Upcoming iPhone Games to Watch
The AppStore is known for a lot of things, but easy navigation isn’t one of them. With tens of thousands of games on the service, knowing when a real gem comes out can be more of a challenge than it should be. Big games may get featured on the What’s Hot or What’s New pages, and they may sit at the top of the sale numbers for a few weeks, but unless you’re actively checking to see what’s new on a regular basis it’s almost inevitable you’re going to miss a golden gaming experience.
Today we’re taking a look at 5 upcoming game worth keeping an eye out for. Why miss out on the big names if we can give you the heads up before they happen?
Ravensword
Release Date: Shortly (currently submitted for approval)
Price: Unknown
What is it: A 3D action RPG that’s been described as equal parts Oblivion and Twilight Princess, Ravensword developers are promising a richer, deeper experience than anything that’s come before on the iPhone.
Why you should be excited: Set in an expansive world with plenty of side quests, rumor has it you’ll need 3-6 hours to get through the main quest alone. In a traditional RPG that’s a drop in the bucket — but on the iPhone? For a game that looks this good, that’s tremendous.
Forget about how good it looks and how deep it should play for a moment though and realize this: what you’re witnessing here is the birth of a franchise. The game isn’t even out yet and Chillingo’s already committed to an expansion in the next six months that should add new gameplay devices in addition to content. Even bigger is the promise of Ravensword Online, the iPhone’s first true MMO in 2010. An MMO. On the iPhone. And all of itstarts right here with the release of the first Ravensword.
Eliminate
Release Date: Shortly (currently submitted for approval)
Price: FREE
What is it: First person shooters on the iPhone have had a spotty reputation at best, but ngmoco hopes to turn that around with this upcoming online arena shooter.
Why you should be excited: Eliminate will offer instant, jump-in, multiplayer action from anywhere in the world. Multiplayer on the iPhone has ranged from nightmarish to “meh.” If ngmoco can pull off Eliminate, that’sall going to change. The only downside to the game is that you’ll only have so much “energy” to use in a day, meaning you can only play so long before you have to let your character recharge. Now that Apple allows microtransactions you’ll be able to purchase your way back into the game early. It sounds a lot like the business model used by Zynga in games like Mafia Wars, which is definitely something I have mixed feelings about.
Galactic Keep: Dice Battles
Release Date: 2010
Price: Unknown
What is it: A role-playing game that plays less like Final Fantasy and more like… well, a role-playing game. Remember those nights of D&D in your parents basement? That’s Galactic Keep. Everything down to the dice, hand-drawn maps, and monster stats replicates that old school, table-top gaming experience.
Why you should be excited: Try and forget the amazing hand drawn art style for a minute. Forget about the brilliant table top vibe and photorealistic dice. What you’re left with after all of the spit and polish is a role-playing game for the iPhone that accurately replicates the experience of real role-playing games in five separate quests. Tough decisions, fierce battles, and engaging stories for what we assume will be hours on end. If you’ve ever spent a night around a kitchen table with Mountain Dew, Cheetos, and a bag of 20-sided dies, Galactic Keep could very well be the greatest thing you’ve ever put in your pocket.
The Relic
Release Date: November 2009
Price: Unknown
What is it: Think Gauntlet, but better. Chillingo is bringing the classic hack’n’slash action of yesteryear to the iPhone in a multiplayer dungeon crawler that they describe as “Gauntlet on steroids.”
Why you should be excited: Earlier this year, Chillingo kicked off a brand new genre for the iPhone that caught on like wild fire: the twin stick shooter. As our review of iDracula will attest, Chillingo knows what they’re doing when it comes to crazy hyper-violent top-down gameplay. Now they’ve taken that experience and added in bigger environments, a variety of enemies, some objectives and a storyline. While iDracula may have come up with a great mechanic, The Relic has the chance to use that in a great experience. If someone had told me that the iDracula team were remaking Gauntlet for the iPhone I would have squealed like a little girl. Hearing about The Relic pretty much had the same effect.
Star Wars: Trench Run
Release Date: Unknown
Price: $4.99
What is it: Remember that last scene in the first Star Wars? When Luke and his buddies go all Red Dawn on the Death Star? In the Star Wars community that’s remembered fondly as the Trench Run. Thanks to THQ Wireless, pretty soon you’ll get to fly it yourself with the magic of tilt control.
Why you should be excited: It’s a little too early to tell, but judging by the screens it looks like we might finally be getting a fresh taste of the classic X-Wing vs. Tie Fighter series that graced our desktops nearly two decades ago. The in-cockpit view and dogfighting looks strikingly similar, and it makes our hearts smile. There’s also a definite taste of the original Star Wars Arcade here. If THQ Wireless wanted a game that paid homage to the classics, those would be the games to draw from.
It also looks like Trench Run might let us fill the shoes of both Luke and Vader. There’s a moment in the trailer where the screen switches to Vader’s cockpit trying to shoot down Luke. It’s just as likely that this may be a section of game where you’re controlling Luke and trying to evade Vader’s targeting, but we’re hoping on playing as the dark lord himself.
What about Nova (Gameloft) and Riddim Ribbon (Tapulous)?