Posts tagged Joystiq at The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)

Posts with tag joystiq

First Look: Chimps Ahoy!

Posted Jul 14th 2008 3:00PM by Erica Sadun
Filed under: Gaming, iPod Family, iPhone, App Store

Gallery: First Look: Chimps Ahoy

Griptonite Games' Chimps Ahoy! is a silly, fun breakout game. I'm not a huge breakout fan (to be fair, I'd rather clean my house and do my taxes) but Chimps' beautiful graphics and silly music won my heart. It's a graphic design tour de force. You play by throwing a coconut between a pair of monkeys, chipping away at inner barriers. Control the monkeys by sliding your thumbs up and down the sides of the screen.

The introductory material made me think that game play was going to be a lot more complicated than it was (game play is quite easy) and there's no accelerometer support. Plus it's a breakout game -- but there's no getting around that part. But if you enjoy breakout games, Chimps Ahoy!'s multiple levels and bright inviting screens offer a nice twist on the genre.

Given their high design standards, I can't wait to see what other products Griptonite delivers at App Store.

Chimps Ahoy! costs $9.99 and can be played on the iPhone and iPod touch.

Touch Arcade interviews maker of iPhone Chopper

Posted Jun 5th 2008 2:30PM by Mike Schramm
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Gaming, Multimedia, iTunes

Touch Arcade has a nice interview up with David Frampton, author of both the Mac game Chopper and its upcoming port to the iPhone. Apparently the game is feature complete and now in testing, so hopefully it'll be one of the first apps up on the App Store when it arrives, supposedly sometime this month.

The game will use the iPhone's accelerometer to control the little helicopter, and Frampton says it's both a blessing and a curse, in that it makes things more fun to control, but the iPhone also has to be held at a certain angle to center it out (they're planning to get around this by adding a way to calibrate it for different playing situations). He also talks about how the iPhone's OpenGL ES version works, and says that, despite our worries about battery life, the iPhone is able to churn out a pretty consistent FPS as well as keeping battery usage fairly low. To be fair, Chopper is probably on the low end of graphics potential, but we'll take any good news we can get here.

The game is still on track for a release in late June, and while even Frampton doesn't have details to share about the App Store's launch day, Apple's past support of this title means that if any third party games make it into the App Store, this one will definitely be there as early as possible.

Massively offers bi-weekly roundup of Mac MMOs

Posted Apr 15th 2008 9:00AM by Cory Bohon
Filed under: Gaming, WIN Business

Massively, one of Weblogs, Inc.'s newer gaming blogs, recently started a Mac-centric feature devoted to all things MMO. MMOS X is published bi-weekly and tells you all about the latest native Mac MMO's ... none of that virtualized or Bootcamp stuff, only the good native games.

So, if you're looking for some great MMO's for your Mac, be sure to head over to Massively twice a week.

Thanks to Barb for the tip.

Will Wright: Mac users will love Spore

Posted Feb 15th 2008 10:30AM by Mike Schramm
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Gaming, Multimedia, Retail, Odds and ends

Well, who won't, right? If you haven't read a single gaming blog this week (you serious worker bee, you), then you may not have heard the big news: Will Wright's rumored-to-be-a-masterpiece Spore has gotten a release date. It's hitting stores (for both PC and Mac simultaneously-- now that's what I like to hear) on September 7, 2008. Which means that later this year, PC and Mac users alike will be playing God, and creating creatures that virtually evolve from amoeba form all the way up to space travel.

Mac|Life got a chance to sit down with Will Wright himself, and not only did he reveal some fun news about the game, but he thinks it will especially appeal to Mac users-- they expect the creative creature creator to do great things with Mac minds. Unfortunately, the game is a Cider port, and ~~it's being released by Aspyr (that's right, I'm breaking my informal press boycott on them to talk about Spore-- don't disappoint me, Aspyr~~ *see update below) but Wright sounds like he's expecting quality from this release, so I guess we should, too.

And just like all the other great developers out there, he's very interested to see what happens with the iPhone SDK -- Wright is apparently an iPhone owner, and would love to get Spore on there. Believe me, Will -- I'd love to play it.

[Via IMG]

*Update: Aspyr has contacted us to say that they are not publishing the game. And at first I was confused, because Lucy Bradshaw specifically mentions Aspyr in the interview. However, after reading it a few times, it seems that Bradshaw is actually giving reasons for why they decided not to go with Aspyr-- their native ports come out too late, and EA wanted to release Spore simultaneously on all platforms.

Aspyr also notes to us that they only do native ports, not Cider ports. So I guess my informal boycott against Aspyr is still on, but we're still not guaranteed to get a good game out of this: Madden '08 was created using Transgaming's Cider, and that didn't turn out so well. Wait and see.

Guitar Wizard coming for Mac

Posted Jan 9th 2008 12:45PM by Mat Lu
Filed under: Gaming, Video, Education

The guys and gals over at our sister blog Engadget were keeping busy at the recent CES and have turned up some interesting products with a Mac angle. In the video above they're checking out a new music instruction software package called Guitar Wizard which works a lot like the Guitar Hero game (our coverage). The key difference is that Guitar Wizard uses a real guitar and actually teaches you something about playing. The kit consists of the software and a midi pickup which can be attached to your own guitar for $150, or you can get a kit that includes a guitar as well for $300. New songs will be downloadable at 99 cents each.

Guitar Hero III previewed, will release Oct. 28

Posted Oct 4th 2007 1:00PM by Mike Schramm
Filed under: Gaming, Hardware, Retail, Software

Gametap's got a quick look at the new Guitar Hero sequel, coming out for the Mac later this year, and the biggest news is that they've got a date: the PC and Mac versions are shipping simultaneously with the consoles on October 28. Rock on! Apparently you'll also be able to use the mouse and keyboard to play (although, come on, Guitar Hero is all about that guitar controller that ships with the game), and this part is pretty slick, too: PC and Mac users will be able to play against (or with) each other online. Very, very nice.

No system requirements yet, but I'm guessing that, like Tiger Woods and Madden, this is going to be for the non-integrated video cards only. Still, if you've got the kit to run it, it'll definitely be a good time. Our sister games blog Joystiq has rounded up the entire setlist for the game, with YouTube links to every song in it. In fact, if you've already got Frets on Fire working, you can start practicing now -- you'll need it if you want to shred against me.

Penny Arcade game coming to Mac next year

Posted Aug 27th 2007 6:00PM by Mike Schramm
Filed under: Gaming, Humor, Software

The Penny Arcade Expo was held this past weekend in Seattle, Washington, and we got lots of news about the Penny Arcade videogame, officially titled (you might want to sit down for this one) Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain Slick Precipice of Darkness, Episode One. I told you it would be long.

The game is scheduled to appear on PC, Mac, and Linux (as well as downloadable on consoles) in 2008, and will feature a robust character creation system, and all of the Penny Arcade characters. The "Episode One" part also hints at what might be an interesting mechanic-- you'll be able to create a character in the first game, and then carry that character over other episode releases. Joystiq reports that the game looks good, and should be a fun, if short, experience.

So look for an interactive Penny Arcade on your Mac next year. And in the meantime, watch out for those Claw Shrimp. They're vicious.

Puzzle Quest rated by ESRB for Macs

Posted Jul 25th 2007 5:00PM by Mike Schramm
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Gaming, Retail, Software

Our sister site Joystiq reports that Puzzle Quest, the handheld puzzle-slash-RPG sensation, has been rated by the ESRB for a Mac release. The news isn't that surprising, as Puzzle Quest has already been slated to appear on almost every platform but the Mac (although PS3 hasn't received the love either). It is great news, as Puzzle Quest is supposed to be a terrific game, and it is exactly the kind of casual game that belongs in OS X.

An ESRB rating isn't exactly official confirmation, but it does usually mean that the game is playable, so chances are we'll see the game released sooner rather than later (if I had to guess, I'd say by this holiday season, but don't quote me on that). If you happen to have a PC box around, there's a demo available right now, but from all reports, if you like puzzlers and/or RPG games, this game is good enough to pick up sight unseen.

GameTap Lite client (finally) released

Posted Jul 10th 2007 3:00PM by Mike Schramm
Filed under: Gaming, Multimedia, Software

The long awaited GameTap client for the Mac is out (direct download right here), and our (newly redesigned) sister site for all things gaming Joystiq put together this video (complete with music from "Psycho Mother$*#^ing Soldier"), along with a pictoral preview of what you can expect when you download and install.

According to Joystiq, the Transgaming setup works very well-- they even found an Xbox 360 controller driver to use with it, and the client brought them right into OS X arcade gaming heaven. There are apparently some games you can play for free, but most games will require a subscription; we're told it's 99 cents for the first month, and it'll be about $7 to $10 a month after that, depending on how often you pay. This client is actually the "Lite" version-- GameTap says the deluxe version is coming later this year which will offer full screen gameplay, the ability to download more games while playing, and "a richer game environment," whatever that means. What are you waiting for? Download that sucker and go psycho, solider!

WWDC Video: Unity 2.0 sneak peek

Posted Jul 6th 2007 4:30PM by Victor Agreda, Jr.
Filed under: Gaming, WWDC, TUAW Interview, Developer

The gang from Over the Edge gave us a sneak peek of two new features in Unity 2.0: a cool terrain tool and real-time dynamic shadows. Check out the video, but also check out their page of all the other features coming soon to Unity.

[Note: we'll have all these WWDC videos available for direct download soon!]

Joystiq reports GameTap to support Mac

Posted May 30th 2007 7:30PM by Michael Rose
Filed under: Gaming

OK, it's been a busy day in Macville, what with the D Conference doing its best impression of Comdex and inspiring scores of product announcements. Still worthy of mention from earlier today: our sister site Joystiq posted an interview with two GameTap VPs on the upcoming changes to the GameTap offering. The most notable change for our people won't be along until late summer: a Mac implementation of GameTap.com will be released. This tidbit was so surprising to blogger Alexander Silwinski that he responded "Late summer you'll have a what?" Classic.

For those not familiar, GameTap is a gaming subscription service; imagine NetFlix but without actually mailing DVDs, and, like, for PC games. Check out details here.

Thanks Chris & Uros.

Joystiq on Terminal emacs games

Posted Dec 28th 2006 2:30PM by Michael Rose
Filed under: Gaming, Open Source, UNIX / BSD, Terminal Tips

Our brothers-in-arms at Joystiq have a cute video up of the 'hidden' Terminal games you can play. These games are part of the GNU emacs text editor, which is bundled on virtually every Unix-like OS and can be had for pretty much any OS out there.

Granted, they aren't pretty or fast, but they might be worth a few minutes while stuck at the Denver airport... again...

[via digg/powerpage/joystiq]
Thanks Brandon!

Joystiq recommends Mac games for the holidays

Posted Nov 28th 2006 10:00AM by Scott McNulty
Filed under: Gaming, Software

Yes, I did just say that Mac gaming doesn't really matter anymore, but I am willing to believe that some people might not agree with me. If you're looking for some great games to play on your Mac, then Joystiq has you covered. They have a short round up of the best of the best Mac games on the market, just in time for the holidays.

An Apple IIe at E3

Posted May 15th 2006 3:00PM by Victor Agreda, Jr.
Filed under: Gaming, Cult of Mac, Odds and ends

Forget the Nintendo Wii (pronounced "wheeeeeeeeeeee!"), Sony PS3 (or the "Rockefeller Machine" as I call it), or Xbox 360 razmatazz... The real action at this year's E3 was hidden deep in the bowels of the show: an Apple ][e. Apparently the ][e had been gutted, and replaced with a net-aware time machine, connected to an abandonware site, which was playing... uh, I have no idea. That game looks awfully familiar, but I can't name it. Any takers? I found this via the blog of one "Greg," who is a senior software developer with AOL. So, Greg: you read Joystiq but not TUAW, and yet your favorite gadget is an iPod?

#	Blogger	Posts	Cmts
1	Cory Bohon	80	4
2	Robert Palmer	59	46
3	Dave Caolo	56	0
4	Steven Sande	48	20
5	Mat Lu	38	11
6	Scott McNulty	37	0
7	Erica Sadun	34	2
8	Mike Schramm	22	1
9	Brett Terpstra	17	1
10	Giles Turnbull	15	0
11	Christina Warren	13	24
12	Michael Rose	12	19
13	Chris Ullrich	3	0
14	Joshua Ellis	2	3
15	Kent Pribbernow	1	0
16	Jason Clarke	1	0

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First Look: Chimps Ahoy!

Touch Arcade interviews maker of iPhone Chopper

Massively offers bi-weekly roundup of Mac MMOs

Will Wright: Mac users will love Spore

Guitar Wizard coming for Mac

Guitar Hero III previewed, will release Oct. 28

Penny Arcade game coming to Mac next year

Puzzle Quest rated by ESRB for Macs

GameTap Lite client (finally) released

WWDC Video: Unity 2.0 sneak peek

Joystiq reports GameTap to support Mac

Joystiq on Terminal emacs games

Joystiq recommends Mac games for the holidays

An Apple IIe at E3

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