The developers recently showcased the first gameplay video of the game as part of the Firaxis Games Megapanel at PAX South. According to 2K Beyond Earth and Starships is expected to feature an integration between the two titles which “will enhance and expand the depth of both game experiences.”

Starships is based on a story line that builds up on connecting with other galaxies to engage in duels, diplomacy or trade. The gameplay showcased during the event shows how you will be able to customise your starships with armour, capabilities and wonders.

“When designing Starships, I was intrigued by the idea of exploring the next chapter in the story of Civilization: Beyond Earth. What happens after we colonize our new home and eventually build starships to take to the stars? What has become of our long-lost brothers and sisters from the planet Earth?” said Sid Meier, director of creative development at Firaxis Games. “My goal was to create an experience that focuses on starship design and combat within a universe filled with interstellar adventure, diplomacy, and exploration.”

The interstellar game theme provides maps predominantly defined by asteroids along with quick routes that appear and then disappear. When you attack your opponent their position behind an asteroid will determine how much damage your attack will cause. Planning your attack position to maximise your damage will play a major role in your attack strategy.

Sid Meier’s Starships is expected to be available for Mac, iPad and PC in spring 2015. Watch the gameplay and announcement trailer below. What do you think about the game? Let us know in the comments.

Gameplay video

Announcement trailer

Those “Choose your own adventure” books were impressive back in the day. Nowadays, however, most people will likely want something shinier, something all new – something they’ve never seen before.

Developer NARR8 Limited has created a digital book reader that it hopes will be all that, and more.

We spoke to Alexander Vaschenko, founder of the team that developed NARR8, to find out about the what the app does, how it is constantly expanding and improving, and the reasons for making it free to download.

What exactly is NARR8 – and why should people be excited about it?

Alexander Vaschenko: There’s no all-in-one application or place where interactive books of different genres – from motion comics to non-fiction – are done in series sets with constant episode updates.



What does NARR8 offer that you can’t get from reading a comic book or ordinary book?

The integration of rich multimedia elements – such as animations, visual effects, sounds, music and interactive elements. This is a new thing, especially in non-fiction. The aforementioned series principle is also another new thing in terms of comparing NARR8 to an ordinary book.

How have you made sure the app is easy to use, and that it caters for all tastes?



There’s some tutorial in the first episodes where to click and how to navigate. Also we’ve tried to make all the navigation as obvious as we can. And we’ll improve it in the future for sure. In terms of tastes, the app is a 12+ because of some scenes in Subject 9, Prodigal Angel and Final Feat. Currently there are three enres though, which are motion comics, interactive novels (sci-fi and horror) and non-fiction (world history and popular science).

What challenges did you face during the app’s development?



The main challenge was to make rich and fast performing cross-platform content utilizing HTML-5 and other universal technologies. It’s all about making episodes again and again, remaking them until they work and look great.

The app is free to download – but are there any items that can be purchases within it?

This year the app and the content is completely free. Why? We want to get as much users as possible to polish our platform and content, but we have lots of thoughts on how to monetize the content and will decide how that will work better for users in 2013.

Have you got any famous artists or writers to work on some of the stories?

Not yet. We’ve started with unique, specially done content to show our vision. In the future we plan to sign famous artist and writers — we’re really open and will provide them the technology and the distribution platform.

How often will the updates for the app be?

Currently we update the app every eight to ten days, and new episodes in each series are coming every two weeks.

Have you any plans to bring the app to other platforms, such as Android?

Yes. In the first quarter of 2013 we plan to launch Android and Web-versions of the NARR8.

You can download the NARR8 app on your iPad for free now [iTunes link].

The trailer for the app can also be found below:

Gallery

Gameloft in an unusual fashion released their latest space combat simulation game for the iPhone and iPod touch called Star Battalion (View in iTunes). You take the role of an ace star pilot fighting against the militaristic Royalists who overthrow your leader. The objective of the game is to lead the Resistance movement in a high-intensity space simulation filled with action.

Star Battalion has been fully optimized for the iPhone 4 Retina Display and offers Gyroscope support, Gameloft believes that this title will be “the benchmark for space combat simulation that fans have been waiting for.” The game also supports Apple Game Center allowing you to play the game in online and local (via WiFi and bluetooth) cooperative modes.

Gameloft will be releasing a free comic book app for iPhone and iPad based on the story line of Star Battalion. The comic book story will offer you history of the main characters which takes place 20 years before the events of the game.

The graphics look great and the storyline of ‘Star Battalion’ sounds very interesting, if you enjoy the space combat simulation genre then this title is certainly worth checking out. Let us know what you think about the game in the comments section.

Star Battalion Gallery