Gameloft has seen huge success with its arcade style racing game, the Asphalt series. This game has always been popularly known for its nitro infused fast game play and crazy stunts. Asphalt 7: Heat offered great improvement in the widely popular series and now we have Asphalt 8: Airborne.
Asphalt 8: Airborne takes the popular arcade style racing and adds new twists and surprises that continue to excite the player even as the racing category in the App Store already offers some of the best games. However, with Asphalt 8, Gameloft seems to have a clear goal to be a top contender for the best racing title of 2013.
The gameplay largely remains the same where you have career mode, multiplayer mode, social challenges, quick solo or local Wi-Fi mode. In the career mode you advance by winning events and gaining enough stars to unlock the next event. As you win events you also win in-game currency to upgrade your existing car or purchase new upgrades to enhance the performance of your car.
Gameloft has made the selection of cars for a particular event easy by categorising cars in D, C, B, A, S categories and assigning each car a “rank”. Sometimes it’s difficult to asses if the performance or speed of one car would make a significant difference in the race. This is where the new ranking system comes into play. In each race you will be shown recommended rank which can act as a guiding factor to decide which should be the next car you should purchase.
If the car you own has a lower rank then you might just have to perform a “near perfect” race in order to stand a chance to win the career event. That brings us to the new difficulty level in Asphalt 8. Gameloft has tweaked the way the AI works in this new version. If the AI car is faster and higher rank it won’t be easy to defeat it. The top speeds of the high-end cars won’t let you overtake them even you continue to use nitro boosts. And if you’re unlucky and your car gets wrecked then you probably stand no chance to cover the loss of time. In the previous versions even if your car got wrecked a few times it was usually easy to cover up the distance. However, be prepared to be challenged to the extreme in Asphalt 8 for iPhone and iPad.
The difficulty level is also tied to in-app purchases where you can purchase extra credits and car packs to make your virtual racing career easier. Credit packs allow you to be free to spend on any car you wish to purchase and car packs include a good mix of high end cars. Credits start as low as $1.99 and go up-to a max of $99.99. While it may be tempting to purchase more credits or cars it is not necessary to advance in the game.
While playing career mode you may not earn that many credits to unlock expensive cars however, this is where multiplayer modes comes to your rescue. The multiplayer mode in Asphalt 8 puts you against 7 other players selected on the base of your level and car selected. This is by far the most enjoyable mode of the game as you race against real players across the world as opposed to AI. If you manage to stand anywhere between 1st or 3rd you will be able to earn decent amount of credits which will help you to unlock cars and purchase upgrades faster.
So, overall I found the gameplay difficulty was well balanced. On one hand the career mode challenges you to extreme limits whereas the multiplayer mode balances the gameplay and gives you a chance to show your racing skills against real players. While for most players career and multiplayer mode will occupy the most time, it doesn’t stop there. In addition to these mode there is solo race, Wi-Fi and even a friend feed where you can race against your friends ghost and brag about defeating their best time. Also, another interesting feature added this year is the ability to race against your own ghost timing in any career event you’ve attempted before.
There are six types of racing events in Asphalt 8. These include classic, elimination, versus, knockdown, new infected mode and gate drift. Each racing event is unique and adds new twists to the gameplay. So, it always keeps the race interesting even as you advance in the career mode.
Spoiler alert:: If you don’t want to know about the all-new infected mode then skip this paragraph. In the infected mode at regular intervals the racer in last place gets “infected”. The “infected” racer has limited time before the car explodes and then spawns back into the game. In order to increase the time before your car explodes you can hit other cars and in turn “infecting” them. What makes this even more interesting is that each infected car gets unlimited nitro boost. In the end the racer finishing the race first wins the game. This mode adds new twist to the gameplay and is a welcome addition. It was both enjoyable and challenging at the same time.
Gameloft has worked really hard on the 3D game environment and it shows. The game features some of the most scenic locations worldwide. You will be able to cruise from Nevada to Iceland to Tokyo to French Guiana to London to Barcelona to Alps to Venice to Monaco. This year the 3D locations have been enhanced with natural disasters and even events like a space shuttle taking off in French Guiana. Every time you race through these locations it never gets boring to notice these events happening even as you are busy tapping the nitro boost to race ahead.
The graphics are highly detailed and the physics engine performs very well. It includes an excellent selection of cars like Bugatti, Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren, Chevrolet Corvette, Mini Cooper, Aston Martin and many more. The selection of cars is great and has something for everyone. These cars have highly detailed graphics. When you view the cars in the garage you’ll be able to view even the shockers, exhaust pipes and the body of car reflecting the environment around it. When you are racing you can view the shockers in play as your car slightly bounces when you make a hard landing on the ground.
This brings us to the “Airborne” moniker. In Asphalt 8 you’ll be literally “flying” for short bursts of “air time”. The roads also include ramps to assist you in leaping into the air. Some ramps have slight turn that enable you perform rolls. Here’s a tip, don’t be in a hurry to go onto to the ramp. If your speed isn’t fast enough you’re more likely to get wrecked.
I was particularly happy about the sounds in the game. The sound effects interact with the game as you crash into public property or even as the competing cars come in close proximity you can hear the engine of other cars firing up. This year you even get to choose between three music genres while playing the game.
Camera angles certainly play a crucial role in making a racing game exciting and giving it the edge of the seat excitement. The settings menu in Asphalt 8 offers immersive, close and fixed angles. As your car races into the air the camera angle pans to show a dramatic cinematic view. However, the camera view also highlights a disappointment in Asphalt 8. There is no in-car view so you don’t get to sit in the drivers seat to experience the adrenaline rush of a real racing game. There are no side view or back view mirror assists so you just have to rely on the mini map to avoid overtakes. The game lacks in this area and this is something we’d like Gameloft to improve in Asphalt 9.
The default tilt to steer control works well however, you may notice as you buy upgrades, handling and acceleration the performance will greatly enhance. But, for those who prefer complete control there are other control options included like manual acceleration, screen controls and more.
Asphalt 8: Airborne for iPhone and iPad retains the best arcade style racing game title on the App Store. New playing modes, realistic 3D graphics, amazing sound effects and months of playing value make this game a must have for all those who love racing games and even for those who haven’t tried one yet.
[rating: 4.5/5]What we like:
What to know:
Apple launched the new iPad earlier this year in March, with the original WiFi version and for the first time, a 4G version of the popular tablet. Recently, iPad users in a number of international regions have complained that the 4G advertised with the tablet isn’t really 4G as many carriers didn’t support it. As a result, Apple has now changed the name of the new iPad in those regions, now calling it WiFi + Cellular.
The term 4G was originally intended to be for the LTE-Advanced standard, however, a number of carriers such as Sprint introduced HSPA+ with a lower download and upload speed than LTE is expected to be. This claim of 4G has now led Apple to label the iPad as “Cellular”, to suggest that the device can connect to a network, but does not specify as to what type. LTE speeds are generally expected to have a download and upload speed up to 72mbps. HSPA+ has the capacity to hit 42mbps but can also drop below 30 mbps.
Although this renaming may take away from Apple’s simplistic approach, it definitely clears up any confusion as to what speeds a user can expect or what type of network is operating on the device. Currently, in the United States, the WiFi + 4G branding is still used and will likely remain that way. The question as to whether this issue would also be present in the new iPhone 5 has also been brought up, however, since Apple has not used any radio speeds in the naming of the phone, it likely will not be an issue.
{Via iMore}
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If you are one of the millions of players who downloaded and lost hours of their lives playing Jetpack Joyride then I may have a new game to break that addiction.
Madcoaster from App Store dominators Chillingo is a new universal game where you control a roller coaster train on a never ending journey through multiple lands in order to collect as many coins and travel as far as you can with all your lives intact.
The game has a great cartoon look to it and the multiple lands look great as you speed through them. The game starts with just a few ‘themes’ enabled which you travel through for 1,000 meters at a time. Should you complete 1,000 meters you will continue on through another ‘theme’ until you run out of lives.
The themes are based on different events and locations, so one moment you may find yourself zooming past panda’s in a Japanese themed environment and the next past pumpkins in a Halloween inspired theme. Additional themes can also be unlocked via in app purchase or by reaching 10,000 meters in the game. The in-app purchases are nicely positioned meaning that you don’t have to keep on buying them.
Your roller coaster carts have no speed control but things get pretty crazy straight out of the traps and you’ll need fast fingers as you leap gaps, loop the loop, and move up and down tracks.
As you fly along the rails you can pick up coins and smash though a variety of animals, the only thing that can kill you is falling off the track though, in fact smashing through the animals that are standing on the tracks or hitting birds that are flying past the tracks earn you rewards rather than hinder you.
All these things contribute to the variety of objectives that are set for you on each run and clearing these objectives will provide upgraded carts for you to ride. Not that these carts have any additional features, instead they just look different to prior carts, it would be nice to have power ups to make your cart faster or jump higher.
The game has that addictive quality that makes you want to try one more time to beat your current high-score or complete one more of the 30 achievements that are available via Chillingo’s social gaming network Crystal, or the GameCenter integration.
Madcoaster is a Universal app and is available from the App Store for just 99c so grab it while you can.
[rating: 4/5]What to know:
Bull Mouse is a very simple game that provides hours upon hours of fun. You are a bull that has to knock people out of the ring, completing over 50 missions along the way. Tons of power ups and extras keep this game interesting throughout its entirety.
The simplicity makes this game fun for all ages and easy to pick up and play whether at home or on the go. You utilize a bull to knock people out of the bull ring by pulling the bull’s tail and springing him at people running through the ring.
The people come in all shapes and sizes and move at different speeds and different directions. You can earn perks along the way that makes this easier. The perks are by far my favorite part of the game as they are fun to use and very effective. Make sure, if you see what you nab it up quick though as it will disappear after a short time period.
The game is broken up by the different challenges that you are tasked with. Tasks such as “knocking 50 blonde guys” out of the ring or “rock the fences 10 times” keep the game interesting and make it easy to spend hours staring at your screen trying to accomplish the next challenge.
Another fun aspect of the Bull Mouse is the extras. As you play the game you can gather tokens that allow you to boost your bull’s abilities such as speed and size. This in turn makes your bull an even better wrecking ball for knocking people out of the ring. You can also use these tokens to get costumes for your bull. The costumes don’t add anything but a sweet new look to your bull.
Overall I would highly recommend this game if you looking for something easy to pick up and play on the go. I found myself hooked quickly and styling my bull mildly amusing. At 99 cents its definitely worth checking out, especially since it is available for both your iPhone and iPad. Being Game Center enabled is also a plus.
What we like:
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[rating: 5/5]
Need For Speed™ Undercover is a stunner!
DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES? Get behind the wheel of the world’s #1 racing franchise to find out! Explode into a racing frenzy on your iPhone™ and iPod® touch in this action-packed adventure of hot pursuit and betrayal.
YOU’VE GOT THE POWER
Activate Nitrous Boost and Speedbreaker with the swipe of your finger for intense driving action.TRICK RIDES
Drive 20 of the world’s fastest and hottest cars like the Porsche Carrera GT, Nissan 370Z (Z34), Lamborghini Gallardo and the Pagani Zonda F—each boasting its own unique style and performance features: handling, steering, cornering and acceleration.EDGY ENVIRONMENT
Incredible 3D graphics enhance this exhilarating driving experience. Sweeping camera angles intensify your ride and yield a realistic look and feel—simply put, the best visuals iPhone and iPod have to offer.OWN IT
Customize your vehicle with aftermarket spoilers, multiple wheel options, body kits and a variety of paint schemes.
Electronic Arts has released two Big titles (Tiger Woods PGA Tour & Need For Speed™ Undercover) within one week and has two releases expected in the coming month.
Need For Speed™ Undercover (NFSU) has definitely been one of the most awaited and talked about release for the iPhone. It finally made it to the App Store on May 05, 2009 with incredible response making it No. 27 Top Paid App in just 3 days!
NFSU gives a complete pulse raising and satisfying experience expected from a racing game.
Gameplay
You ride as an undercover cop in the Tri-City Bay Area and your objective is to take down the underground smuggling ring connected with some street racers. The story unfolds with full motion cinematic scenes throughout the game as you race across three zones completing races, vehicle deliveries, cop takeouts and more. As you advance in the game by winning different events you can earn cash and style points to upgrade, customize or buy new cars.
Controls
You steer your ride by tilting your iPhone/iPod touch, while the acceleration is automatic. Touch anywhere on the screen to pull the breaks or slide your finger down to activate the speed breaker mode to slow things down a bit. Slide your finger up to use the powerful Nitrous boost. Twitching your device enables you to drift on sharp turns.
The overall controls are very intuitive and responsive but sometimes even a simple turn can make your vehicle drift. In the garage you can swipe and zoom to take a 360 degree look at your ride which is very impressive.
Graphics
Need For Speed™ Undercover is a true representation of iPhone’s gaming prowess. The 3D world is gorgeous with stunning Nitrous boost and drift effects. It unambiguously supports the best graphics I have seen on iPhone. Unlike Days of Thunder you can see your wheels rolling during the race which adds up to the realism. Graphics are highly detailed and you can also interact with the environment by damaging roadside signs and other obstacles.
A.I
Your opponents in NFSU will often use their Nitrous Boost to take over, crash into the traffic and catch up if you make a slight mistake. The cops can only take you down if they manage to hold you in close proximity.
Sound Effects
I am very impressed with the attention given to sound effects, you can hear the engine noises, wheel screech while drifting and speed boost when activating Nitrous boost. The game has some amazing sound tracks for Rock music lovers.
Finally
Electronic Arts (EA) has set a very high standard for the iPhone gaming platform by releasing a highly polished premium game. It won’t be wrong to say this marks the beginning of a paradigm shift for all iPhone game developers.
Feel the rush and screech your wheels with Need For Speed™ Undercover for iPhone!
Price $9.99
The Good
The Not So Good
Need For Speed™ Undercover Screenshots
