Imaginary GameBone Gamepad adds support for iPhone 4
Filed under: Awesomeness, Cynicism, Games, design, iPhone
22Moo, the Australian company that has threatened to one day release their GameBone Gamepad for the iPhone (for the past 700 days or so) has just announced that they have added iPhone 4 support to their mythological device. Instead of actually showing an iPhone 4 working in a functioning GameBone, 22moo has decided it would be better if they released yet another 3D rendering of what the GameBone might look like. Enjoy.
I don’t know, if I were 22moo I would have saved myself some PR money and also announced support for the iPhone 5 and 6, since no one expects to see a functioning GameBone before then. (22moo is free to prove us wrong at any time by sending us a review unit. We want this more than a unicorn).
[UPDATED] Words with Friends tech support appears to suck
[UPDATE: They fixed my games]
Public embarrassment and ridicule – the last hope of a desperate man.
Many of my faithful readers know that I am a self-confessed “Words with Friends addict, having given the game my first and only “10 out of 10″ review for a game. I invited all of you to get the game and then come beat me (username Dr Macenstein) – and the majority of you did just that, I’m sad to say (there’s even a Facebook group dedicated to beating me). However, about a week ago upon launching the game I was greeted with an error message saying there was a problem with one of my games, and it was being repaired. Well, nearly 7 days later, a neglected support request and 3 unanswered e-mails to tech support, I feel I am out of civil options in dealing with NewToy, the makers of the game. I feel I must resort to attempting to embarrass them into responding. So here goes. Guys, please get your shit together and help out poor old support request 47942. I’ve already gotten through the shakes and sweats from Words With Friends withdrawal thanks to large amounts of Flight Control, but my despair has turned to a mighty, geeky rage! I bought this game TWICE, and yet cannot play on either my iPhone or iPad until you fix the problem, whatever it is. I suppose I can try creating a new username and starting over, but I think I have about 40 people who are just about to beat me who will be crushed if I am forced to start a new account, so Please NewToy, help the Doc out.
Hopeless Romantic
Filed under: Apple Fanboyism, Awesomeness, Games, Geek Love, Girls, iPad
The Bride of Macenstein is no stranger to romance. Early on, while dating, I got her a .357 Magnum handgun for her birthday. I figured with a present like that, she could get herself all the jewelry she wanted. Well, flash forward some 15 or so years to Mother’s Day 2010, and the romance is as alive as ever. Behold my Mother’s Day gift to the Bride of Macenstein!
That’s right, it’s a collage of all her Flight Control HD scores, something ranked just above Jewelry and sightly below chocolate on most women’s wish lists.
You may recall that for quite some time The Bride of Macenstein had the number one score on a number of Flight Control HD levels, mostly because she was one of the first people to play the game, but also because she tends to kick ass. In fact, she is still in the top 5 on many levels, and like any true geek, is proud of the accomplishments which monopolized every spare waking hour of her life since we got the iPad.
Yes, now her Flight Control scores are some of the first things people see when entering our house, which should give you a pretty good idea of how we decorate.
And to all those women who had to put on a fake smile and graciously accept flowers, jewelry, and cars this Mother’s Day, I say to you, “Sorry.” Hopefully your next husband will love you as much as I love my wife.
OK, that’s just eerie…
Filed under: Apple Fanboyism, Games, Slow News Day, That's Weird..., iPad
I suppose with the amount of Words with Friends I’ve been playing odds are I would eventually find words spelled out for me in my tile rack, but as a Mac geek, I thought this was pretty bizarre.
And yes, this was one of the few games I actually won.
Have you humiliated me in “Words with Friends: yet? If so, tell the world!
Filed under: Games, Ouch!, iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch
Some people apparently thought I was being modest when I mentioned how badly I suck as Words With Friends in my review. In fact, Faithful Macenstein reader GrantWall was so excited about beating me, he twittered about it. I jokingly said there was probably a Facebook group he could join with over 3000 members by now who have all kicked my ass, and if there’s one thing we should all have learned by now, it’s “Never joke about starting a Facebook group”.
So BAM, there it is, Grant’s “I owned Dr. Macenstein in Words with Friends” page. If you are a Words with Friends player, and have defeated me, as I estimate 87% of you have, then feel free to join up, and share pics and memories of your meaningless victories over an admitted idiot. And if you are in the 13% who I have beat, it might be time to pick up a book.
The REAL benefit to being an iPad early adopter
When new technology comes out, cynics often claim that the early adopters pay the price not only in actual dollars, but by serving as guinea pigs for ironing out buggy 1st gen software and missing out on the cool 2nd generation hardware. But when I brought home my new iPad to the loving arms of the Bride of Macenstein, she had an experience that no 2nd gen iPad owner is likely to ever have. (For a couple of hours at least) she had one of the TOP 10 FLIGHT CONTROL SCORES IN THE WORLD!
That’s right. We picked up our iPad at 9AM Eastern time at a Best Buy, long before Fed Ex preorders and Apple stores were dishing out their iPads to the faithful who foolishly orders theirs in advance, and when I got home I mentioned to her, “You know, I bet not that many people have fired up the new Flight Control HD on their iPads yet… If you played real quick, you might have one of the top scores near us”. Well, being a Flight Control addict, the iPad was snatched out of my hands halfway through the last sentence, and off she went. Read more
Must…resist…
Filed under: Apple Fanboyism, Awesomeness, Games, design
Oh, who am I kidding? I need these Plants Vs Zombies plush toys more than air. But still slightly less than chocolate.
Unfortunately these are currently one of a kid works of art by arixystix and aren’t for sale yet, but I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before I break into her studio and steal them.
Thanks to faithful Macenstein reader Jeremya for the tip!
iPad game pricing is gonna suck
Filed under: Cynicism, Games, Not Cool, Opinion, iPad, iPhone
Macrumors managed to get a peek at the iPad app store main page and was able to snag the following pic showing some of the upcoming prices on the new iPad-specific “HD” games.
Now, admittedly I have not played any of these games, but from the screen shots I’ve seen I have not seen a whole worth paying 5 times (or more) for any of the games I already play on the iPhone. I suppose developers think people are used to paying more for something with the words HD in the title, so they’re going to come out of the gate at least TRYING to charge more for the iPad versions of their games, but I must say seeing this screenshot has given me yet another reason to double think an iPad purchase.
I certainly support developers making money from their efforts, but if I am going to be re-buying a game I already own (and quite frankly in my mind, only recently bought), basically only to get a slightly higher-resolution version of the game so it looks nice on a larger screen, I’m not sure I’ll be laying down $5 for the likes of Flight Control (despite its Crack-like addictive qualities). In speaking with developers, it appears the process of porting a game from the iPhone to the iPad is FAR from a total rewrite, so this large a price increase seems a tad on the high side.
Perhaps developers are trying to make up for under-pricing their games on the iPhone originally, and odds are these games might sell well initially to those people who blindly pre-ordered iPads and will be desperate to get some sort of content on them, but I think it would be wise for these developers to remember many of the most successful games on the iTunes charts are priced UNDER $3, and have made their developers millions. Of course there’s always the chance these “enhanced” games have a ton of new bells and whistles in them, but for the most part they simply appear to be reformatted for the larger screen, and quite frankly a game like Flight Control does not need bells or whistles – it’s the simplicity of the game that helps it be so addictive.
I suppose time will tell how the iPad pricing eventually shakes out and whether there is any real added value in the iPad games to justify their cost. The initial batch of iPhone games started out priced about 50% higher than the average now as well, so there is some hope, and odds are there will be weekend sales and the like on iPad games just as there are for the iPhone versions, so reasonable prices may be had for those patient and vigilant enough to watch for them, but for the moment I’m not loving the HD prices.
ATTENTION BARGAIN HUNTERS! Save $440 off this fart app! ACT NOW!
Filed under: Games, That's Weird..., WTF, deals, iPhone
Despite being a “day one” iPhone owner, I somehow was able to resist buying any of the farting apps, even though in the beginning, that’s all there was. Well, OK, there was Super Monkey Ball, a couple virtual lighter apps, and then the fart apps. And while I like to pride myself on my fart-app resisting fortitude, I may crack under the pressure of this AMAZING bargain.
That’s right, Western Wind, an app previously being sold for $449 (well, previously being LISTED at $449, anyway) is now just $9.99, a price just about anyone can manage.
“Western Wind, once available to the masses, is now an exclusive, limited-edition game. We will be pulling the game from the app store after it sells 50 more copies. This is your chance to join a very exclusive club of Western Wind music aficionados. “
Of course, if you look at the Western Wind’s price history you’ll notice the app usually sold for 99¢, and was even free at some point, but hey, I like to think of it as $440 in my pocket. I just can’t pass up a bargain!
Tiger Woods Golf for iPhone sees noticeable sales spike
Well, they say there’s no such thing as bad publicity, and while Tiger Woods’ business manager, accountants, and wife might disagree, EA Sports might not. Take a look at the graph below (from appshopper) which charts the sales of Electronic Art’s Tiger Woods Golf for the iPhone over the last 30 days.
As you can see, a fairly noticeable downward sales trend (due to a price increase) was abruptly halted and then reversed, starting a couple days ago as the really salacious details of his extramarital affairs started coming out (around when mistresses 231, 232, and 233 hit the talk show circuit).
For a game that has been out since April 30th to see such a dramatic turn around without a price cut or new ad campaign can mean only one thing: If Tony Hawk wants the number one iPhone game, his wife better get ready to chase his SUV down the street with a skateboard in her hands.
