• apple,  astraware,  iphone

    Astraware Casino Comes to iPhone, iPod touch

    July 30, 2009 /

    Handmark(R) today announced the release of Astraware Casino – a fun, easy-to-use pack of 11 of the most popular casino games from around the world – on the App Store. Astraware Casino is the first new game release from Handmark to use the iTunes Library Integration feature of iPhone OS 3.0. Users with iPhone OS 3.0 compatible devices can select My iPod Music from the game’s Options menu and choose individual songs from their collection to create the perfect casino-themed playlist!

    Handmark will be incorporating iTunes Library integration into a range of their existing and forthcoming iPhone and iPod touch games, allowing players to create their own soundtrack for each game. Updates to existing titles with this great new feature will be rolled out over the summer.

    “We are excited to be able to use these new APIs to enhance our games offerings,” said Cassidy Lackey, vice president of Handmark Studios. “It’s great to be able to design your own playlist to accompany Astraware Casino – there’s nothing like a bit of relaxing lounge music when you’re enjoying a game of Poker!”

    Astraware Casino includes all the usual games you’d expect to find in casinos – Texas Hold ‘Em No Limit and Limit Poker, Blackjack, Craps, Roulette and Slots, as well as some more specialist games like Baccarat, 3 Card Poker, Video Derby, and Keno. Astraware Casino gives players $1,000 virtual dollars to begin playing with and also includes a fun trophy system – the Souvenir Suitcase – with awards given for a range of achievements in the game.

    Astraware Casino is available at the introductory price of $0.99 for a limited time from the App Store on iPhone and iPod touch or at the iTunes App Store.

    You can read my review of Astraware Casino here. In addition to the iPhone/iPod touch edition of Astraware Casino, there is also versions available for the Palm Centro and Windows Mobile-powered Palm Treo smartphones. For more details on other editions of Astraware Casino, please visit the Astraware website.

    Read More
  • astraware,  iphone,  itunes

    Astraware Releases Phaze Lite

    July 6, 2009 /

    Astraware, the Handmark games unit, today released Phaze “Lite”. Phaze, a unique game available only on the iPhone and iPod touch, is an exciting new futuristic racing game that offers players an exhilarating race experience as they select their ship and race around rollercoaster-like tracks with stomach-flipping twists and turns, and velocity-increasing boost pads, while collecting powerups and avoiding their competitors’ weapons!

    The Lite version, available now, includes one race craft, one location and two difficulty levels so players get a chance to try out Phaze for FREE! If they enjoy the game, the full version additionally includes Championship mode, a total of four difficulty levels, 15 more locations (with 64 tracks across all difficulties), and a total of 10 race craft (some are unlockable).

    You can download Phaze from the Apple iTunes App Store.

    Read More
  • astraware,  blackberry,  iphone,  windows mobile

    Happy Independence Day!

    July 4, 2009 /

    The 4th of July marks the birth of the United States, and Smartphone Fanatics wishes all of our readers a Happy Independence day!

    To help celebrate the day, our friends at Astraware, Handmark’s games division, has once again posted their free Handmark Fireworks application!

    Handmark Fireworks features a selection of patriotic backgrounds including the Statue of Liberty, Mount Rushmore and the Stars and Stripes, and offers a choice of stirring tunes including the Star Spangled Banner and Stars and Stripes Forever!

    Handmark Fireworks is available for Windows Mobile and BlackBerry smartphones and for iPhone and iPod touch. (Sorry BlackBerry owners – this time round you’ll have to hum your own marches! This edition of Fireworks for BlackBerry does not include music.)

    What better way to celebrate 4th of July than with some Fireworks? Download your copy today – it’s available for a limited time only!

    Download your free copy of Fireworks by using one of the links below:

    Apple iPhone and iPod touch
    BlackBerry Smartphones (non-touchscreen, touch screen)
    Windows Mobile Professional (touchscreen)
    Windows Mobile Smartphone (non-touchscreen)

    Read More
  • astraware,  blackberry

    Astraware Solitaire Comes to BlackBerry

    June 12, 2009 /

    Handmark recently announced the release of Astraware Solitaire – its award-winning solitaire games pack for BlackBerry smartphones.

    This highly acclaimed games pack, created by Astraware – the Handmark Game Studio, includes 12 of the most well-known single player card games selected from customer feedback. These games include Klondike, Pyramid, Spider, Clock, and Yukon.

    Astraware Solitaire boasts a range of exclusive, must-have features including:

    • Fully customizable game play allowing customers to use their chosen rule set for each game
    • ‘Mirror’ layout – an essential feature for one-handed use
    • Choice of card face, including an option suitable for those with visual impairments
    • Detailed statistics for players who love to track their wins
    • Golden Trophy Deck reward system which players can unlock as they play

    “Of all the mobile Solitaire games I’ve ever played, Astraware Solitaire delivers the best user experience,” said Cassidy Lackey, VP of Handmark Studios. “It has all the card games I love to play and it’s the perfect game for those spare moments when I’m waiting at the airport or between meetings.”

    Astraware Solitaire is available for the BlackBerry Storm smartphone and all BlackBerry smartphones with a trackball. It is immediately available to download at www.handmark.com or www.astraware.com for $9.95 and will soon be available on BlackBerry App World. For more information visit http://www.astraware.com/blackberry/solitaire.

    Read More
  • astraware,  iphone

    Astraware Introduces Phaze for iPhone/iPod touch

    June 3, 2009 /

    Earlier today Handmark announced the release of Phaze, an exciting new futuristic racing game, on the Apple App Store. Phaze is unique to iPhone and iPod touch and offers players an exhilarating race experience as they select their ship and race around 16 rollercoaster-like tracks with stomach-flipping twists and turns, and velocity-increasing boost pads, while collecting powerups and avoiding their competitors’ weapons!

    “Following the success of GTS World Racing and Hellfire for iPhone and iPod touch we are excited to bring fans of arcade-style racing games another high-quality, addictive game,” said Cassidy Lackey, vice president of Handmark Studios. “Our partnership with world-class developers like Pazzazz, brings exclusive games to the App Store that will surely keep users on the edge of their seat!”

    Phaze features 2 play modes – Single Race and Championship across 16 futuristic locations and with 4 levels of difficulty. Players begin with a choice of 3 ships, and a further 7 can be unlocked through Championship mode.

    Phaze is available for $4.99 from Apple’s App Store and works with the iPhone and iPod touch.

    For more information and to view a demo video, visit the Astraware website.

    This game looks really cool, but I know that I can’t play racing games to save my life! You should know that I can drive a real car much better than I can pilot a vehicle in these racing games.

    Read More
  • astraware,  iphone

    Astraware Goes “Crazy” for Spring!

    April 2, 2009 /

    Astraware, Handmark’s game division, has released Crazy Daisy for the Apple iPhone and iPod touch.

    The object of Crazy Daisy is to match up the colored flower petals to score points. Line up more color combination to rack up big bonuses like “Daisy Chain” and “Flower Power”.

    Crazy Daisy has thee modes of play: the hectic race against the clock arcade mode; the more brain challenging, take your time to score big points puzzle mode; and the casual gamer’s delight, endless play mode.

    The iPhone and iPod touch edition of Crazy Daisy features gorgeous garden-themed animations with slinky snails, buzzing bees, cute caterpillars and lots more! The game will save automatically when you exit and you can play your own music in the background with the sound effects on or off.

    Crazy Daisy for iPhone/iPod touch is available now from the Apple iTunes App Store for $0.99. Crazy Daisy is also available for Palm OS and Windows Mobile devices. For more information, visit the Astraware website.

    Read More
  • astraware,  blackberry,  windows mobile

    Astraware Games Promotion

    March 27, 2009 /

    Our friends at Handmark/Astraware dropped us a line to let us know that they are running a special on some of their popular games for mobile devices. You can snag yourself a copy of Astraware Sudoku, Casino, Boardgames, or Solitaire for $4.95 each!

    “From now until midnight on 31st March 2009, our award-winning Astraware Sudoku, Astraware Casino, Astraware Boardgames and Astraware Solitaire are all available for the very special price of just $4.95 each! That’s a saving of $5 off the new regular price of $9.95.

    To get these special prices, visit www.astraware.com, add the games to your cart and click buy – the discounts are already applied!

    Whilst you’re in the mood for saving, our colleagues at Handmark are having a site-wide Buy One, Get One Free sale until 29th March. To take advantage, visit www.handmark.com, and use the discount code DEMAND.”

    My kids and I love playing Astraware Boardgames on my iPod touch. I’ve played all of the games that are on sale right now and I really enjoy playing them while I’m on the go. For more details, check out the Astraware website.

    Related Item: Astraware Casino Review

    Read More
  • astraware,  blackberry

    Astraware Sudoku for BlackBerry

    March 27, 2009 /

    Astraware, Handmark’s Game Studio, has released Astraware Sudoku for BlackBerry smartphones.

    Recognised by many as the best mobile Sudoku game for a range of smartphones, Astraware Sudoku includes all the features avid Sudoku players want. The game includes the highly acclaimed OTA Puzzle of the Day that allows players to download a puzzle for each difficulty level from the Sudoku of the Day webserver each day and on completion submit their time to see how they compare to other players worldwide! The BlackBerry and Palm versions of Astraware Sudoku also enable players to download packs of puzzles at multiple difficulty levels as and when required, so players never need worry about running out of puzzles.

    Astraware Sudoku includes a wide range of assistance including a Sudoku solver, manual and automatic pencilmarks, a smart hints system to give players helpful guidance without just showing the solution, and hold-and-highlight for locating particular numbers or groups. Players can use these features to learn how to play Sudoku, improve their game and progress to higher difficulty levels!

    To coincide with this release, Astraware Sudoku for BlackBerry, Palm OS and Windows Mobile has been reduced to the new regular price of $9.95, but to celebrate the release players can grab a copy for just $4.95 for a limited time from Astraware.com and Handmark.com!

    For more information, check out the Astraware website.

    Read More
  • astraware,  iphone,  palm,  windows mobile

    Astraware Launches Bubble Shuffle

    February 6, 2009 /

    Astraware has released what appears to be another great word puzzle game for Palm OS, Windows Mobile Professional, and iPhone/iPod touch.

    “Astraware(R) – the Handmark(R) Games StudioTM has today released a fun new word game featuring ever-friendly, fishy host, Wordsworth Smartygills. Bubble ShuffleTM follows on from Bubble Babble in the ‘Bubble’ word game series.

    Bubble Shuffle is a simple undersea-themed word-building game that challenges players to create words from a given set of bubble letters. Perfect for adults and children, the game begins with 4 letters to work from and increases over multiple levels to 7 letters. To progress from level to level players must create at least one word from all of the letters. Players can shuffle the bubbles as many times as they want, to help them find more words.

    The game features 4 fun game modes – 2 timed, and 2 more relaxing untimed games, each with a variation on the basic gameplay. Wordsworth Smartygills guides you through how to play, and can provide hints and clues throughout the game just by tapping him. Bubble Shuffle includes 4 levels of difficulty, and advanced anagram-anglers are rewarded for finding more unusual and esoteric words, with the option of requiring rare words from the inbuilt extended dictionary!

    Players can earn a collection of colorful seahorse pets for Wordsworth by various achievements, from reaching new difficulty levels to the challenge of finding all of the possible words within the time limit.

    Bubble Shuffle is available for Palm OS(R), Windows Mobile(R), iPhoneTM and iPod(R) touch. For more information, visit http://www.astraware.com/bubbleshuffle.”

    Fans of Astraware’s games will recall that game host “Wordsworth Smartygills” first appeared in Bubble Babble, another undersea word game which is currently available for Palm OS, Windows Mobile Professional, and Windows Mobile Smartphone.

    Read More
  • astraware,  iphone

    Astraware Board Games Available for iPhone/iPod touch

    December 11, 2008 /

    Astraware Board Games is now available from the Apple App Store for iPhone and iPod touch users. Astraware Board Games is a collection of eight classic board games including Chess, Backgammon, Ludo, Checkers, Reversi, Nine Men’s Morris, Snakes & Ladders and Tic Tac Toe.

    For the iPhone/iPod edition of Board Games, Astraware has applied some of the Apple special sauce to the mix to enhance the gaming experience not found on other mobile platforms. For example, players shake their device to shake the dice, touch and slide their piece to move it, and enjoy enhanced graphics that take advantage of the high-quality screen on the devices. In addition, players have the choice of playing against the CPU, against friends using “hotseat” multiplayer on one device, or against a friend on two separate devices using a local Wi-Fi connection.

    Astraware Board Games is available now from the Apple App Store and sells for $4.99. For more information about Board Games, or to see a short video of the game in action, head over to the Astraware website.

    My kids love playing this game on my Palm Treo 755p. I know that they are going to enjoy it even more when they get to play against Dad on his iPod. I am definitely going to get this game for our upcoming family vacation.

    Read More