Let's say you've just been named Vice President of the World. What do you do with your newfound position of power? If you're the main character in Eden Industries' upcoming game Citizens of Earth, you gather up a group of everyday folks and put their unique skills to use in a humorous yet epic RPG adventure. Yeah, that sounds better than sitting around and letting the President of the Earth get all the glory.
Wherever there is a castle, a hero is never far behind. And wherever there's a hero, there are monsters, dragons, skeletons, and generic bad guys. Heroes and Castles for iOS illustrates that heroes need to be brave and hardy, but they also need to strategize, manage funds, and problem solve on the fly. In other words, heroes value versatility above all else. Heroes and Castles strives to do many things, and its intentions are noble—but like so many storybook protagonists, it's also a bit rough around the edges.
Game of Thrones is big on TV, and the series of novels that provided the source material, A Song of Fire and Ice, has a loyal following. But video games set in Westeros? Not so much. Disruptor Beam thinks it can change that, readying Game of Thrones Ascent to deliver medieval intrigue, warfare and moral ambiguity straight to our Facebook pages later this year.
Square Enix has built up 25 years' worth of mostly fond memories and good feelings towards its Final Fantasy series. Its fans are loyal, enthusiastic, and trusting towards the Final Fantasy name, even when it's not followed by a Roman numeral. Final Fantasy: All the Bravest plays off this trust by hiding a greedy, shallow game beneath a nostalgic skin.
Somewhere, maybe in that warehouse at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark, is a list of features that would make for the perfect mobile fantasy MMORPG. Alchemy Knights by 6waves Lolapps manages to check off a lot of items that are on that list (or would be, if the top men ever find it), but it doesn't put them together as smoothly as you'd like.
Gamebooks, for those unfamiliar with the term, are very similar to the classic Choose Your Own Adventure books of days long ago, with the added bonus of multimedia content like music, hi-res images, and even occasional bits of simple gameplay. At first glance, Askaryl's Grimoire looks like it will be an impressive addition to the genre, with an epic story of dark magic, betrayal, and war wrapped in glorious visuals and remarkably good music and sound effects. But looks, as we all know, can be deceiving.
Full, shameful disclosure: The Book of Legends is my first Aldorlea game. Not for lack of interest, but mostly time: the creators of the Millennium and Laxius Force series, Moonchild, and 3 Stars of Destiny are known for their engrossing and lengthy RPGs filled with side quests, secrets, and multi-path stories. The Book of Legends lives up to all of these promises and more, solidifying Aldorlea a spot on the list of developers I must make time for.
Despite the fact that they keep coming like the hordes of walkers in The Walking Dead, casino games for browsers and mobile devices feel like they may reach a crossroads soon. You can dress up slots, blackjack, and poker with fancy graphics and add in social features and achievements, but ultimately there are only so many ways to show off the same games, and we've seen them all. "Au contraire," says CasinoRPG... or it would, if an upcoming game could speak French.