Seasonal Fun! iOS Edition!

Happy Halloween, everybody! I just spent 20 hours of the past three days on a train to and from Boston (love you Boston!) and I had a lot of time to play some of the seasonally-themed games that are cluttering up iTunes this week. There are some really good ones, and a few favorites that received a spooky coat of paint for the holiday.

If you haven’t played the GGG! recommended Helsing’s Fire then just stop reading this post and go do so now. Do it before the bell tolls midnight and you turn back into a toad. It is one of the best-looking and innovative puzzle games on the platform, and a must have for Apple gadget owners. It’s also perfect for the season.

The developer’s of the perennial favorite Doodle Jump put out a free update that added a delightful Halloween skin. It’s still just the same, horribly-addictive, Doodle Jump, but now you’re riding brooms, bouncing off eyeballs and flying around with a bat-wing propellor pumpkin cap.

Another Halloween-skinned favorite, though this one you have to pay for a stand-alone version, is the recently released holiday version of Angry Birds. I didn’t play the original — it seemed like just another overly-hyped, physics-based game — but after playing the Halloween version I understand why its popular.

And this list wouldn’t be complete without mentioning Plants Vs. Zombies, especially since the game is deeply discounted this weekend! This is one of those games I feel plays better on a larger screen, but you can’t beat the current price.

Finally, I would like to finish with one of my favorite iOS games. Though not really Halloween-themed, Spider: The Secret of Bryce Manor weaves a particularly engrossing and creepy mood, and provides some of the best and most platform-appropriate game mechanics for the swipe-friendly devices. This was the first iPhone game to keep me up late and, returning to it, I found it as engaging as ever.

- Andy

Good Game Get! Costume Quest

Here it is, another October, and once again I found myself counting the days to another Double Fine release. It’s been a year since Brutal Legend rocked our consoles with its crazy fantastic world, only to then befuddled us by becoming a strange RTS halfway through (I never did get the hang of that part). But this year we get something a little more modest. This year the good folks at DF are heading in a new direction with a series of smaller games.

The first in this series, set in the pumpkin glow of Halloween, is Costume Quest, a “candy-gathering sim” from the creative heart of DF’s Tasha Harris. Well, actually, it would have been great if it was a “candy-gathering sim” but an evil witch and her army of monsters just had to ruin the evening by stealing all the candy, so our simple sim morphs into a modest RPG following the adventures of a costume obsessed trick-or-treater on a “quest” to save their sibling from the candy-thieving monsters.

It’s not a very hard game and I found I enjoyed Costume Quest more the faster I played it. The first costume you earn, actually the costume you start the game with, provides the best special ability as its “sneaker skates” allow you to zoom around double-time encouraging fast play. The limited difficulty makes it a wonderful game for kids, especially as an introduction to RPG’s. I was a little turned off by the combat, but that’s because I’m not the biggest fan of quick time events. The timing is pretty loose, though, and never frustrating. Eventually there is enough variety amongst the monsters, costumes and special attacks to keep it interesting enough.

But it’s very much a Double Fine game, and the developer’s humor and wicked charm shine through from beginning to end offering up a big enough bag of candy to keep you munching for a few hours. If you can get past the game’s simplicity and quick-timey combat, Costume Quest is definitely a “treat” (I know, groan, but I just had to say it) because it’s the sticky-sweet joy of the holiday this game gets right. If you love Halloween, or Double Fine’s quirkiness, you’ll love this game too.

- Andy

Seasonal Fun! Xbox Live Indies!

So as part of my search for great games to play this Halloween season, I turned this weekend to the XBLA service and dug around in the dark, cobwebby and overly-cluttered basement that is the Xbox Live Indies service. Besides the obvious Pumpkin Carving sims (hee, hee), I came up with four treats, each a different style of gameplay, to offer you a cheap gaming break from your holiday festivities.

Monsters (Probably) Stolen My Princess! - $3 

Originally a PSP Mini, Mediatronic’s Monsters (Probably) Stolen My Princess! was recently released (yay!) as an Xbox Live Indie. This frustratingly fun upwards-scrolling platformer will drive you nuts as you guide your little demon in relentless attacks against (probably) scheming monsters. A surprise gem amongst a lot of crap (and a must have PSP Mini), Monsters (Probably) Stolen My Princess! has some of the coolest design on the service and provides a lot of challenge for platformer fans.

Soul - $1

In Soul your goal is to bring a dead man to heaven by guiding his glowing soul through a gloomy and monster-filled set of mazes. Although it’s basically a collection of “don’t touch the walls” puzzles meant to test your skill with the left joystick, Kydos Studio’s Soul excels in its art and sound design, and is a worthy addition to your Xbox. Also, the monsters are frickin’ cool and will constantly piss you off.

Breath of Death VII - $1

For Xbox Indie fans who want a little more depth to their Indie holiday gaming fun, you can’t do better than the insanely economical, 6-hour “retro parody RPG”, Breath of Death VII: The Beginning. Ugly 8-bit in the best way possible, Zeboyd Games’ Breath of Death VII has you exploring an undead world with your skeleton knight and offers all the RPG standards… multiple game modes, character customization and obsessive leveling! Seriously, all this for a buck.

The Shadows in the Underworld - $3

I know a lot of people came down on the art and pacing of this game, but Polaris Games’ The Shadows in the Underworld, a one-man production inspired by the works of H.P. Lovecraft, deserves some attention and certainly rises above the expected quality of the average Xbox Indie. A submarine shooter that has you exploring a lost, underwater city, The Shadows in the Underworld offers co-op play, multiple difficulty levels and a different experience every time. Crank up the difficulty and go as fast as you can!

-Andy

Seasonal Fun! Scarygirl!

This is my favorite time of the year, and like every year I can remember I’ve been digging around for video games to get me in the Halloween spirit. One of the first to come to mind this season, inspired by my recent Shantae marathons, is a free indie platformer released last year called Scarygirl.

Based on the fantastic art of illustrator Nathan Jurevicius, Scarygirl follows the adventures of a young girl — part pirate, part squid, part zombie? — searching a desert island for the man haunting her dreams. Although the platforming can be a little frustrating at times, the artwork is amazing, especially for a free Flash game. There are a lot of cool touches including the in-game animation and playable video game cartridge collectibles.

It’s not a long game, but if the $12 price tag on Shantae has discouraged you from hair-whipping monsters, maybe a little free tentacle-spinning action will suit your taste and offer up some Halloween fun.

-Andy

zomg! prince dog!

An Etsy seller has crafted a really cool dog costume based on Prince from Katamari Damacy.

via Wonderland