Disney has a new hidden object game (HOG), and despite some of the rumors and urban legends that still haunt the House of Mouse, it has nothing to do with finding bad words or naughty imagery in movies like Aladdin, The Lion King, or The Little Mermaid (Say, Disney - are you taking pitches for game ideas?).No, Disney Hidden Worlds is very innocent. It also features its own unique cast of characters that guide the player through several familiar Disney worlds - an admirable addition, given Disney could have easily phoned in the game's presentation. In fact, Disney Hidden Worlds would be a perfect "starter" HOG for young people if not for some problematic bugs and an energy system that makes it difficult to play for an extended period of time without paying."Disney Hidden Worlds stages several hidden object scenes across popular movie properties like Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and Tangled. If you know your way around a hidden object game, then you should be able to jump straight into Disney Hidden Worlds. Each scenario provides a list of items to find in a crowded scene, and you simply tap or click on the object to grab it.The faster you find items, the higher your score multiplier becomes. The higher your score at the end of a hunt, the faster you fill up stars that indicate you've mastered the scene.
Riiiiiiiiiiiidge Racer!With two decades and a ton of releases under its belt, Ridge Racer is one of the golden standards in the realm of arcade racing games, and Ridge Racer Slipstream is no different. The latest installment in the series brings what you would expect from the folks at Namco Bandai with regards to the series, including lovely graphics, tight controls, a catchy soundtrack, and of course, appearances by Reiko Nagase, the Ridge Racer racing queen herself. The premise is simple, and as old as time itself: Take control of one of a number of top-of-the-line automotive vehicles and gun it down the track as quickly as possible, outracing the competition and crossing the finish line either first, or with the best time. Of course, you'll need more than just the ability to drop a lead foot down on the gas to win; as with many an arcade-style racing game, drifting around sharp turns and tight corners is essential. Plus, when the chips are down, you might still be able to call upon the surge of speed provided by a nitro-charged turbo boost.One key element, though, is the one from which this particular iteration takes its name: The slipstream. Trailing behind an opponent and using their speed to boost your own is a key mechanic this time out, complete with an assortment of several "perks" dedicated to either maximizing your slipstream potential, or shutting down that of your opponents.
If they ever add the world Halfbrick to the dictionary, I'm pretty sure the definition will read "guaranteed mobile gold." After all, we've come to expect nothing less from the house that Fruit Ninja and Jetpack Joyride built. Their latest offering Colossatron puts players in control of an interstellar space monster with a snake-like body out to destroy every city on Earth.And yet it's nothing like what you're expecting.Your initial guess - especially based on the term "snake-like body" - might be that this is Halfbrick's attempt to update the old school Nokia-era classic Snake. And if that's not your guess, you might think that it's an action game full of rampaging and smashing. But believe it or not - and if you're looking at the screenshots, we'll understand if it's not - Colossatron is a wholly original twist on match-3."
It was more than two months ago that I took my first tentative steps into the hunting game genre when I reviewed Deer Hunter 2014. Two months ago when I realized that, when handled right, mobile hunting games can actually be pretty cool. Cabela's Big Game Hunter, on the other hand, has shown me what happens when it's handled very, very poorly.Cabela's Big Game Hunter follows the (what I assume to be) typical mobile hunting game pattern by giving players a series of disconnected areas to hunt in - each with various critters to shoot and/or not shoot. Tapping arrows on either side of the screen will move the hunter from side-to-side and shift the perspective. Some weapons can be aimed with a scope, and power-ups that provide temporary boosts or other kinds of help can be purchased. Some hunts may simply require killing a specific animal while others will want players to shoot something in the lungs or heart. Aggressive prey can be particularly tricky as they'll rush in to attack, triggering a very simple Infinity Blade style game of dodging."As hunts are completed, players will earn stars that go towards unlocking new areas (with new animals) to hunt in. Oftentimes a successful hunt will even unlock a new challenge or two; which can be a good excuse to go back and shoot up more stuff. Little by little this also earns cash that can be used to buy better weapons (some of which are required for certain hunts) or attire (used to unlock even more places to hunt). It's even possible to display kills in a special trophy area and share photos of all those virtual stuffed animals with Facebook friends.
There's something romantic about the idea that someone could start out brewing beer in his or her own basement and wind up taking the world of adult beverages by storm. If you don't think trying to live out that fantasy sounds like good fodder for a mobile sim/RPG, Bit By Bit Studios begs to differ. Fiz: The Brewery Management Game has risen from Kickstarter like suds to the top of a mug, giving you a shot at building your very own brewery from the ground up.Like Drake might say, you've got to start from the bottom of the beer world before you can get on. When a new game of Fiz begins, all you've got is your own character, three buddies, some rudimentary brewing equipment, a few recipes, and some big dreams. You also own a couch (good for sitting on) and what appears to be an eight-bit NES, which is appropriate since the game is rendered in retro pixel graphics. The semi-mystical figure Cyrus Uprum drops by in short order to introduce you to the wonders of beer-making. A menu in the upper-left corner is where the magic starts, allowing you to access the recipes you know and additional ones you can buy or learn. The actual brewing process begins by buying the proper ingredients to fill a given recipe and assigning your team members to one of four tasks: cleaning, mashing and boiling, fermenting and packaging.
To be a pirate is to value freedom above all else. If you plunder enough gold, instill enough fear, and get out before the world tears you down, you can be the most free man or woman in the world. At least that's Assassin's Creed's take on those maligned malingerers of yesteryear. Don't expect anything more historical than that in Assassin's Creed: Pirates, the latest mobile take on Ubisoft's blockbuster franchise.If you decide to take the plunge on this pay-for-it-once affair, you'll find yourself free to rebel against monarchy, liberate slaves, and blow away galleons - all without having to leave the comfort of your own ship's wheel. One of the most popular features of the last two console Assassin's Creed games has been naval combat. Like any good privateers, the developers of Pirates seized on that goodwill and ran with it, creating an entire game around the concept."Most of the game plays out in one-on-one ship battles broken into stages of offense and defense. While on the offensive, you wield a number of cooldown-based armaments ranging from time-delayed mortars to good old-fashioned broadsides. Once the enemy's own timer fills it's time to dodge incoming fire with a tap to either the left or right, depending on the angle. Five consecutive dodges earns you a chance to interrupt and start shooting back early.Combat isn't particular complex, or even that difficult. But when the gorgeously rendered waves start to churn and the music starts to swell it is quite thrilling - for a time. Actually, let's talk about the music. The soundtrack features the same swashbuckling, rope-swinging, rapier-rapping tunes as Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag on consoles, which is to say that it's fantastic. There's just far less of it.
Angry Birds helped us fall in love with the physics of speed all over again. Bad Piggies taught us how much fun could be had with pigs on wheels. With titles like these in the series past, I suppose an Angry Birds kart racer was inevitable.But while thematically a fit, Angry Birds Go! is a pretty big break from what Rovio has brought us in the past. It's their first game with 3D modelling. It's their first game in an established genre that the console crowd would get eager about. It is, as much as can be for one of the biggest names in mobile gaming, something of a gamble. And while I've been having a lot of fun with it, I don't think it quite hits the high mark that Rovio might have hoped. At the start of every race, players will pull back on their slingshot (a nice nod to the original game) and shoot their racer onto the track. From there the game becomes an exercise in overly-simplified design. Player don't need to worry about braking or accelerating. Drifting isn't (much of) a thing. There are no item boxes to break, and in many of the game's challenges, not even other racers to compete against. In all honesty, the game could have been called Angry Birds: Steering isn't too much for you, is it? If so, we're really sorry and will take it out in a future update.
EA's Dragon Age series supplies an in-depth fantasy world that goes way beyond stories about noble heroes and evil dragons. The Dragon Age wiki contains thousands of pages with reams of information about Grey Wardens, archdemons, and Darkspawn. It stands to reason, then, that Dragon Age fans would love the supplementary story material in Heroes of Dragon Age. That may be the case, but the hands-off combat and rapidly-depleting energy system might actually send them packing for a more exciting region of Thedas.Heroes of Dragon Age plays a good deal like many of the digital collectable card games available on the App Store and Google Play, which is an interesting thing to say because there isn't a card to be seen in-game. Instead of the usual static illustrations of warriors and sorcerers, you command small, animated figurine-like heroes and creatures from the Dragon Age universe. That means you can expect to have standard archers and mages at your command, but you may also command a Darkspawn or a demon or three."Heroes of Dragon Age's campaign stretches across several scenarios that link together to tell previously-unexplored stories from the overarching Dragon Age mythos. Each scenario pits you against the bad guys, but since this is Dragon Age, "bad guys" is a very nebulous term. Either way, you're on the left, the enemy is on the right, and if you don't knock down your target before they clobber you, you'll be sent limping home.