E3 and Game Connection
Namazu Studios went to E3 last week. We went this year to take advantage of the Game Connection event there. It was our first time attending Game Connection and we had a great time. Game Connection definitely helped us make this our most productive E3 yet.
This is all thanks to Game Connection’s highly effective web app, through which we were able to contact other attendees to solicit and schedule meetings. The app takes into consideration each party’s schedules to avoid conflicts and sets up meetings in half hour intervals. The meetings are short and really serve to create an introduction; it ends up working like speed dating for the game industry.
We’d like to thank everyone who met with us and we hope to be in touch again soon.
DOT5URBO by ustwo
The hallmarks of the DOT games from ustwo are simple but addictive gameplay mechanics and devastatingly stylish visual design. I’ve enjoyed all the DOT series games so far, but the latest is probably my favorite.
DOT5URBO is a runner / “wall of death” game, where the player must flee a spiked wall while collecting items and avoiding spikes. Rather than jumping, tapping the screen causes you to flip from running on the ground to running on the ceiling. Hitting the spikes on the ground or ceiling causes the player to start lagging back; hit enough of them and the death wall catches up to you. There’s also an invincibility powerup that allows you to destroy spikes for a limited time. Combine this with speed, combos, and achievements, and we have a very addictive little package.
While the game is a lot of fun, what really shines here are the visuals. The menu screens are solid black, with bold, striking, and colorful text and icons. The sprites are mostly geometric shapes in solid colors, brought to life with subtle animations and particle effects. Text for level completion, point earning, and achievements is as striking as the text in the menus. The visual design is all very clean and streamlined yet never feels stiff or static.
The game is available free on the App Store, with an in-app purchase option to get rid of ads. It’s worth checking out.
World of iDuelcraft Online
Our latest patch for iDuel Online is monumental. So monumental that we’re rebranding the game as World of iDuelcraft Online.
The latest update includes a fully 3D world to explore. Battle it out in 40 man raid dungeons. Challenge other duelists in whole new ways.
Some other new features such as chat, buddy lists, and character animation are still in the pipeline, but rest assured they’ll be available soon.
[Note: This was our April Fool's joke. --Sam]
8-Bit Pocket Camera
I picked up an app the other day that I thought that I would mention here because of how much I’m enjoying it. 8-Bit Pocket Camera is a photo app for the iPhone that simulates the awesome Game Boy Camera.
I love the aesthetic qualities of the Game Boy Camera and I’ve been disappointed that I was never able to find a good solution to get my images onto my Mac, other than scanning the printed stickers. When my GB printer stopped working well, that was the end of that. That is, until now.
This app seems to emulate the look and feel of the Game Boy Camera pics accurately. It previews the shots in real time and includes lots of fun effects. After you take a shot, you can send it to your photo album, e-mail, Facebook, or Twitter.
If the dev added zoom (as opposed to the blow-up effect), video, and the ability to work with pre-existing photos, the app would even better.
Two thumbs up to Dezro for developing this.
Christmas in iDuel Online!
It’s Christmas in iDuel Online and we’re celebrating with a special edition of the game called iDuel Online Holiday 2010! It’s available on the App Store!
The first time you log in with the Special Edition, you’ll get at least one free Christmas item gift. As you level up, you’ll earn more free items! Make sure you log in and play often to collect all 35! The first time you sign in you’ll also get a free gift of 30 Spectral Credits!
But remember, you must be playing through the Holiday 2010 Special Edition app to earn the awards, and they will only be available for a limited time! Get it now!
The iDuel Online Holiday 2010 Special Edition also includes a new Winter duel background and more new Christmas themed art.
All the latest updates to the normal version of the game (iDuel Online 1.1.1968) also apply to this special edition.
Celebrate with us all month long!
iDuel Online Update 1.1.1968
We’ve released another update for iDuel Online!
This update includes 19 new items. You’ll also notice a brand new Equip Screen background. We’ve also fixed many bugs and made several optimizations to improve performance.
Keep your eyes open for our upcoming Christmas update, the iDuel Online Holiday 2010 special edition!
It’s Update Time for iDuel Online!
We’ve released an update to iDuel Online (1.1.1843)! Here are the changes:
- 21 new items!
- Players now earn more Credits from duels as they level up!
- Potions of Specialness now earn you 15 or 17 Spectral Credits instead of 2 or 3!
- Rebalancing of Spectral Credit item prices!
- Daily Message will pop up when you start up the app to give you important news about the game.
- Login and Password are no longer editable in Preferences. You must use the reset button in the Options in-game.
- Bug fixes and optimization
For more information on the changes to the game’s economy, please read the earlier post.
Upcoming changes to the iDuel Online economy
One of the changes we have in store for iDuel Online is a sweeping update to the game’s economy. This may sound boring at first, but it’s great news for all players because it will lead to gear becoming more affordable.
Potions of Specialness will now be worth far more Spectral Credits. Before, losing a battle earned you only 2 SC from a potion, while now it will earn you 15. Winning earns you 17. We’ve also adjusted the in-app purchase cost of the Potions.
In addition, players will now earn more Credits from duels. Credit earnings were based just on player Charisma, but now earnings will scale up based on your level.
Finally, we’ve restructured the cost of items. The higher the level of the item, the more that the Spectral Credits will be worth, so higher level items will cost less Spectral Credits than before. Also, the overall cost of items above level 60 won’t rise quite as sharply.
These changes will go live as soon as the next app update hits. We’ve already submitted it to the App Store, so it should be soon!
iDuel Online Mid-September Update (1.1.1593) is GO!
Our latest update has been approved by Apple and is now live! All players will need to update the app in order to continue playing.
New in this version:
- Added 21 new items to the gear shop.
- Minor bug fixes and performance enhancements.
The image above shows off just a bit of the gear we’ve added with this update and the previous update. Kung Fu track suit, Judo gear, a bug costume, and other great stuff. Look out for more in upcoming updates!
In case you missed the details on our last big update, you can see the list of changes.
iDuel Online Update is Live!
Apple has approved our latest update for iDuel Online for iPhone and iPod Touch and it should be available now for download from the App Store.
All users must update if they wish to continue playing, since server updates are also going into effect with this app update. You must also be running iOS 4 to play. You can read about all the changes on our previous blog post.
As always, your feedback is greatly appreciated. If you have any comments or suggestions please be sure to send them our way, and if you enjoy the game please take a moment to rate it on the App Store!
Update:
Our apologies for the slight hiccup some of you may have experienced as our servers switched over to the latest version. Everything should be running smoothly now!