Darwinia+ is finally available on Xbox Live Arcade after an extended development cycle of over four years. Darwinia+ was created by Introversion, one of the best independent game developers on the planet with several classic (and award-winning) PC games under their belt, including Darwinia, Multiwinia, Defcon and Uplink.
Darwinia+ gets nearly everything right on the Xbox, albeit with a few caveats. First off, the price is simply too high. I personally think 1200 points is a great value considering how much gameplay is on offer, but I’m in the position of being a self-professed Darwinia-freak and as such, have a complete understanding of the game and its concepts. This places me in the minority. Most Xbox 360 players will have never heard of Darwinia and will be quick to disregard it based on nothing more than its retro-graphics. Too bad, their loss.
A lower price-point of 800 would have made impulsive and/or exploratory purchases far more likely. At 1200, Darwinia is pricing itself away from experimentation and distancing itself from gamers who may not be able to perceive the game’s value based on the trial version. Additionally, Microsoft has been discounting a considerable number of games lately and players are well aware that a discount will hit Darwinia at some future date, so fence-sitters are prone to remain on their asses until the price comes down.
My second problem with Darwinia is the camera-scheme that kicks in when controlling a Squad. It does its best to position itself correctly, based on the elevation of nearby terrain, but it’s not what I would call perfect or some semblance of perfection. Fortunately, you can work with it and bend it towards your will by releasing control of your squad and repositioning the camera at a better angle, though it doesn’t completely resolve the problem.
True resolution of the Squad Tracking Camera issue will only be found in a patch and I see it working as such: Darwinia currently has two ways of selecting available squads/engineers, via bumper-buttons or directional-pad (left-right). You only need one scheme, so drop the bumpers for squad selection and use it for rotating the camera while the directional pad cycles through units. Problem solved. I waive my consultation fee.
While the camera is a minor problem at best and one that can be dealt with, the price is less surmountable. What you need are valid reason to buy Darwinia+, reasons that may not be entirely obvious in the limited trial version. Without further ado…
The iPhone has a pretty popular Commodore 64 emulator but what I’ve really been waiting for is a program that emulates the Amiga, my favorite computer from bygone years that was superior to all competitors…and sold like shit, thanks to typically awful Commodore marketing. Sigh. I’m not bitter, really.
Amiga was home of some of the greatest games of all time, like Peter Molyneux’s Populous and Syndicate, FTL’s Dungeon Master, EA’s Earl Weaver Baseball, and everything by Psygnosis and the Bitmap Brothers.
While it is known an Amiga emulator is imminent for iPhone, created by the same crew that made the Commodore application, what isn’t known is a list of compatible games. However, according to Carnie, the man behind the magic, they have tested several games like Ghosts ‘n Goblins, R-Type, Turrican and one the greatest shoot ‘em ups of all time, Xenon II: Megablast.
Get Speedball II working and I’ll love you long time.
Have doubts about the iPad as a gaming platform? Don’t think the PSP and DS have much to worry about? Think again. With its custom A4 chip running at a blistering 1 gigahertz, the iPad is more than capable at displaying impressive 3D, ushering in a whole new age for portable gaming. Expect the Unreal engine to be ported to the iPad, with other competitors soon to follow. iPad is the real deal. I can’t wait to see the iPad running a dedicated Dungeons & Dragons table-top RPG app or a game like Populous, two areas where the iPad can really deliver a new and unique experience.
Well, not really, but I’ll play along with this beautifully accomplished hoax. A lot of work and coordination must have gone into producing this video, but the result speaks for itself. How many people will be suckered into believing this is real?
After watching this video and seeing what average nerds are now capable of doing with easily attainable technology (a Takara Tomy i-SOBOT), I can’t help but wonder how far off is some James Cameron -esque Skynet/Terminator style future where we’re forced to perform silly tricks for our robot masters?
The Unreal Engine 3 has been ported to the iPhone, opening the way for a slew of better-looking 3D games to make their way to the popular Apple mobile. Some people don’t believe this technical marvel is even true, but you’ll find video proof below that will finally make the skeptics shut up. Is that the death pangs of the pathetic PSP I hear in the distance?
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