via Slide To Play

FDG Entertainment, a German company that has produced a string of popular iPhone games like Bobby Carrot and Parachute Panic, gave us the first look at their next game Across Age, which was made along with Japanese developer Exe Create. In what is sure to be good news for RPG fans, it turns out that Across Age appears to combine elements from both Zenonia and Chrono Trigger.

According to the game’s project lead Philipp Doeschl, Across Age is a fifteen hour action-RPG with time-traveling elements. Doeschl introduced us to the basic story, saying that “the kingdom is threatened by the evil count Agrean. Eager to upset these plans, Ales, a swordsman from the kingdom´s capitol, departs on his journey and is looking for the help of a mage master called Ceska.”

To help set the level design apart in Across Age, Doeschl also told us “it is possible to travel through time and there are cool riddles and events based on this feature.”

Along the way, you’ll always have a time-travel buddy with you. “The player controls a party of two characters from the beginning of the game (Ales and Ceska),” Doeschl told us. “It is possible to choose which one of them takes the lead at any time. According to which character is controlled, the player can use different skills.

“Sometimes it is even necessary that both characters take different ways. For example, when a switch is hidden on a ledge, Ales can give Ceska a leg up to climb the ledge. From this moment on, both characters will need to go different ways until they meet up again.”

Each character also has different weapons they can use, but they’ll level up at the same time. “Ales equips swords and armor,” Doeschl said. “He will also learn some special melee skills, which greatly help him in cutting his way through the enemy hordes. Ceska, as a mage, uses all kinds of staves, rods, magical wands and wears robes.

“Along with a standard long-ranged attack spell which doesn´t consume MP, she´s able to cast powerful fireballs, ice spells and more in exchange for MP. These element-based magics are also used for solving puzzles throughout the game.”

Hopefully, with lots of side-quests, Across Age should provide a lot of variety. Across Age will also have a linear storyline with just one ending, but the time-travel twist could help keep things interesting.

We’re also told you can “recycle” items via time travel, which is an interesting angle on inventory management. We’re looking forward to finding out more about how this works in the final game.

Across Age will be out this winter and cost $9.99. We’re hoping that for a premium price, Across Age will deliver the lengthy, in-depth experience we’ve come to expect from our RPGs. Now, we just wish we had a way to jump ahead in time to the day it’s available on the App Store.

Gamevil’s action RPG Zenonia [$2.99 / Free] was among the first “full” RPG experiences on the iPhone, and is still a game that is thoroughly recommended amongst our community whenever a “What game should I get?” thread pops up on the forums. Its sequel is something which will no doubt be as highly anticipated as its initial release, and of this evening Gamevil gave us a few details on what to expect.

Zenonia 2 will have four distinctly different character classes: The paladin, shooter, magician, and warrior. Ranged attacks are also being implemented, allowing players to use various skills to attack from a distance. New difficulty modes are also being added, aside from the standard “normal” difficulty, “hard” and “hell” modes will allow hardcore players to access additional loot and a hidden boss stage only available in the higher difficulty modes. There are also new terrain effects thrown in to the mix such as water, snow, ice and others.

While this all sounds pretty cool, the feature I’m most looking forward to is the asynchronous online multiplayer, which sounds fairly similar to the online multiplayer functionality found in Baseball Superstars 2010 [$4.99]. According to Gamevil, players will be able to “download and compete against” your friends’ characters– Details are limited right now, but they’re shooting at a March release so we should have more information soon.

Zenonia, by GAMEVIL, is the best iPhone RPG in the App Store. Gamevil claims there are over 40 hours of gameplay, but I have played 52 hours and am still not done. Before the sexist comments come – “yeah it only takes you so long because you’re a giiiiiiirl!”, I have thoroughly enjoyed many other RPGs before. In fact, in the first grade I was regarded as the ‘Pokemon Master’. Moving on, Zenonia provides hours upon hours of fantastic gameplay for only $2.99.

Options

There are different paths that you can take along the way, the biggest being good versus evil. Also, when you start the game you must choose which class to become, and your options are either: Paladin, Assasin, or Warrior. You are provided with three save slots, which allows you to play all three classes simultaneously if you wish. Different equipment is available for each class. In Zenonia, there are also side quests which can be completed to earn experience and some loot, but they are optional. There are many different weapons as well, which are not optional. One option you are not given is the ability to choose your name or gender. The level of depth that is involved in Zenonia is appealing to hardcore RPG fans, but may be too much for casual gamers.

Pros and Cons
Pros
• many hours of gameplay
• enough depth to satisfy hardcore gamers
• best iPhone RPG
• reminiscent of Link and Pokemon
• autosave on phone calls allows playing anytime
Cons
• depth turns off casual gamers
• a lot of grinding to level up

Summary
Fans of RPG games should definitely consider buying Zenonia! There is a lite version in the app store to test out before purchasing, but for $2.99, I cannot imagine that anybody wouldn’t want to buy it.

PS – my brother ‘borrows’ my phone all the time just to play, and is convincing my parents to get him an iPhone so that he can play Zenonia as well!

For more information about GAMEVIL, you can visit their website here 

100,000 apps

2009 brought some of the best apps to the iPhone and iPod touch to date. Gaming has now advanced to a point that rivals the Sony PSP or Nintendo DS. As the mobile market grows and hardware continues to improve, we are going to see some amazing things come our way. If 2008 was about experimentation, 2009 was about innovation. In 2010, developers will push this innovation to enhance our mobile experience—whether through augmented reality, cloud-based computing, or something completely new.

Below you will find our top 10 overall apps, our top 15 games, and top 5 innovations. Tell us which apps are on your top 10 list in comments.

TOP 10 APPS

Facebook 3.0
Access your friends, notes, pictures, and events using almost every feature the actual site offers. This app, based on the enormous social networking site, has seen many changes and just keeps getting better with time.
LINK: AppVee’s Facebook 3.0 Review

Fandango
View trailers, see showtimes, purchase tickets and read reviews using this free movie app. This is a must have for any moviegoer, giving you all you need to know about movies in your area at your fingertips.
LINK: AppVee’s Fandango Review

Beejive 3.0
One of the first applications to take advantage of push notifications, this multi-client instant messaging app is in a class of it’s own. Using its push features, iPhone and iPod touch users can easily hold IM conversations with their friends anywhere.
LINK: AppVee’s Beejive 3.0 Review

LogMeIn
Brings your desktop to your iPhone or iPod touch. Link up with your computer and access your computer screen from afar. The interface is easy and feature-filled, delivering the best VNC experience to your device.
LINK: AppVee’s LogMeIn Review

Mobile Navigator
Filling the void left by the default maps application, this app offers turn-by-turn directions from your device just like any dedicated GPS would. It provides a landscape GPS with plenty of features and a user interface that makes sense.
LINK: AppVee’s Mobile Navigator Review

Dropbox
Sync up with your Dropbox account and have access to all of your files right from your device. You can download files, upload photos, and maintain control of your folders.
LINK: AppVee’s Dropbox Review

Textfree Unlimited
No one likes paying to text. This app offers free texting via push notifications. The interface is similar to the default SMS app and is a great alternative to paying your phone company.
LINK: AppVee’s Textfree Unlimited Review

Google Mobile App
This app has revolutionized search on the iPhone with its voice search and in-app browsing. Speak a search query and the app will accurately recognize it and do a Google search. Not a Google fan? Check out the Bing app.
LINK: AppVee’s Google Mobile App Review

TweetDeck
All the wonderful features that can be found in the TweetDeck desktop app are packed into this iPhone version. With a sleek interface and great features, this app is one of the best of the many Twitter apps out there.
LINK: AppVee’s TweetDeck Review

Craigsphone
Offers the entire Craigslist experience in one easy package. Buy, sell, and save more by searching through posts and bookmarking ones for later use.
LINK: AppVee’s Craigsphone Review

Ustream
One of the first apps to bring live television to the iPhone, Ustream gives you the ability to see many live streams of all types of content on your mobile device.
LINK: AppVee’s Ustream Review

TOP 15 GAMES

Flight Control
The line drawing game that started it all, this app is very simple but insanely addicting. Each level gets harder as you play and keeps you coming back for more.
LINK: AppVee’s Flight Control Review

Peggle
Combining awesome graphics, addictive gameplay and a little bit of randomness, Peggle is an exciting mix. This game brings a casual experience to the iPhone that has yet to be rivaled.
LINK: AppVee’s Peggle Review

Rolando 2
The sequel to the hit game, this app takes the Rolando tilt formula and cranks it up. This game is an improvement in almost every way to the original and really shows what iPhone-specific gaming can provide.
LINK: AppVee’s Rolando 2 Review

Pocket God
The king of all time-wasting games, this app puts you in charge of some prehistoric pygmies who are completely at your mercy. Regular updates and features make it a pleasure to continue feeding them to the fishes.
LINK: AppVee’s Pocket God Review

Enigmo 2
Taking the puzzle genre to new heights, this app gives players everything they loved in the first game and puts it all in three dimensions. And you thought the first one was hard…
LINK: AppVee’s Enigmo 2 Review

N.O.V.A.
One of the best first person shooters that can be found in the app store, N.O.V.A. puts the Halo formula into your pocket with a complete single-player and four-player multiplayer experience.
LINK: AppVee’s N.O.V.A. Review

Labyrinth 2
Building on the app that started it all, this version gives you more than just holes to worry about as you will have to solve puzzles and dodge all sorts of objects. The game also offers the option to create your own boards and share them with the world.
LINK: AppVee’s Labyrinth 2 Review

Skeeball
Everyone loves skeeball. Now it has been brought to the iPhone in a fun way. One of the most recognizable arcade games, this app is simple and addictive.
LINK: AppVee’s Skeeball Review

Zenonia
As a full-fledged action RPG, this app brings the complete role-playing experience to the iPhone. Zenonia features attractive graphics and rewarding gameplay.
LINK: AppVee’s Zenonia Review

Real Racing
Arguably one of the best racing games for the iPhone, this app has great graphics, tight controls and immersive sound, making it one of the coolest racing experiences ever on a handheld.
LINK: AppVee’s Real Racing Review

Sims 3
Start a family and watch them interact in this full-featured Sims experience tailored specifically for the iPhone.
LINK: AppVee’s Sims 3 Review

Rock Band
EA’s answer to the popular Guitar Hero franchise, this app employs some big names in the music industry and lets you tap your way to fame.
LINK: AppVee’s Rock Band Review

Super Monkey Ball 2
This exciting balance game gets a small overhaul and some great new maps making it the king of its kind.
LINK: AppVee’s Super Monkey Ball 2 Review

Doodle Jump
Another highly addictive game that sells for cheap but never grows old. The game is casual and simple, a perfect addition to any iPhone.
LINK: AppVee’s Doodle Jump Review

Words With Friends
A Scrabble clone with a great interface, this app allows you to play multiple games against players all over the world by alerting you via push.
LINK: AppVee’s Words With Friends Review

TOP 5 INNOVATIONS

Red Laser 2.2
A step forward in innovation, this app scans barcodes using the iPhone camera and then returns pricing from various online sites. While still in its infancy, this app could revolutionize the way we shop.
LINK: AppVee’s Red Laser 2.2 Review

Hitchcock
Storyboarding in your pocket. Hitchcock allows aspiring cinematographers to create movie layouts while on the go.
LINK: AppVee’s Hitchcock Review

I Am T-Pain
Impress your friends by altering your voice with autotune. This app was an instant hit and gives you the ability to be a star the next time you are ‘on a boat.’
LINK: AppVee’s I Am T-Pain Review

Mailtones
Ringtones for email. Mailtones allows you to identify who just emailed you by their individual sound tone. Offers a new level of customization for your inbox.
LINK: AppVee’s Mailtones Review

Leaf Trombone
Leaf Trombone is a fun app that lets you play a slide instrument on your iPhone. Create your own songs and share them with the world.
LINK: AppVee’s Leaf Trombone Review

Title Screen

Amazing. If I could describe the game with one word that would be it. The design and artwork is beautiful, the classes are balanced and interesting, the controls work wonderfully, and the story is rather intruiging.

I bought this game as soon as it came out, mainly because I do that with lots if games, and two, because the description and screenshots made me really want to get it. It was definately worth the $4.99 initial purchase price because of the 40 plus hours I have sunk into the game. I have played all 3 classes with my best being a level 85 Assasin. I could not stop playing the game for about two months and was rather engrossed with leveling up. There is initiative to play the story at least twice as there are two endings, a good and an evil, that net different ultimate, end game powers. I played through three times though, just because of the different classes to pick from.

The three classes are; assasin, paladin, and warrior. Each have their own play styles and builds. After every level-up you get stat points and skill points to allocate. Depending on how you distribute the stat points you can create better builds. The skills are all very helpful and it never feels like one is incredibly useless. The classes are balanced beautifully and there is one to suit almost every style of play.
The artwork and everything about this game is just great and I have recomended it to many friends. Not only did I tell them about it, they not only purchased it, but enjoyed it as well.

The only negative comments I have about this game is that it is short, and that you can’t finish it. The game only took me about 3-4 hours to complete on my first run through, and less on subsequent runs. The fact that you can’t finish the game bugs me a bit as well. As soon as you beat the final boss you promptly get an end game screen, the credits roll, and your game is done. If you try to play that save again you simply go to the last point you saved and continue from there.
Other than that small problem I highly recommend you purchase it, and you will love it.

Rating: Buy it

I’ll actually make an effort to write something in these useless posts (as if they aren’t all useless) from now on, but don’t expect me to write anything profound like musings on the meaning of life (still 42 last time I checked) or anything much about my life (read title…)

Still, I could talk about my iPod Touch or something (watch as it eventually turns to osu!) since I don’t actually buy games on the iPod very often (as I said, I love free shit) it’ll only be like once a month (a year?!) that I actually decide to buy something, and even then, only when it has a demo out. Also apparently my banks credit card charges an extra dollar for every transaction on the itunes store and I can’t make all the apps one purchase in a cart for seemingly no reason means that I have to pay extra for every game, fuck that. (Although looking at itunes 9 I might be able to…find out when I actually decide to buy something.)

So first thing I bought on the app store was “Zenonia” because apparently only one company can make a fucking decent RPG on the iPod and it’s a bloody port of a phone game. Apart from from my outrage at people who think their game is good (and my greater outrage at people who know their game sucks but put it up anyway) Zenonia is a great game, leveling up is nice if a little grindy, abilities seem nice, 3 classes to choose from and 2 different paths in the game with solid gameplay means it’s bloody fun to play…even if the story is pretty sucky and oh god the controls, why must all touch screen dpads on the touch screen suck so goddamn much?! But it’s all easy to forgive since it’s actually fun to play and it aims you towards your opponent when you fight them (…most of the time.)

But when I say the story is pretty sucky, I mean it. “EVIL WAR RAAAWR” “SACRED CHILD GUY THING” “I’LL TAKE THE CHILD” “NO DON’T LEAVE US!” “I’LL LEAVE FOR A SMALL TOWN TO RAISE HIM AS MY OWN” (apparently abandoning his daughter?) “BLARGH I AM DEAD” “FATHER!” “WE HATE YOU” “EVERYONE IN TOWN HATES ME ;_:” …and so ends the first 5 minutes which has absolutely zero character depth! Off to quest we go!

It’s forgivable though because apparently most iPod/phone owners only have a 5 minute attention span, and the game is legitimately funny in some places.

Next up was DDR. Now let me tell you right now, I suck at DDR, I can barely pass the lower level (although I probably could if I had any idea where the arrows were…) and Stepmania was a pain to play…although that might be because all the levels made for it seem to be stupidly hard… So yeah DDR is DDR except played with your fingers, so it’s kinda more like TTR with and extra button…which is kinda like a Bemani game except with your fingers…whatever, it’s like a rhythm game where you touch things. The point is DDR is great and will actually last me more than an hour since I’m not terrible at it but not great (I can A all the normal levels) which brings me to my other point about iPod games (I should really be calling them apps or something,) they have to last me at least 2-3 hours minimum.

This month! Myst and Monkey Island! I’m sure I can manage at least 100 hours out of Myst and … you know I dunno about Monkey Island, I only ever played it once, but it’s a Lucas Arts adventure game so it’ll last a bit at least (and to play through in classic mode again at a later date…)

Pshahaha implying I’ll actually get 100 hours into Myst without giving up. So yeah, 5 hours of Myst.

…Oh look, I’m way over the 5 minute mark.

“Waiting sucks. Period. Fortunately, there is a cure. While many iPhone games lean towards the short, cute, and casual end of the spectrum, we’ve consulted the dark tome of Baphomet to summon forth a demonically delicious sampling of portable RPG gems capable of consuming voluminous amounts of time and possibly a few souls. Not afraid to geek out in public? We’ve got your back. Whether you’re sitting in the waiting room at the dentist’s office, stuck on a long bus commute or just mind-numbingly bored, salvation is just a few taps away. And you don’t even need to bring your custom-embroidered dice bag.”

Check out the full article here at GamesRadar.

For fans of Zenonia, it is great news for you guys. This RPG game published by Chillingo is going to hit iTunes App Store soon. The game is a story of Kalikoop, Part 1. The game features a few character classes – knight, lancer, wizard, gunner and assassin. The game will let the gamer experience 22 unique towns and over 150 battle fields.

You have to fight your way to conquer the enemies. This game has a real-time action battle system. There are 50 main quests plus 100 optional quests to complete. Thus, in total, there are 150 over unique quests for the player to complete in the game.

You have to also face your ultimate nightmare by fighting against the various bosses in game. From the development team that brought you Dungeon & Hero, a new action game is coming to you at your nearby iTunes App Store. Be amazed and overwhelmed by the footage of the video as well as the screen shots for this awesome new game.

Chronicles of Inotia, iGem and Ranch Rush all featured in another naturally sweetened installment of iPhone Roundup. Your source for the best video games on the iphone. Subscribe 2 support the show. Sponsorships available, email iphoneroundup@gmail.com for more info.

I wanted to take the time to point out a new app that recently came out. Its called Zenonia. This game is just deep to say the least. First off its an Role Playing Game. When I say RPG I mean RPG. Its not another remake of a poor game on another Cell phone. Its designed purely for the Iphone and it shows

The Story is pretty cut and dry. Your Dad is killed you need to figure out whats going on and so forth. It does do some interesting things though. First For some unexplainable reason almost everyone in the town dislikes you. another mystery you must solve. They even have a kind of moral system. which is gauged by a meter what goes up and down while you make decisions during story progression which changes the outcome of the game. Now when it comes to graphics. It definitely stands out from the crowd, Its got the cartoon Style, with an anime look to it. Which works perfectly. So now we get to the meat of the game, the gameplay.

You Move around via a d-pad on the bottom left of the screen and attack, talk and pick up things through an action button on the bottom right.  You have three different classes to pick from. An Assassin, Paladin, and warrior. I’ve played a little of all the classes. and I must say they all play completely different. Assassin duel wields two daggers and attacks quick and has a lot of stamina. (This is what you use to attack and perform special attacks. This kinda acts like Monster Hunter. When you do too much with out eating any food it goes down and once you eat it replenishes.) The Warrior is a heavy Giant Sword wielder. He’s the tank of them all and can hit multiple monsters at once, The paladin and The Assassin can’t. Now the Paladin is kinda of a cross between the other two classes, He can heal himself and is a little quicker then the warrior, but not as fast as the assassin. Of course you have your Weapons, armor, and scrolls all the stuff expected. As you Level and complete quests you earn points to put into your skills and your stats. I’ve looked all over the web and there are already many builds for each class. That just sh0ws how deep this game is. Now my only Complaint with this game would be the controls are kind of wonky sometimes. when your trying to move and it moves in the opposite direction. I’ve already heard they are planing to update the controls and make them more responsive which is great news.

I was dumbfounded when i tried this game out and was floored at just the amount of dept and high value. Zenonia is only $5.99 which is a steal for what you get. Pick it up I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Features:

The spirit of Real Classic Action RPG

-Anime style characters and graphics
-Numerous quests following an epic storyline
-Various skills with stylish effects
-Hundreds of unique items for each character
-Innovative elements that reflect real life
-Long play time (packed with over 40 hours of game-play)

Other Details:

-Skill Tree System: 8 Active + 8 Passive skills + 1 ultimate skill
-5 item classes: Normal, Magic, Rare, Unique, and Epic
-Good-and-Evil system with an alternative storyline
-Day/Night cycle, Hunger & Weight System that reflects reality
-Dynamic movements with optimized on screen D-Pad
-Automatic target facing and intuitive controls

Screenshots

Zenonia Gameplay Video from AppBankVideo

iTunes Link-

MB: 9.6!

Price: $5.99

This game is certainly worth your money, as it has many hours of gameplay(40+ hours as people claim) and a deep storyline.

Check out all the Zenonia gameplay/review videos here

You can get a glimpse of the cast and gameplay in the trailer inside! Zenonia doesn’t have a specific release date (as is the nature of the App Store), but is expected to be available around the end of May in the US. ~

Korea’s #1 selling mobile RPG of the year is ready to hit Apple App Store!

GET READY FOR THE RETURN OF CLASSIC ACTION RPG!

Zenonia is now in Quality Assurance stage and is scheduled for App Store submission on May 15th.The Return of Classic Action RPG – ZENONIA.

The game features

- Anime style characters and graphics

- Numerous quests following an epic storyline,  providing more than 40 hours of Playtime

- Various skills with stylish effects

- Hundreds of unique items for each character

- Innovative elements reflects real life (Hunger, Weight, Day/Night System)