does it well. For example, the game allows you to keep playing the one player game, while you wait for another player to join the multiplayer game you’ve created. You can also create a private game, and wait for a particular friend. The game also features notifications when it’s your turn. This allows you to have a long-standing “one-move-at-a-time” type of game. Your friend makes a move, and tomorrow, you make a move. Because this is a relatively new app, their are fewer players, and finding a multiplayer game that is open can sometimes be a challenge. Be warned, though: these online players are very good.

Replay value is very high not only because of it’s difficulty, but because of it’s depth. The game is a bit pricey at $4.99, but the game’s depth and multiplayer options allow me to recommend it, especially if it ever goes on sale.

Originally for the iPhone, and now for Android, Mouth Off is a set of 36 different animated mouths that move to the sound of your voice. The mouths include; dogs, robots, bunnies, monsters, cats, sharks, and lego minifigs. This app seems pretty straight forward, but believe it or not, this was one of the apps I missed the most when I moved to Android from the iPhone. Why?

1) My nieces and nephews love it. When I say “love it,” I don’t mean “strongly like.” I mean it in the “go absolutely bonkers, laughing, screaming, and running around the house” sort of “love it.” Being crowned as “Coolest Uncle Ever” by a seven-year-old is worth far more than the asking price of $0.99.
2) Once I was in a restaurant, and a kid was doing that annoying standing up in the booth behind my wife, and staring directly at me. I pulled out my phone, and had that kid laughing and giggling. Good times.
3) I once used the “robot” mouth on a costume involving sticky Velcro, boxes spray-painted silver, and drier vent tubing for arms.

You should buy “Mouth Off” if:

1) You’re got children, or are an aunt or uncle to young children.
2) You realize that this app is funny for about 30 seconds to your 20-something friends, and should not be pulled out at every party you go to.
3) You also realize that some kids (for me, one particular niece) will be so freakishly terrified or your animated mouths, that you’ll be apologizing to their mother for the crying child now sobbing into their shoulder.

I’ve really enjoyed this app, and was glad to see it on Android. It is certainly not perfect, of course. The mouths move to the sound picked up by the microphone, so in noisy environments, the mouths won’t react to your voice, or will be very jittery. Also, at over 9 megs, and no ability to move it to your phone’s SD card (only for froyo phones), you might might need to pass on this one if you’re squeezed for space.

Sep 20, 2010

“It slices!” “It dices!” And for one easy payment of 99 cents, you too can own this “fabricator of fruit fury,” this “slicing sultan of strawberries,” this reigning “walloper of watermelons.” So, what are you waiting for?! Click on over to your local Android Market and “Buy one today!”

Did you like my classic Ronald Popeil impersonation? No? Oh well, I tried. In case you haven’t heard, the very addicting & highly popular iOS game Fruit Ninja has sliced its way onto the Android platform. At only $.99, this ginsu game is a steel (get it? steel?).

Apparently the guys over at Halfbrick have found a long lost ninja scroll that clearly states “All ninjas hate fruit!” and Fruit Ninja is what happens when someone tauntingly tosses fruit in front of one. Very fun and very addicting, this game results in endless hours of unproductivity.

Sep 17, 2010

The folks over at Android Central are reporting on Samsung’s announcement yesterday about their Galaxy Tab, a new Android powered tablet device. It will run on all major US carriers: Sprint, AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. Samsung is quoted as saying,

The Galaxy Tab features a brilliant 7-inch enhanced TFT display screen, 1GHz Hummingbird Application processor supporting 3D graphics and smooth Web browsing and front and rear-facing cameras for video chat while on-the-go. The Galaxy Tab is powered by Android 2.2™, including full support for Adobe® Flash® Player 10.1. Just like the Galaxy S smart phones, the Galaxy Tab includes Samsung’s Social Hub application and the new Media Hub content service, offering a robust collection of premium movies and TV episodes from some of the biggest entertainment companies.

According to Android Central, Samsung is planning to have these babies out by this holiday season, and that a wifi only version is in the works.

Obviously, this is a direct competitor to the gorilla in the room, the Apple iPad. Whether devices like the Samsung Galaxy Tab will compete at the same level as Android devices have with the iPhone remains to be seen. Stay tuned right here as we keep you abreast of all the latest news in this arena.

Sep 17, 2010

If you buy one app for your phone, buy the Tasker app.

This app changes everything I thought I knew about my Android phone, and after hours of playing with it, I strongly recommend that every “power user” purchases it.

Why do you need the Tasker app? Simply describing what this app could do in a few short paragraphs would be selling it dramatically short.

So far with Tasker, I’ve:

• Doubled my battery life.
• Built my own “find my phone” app.
• Created an alarm that plays my favorite song, and literally greets me with an audible voice.
• Programmed my phone to automatically go vibrate-only when I’m at church.

Tasker is an app that can control virtually every aspect of your phone, by using a basic rules-based programming. Don’t let that scare you! You may use rules-based programming in your job everyday, when you build a formula for spreadsheets. Tasker is even easier than that. You’ll see the words “if” and “then” quite a bit in Tasker. For example, let’s say every time you plug in your headphones, it’s to listen to Pandora Radio. You could build this mini-program: “IF headphones get plugged in, THEN open Pandora radio.” Next time you plug your headphones in, your favorite station will immediately start playing.

Here’s some more examples:

• IF I’m reading my RSS feeds, THEN don’t shut off the screen.
• IF It’s after 1AM, THEN shut off WiFi, and Bluetooth.
• IF my friend calls (the one who’s voice is really, really loud) THEN lower call volume for that caller by 50%.
• IF I’m not using an app that doesn’t require GPS, THEN shut it off.
• IF I get a call from a certain number THEN automatically record it.

Here’s an example of a Tasker program I built:If I lose my phone, I can text it a special code from my wife’s phone. Tasker will then immediately post reward/contact information on the main screen, play a really annoying sound (so I can find it if it’s in the couch), turn on GPS, triangulate a position, send me those coordinates, and then shuts off GPS to save battery life. Amazing!

There are also multiple plugins for Tasker that are incredible helpful: “Local Google Voice Set Plug” will “ control automatically which phones in your GV account should ring, based on all the great conditions Locale offers, like your Location, SSID or Time.” In other words, when you’re at work, business calls will ring in. When you’re home, just friends and family. Automatically. “Google Voice Callback” programs Tasker to “…detect [an] outgoing call, and uses Google Voice (GV) to call you back and connect you to the call.”

Although incredible powerful and useful, Tasker is not perfect. It is really only for the advanced Android user. If you wouldn’t call yourself that, then this app might be far more than you need. Setting up Tasker is easy once you get your mind around the concepts, but unfortunately, the training manual is long and not very easy to read. If you’re a creature of habit, then Tasker is your best friend. If you keep strange and varying hours, then many of the timed functions won’t work for you. There were certain functions I couldn’t find or figure out while tinkering, and finding support for this app is a bit on the sparse side.

The app costs £3.99, which is about $6.00 US, which is more than most are willing to pay for an app. Once a user learns the flow and function of Tasker, it could potentially replace multiple paid apps. If you are an Android power user, comfortable around computers, and like to tinker, then Tasker is an app you’ll likely be grateful you purchased.

For more information, you can start where I did, with these Lifehacker.com articles:

You can also read more on the Tasker website and read the user manual (required reading) here.

Sep 17, 2010

This one is for all the GameFly users out there. GameCenter is a free mobile app put out by GameFly, the “netflix for gamers” subscription service for console games. GameCenter provides access to game info, news, articles and GameQ management in real time right on your mobile device.

What’s new in version 1.2? We’ll tell you:

• Ability for GameFly members to manage their queue native to app
• Optimized performance improvements
• Hi-res device support

What’s the full set of features for GameCenter? Here you go:

• Complete info on popular, new, and upcoming games
• Up to the minute gaming news
• Full GameQ management in the app
• Thousands of images and trailers
• Share content with Facebook and Twitter friends
• Personalize games and news for favorite platforms

So, if you use GameFly and have an Android device, this is the app for you. All GameCenter apps can be downloaded from www.gamefly.com/mobile and GameCenter v1.2 for Android can be downloaded from the Android Market itself.

FREE!

GameFly

App Available on: Android Market
Released by: GameFly
Downloads: >250,000
User Rating: 4.40 / 5 with 14,197 ratings

Download GameFly for Android Phones and Tablets for FREE!