• astraware,  bn,  ereader,  games

    Astraware Games Now Available for Nook Color

    Astraware® is excited to announce the launch of four games, now available on Barnes & Noble’s NOOK Color Reader’s Tablet. The Astraware games are available through NOOK Apps™, a collection of high-quality applications launched this week for NOOK Color. As was announced on April 25, 2011 Barnes & Noble issued a major software update that delivered significant new features and content to its NOOK Color Reader’s Tablet including NOOK Apps, one of the most-requested features from NOOK Color customers.

    Astraware Mahjong, Astraware Solitaire, Astraware Sudoku, and Astraware Casino have all been optimized to take advantage of NOOK Color’s high resolution screen, and touchscreen controls. Astraware Mahjong is currently exclusive to NOOK Color on the Android platform for a limited time.

    “We’ve put together a selection of titles that are ideal for people who like to both relax and use their brains – which will be perfect for NOOK Color owners! With great features to make the games rewarding to play, and customisation to really make them your own, these will sit perfectly alongside the books, magazines, and entertainment that NOOK Color owners already enjoy!”

    All 4 games can be purchased for $4.99 each on device. NOOK Color customers can easily download each game in seconds from Shop on NOOK Color. For more information on NOOKcolor, visit http://www.nookcolor.com. For more information on Astraware games, visit: http://www.astraware.com.
  • games,  ios,  ipad,  iphone,  lifestyle,  mac os x,  touch

    Decked Builder for Mac OS X, iOS

    Decked Builder, from developer TJ Soft, is a Magic: The Gathering deck building application for Mac OS X, iPhone and iPod touch, and coming soon to the iPad.

    Magic: The Gathering (M:TG), is a collectible trading card game from Wizards of the Coast.  I’ve tried other M:TG “helper apps” for the iPhone before, but I never really like them.  Decked Builder is the first that I’ve fallen in love with.  This app looks good and works well.  I’ve tested the Lite version of Decked Builder on my Mac.

    The desktop version of Decked Builder has three windows: Search, View Card, and Deck.  You use the Search window to find a card you are looking for.  Decked Builder has a complete offline database of the over 17,000 cards that have been printed during Magic’s 15+ years.  Search engine is fast and the database is compact.  To keep the footprint on your computer, iPhone, or iPod touch down, card images are downloaded in the background in standard resolution.  If you want, you can turn on hi-res card scans.

     

    Decked Builder also gives players all the tools they would need to quickly find the card(s) they are looking for.  You can sort find results by rarity, card type, mana cost, mana color, or core and expansion set.  The Lite versions only provide you access to the most recent Magic expansion sets, meaning that you will have to buy the full version of Decked Builder ($3.99 iPhone/iPod touch, $14.99 Mac OS X) to get access to the full database of all the Magic cards ever printed.  (We’re not kidding.  TJ Soft has built a database of all of the Magic cards to date.)

    [Editor’s Note: TJ Soft has reduced the price of Decked Builder for Mac OS X to a very reasonable $5.99.  Decked Builder for Mac OS X is available now in the Mac App Store with the new price.]

    The Deck window is where players will spend a lot of time.  You use this window to view the 60 cards that you have added to your deck and 15 cards in your sideboard.  The Stats view quickly shows you a break down of the type of cards in your deck, their mana type, and a summary how many cards of a particular mana cost you have in your deck.  You can also sort the cards in your deck by name, type, and cost to play.

    Speaking about costs, the View Card window has a nice feature that tells you the high, mean, and low price of the card.  If you want to buy the card for your collection, the Store button links you over to the TCGPlayer.com website page for the card.  I can also see players using this feature on their iPhone or iPod touch while at a game store and playing the game.  They will easily be able to see if it is cheaper to buy the card at the store, right then and there, or order it online.

    Over all, collectors and players of Wizards of the Coasts Magic: The Gathering will really like using Decked Builder.  It stands out head and shoulders above the other M:TG helper apps on the market today.  The app is well designed and looks great.

    Decked Builder is available now for both Mac OS X and the iPhone/iPod touch. TJ Soft is working on a version of Decked Builder for the iPad and an update to the iPhone/iPod touch edition that supports Retina Display on those models.  A Lite version exists of both so you can try before you buy.  You can purchase and download either version from the Mac App Store or the iOS App Store today.

  • games,  ios,  iphone,  touch

    Angry Birds for iPhone/iPod Touch Updated to 1.5.0

    Angry Birds for the iPhone and iPod touch has been upgraded to version 1.5.0 following Monday’s update to Angry Birds HD for the iPad.

    The Angry Birds 1.5.0 update includes:

    • A new theme in the Frontier Badlands
    • 15 new levels and one new golden egg
    • Game Center support
    • Introduces the Mighty Eagle

    [Notes] The Mighty Eagle feature is a $0.99 in app purchase.

    Head over to the iTunes Store or hit the App Store on your iPhone/iPod touch to get in on all the new bird flinging action!

  • games,  ios,  ipad

    Angry Birds HD 1.5.0 Update Released [UPDATED]

    Rovio Mobile, the makers of the insanely popular bird launching game, Angry Birds, has released Angry Birds HD 1.5.0 for the Apple iPad last night.

    This update includes:

    • A new theme in the Frontier Badlands
    • 15 new levels and one new golden egg
    • Game Center support
    • Introduces the Mighty Eagle

    [Update] The Mighty Eagle feature is a $0.99 in app purchase.

    My kids have been watching the trailer for the Mighty Eagle for weeks now and can’t wait for this update.

    For current owners, this is a free update.  If you haven’t yet gotten in to an avian flinging addiction yet, you can purchase Angry Birds HD from the iTunes Store (link) for $4.99.

  • games,  ipad,  iphone,  touch

    Rage HD Updated to 1.11

    id Software has updated their first person shooter (FPS), Rage HD for the iPad, iPhone 4 and 3GS, and iPod touch 4G and 3G.

    This update adds some new features to the game that will enhance the game for players that enjoy fragging muties in this rails based shooter.

    Rage HD 1.11 adds the following new features:

    • Game Center support fro Leaderboards and Achievements
    • Gyroscope support for the iPhone 4 and iPod touch 4G
    • Explore all 3 levels in “Museum Mode” before the shooting starts
    • Mirror Mode allows you to play the original three levels backwards
    • Second display support so you can play Rage HD on your TV with Apple’s video out solutions
    • Control Rage HD from your iPhone or iPod touch
    • Language localization for French, Italian, German, and Spanish
    Rage HD is a universal binary game that works on both the iPad and current model iPhones and iPod touch models.  You can buy Rage HD for $1.99 and version 1.11 is a free upgrade to current game owners.
    For more details, check out Rage HD in the App Store (link).
  • games,  ios,  ipad,  iphone,  touch

    Rovio Releases Angry Birds Seasons

    Rovio has followed up their successful Angry Birds: Halloween app with Angry Birds Seasons.  “Seasons” is a separate game for iPhone and iPad that includes the Halloween levels, and a new set of Christmas themed levels.

    The twist for the Christmas themed levels is that you play one a day until December 25th.  That is kind of annoying while we’re waiting for Christmas to get here, but the Seasons levels are harder for me to get 2 or three stars so I’ll end up spending a day trying to get to three starts so it won’t be a big problem for me anyway.

    One thing that I really like about Angry Birds: Seasons is that is supports iOS 4’s Game Center feature so I can compare how I’m fairing against my friends and family in the leaderboards.

    Like the original Angry Birds, Angry Birds: Seasons comes in two flavors: iPhone/iPod touch ($.99) and HD for iPad ($1.99).  If you purchased Angry Birds: Halloween, Angry Birds: Seasons will be a free upgrade.

  • astraware,  games,  pixi,  pre,  web os

    Astraware Releases Casino, Police Range for webOS

     Astraware has released another pair of their popular games for webOS this past week.  Joining Suduku and OddBlob is Astraware Casino and Police Range.

    Astraware® is excited to announce the release of 2 new titles for the Palm® Pre™ and Pre Plus.  Astraware Casino and Police Range follow hot on the heels of Astraware’s debut webOS™ releases, Astraware Sudoku and OddBlob, which received an excellent reception from the webOS community on their release.

    “It’s great to be launching these extra titles for the Pre,” said David Oakley, CTO of Astraware, “and the great feedback and interest we’ve had from the webOS community makes it exciting to be so connected with our userbase and their requests.”

    Astraware Casino, already Astraware’s best-seller across a range of smartphone platforms, features 11 of the most popular casino games in 1 easy-to-use pack including Texas Hold ‘Em Poker, Craps, Roulette, Slots, and Blackjack.  The game includes instructions on how to play each game and has a fun awards system – the Souvenir Suitcase – with awards unlockable in each of the games!

    Police Range is a fun target practice range where players can put their skill and accuracy to the test as they train on 2 different types of police practice range – Crime Alley and Target Practice. Online high score leaderboards add to the challenge as players compete against their friends and other players worldwide.

    Both games, built using Palm’s PDK, require the 1.4.5 webOS upgrade to be able to run. Astraware Casino and Police Range are available now, priced $2.99, from Palm’s App Catalog on device. For more information and screenshots, visit: http://www.astraware.com/webos.