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Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Gaming, Software, Developer

Sway releases a free version


If you haven't yet tried Sway, the game from Illusion Labs and ReadyFireAim, now's the perfect time to do so. They've released a free version of the game that limits you to three levels and just two characters, but it's enough to try out the really unique control scheme. Back when I first posted about the game, I hadn't tried it yet, but it's now been on my iPhone for about a month, and it's excellent. Each of your thumbs is a "hand" on your characters (i.e., to grab something with your left hand, in game, you just touch your thumb to the left side of the screen), and then once you've grabbed something, you can swipe that thumb back and forth to sway the character around. It gets pretty complex, but practice makes perfect, and a few stages in, you'll be swinging from grip to grip with the greatest of ease.

The full version still costs $4.99, and if you enjoy the free version, I highly recommend it: there are many more characters that you can pick up and choose from, and the stages actually get really tough, as there's a lot of precise swinging that you'll have to do to explore the whole area and find everything there is to find. Sway might be a sleeper hit for the iPhone -- it took me a little while to figure it all out, but once I did, I found a control scheme that's delightfully original. If you haven't tried it out yet, definitely take advantage of the free version.

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Gaming, Odds and ends, iPhone, App Store, iPod touch

Zen Bound arrives on the iPhone

This one's impressive -- Zen Bound originally started out as Zen Bondage, a physics game/sandbox where the goal was to wrap a rope around a 3D shape or object. The game has just recently been ported to the iPhone, and in the process has actually been improved -- the graphics look sharper and the iPhone's multitouch controls really add to the tactile experience.

As a "game," it might be questionable -- it looks like there's a lot of fudging in terms of whether or not the rope has "covered" the object, and the scoring system itself is more or less tossed in as just a reason to get you to interact with the objects. But as an app, and a demonstration of the kinds of interactivity that can be exclusive to a device like the iPhone, it comes highly recommended.

Zen Bound is available on the App Store now for $4.99.

Filed under: Gaming, iPhone, iPod touch

Crayon Physics Deluxe for iPhone

Crayon Physics
Crayon Physics Deluxe (App Store) is an iPod Touch/iPhone 2.0 game highly similar to Touch Physics (App Store) in that you must move a ball to the goal (represented by the star on the right) by drawing various things on the screen. For instance, to move a ball across a gap, you would simply draw a line with your finger over the gap.

The game has 50 levels, and it includes a level editor so that you can make your own levels to increase replay value. You can play straight through the levels, or use the level chooser to jump around and play any levels (useful if you get stuck on a particular level). The music is calming and the graphics are good, but the levels initially draw very slowly.

Continue readingCrayon Physics Deluxe for iPhone

Filed under: Gaming, Software, Education, Freeware

Phun 3.5

For (let's say) "phans" of Crayon Physics, Phun 3.5 is a similar kind of physics simulator created by Emil Ernerfeldt for his thesis at Umeå University, Sweden. Not only is it Swedish, but it's just been released for the Mac.

Sure, it's rough-around-the-edges, and it follows pretty much none of the Mac's interface or key-combination conventions, but it's sure a fun (with an F) toy. Phun is Universal Binary, and freeware.

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