Aces of the Luftwaffe is a relatively new game for Windows Phone 8 and is quickly becoming one of our favorites. Aces is an arcade styled game with an RPG touch.

To say Aces of the Luftwaffe is a fast paced game may be an understatement.  If you blink you'll be over run with enemy planes.  Game play is challenging enough to avoid getting stale and graphics/animations are just ducky. If you're an arcade game junky or just looking for a fun game to pass the time with, Aces of the Luftwaffe is definitely worth checking out.

The story line for Aces of the Luftwaffe is set during World War II and you play the role of a fighter pilot destined to take out the Axis forces.

The main menu for Aces of the Luftwaffe has the various campaigns you can tackle, with the first being the Battle of Britain. Additional campaigns can be unlocked using medals you collect during combat. Along the bottom of the screen are links to your achievements/trophies, the game's settings and your medal count.

Settings cover sound/music on/off, hand orientation, control options, and graphics quality.

Before jumping into a mission, you'll have your choice of pilots (usually a freshman or seasoned vet option). You'll have to use medals to unlock the more experienced pilots.

Game play is simple. You have your plane, the enemy planes and a Super Power meter in the lower left corner of the screen. Tap and hold the screen to fire your plane's cannons and move your finger about the screen to pilot your plane.

As you wipe out the enemy aircraft your Super Power meter fills up and when maxed out, you can tap the meter to unleash an onslaught of planes that will wipe the screen of enemy planes.

Additionally, as the enemy planes get blown out of the sky medals will appear that can be collected and used to unlock new campaigns, new pilots, and enhance/upgrade your plane. Tip: Use the medals to enhance/upgrade your planes.  It'll make life a little easier as you progress through the levels.  If you want to get a jump on things, medals can be purchased within Aces of the Luftwaffe as well.

You also have power-ups that are generated by eliminated certain aircraft formations (they'll be marked). The power-ups give you additional fire power and/or wingmen to help you take out the enemy.

Naturally the enemy is going to shoot back and any damage sustained results in bullet holes in your Windows Phone screen. Too many bullet holes, your plane crashes and the game ends.

Each campaign has multiple levels and a handful of bosses (big planes with bunches of guns) to defeat. The graphics and animations for Aces of the Luftwaffe are spot on and game play will keep you on your toes. All in all, Aces of the Luftwaffe is a terrific game for your Windows Phone gaming library.

Aces is a free, ad supported game for your Windows Phone 8 device. You can find Aces of the Luftwaffe here in the Windows Phone Store.

Now that EA Sports has released Tiger Woods 12 for Nokia phones, golf fans have two Xbox golf titles to choose from. Tiger Woods’ predecessor, Let’s Golf 2 is by comparison a much more cartoony title. But realism isn’t always that important in sports games – just see our NBA Jam review. Besides, it’s not like HTC and Samsung owners can get Tiger Woods anyway. Oh, and Let’s Golf 2 is on sale for a lower price right now.

That’s right, Gameloft’s Let’s Golf 2 for Windows Phone 7 and 8 is the Xbox Windows Phone Red Stripe Deal of the Week. You can get it for $1.99, down from the too-high price of $4.99. This marks the game’s second outing as Deal of the Week – it last went on sale in September 2012 for the same price.

Rounding out the Red Stripe deals this week are Cradle to the Grave Premium from indie developer Coltran Studios and an air traffic utility app called Flightradar24, both on sale for 99 cents. Read on for descriptions, pictures, and store links!

Let’s Golf 2 (Windows Phone 7 or 8)

Regular price: $4.99 Sale price: $1.99 Download size: 170 MB Store Link

Let’s Golf 2 is an arcade-style golf game modeled after Sony’s popular Hot Shots Golf franchise. Features include cartoony players, clean 3D graphics, six 18-hole courses, and both Career and Challenge modes. Even if you don’t care about the sport of golf at all (like me), the game is actually very enjoyable and easy to learn. Check out our full review for more details.

Initially Let’s Golf 2 launched with two broken Achievements, though a subsequent patch fixed one of them. Unfortunately, the ‘Secret Code’ Achievement remains unattainable by design. That’s right, the Achievement’s requirement of inputting a special code in order to unlock the ninth golfer is simply impossible in the Windows Phone version of the game. Why the developers would do that, and how it slipped by Microsoft’s certification team, remains a mystery.

Still, if you can overlook that small blight on your GamerScore (I only have about 54 percent of my games completed anyway), Let’s Golf 2 remains a lengthy and fun title.

Cradle to the Grave Premium (Windows Phone 7 or 8)

Regular price: $1.99? Sale price: $.99 Download size: 74 MB Store Link

Cradle to the Grave is a defense game without the tower building. Players control three stationary kids at the bottom of the screen as they fend off an invading army of zombies from the top of the screen. Just tap a character and aim in order to fire. But let a kid’s weapon overheat and he falls asleep for a while, leaving you vulnerable. With tons of levels and weapons to choose from, this indie title could keep you busy for a while. Read George’s review of the free version for the full skinny.

Flightradar24 (Windows Phone 8)

Regular price: $2.99 Sale price: $.99 Download size: 9 MB Store Link

Did you ever want to track the flight paths of planes everywhere? Well, somebody did and so we have this fancy app. It uses your location to find flight paths around you. The app’s most impressive feature is the ability to select a plane and view a 3D recreation of what the pilot actually sees from that plane as it flies along. Check out Daniel’s impressions if you’d like to learn more.

Thanks to Marcel at InsideGames.ch for the tip!

Drag Racing is a outstanding Windows Phone 8 game where you can race over fifty different cars down a 1/4 or 1/2 mile strip. You can race against the computer or other Drag Racing players (randomly chosen) in various racing modes.

The game was update the other day to version 1.0.0.7 and adds a Friends option to the race menu where you can go head to head against specific members.

You just add a friend's screen name in the Friends Racing screen to get things started. Their best racing times will be displayed by level and track distance. Tap the banner of the friend you want to race, then the race button, select the level of cars you want to race and you're off to the track.

There's no chat options or notifications of race challenges should you be away from the game but it's a start.

We only ran into one downside in trying this new feature out.  We couldn't get the head to head racing feature to work. For whatever reason, Sam and I couldn't get past the "select the level" screen and get to the actual racing screens.  Hopefully it's a minor bug that can be easily fixed and if you've had any luck racing a friend, let us know in the comments. 

If you haven't tried Drag Racing, it's an addictive, entertaining Windows Phone 8 game. It's well suited for both short gaming sessions or longer marathon gaming sessions. Drag Racing is a free, ad-supported game that you can find here in the Windows Phone Store.

Sometimes the most addicting games are the ones with simple gameplay that you can just pick up and play. HarshQuad is a new game on Windows Phone that could become highly addictive for quick, short gaming bursts.

Let’s check it out.

If you have an iPad or iPhone maybe you’ve seen a relatively new game called Dots over the past few weeks. HarshQuad can be considered our Dots, but with more depth. Here’s how the game works. You’re given a board with different colored squares. You want to make squares/rectangles with a specific color. As you progress through the level more and more colors are added to that board making it more difficult. When you make those connections you get more points and time added to the timer. It can really stressful when you’re running out of time.

Check out the video above!

There are a few different game modes: Infinite, Color Challenge, and Time Attack. You’ll start out with only Infinite available to you. You can get Color Challenge and Time Attack by playing more of Infinite. The game cost $1.29, but there is a trial mode where you can play the first three levels in the Infinite setting to see if this game is for you. It’s got great replay value and you should check it out.

You can get HarshQuad for Windows Phone 8 devices right here in the Store, use the QR code below, or swipe to the right in our app.

Thanks for the tip everyone!

Namco Bandai has put two of its Xbox for Windows Phone titles on sale, PAC-MAN and PAC-MAN CE DX. As the name suggests, they're faithful ports of the vintage arcade game from the 80s where players control a character who enjoys eating yellow dots. The famous ghosts Inky, Pinky, Blinky and Clyde attempt to prevent the dots from being gobbled up. The gameplay is both addictive and humorous and has been tried and tested as a definite purchase.

Both titles have been available on Windows Phone for some time now, but it's good to see them made more affordable.

We previously reviewed both PAC-MAN and PAC-MAN CE DX, but what's the difference between the two? The Championship Edition DX is an evolved version of the classic title, sporting the same gameplay but spicing up the formula slightly. The maze does not start out entirely filled with dots – each of its sides contains a smaller matching set. Eat all of the dots on either side and a fruit appears on the opposite side.

Chomping the fruit triggers the formation of a new, different pattern of dots. The game goes back and forth like that, with new paths constantly being created as Pac-Man clears sides of the screen. Instead of going on forever, each of DX’s game play modes is timed. It’s all about getting as many points as possible by finding the best paths between the dots.

Should you be an avid fan of the old games and wish to pick up a bargain, these two titles are well worth checking out. What's more is players also have the added bonus of collecting gamerscore through achievements. You can download PAC-MAN (was $4.99, now $2.99) and PAC-MAN CE DX (was $6.99, now $4.99) from the Windows Phone Store. Available for both Windows Phone 7.x and 8. via: WindowsPhoneItaly

The popular shooter game for Windows Phone, DoDonPachi Maximum is now on sale. The title is currently exclusive for Windows Phone 7.x hardware, leaving those who have upgraded to new hardware to find other titles to quench the thirst for bullets, bullets and more bullets. If you've not played DoDonPachi Maximum before, now is a perfect opportunity to get stuck in and see just how far you can progress.

We've previously reviewed the game, as well as interviewed the developers behind the Windows Phone Xbox Live title. It's rock solid. We've struggled ourselves to get through the later levels and only a few have reached the end, enduring battle scars and more. While a punishing title, DoDonPachi is a superb Windows Phone game that deserves a place in anyone's collection.

You can download Dodonpachi Maximum from the Windows Phone Store for $0.99 (usually $4.99 - note the game currently supports Windows Phone 7 only). Free trial is also available. via: Windows Phone Italy

Earlier last month, Daniel discussed the rise of Windows Phone and how the platform is now legitimate. The main proof was the slew of big apps that have been hitting the store for the first time or getting major updates. New apps like Tumblr, Hulu, and Pandora are helping tip the scales in favor of Windows Phone and its users. Want some more proof? Popular indie game Terraria is coming to Windows Phone later this summer.

Don’t worry if you aren’t familiar with Terraria, I wasn’t before reading up on it. But now I’m stoked to get it when it comes to the Windows Phone Store in a few months. Terraria is an action-adventure/RPG game from independent game studios Re-Logic. It first came out for Windows back in May 2011. It sold 50,000 copies the first day and about 200,000 during its first week in the Steam store. Since then, it’s sold over 2,000,000 copies and recently made available in both the Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network.

Re-Logic is working with Dutch studio Codeglue (guys behind Rocket Riot) to bring the game to mobile platforms later this summer. We’ll see the game become available for the PlayStation Vita, iOS, Android, and Windows Phone devices. The YouTube video below is gameplay from the PC version, you can watch it to get an idea of the gameplay if you’ve never seen Terraria.

Looks like a mix 2D, side-scrolling Minecraft adventure game. Which sounds pretty awesome. How are the developers going to make it work on touchscreens? Well let’s just take a look at what the press release says:

“Players will discover more than a dozen environments and face treacherous perils including over a hundred twisted foes, magical creatures and villainous bosses. The controls have been completely redesigned for touch screens and every aspect of the game has been tweaked and balanced to give players the perfect on the go Terraria experience.”

Anybody stoked to see Terraria coming to Windows Phone? No word on if it will be an Xbox Live game. But we’ll reach out to the developers and find out.

Source: Terraria Forums, Via: Polygon

Thanks for the tip MrCraggle!

Windows Phone has boasted Xbox Live integration from its very beginnings in 2010. The features this integration brought, such as games with Xbox Achievements, Xbox Live friends list and text messaging support, and the promise of integration with actual console games all gave Microsoft’s mobile OS a big in with hardcore Xbox 360 gamers.

One thing has long been missing though: an exclusive title that would inspire people to buy a Windows Phone just to play it. Windows Phone 8 didn’t launch with such a game last year, and in fact neither did Microsoft’s revolutionary PC and tablet OS, Windows 8. The lack of killer apps was enough to make us question Microsoft’s will to bring the company’s major franchises to its own mobile platforms.

That all changes today, because Microsoft has just officially announced Halo: Spartan Assault for Windows Phone 8 and Windows 8. That’s right: Halo, one of the most popular franchises in gaming is coming exclusively to Windows platforms next month. And both versions will be Xbox Live enabled, complete with shiny Achievements. At last, it looks like Microsoft is starting to take mobile Xbox gaming seriously.

From big screen to small

The first question Microsoft and 343 industries faced when adapting Halo for mobile devices had to be: how? Touch screen devices are intrinsically different from a game console with physical controller, to say nothing about varying levels of horsepower between Xbox 360, Windows Phone 8 devices, and Windows 8 devices.

Should the Halo creators maintain the mainline series’ first-person perspective and shooting gameplay that legions of Xbox gamers have come to know and love? It would mean stricter hardware requirements in order to maintain the expected graphical fidelity. More importantly, many mobile gamers find FPS controls too complex and unwieldy on touch screen devices.

The other option would be finding a new genre and perspective for this offshoot of the venerable series. Halo once branched out into the Real-time Strategy (RTS) genre with Xbox 360 sleeper hit Halo Wars, after all. By maintaining Halo Wars’ zoomed out third-person perspective, the developers could achieve more than acceptable visuals on a variety of mobile hardware.

Would mainstream FPS fans take to a more niche genre like RTS? Halo Wars received positive critical reviews and it didn’t tank at retail, but it hardly moved strong enough numbers to grow the Halo brand, either. So for Halo: Spartan Assault, Microsoft and 343 decided to combine Halo Wars’ look with traditional twin-stick shooter gameplay. The result is a game that looks a little different than fans are used to but still plays just like Halo.

Filling in the story

In adapting Halo to mobile platforms, 343 wanted to maintain the series’ AAA quality production values.  Halo games always feature epic science-fiction stories, even if their narratives do leave far too many gaps for books and tie-in products to fill in. Spartan Assault takes place in the time between Halo 3 and 4 when humanity still thought the mainline series protagonist Master Chief to be lost forever.

As such, the new story revolves around Commander Sarah Palmer, a character first introduced in Halo 4. Sarah was one of the first marines to enter the Spartan-IV program. In the Halo games, Spartans are genetically enhanced humans capable of wearing specially designed armor and leading humanity’s fight against hostile alien races. Joining her is Spartan Davis, a male character created specifically for this game. Microsoft won’t say anything more about Davis just yet. Maybe his first name actually is Spartan, making his participation in the program quite serendipitous.

Spartan Assault’s storyline comes to life through console-quality video cinematics as well as fully-voiced dialogue during gameplay. Players will experience Sarah Palmer’s very first mission as a Spartan soldier, back before she commanded her fellow Spartan-IV forces during Halo 4. We’ll also learn the origins of that game’s conflict with the new sect of Covenant following the end of the Human-Covenant War. You didn’t think the series’ lead antagonistic race would sit this one out, did you?

Arcade-style

Since people play games on phones and tablets in much shorter sessions than on consoles, Spartan Assault’s level design must change by necessity. There are now 25 fast-paced levels, each of which can be completed in a single sitting. Every stage has its own unique optional challenges for players to complete. Weekly challenges (as seen in Halo Reach and Halo 4) will keep players coming back for more as well.

As I mentioned before, FPS games on touch screens carry a serious learning curve. Spartan Assault, on the other hand was designed with simplicity of controls in mind. Virtual thumbsticks control movement, aiming, and firing, just as you’d experience in twin-stick shooters like Zombies on the Phone. Secondary functions like throwing and swapping grenades, melee attacks, switching weapons, and even armor abilities are all mapped to buttons around the edges of the screen. The input simulates playing with a controller as closely as possible – without making things confusing for newcomers.

Whatever you’re used to doing in a Halo game, just about all of it shows up in Spartan Assault. Palmer and Davis can pick up and use a variety of weapons, human and Covenant alike. The alien forces take cover behind glowing energy shields that dissipate when they take enough fire. Both sides bring plenty of vehicles into the fray, including jeep-like Warthogs, Scorpion Tanks, fast-moving Ghosts, tank-like Wraiths, and even flying Banshees. Yes, players get to drive these vehicles.

Single-player assault

The one aspect of Spartan Assault likely to disappoint series fans is its complete lack of multiplayer. The omission seems to stem from Microsoft’s reluctance to include real-time multiplayer in its own Windows Phone and Windows 8 offerings. We’re told that the inability to suspend and resume games on these platforms without disrupting the multiplayer experience is the cause for that general policy. I guess nobody told them that multiplayer games like Asphalt 7 and Modern Combat 4 work just fine. Even Gameloft's upcoming Halo clone N.O.V.A. 3 will sport online multiplayer. Who expects to resume a multiplayer game after switching applications or locking the screen anyway?

On the other hand, Spartan Assault does include awesome cloud and connectivity features. Both the Windows Phone and Windows 8 games support Play/Pause/Resume, meaning players can start a game on one device and resume it on the other. No worrying about loss of save data if you switch devices with this game!

Series fans will be excited to know that Spartan Assault connects with Halo 4 in multiple ways. Experience earned in the mobile game transfers to the console game. Other mobile accomplishments will unlock emblems for customizing multiplayer characters in the big-screen game. Microsoft promises “additional integration features after launch.”

Coming soon to phone, PC and tablet

Halo: Spartan Assault comes to Windows Phone 8 and Windows 8 this July. Because nobody knows Microsoft’s mobile platforms like Windows Phone Central, we can tell you exactly which devices will run Spartan Assault as well. The Windows Phone 8 game only requires 512 MB of RAM, making it compatible with low-cost handsets like the Lumia 520! And although Microsoft is pushing the Windows 8 version in a big way, Spartan Assault win run on Windows RT as well. High five, Surface RT users!

Whenever a game launches on both Windows Phone and Windows 8, the issue of payment structure arises. Historically, Microsoft fans who wanted to play titles like Skulls of the Shogun on multiple platforms had to buy each version individually. The same applies here as well. Halo: Spartan Assault is a separate $6.99 purchase on Windows Phone and Windows 8. Sure, we all want universal apps to come to the Windows ecosystem in the worst way. But $14 hardly seems like too steep a cost to play Halo on your phone, tablet, and PC.

Don't miss the rest of our Halo: Spartan Assault reveal day coverage: WPCentral takes Spartan Assault for a spin and interviews the developers and Spartan Assault through the eyes of a die-hard Halo fan.

Earlier today, Microsoft officially announced Halo: Spartan Assault for Windows Phone 8 and Windows 8. Just knowing that a real Halo game is coming to Windows platforms with Xbox Achievements is pretty much the best gaming news we could have hoped for this year. But of course, Halo fans will want to know more about Spartan Assault. Our fact-filled announcement article was just the top of the iceberg.

We actually attended a top-secret reveal event just a few weeks ago, where we interviewed several members of 343 Industries, Microsoft’s Halo-focused development company. Head past the break for the full video interview, Spartan Assault In-App Purchase (IAP) details, Windows 8 Xbox controller news, and everything else we couldn’t fit in the reveal article!

Hands-on experience

During the reveal event, Sam Sabri, myself, and other members of the gaming press first watched a PowerPoint presentation highlighting Spartan Assault’s basic features. The video portion of the presentation was actually delivered from a Surface Pro connected to a 70 inch television.

Once that wrapped, Microsoft passed around Surface Pro tablets so that we could all try the game for ourselves. Sam will provide more detailed impressions later today, but for now I’ll relay a quick observation:

I was pleasantly surprised to see that Spartan Assault doesn’t include any gimmicky touch-screen minigame type features. You don’t have to reach into the middle of the screen in order to pick up weapons or anything like that. The large interact button at the right side of the screen takes care of all that, and it helps keep this entry feeling like a realHalo game .

After the Surface was forcibly removed from our grasp, we remembered we had an interview to conduct. In the video above, we spoke with Graeme Jennings (Senior Producer) and Kevin Grace (Franchise manager) of 343 Industries. Kevin is also in charge of Spartan Assault’s story, hence a few interesting tidbits he dropped during our discussion.

Sorry, Prometheans

One of those factoids concerned the game’s enemies, the Covenant. We naturally wondered whether Spartan Assault would include the Flood, a parasitic race of aliens first seen in the original Halo or Prometheans, Halo 4’s dangerous new group of enemies. Regrettably, protagonists Sarah Palmer and Spartan Davis will only be fighting the Covenant in this game.

The reasoning makes sense though. 343 has already worked out the series chronology spanning the four years between Halo 3 and 4. By that time, the Flood was already wiped out and humanity had yet to encounter the Prometheans. Canonically, only the Covenant was stirring up trouble at this point in the timeline, hence they play the villains in Spartan Assault.

Weapons and grenades

Pretty much every human and Covenant weapon from Halo 4 will make its way into Spartan Assault. That includes highly destructive ordinance like the Spartan Laser and Rocket Launcher, plus some new weapons we haven’t seen yet. “But what about the sniper rifle?” you ask. After all, sniping traditionally involves zooming in from a first-person perspective. Spartan Assault is a third-person overhead view game, making traditional sniping tough to pull off.

As it turns out, the sniper rifle does show up in this game. It just doesn’t zoom, oddly enough. Yet you can run around no-scoping with it. Aiming is a bit harder than with an automatic weapon (as no-scoping has always been in mainline Halo games), though most shots result in one-hit kills. The sniper rifle might not be as effective in this installment as it should be, but it still packs a punch.

Grenades also take a slight hit in the usability department compared to the console games. Toggling between different grenade types like frag and plasma grenades is a snap because you’ll find the grenade switch and throw buttons on both the bottom-left and bottom-right sides of the screen.

Throwing is the problem. When you press the throw button, the grenade flies in the direction your character is currently looking. Me, I would have made it so that you press grenade, aim with the right stick, and then release the stick. But I’m sure we’ll become accustomed to Spartan Assault’s throwing mechanics with further practice.

At least melee attacks are intuitive. Just double tap anywhere on the screen to bash your opponent at close range.

Credits and unlocks

Our first article discussed how in-game Challenges extend the life of Spartan Assault’s 25-level campaign. On top of that, the game also has a fairly robust grinding and unlocking system. Every level players complete – as well as those optional challenges – will award credits, Spartan Assault’s in-game currency.

Those credits can be spent on different equipment to customize your loadout with prior to starting a level. Loudouts include both primary and secondary weapons, armor abilities, and boosters. A few armor abilities we know of: a health regeneration field, overshield, and sprinting. As for boosters, they make the game easier to play by increasing the damage that players deal and other beneficial effects.

IAPs can be used to buy credits with real money. You can always choose to earn credits just by playing, so ponying up actual cash is never strictly necessary. It just saves some time. We’ve heard conflicting reports about whether boosters will be purchasable with credits or only via IAP though. Either way, I get the feeling that certain levels will be really hard to get high ratings on without boosters. Along the same lines of assumption, several Achievements will surely be tied to those tough-to-get ratings.

Windows 8 and RT Details

Windows Phone Central broke the news that Spartan Assault will work in Windows RT in our previous article. RT wasn’t part of the message that Microsoft pushed during the reveal event, nor does it come up within the press materials released today. But for the first tablet-oriented Halo game to skip over RT would be quite a slight for Microsoft’s struggling tablet-specific OS. Thankfully, Graeme and Kevin did tell us directly that Spartan Assault runs on Windows RT. They described its RT performance as understandably lower than Windows 8 performance (RT hardware is much weaker), but still more than adequate. Surface RT owners can safely look forward to an exciting and faithful Halo experience.

Control methods are an interesting subject for Windows 8 and RT. Of course the game supports touch controls, as we’ve described already. But users of Microsoft’s tablet and PC operating systems also generally have access to mouse, keyboard, and even physical controllers.

Spartan Assault will support mouse and keyboard controls right out of the gate. The keyboard handles movement and several secondary functions, while the mouse controls movement, firing, and grenades. That actually makes throwing grenades much easier than with touch controls since players can look and aim before choosing to fire by clicking a mouse button.

Old school controls

What about Xbox 360 controller support? After all, Spartan Assault’s controls all involve virtual sticks and buttons – no tapping enemies directly or anything like that. The game would map perfectly to a control pad. And it WILL do so, but oddly not at launch. Instead, Xbox 360 controller support will come in a future update. If I had to guess, I’d say the decision to include it came after the launch feature set had been locked in. Silly not to plan for it from the start, but at least it’s coming.

Windows Phone 8 also happens to support a very Xbox-like controller, the MOGA Pro Controller. It would be highly synergistic for the phone version of Spartan Assault to offer MOGA compatibility. However, Microsoft has not confirmed any such support yet. It would probably show up in a patch, just like the Windows 8 game’s controller support.

Halo: Spartan Assault launches sometime in July and will cost $6.99 on each platform. We'll try to bring more impressions from E3 next week!

“Wake up Sam”, that’s what my internal Cortana said on the morning of May 14.

Paul and I were in Santa Monica, CA to get an early preview of an upcoming, unannounced, non-console“Halo” action title. That’s all we knew, but the fact that Microsoft and 343 Industries invited Windows Phone Central gave us an idea of what platform we would be playing this on.

Was it finally happening? Halo on Windows Phone? As you know by now, the answer was a loud yes. And bonus, Windows 8 was getting in on the action. If you read us regularly, you might have figured out by now I’m a big Halo fan. So what do I think about Halo: Spartan Assault so far?

Spoiler alert: Forget E3 and Build, I want it to be July already.

So what’s this post about?

I’ll give you guys and gals a journal type entry for that morning, my initial impressions and finally I’ll try my hand at addressing some concerns I’ve seen on the web and have myself about the game. Then we're going to battle it out in the comments on what you all think of the game.

May 14, 2013

We were at Shutters on the Beach, a hotel in Santa Monica that, believe it or not, is on the beach. The conference room was situated right next to the boardwalk (well, technically a cement walk), but you couldn’t tell since all blinds were shut to keep Peeping-Toms at bay.

Shutters on the Beach

Microsoft and 343i invited about a baker’s dozen (or two or three) of gaming journalists, bloggers, and traditional news reporters to the event. First thing first, food and non-disclosure agreements. There was a full breakfast buffet to keep blood sugar levels from dropping too low and the NDA's needed to be signed by everyone for the presentation to start.

Basically you agree to an embargo on everything discussed, breaking that embargo results in the forfeiture of your first born or something else of equal value. Bellies full from the breakfast buffet and papers signed, it was time to kick off the presentation. Unfortunately, no videos or photos were allowed to be taken during the event, but that didn’t matter so much since they were planning on sending media assets for the game closer to the day the embargo gets lifted.

The presentation itself was solid. The speaker had a Surface Pro powering the large HDTV in the room. PowerPoint slides, screenshots, and videos were seen by all. In addition we got our first glimpse of gameplay during a live demo on that same display. But the most beneficial part of the morning came after the presentation. When a handful of Surface Pros were handed out for journalists to try out the game for themselves. The team of developers and designers working on Spartan Assault walked around, helping people get the feel for the game while answering questions.

Thoughts on Spartan Assault from a Halo fan

Surprise. I’m a Halo fanboy. I’ve played (and loved) every Halo game since it landed on the original Xbox back in 2001. Ever since I picked Windows Phone as my mobile platform in 2010 I’ve been to play the Halo series on my smartphone. Nearly two and half years have elapsed since and we’re so close to getting that game.

Was I surprised that the game wouldn’t be a first-person shooter? Yes and no. While I’ll always dream of playing a Halo FPS shooter away from my Xbox, it wouldn’t be the same experience on a smartphone or tablet. Because by default you interact with touchscreens on those devices. Sure you could add a controller, but that adds an unnecessary barrier to playing a game that wouldn’t sit with most gamers.

Tank beats everything

So what about a real-time strategy game, like Halo Wars? Well that also presents some problems. While I think a hypothetical Halo Wars 2 would be amazing on a tablet, it could be awkward on a smaller display. I think 343i did the right thing by giving the Halo universe a new genre: the top-down shooter. We’ve seen it work well on mobile devices, remember Z0MB1ES!!1 (on the ph0ne)? Try it out if you want a general idea of how Spartan Assault will play.

During the presentation I was a little hesitant about this twin-stick shooter for a Halo game. It felt slightly sacrilegious as a Halo fan that it would not be first-person, but then again so did Halo Wars. And like Halo Wars, after playing the game for a few moments it clicked – this is exactly how Halo should work on a tablet or smartphone. The picture below gives you the idea of how the touchscreen controls will work.

Abilities? Check. Melee? Check. Teabagging? Hmm...

And if you look at the diagram above, you’ll see how they managed to capture that Halo feel in a new game genre. Melee, weapons switch, grenades, vehicle controls, and armor abilities are all present in this game. It may look complicated, but it didn’t take long for me to get comfortable with the controls. I really can’t wait for you to try it out for yourself, but it handled really well and can only get better between now and then. Something I’ve never said about a touchscreen based first-person shooter.

Story time

It’s easy to dismiss Halo as just another mindless shooter if you haven’t really played. But fans of the series will quickly talk about the Halo mythos and how it draws them in. The Halo universe spans many different story-telling mediums: books, comics, videos and more. It looks like Halo: Spartan Assault will continue to carry that torch of finding a good balance between story and gameplay. Within the Halo community there are fans who enjoy and engage each other in specific segments of that universe. Most of you are familiar with those who just play online multiplayer. But there are solid groups who spend most their time in just campaign. There’s also fans who have never played the game, but greatly enjoy the books. The in-game cinematics are of a quality that you usually find in AAA titles on console games and that has me excited.

Concept art for Spartan Assault

Cinematic from Spartan Assault

So what do we know about the story so far? Well Spartan Assault is tied tightly into the Halo 4 story. You’re on board the UNSC Infinity, the main ship in the Halo 4 campaign. The ship is used as training for Spartan IVs through an X-Men like Danger Room. Basically a training facility where Spartans can re-live past battles to hone their skills or do skirmishes against one another in this simulator. The battles that you’ll be re-experiencing focus on Sarah Palmer, an ODST who becomes part of the first wave of Spartan IVs. You’ll also have a new character named Spartan Davis, who we don’t know much about at this time.

Weapons

This is the part where Spartan Assault clicked with me that morning. The weapons in Halo have always had their own unique feel and sound. Maybe it’s the countless man hours I’ve sunk into the Halo series, but I can close my eyes and tell you what weapon is on screen by ear. You know that feeling when you fear the pink mist as your body explodes after an opponent unleashes their Needler on you? You’ll get that feeling playing Spartan Assault. I couldn’t stop grinning as I played the demo and heard that grenade bounce, that sticky stick, or those Grunts begging for mercy.

Dual SMGs are back

Spartan Assault will come with a variety of weapons. You’ll see some old friends (dual SMGs anyone?) and some new weapons that we’ll learn about at launch. But the moment that really clicked was how good the weapons work in this top-down perspective. You can pick your initial weapons at the start of each mission. I picked the sniper and went to town. A click flick in the general direction of an enemy will result in that sniper bang followed by an Elite knocked off his socks.

Vehicles are all present too. During my short hands on with the game I was able to kick an Elite out of a Wraith. Like all Halo games before this, you can control the vehicles and wreak havoc. I quickly took out the surrounding enemy Wraiths with mine. It was satisfying to splatter Grunts along the way.

Concerns and some misses

Right now there is no multiplayer or co-op in Spartan Assault. To me, that’s a miss and something I wish 343i had pushed hard to make happy. Why does Halo have such a high replay value on the Xbox? Because once you finish the campaign you can spend an insane amount of hours online doing multiplayer games in a variety of gametypes. Slayer, Capture the Flag, and others would have been fun even in this top-down perspective. I think it would have been possible to do since they were able to create a compelling story and campaign with this new twist.

And even if online multiplayer would have been too time consuming to add, co-op would have been equally as rewarding. I’m not sure how Spartan Assault will stay relevant once you’ve beaten the game. The game will feature challenges, specific to each level and then weekly ones. But I’m not sure that’s enough to keep people coming back. The allure of multiplayer is that no two slayer games are the same. On the console, new human opponents always present different challenges and test you as a player on Xbox Live. That could have translated well to this game.

Buy credits? But I bought the game...

Across the internet a handful of people have grumbled about this being only available for Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8. They see it as a money grab and selling out of Halo for the purpose of pimping their new platforms and making cash. While it’s true that most companies actually try to make money, you shouldn’t let that detract from enjoying Spartan Assault. Windows Phone and Windows 8 are getting a game that’s produced like it belongs on the console.

However it’s hard to ignore the in-app purchases. When you have to initially buy the game (6.99) and there are still IAPs in the game it kind of stings. 343i stressed that you can beat the game without using them. However, it’s hard to judge how true that statement is until we actually get to play it. As a game developer do you design a game to slightly encourage micro-transactions? If I had to guess, 343i won’t take that approach since they’ve generally shown a loyalty to their fan base.

What happens next?

Between now and the release in July there’s still a lot more to learn about Spartan Assault. We expect to get more hands on at E3 and learn more about the game. For example we still don’t know what you’ll unlock in Halo 4 while playing this game. Other mysteries include whether or not there are separate achievements between the phone and tablet versions. Will we see a version for the Xbox One? All questions to ask and find out.

As a lifelong Halo fan I am extremely looking forward to this game. Not only for the small push that Windows Phone and Windows 8 might see, but because it’s the first time we’re getting to experience Halo away from the couch.

I’m curious what you Halo fans think of this game? What about non-Halo fans? Sound off with your thoughts below!

There are numerous games available for Windows Phone, but the store feels as though it falls short when it comes to classic RPGs (role playing games), especially when compared against other mobile platforms. That said, the collection is slowly improving and to add to the list is Hero Gladiator. It's a unique title (available on Android and iOS) that takes advantage of multiple elements that make a strong adventure game. Loads of items, party management, character progression, intense boss battles and more.

The graphics are also pleasing to the eye, taking a more cartoon-like approach that looks great on the large Windows Phone 8 resolutions. The gameplay is what counts in such titles, though. Hero Gladiator doesn't disappoint here either. Putting the player up against evil with four character slots, there's scope to expand the team and take on wizards, rogues and other heros that can help on the dangerous adventure. Each character class has different strengths and abilities that need to be utilised effectively to progress through the levels.

Here are some of the highlighted features:

• 8 different character classes
• 120 skills with rich combat tactics
• 50 levels to battle through
• 7 powerful boss - kill them to get rewarded

The player earns gold as levels are completed and enemies defeated, which can then be spent on improving items, unlocking skills and hiring new characters to complete the team with an effective force. There are going to be many hours lost in this title, that's all that can be said.

There are areas where the title could be improved, including dialogue and tool-tip text, as well as the overall introduction to the game. The controls could also be tweaked and I'd definitely like to see items actually alter the appearance of the characters. But for the price, it's a Windows Phone game that's definitely worth the buck if you're into role playing games.

You can download Hero Gladiator for $1.99 from the Windows Phone Store (available for both Windows Phone 7 and 8).

Despite his games’ typically high quality, limbless hero Rayman is generally lesser known than his contemporaries like Sonic and Mario. Starting out on the Atari Jaguar, Playstation One, and similar platforms in 1995, the original Rayman stood out thanks to its beautiful 2D graphics, unique atmosphere, and excellent soundtrack. Two strong 3D sequels followed – you can even get 2003’s Rayman 3 on XBLA, in fact.

Rayman kept a low profile after that, only showing up in the spin-off Rayman: Raving Rabbids minigame collections. Soon the Rabbids games left Rayman behind to become their own series, most recently with Rabbids Go Phone for Windows Phone 7. It seemed like Rayman had forced into retirement, doomed to live on only in the minds of nostalgic gamers.

Luckily for platform gaming fans, Rayman came back from obscurity with 2011’s sleeper console hit Rayman Origins. The fourth mainline Rayman game returned to 2D graphics, and how! Origins boasts one of the most striking visual styles in all of gaming, not to mention pretty much everything you could want in a platformer. And now Rayman Jungle Run from Pastagames and Ubisoft brings that same 2D goodness to Windows Phone 8 in a truly killer mobile adaptation.

Big hero, small package

Mobile versions of console platformers often use virtual sticks and buttons in order to translate the game design faithfully to touch screens – look at Sonic CD or Little Acorns for two of the best examples. But some gamers just can’t get their heads around virtual sticks, sad to say.

Thus Pastagames made the wise decision to change Origins’ design ever so slightly when creating Jungle Run. They took away the stick and made Rayman run forward automatically. Here players can mainly focus on the hero’s jumps and other moves instead of having to adjust to adjust to the learning curve of virtual controls. Just tap anywhere on-screen and he leaps in the air, simple as that.

Moves like Jagger

Rayman can only perform normal jumps and jump off of walls in the first of Jungle Run’s five sets of levels, but that’s just so the game can ease you into more advanced moves. In the second world he gains the ability to hover during jumps by pressing and holding the screen. Some of the game’s trickiest sections involve hovering between walls of thorns as air currents push you along. Starting in the third world, Rayman can run up walls and along ceilings – not unlike Sonic the Hedgehog.

Rayman’s final move comes along in the fourth world: punching. He can punch to break down wooden barriers, trigger switches that toggle platforms or spiked balls, and kill enemies. A virtual punch button shows up at the bottom-right corner of the screen once Rayman learns punching. This throws the convenience of the controls off a bit because up until then many players will probably tap the right corner to jump. Once the fourth world comes along, you’re forced to start using the left side. Pastagames should have implemented an option to choose the punch button’s location.

Lum’s the word

Even though Rayman runs on autopilot in this adventure, it still feels very much like Origins, but faster. Jungle Run’s stages feature lots of twists, turns, and hidden areas for players to discover as they hunt for Lums. Each level holds 100 of the floating yellow collectibles to grab. We’ll talk about the reward for doing so in a moment.

Besides collecting individual Lums, Rayman will also need to keep an eye out for Skull Coins. Each one is worth 20 Lums (as opposed to 25 in Origins). The developers sometimes place Skull Coins quite deviously so that you’ll end up exactly 20 Lums short by level’s end because you didn’t discover a particular cranny along the way. But for the most part, I managed to score the full 100 after only a few retries and without seeking help online.

Tough stuff

Your reward for collecting all 100 of a stage’s Lums is a single Tooth of the Dead. Each of the five worlds has one Land of the Livid Dead level that costs five teeth to unlock. The Livid Dead levels prove the game’s greatest challenge, as each one requires precise timing and memorization in order to survive. Experienced platforming game players will probably master them with practice, but other players might not be able to handle them. Incidentally, the game’s Friends Leaderboards only keep track of Livid Dead completion times.

As the Livid Dead levels will remind you, Rayman can lose his life in a few different ways. Falling into bottomless pit does him in, of course. But Rayman dies from a single hit by default, so thorns, spikes, and enemies can all knock him off in the blink of an eye as well. The more perilous levels tend to have at least one heart item which will give Rayman an extra hit when collected. Surviving normal levels won’t usually prove very difficult though. The levels are short enough that you can return to what killed you and try again in short order anyway.

Achievements

Much like Rayman Origins, the difficulty of Jungle Run’s Achievements runs largely at odds with the game’s inviting aesthetic and casual-friendly gameplay. Sure, collecting 3600 unique Lums over the course of the game and even scoring all fifty Teeth of the Dead won’t prove too much for platforming veterans.

No, the stuff Ubisoft asks us to do in one run is where it gets tricky. Jungle Run has Achievements for collecting 500, 1000, 2000, and 3600 Lums in a single playthrough, all without dying or restarting a level. The first two will come with practice, but getting 3600 Lums in one life for ‘Lums Survival’ takes some doing. You’d have to survive until stage 4-9 at the earliest. Realistically, anyone who gets the Achievement will do so in the fifth world. At least the game has 4500 total Lums, so you can miss a few and still unlock it.

If you dare to attempt ‘Lums Survival,’ I have two pieces of advice. First, get every single Tooth of Death in order to practice and learn the basic levels. Then head to YouTube! It’s filled with multiple perfect runs of each level. Watch a perfect run before you play a level, play it, and then watch the next level, and so on. In this way, you’ll always be prepared for whatever a level has in store.

Overall Impression

Rayman Jungle Run is one of the best Xbox Windows Phone games available, whether we’re talking about Windows Phone 7 or 8. On the surface, it has the Origins-style visuals that ooze with color, depth, and charm going for it. The several catchy tunes that cycle as you play and catchy sound effects don’t hurt either.

Most importantly, Jungle Run is simply a joy to play. Simple and nearly perfect controls will get players into the swing of things in a hurry. After that, the excellent level design and pursuit of Teeth of the Dead adds staying power. You COULD just run through the game in an hour or two. But unlike most games with collectibles, you’d be missing out on half the fun if you didn’t track down each and every Lum.

Rayman Jungle Run– Windows Phone 8 – 49 MB - $2.99 – Store Link

The last two weeks have been full of great news for Xbox Windows Phone gamers. Last week we got the stunning Rayman Jungle Run, yesterday Microsoft announced Halo: Spartan Assault, and today doesn’t disappoint either. No, Gameloft didn’t suddenly release N.O.V.A. 3. But an equally requested title has just popped up…

Halfbrick Studio’s Jetpack Joyride is finally – FINALLY available on Windows Phone 8. It runs on devices with 512 MB of RAM. And it’s free! Are you ready for an endless runner that involves a lot more flying than running? Of course you are.

To infinity and beyond

The game’s protagonist Barry Steakfries has recently started working as a jetpack tester. He soon discovers that his bosses plan to take over the world. He steals the jetpack and begins a desperate escape from the testing laboratory… But this is an endless runner, so don’t expect to actually escape from the lab.

Jetpack Joyride’s controls couldn’t be simpler. Since Barry runs forward automatically, all you need to do is tap the screen to activate his jetpack. The longer you touch the screen, the higher he’ll fly. Sometimes he’ll gain vehicles like a dragon and chicken that mix the controls up a bit and keep things exciting.

Coinage

The ever-present goal is to collect as many coins as possible before you run into one of the lab’s many death traps. Coins can then be spent in the shop to unlock new clothes (including an outfit based on fellow publisher Miniclip’s Fragger!), jetpacks, and various items and upgrades. Utilities are single use items while Gadgets and Vehicle Upgrades offer permanent benefits.

Being a free-to-play game, coins can also be purchased with real money. The IAP prices are actually reasonable, so you know Gameloft didn’t make this one. One purchase you’ll definitely want to make as soon as possible is the Counterfeit Machine. It permanently doubles the amount of coins you pick up during gameplay. Wish Gravity Guy 2 had offered that option!

Mission to Mars

Just like Gravity Guy 2 (which basically copied this game), Jetpack Joyride gives players three optional missions to work on at any given time. These include things you’d do anyway like playing X number of games or collecting Y number of vehicles. Other goals require a change in routine, such as reaching a specific distance without collecting precious coins. I know it hurts, but sometimes you’ve gotta leave money on the table.

Naturally completing missions will unlock several Xbox Achievements. Jetpack Joyride has a total of 20 Achievements, all of which are identical to the Windows 8 version’s. All told, it should be a fairly easy completion.

Strap on and get flying

So far Jetpack Joyride looks every bit as enjoyable and addictive as the Windows 8 version we’ve been enjoying for months. Yes, this version took far too long to pass Xbox Live certification, but it’s here now and that’s what matters. Let’s hope Halfbrick brings us their latest game Fish out of Water much sooner!

Jetpack Joyride– Windows Phone 8 – 36 MB – FREE – Store Link

Thanks to everyone who tipped us. We love you all! Even Mark Tepper.

Royal Revolt is a wonderfully animated game for your Windows Phone 8 device that has you on a quest to become King.

You play the role of a young Prince sent away to boarding school. Upon your return you learn that your Aunts and Uncles have taken over the kingdom. Your job, conquer the various castles and retake the kingdom as King.  A Medieval family feud of sorts.

Game play is challenging, animations great and all totaled, Royal Revolt is a nice addition to the Windows Phone 8 gaming library.

Royal Revolt plays like a reverse tower defense game. Instead of setting up defensive positions to battle invading armies, you play the role of the invading army.  There's also a RPG aspect to the game in that you can upgrade your troops, add spells to your arsenal and upgrade your Prince's abilities as you progress through the game.

The map view is your launch page for your game. Here is where you can start a level of play, upgrade your troops, manage your spells, upgrade your Prince (the Hero tab), and make in-app purchases of gems that can be used for upgrades.  Game play has the Prince leading his troops through fifty-eight levels of action to reclaim his land. Each level contains a combinations of barricades, enemy troops and outposts all leading to a castle that has to be destroyed.

The gaming screens has your Prince's health in the upper left corner, your troop selection in the lower left and spell options in the lower right. Your troop generation meter runs along the bottom of the screen. There are various types of troops (swordsmen, archers, mages, etc.) that require differing amounts of energy to produce (represented by the dots on the troop type icon). As you generate troops the troop generation meter is depleted. Give it a few seconds and the meter regenerates so you can create more troops.

Once generated, troops head down the trail to confront the enemy. They won't wait on their Prince so you may find yourself playing catch up to get into the battle.  As you proceed through the gaming level, you can continue to generate troops.  It just takes them a few seconds to catch up to the action.

Moving your Prince is easy, you can either tap/hold and drag your finger around the screen to move the Prince or just tap the area you want the Prince to move to.  When he is moved adjacent to an enemy soldier or structure, he'll start hacking away at it with his sword.

The Prince has an circular area around him where the spells have influence. For example, there is a healing spell that will heal any of your troops that are within that circular area. You also have destructive spells that will impact any enemy troops within the circle.

As you take out enemy combatants, coins will be dropped that can be used for upgrades. At the end of each level, you'll also earn coins and gems that can be used to give your characters a little boost in abilities. If you're not the patient type, you can buy gems within the app. The cost ranges from $1.49 for 100 gems to $89.99 for 6,500 gems.

The game starts a little slow with pop-up tutorials guiding you through the motions of defeating your enemies. Royal Revolt picks up in speed with each level to keep things from getting stale. Additionally, with fifty-eight levels and a large handful of unlockable bonus missions, there is plenty of gaming with Royal Revolt.

The two biggest drawbacks to Royal Revolt is the lack of a help section and that it sucks the life out of your battery. While the tutorial walks you through the game nicely, a help section for reference would be nice.  Not sure what the answer is on the battery consumption which is likely due to the graphics. Just be aware that if you sit down to play Royal Revolt for very long, you'll need a power source.

All in all, Royal Revolt is a fantastic game for your Windows Phone 8 device. We've tinkered with the game for the better part of the afternoon and find it perfect for the times you only have a few minutes of gaming available and for those times you want to sit down for longer sessions. The developer did an excellent job on the graphics and creating a fun battle game.

Royal Revolt is a free game for your Windows Phone 8 device that you can find here in the Windows Phone Store.

Windows Phone 8 gamers are currently enjoying this week’s new Xbox title, the delightfully free and also just plain delightful Jetpack Joyride. But you can never have too many games, especially when you’re addicted to Xbox Achievements. Your mouth gets dry, the shakes start to set in, and only a new game will keep you from eating a family sized bag of Whoppers (wrapper and all) in your delirium.

Enter the Xbox Red Stripe Deal of the Week, only too eager to ease the pain! The latest weekly sale title is BulletAsylum from UberGeekGames. Normally priced at $2.99, it’s now discounted to 99 cents. BulletAsylum previously went on sale for $1.99 once in May 2012, so this is a better deal… Probably what the game should always have cost, in fact.

The new non-Xbox Red Stripe Deals are indie game Chicken Invaders 3 from Betacom and popular instant messaging app IM+ Pro. Both cost only a dollar this week, which is an especially good deal for the normally $5 IM+ Pro. Read on for more details, screenshots, and download links!

BulletAsylum (Windows Phone 7 or 8)

Regular price: $2.99 Sale price: $.99 Download size: 16 MB Store Link

BulletAsylum is a modern take on the arcade classic Missile Defense. Aliens rain down from the sky and it’s up to your turrets to stop them. You can use a single finger to fire all your weapons at one area or two fingers to split the fire. Game modes include the extremely easy Arcade, an endless Survival mode that has no Achievements for some reason, and the frustratingly hard Architect mode.

It’s easy to get into BulletAsylum thanks to the pretty colors and flashing lights. The unlocking system is decent, and the Achievements are attainable for most mortal men and women. Still, I found the gameplay far too simplistic to maintain interest; the lack of depth really keeps the game from having much staying power. At least it's only a buck right now! Check out our review to learn more.

Chicken Invaders 3 (Windows Phone 7 or 8)

Regular price: $2.99 Sale price: $.99 Download size: 19 MB Store Link

This indie game is a clone of Galaga but with an aggressive army of poultry serving as the enemies. Downed enemies dropped fried chicken for players to collect. Score enough of it to get screen-clearing bonus missiles. Silly premise aside, Chicken Invaders 3 is kinda-sorta pretty and probably plays better than the poorly-controlling Galaga Legions DX. It also comes in Christmas and Easter variations, but only the main game is on sale. Give George’s review a look if you’re curious about the gameplay.

IM+ Pro (Windows Phone 7 or 8)

Regular price: $4.99 Sale price: $.99 Download size: 3 MB Store Link

Wouldn’t it be convenient to have one instant messaging app that can communicate with all the different IM networks you use? IM+ Pro does just that. It supports: Skype, Facebook, Google Talk, AIM, Yahoo!, ICQ, Jabber, and a bunch of foreign networks as well. The only missing feature I’d like to see is Steam chat support, but I assume the Steam platform is closed to IM developers. On Windows Phone 8, the app even supports fancy lockscreen notifications. IM+ Pro comes in free and this paid, ad-free version. If you hate ads but love chatting on your phone, it might be time to drop a dollar on this one.

Thanks to Marcel at InsideGames.ch for the tip!

With all the big news about Halo: Spartan Assault and Jetpack Joyride popping up this week, we’ve gotten slightly behind on our coverage of Xbox Windows Phone game updates. Now that things have slowed down a smidge, it’s time to discuss those patches.

Both of Zeptolab’s Windows Phone games Cut the Rope and Cut the Rope: Experiments received minor updates only a few days ago. It might be tough to tell what changed on your own, but we’ve got the details! And Gameloft’s Ice Age Village got its second and most welcome update. Head past the break for the full story on all three games!

Cut the Rope (Windows Phone 7 or 8)

Price: $.99 Download size: 37 MB Store Link - Review

A few weeks ago, Cut the Rope received a sizable update that added three new level packs to the game. It also overhauled the menus, adding a new section with links to YouTube cartoons starring lovable series protagonist Om Nom. Quite an update.

Well, the version 1.3 update doesn’t bring any new levels to the mix – we’re already caught up with the iOS version there. It does however bring new content to the Cartoons menu. See, version 1.2 only listed the first 13 cartoons in the Om Nom Stories series. This new update adds the latest two cartoons to the list, including the one shown above.

As for the save data loss bug that has plagued some users of the game since the very beginning, readers have reported that it remains alive and frustrating in version 1.3. You might want to avoid this update in hopes that Zeptolab finally squashes the bug in a future patch.

Cut the Rope: Experiments (Windows Phone 7 or 8)

Price: $.99 Download size: 29 MB Store Link - Review

Disappointingly, the Experiments update does not add the missing Ant Hill level pack to the game. As such, our version still lags behind the iOS game.

However, the update at least fixes a little bug that had been snaking around, nibbling on the food the game left out at night. Whereas the first game lacked narration, Experiments introduced a scientist who makes little comments during gameplay. He adds a little pizazz to the game, but sometimes you need to quiet things down without adjusting your phone’s main volume. Prior to the update, toggling the voice in the options did not actually turn it off. Version 1.1 corrects that.

Ice Age Village (Windows Phone 8)

Price: Free! Download size: 73 MB Store Link - Review

Ice Age Village launched in a fairly buggy state. Not enough to ruin the game, but the social features didn’t work properly.

After a couple of weeks’ time, gamers also realized that one of the game’s Achievements was broken. If a player attained a 5-star village rating, a different Achievement popped instead of the intended one. Not only that, but the game bugged out after that, forcing players to remove objects from their village in order to lower its rating.

Well, I’m pleased to announce that the version 1.2 patch actually fixes the ‘Most Famous’ Achievement, making it attainable to all. Well, not attainable to people like me whose Friend ratings have bugged out, but I could reinstall to fix that. Despite the generally high quality of Gameloft titles, their games are often plagued by broken Achievements. This marks the first time that the publisher has actually fixed a game so that its full 200 Gamerscore can be unlocked.

The gift icon at right did not appear before the first update.

As for the social features, Facebook integration has mostly worked since the version 1.1 update. Connecting your Facebook account provides the benefits of being able to send gifts to friends and the ability to spam your Facebook wall with messages.

Fine things, but you can’t actually add friends FROM your Facebook list. The only way to add people you know (as opposed to random players) is by connecting your Gameloft Live account to the game. And ridiculously, that feature remains broken. You’d think that interfacing with their own online system would be easy for the game’s devs, but apparently not.

Still, outside of the broken Gameloft Live integration and the general friends list randomly disappearing, Ice Age Village remains a fairly high quality city building game. I still play it daily.

Thanks to Guilherme and TNT Judbud for the tips!

Near the end of 2011, Nokia and Electronic Arts announced a partnership. Nokia would publish new EA Xbox Windows Phone games exclusively for Lumia devices. The deal included EA’s subsidiaries Chillingo and PopCap as well. It took a while for the first exclusive to show up: Mirror’s Edge in July 2012. After that, the floodgates opened as more and more EA games arrived on our platform.

Of course, the abundance of Nokia-exclusive Xbox games also caused users of non-Nokia Windows Phones to feel resentful. But the EA games were always planned as timed exclusives. After a period of 6-7 months, each exclusive game becomes available to all. First it happened with Mirror’s Edge in February and now another game has left its exclusivity behind.

The ‘new’ Xbox game: Jet Set Go from Chillingo and Big Stack Studios. It might just be the best time management game in the Xbox Windows Phone lineup, and now everybody can have a swing at it. Like most other Nokia EA games it’s priced at $2.99. Head past the break for more details, plus a list of all current and former Nokia exclusives!

Jet Set Go (Windows Phone 7 or 8)

Price: $2.99 Download size: 40 MB Store Link - Review

Jet Set Go is a time management game that looks quite a lot like Sally’s Salon. This one has a less feminine theme though, so even insecure male gamers will be able to play it! Instead of running a salon or a day spa, the game puts players in charge of a travel agency. Guys travel too!

Tending to the various customers involves a variety of light travel-themed minigames like choosing destinations, hotels, itineraries, and more. Keep them happy and you’ll rake in the money. Earnings can then be spent on upgrades to increase your agency’s appeal.

Besides running the agency itself, you’ll also participate in separate tourism-themed levels in various exotic locations. Serve food at a restaurant, help guests relax at a resort, point sight-seers in the right direction, and even lead a line dance on a cruise ship.

The tourism levels won’t earn you money, but they do fill up one of the three meters needed to get a perfect rating for the current level. This contributes to the game’s Achievements, all of which are pretty easy. The game gets a bit long and grindy eventually though.

Formerly Nokia exclusive

1. Connect 4
2. The Game of Life
3. Jet Set Go
4. Mirror’s Edge
5. Parking Mania
6. Risk
7. Spy Mouse
8. Trivial Pursuit

Still Nokia exclusive

1. Bejeweled Live +
2. Blobster
3. DaVinci Pinball
4. Dream Track Nation
5. Flight Control Rocket
6. iBomber Defense
7. Mass Effect: Infiltrator
8. Monopoly Millionaire
9. NBA Jam
10. Picnic Wars
11. Real Racing 2
12. Storm in a Teacup
13. The Sims: Medieval
14. Tiger Woods 12
15. Tiny Plane
16. Vampire Rush
17. Yahtzee
18. Zuma's Revenge!

Coming soon to everyone

If you’re wondering which Nokia games will lose their exclusivity next, here you go. Release dates are estimates.

• iBomber Defense (Any time now)
• Blobster (July)
• Flight Control Rocket (July)

If you’re a fan of Temple Run, then you’ll want to grab the all new Temple Run: Brave game for Windows Phone 8. The game follows on the heels of the Windows 8 version released a few weeks ago and much like its predecessor, goes for $0.99 without a free trial.

We’re not sure why the devs at Disney and behind Temple Run are so against trials, but we bought the game and tossed together a quick video presented below. Off the cuff, we have no complaints about the game (well, it could use a double wide tile, we suppose). Graphics have been updated, it runs smooth and the touch response seems good to us at these early stages.

In case you’re curious, the game is a mashup between the Temple Run franchise and the Disney movie Brave. The backgrounds have been updated with lush forest greens, the main player is now a female lead (who seems to have lost her voice from the Windows 8 version) and you can shoot arrows from your trusty bow at some targets.

Overall, it’s quite fun and a great time waster. Like all Temple Run games, it features in-app purchasing via gold coins you collect or you can opt to “cheat” and buy packs of coins to enhance your character.

Other features include:

• Introducing ARCHERY – tap targets to shoot a bullseye and earn extra coins

• New, amazing visuals. It looks better than ever!

• All new environments inspired by Disney/Pixar Brave and the wilds of Scotland

• Play as Merida from Disney/Pixar Brave
• Outrun Mordu, the demon bear, to earn running glory

You can pick up Temple Run: Brave for Windows Phone 8 here in the Store. Note: Devices with 512MB of RAM are not eligible to play this game! Let the developer know you want 512 MB support by tweeting to @kshepherd and @imangi.

Inflexiball is a new Windows Phone 8 game reminiscent of the old Arcanoid or Breakout video games but with heavy Steampunk influence.  Inflexiball also has a RPG feel to things with upgrades and enhancements that can be purchased with coins you collect during game play or purchased in-app. 

In just playing Inflexiball for a short bit, it makes a good first impression.  Graphics are steaming, game play challenging and if your a fan of the Arcanoid styled games, Inflexiball is worth a look.

The main menu for Inflexiball has options to jump into game play, access the game store, and access the settings. Settings cover paddle sensitivity and sound/music levels.

The game store is where you can buy upgrades for your paddle, ball, and boosts with the gold coins you collect during game play. If you want to get a jump on things, you can also buy gold coins (for cash) from the game store as well. It's the last tab on the store display.

Game play with Inflexiball is spread out across fourteen levels of play. There is a storyline that follows game play that depicts adventures of a scientist who tries to find answers to the mysterious disappearance of his father. The comic story boards can be skipped for those wanting to jump into the game quicker.

The game screen is much like your typical Break-out/Arcanoid layout just with a little Steampunk infusion.  Vital stats line the top of the screen that include, from left to right, your ball count, gold count, your score and access to store upgrades.

Inflexiball's game play is fairly simple. You bounce a ball off your paddle that strikes against a series of blocks. As the ball hits the blocks, they explode. The goal, get rid of all the blocks.  You move the paddle by touch. Just slide the paddle to keep the ball in play. It's not a bad control method but at times your finger does get in the way.

As you take out the blocks, coins and boost items fall at random. You collect these items with your paddle. Coins are used for player upgrades and the performance boosts range from slowing down your ball, increasing your paddle size, launching multiple balls and more.

In all, Inflexiball is a fun game for our Windows Phone 8 devices. The graphics and animations represent the Steampunk theme well and game play is challenging enough to keep the game from getting stale. There are also secondary games that become unlocked as you progress through the game.

The downside to Inflexiball is that there is no help section. While most will be familiar with how to play the game but there really needs to be a reference section on all the boosts that fall from the blocks. I don't think it's a deal breaker but every game should have a help or reference section to give the players an understanding of things.

Inflexiball is a free game for Windows Phone 8 devices and you can find it here in the Windows Phone Store.

If you're in the mood for utter destruction the Windows Phone 8 game Death Worm might be your cup of tea.

You control a man-eating, camel-eating, "devour everything that moves"-eating worm who has to work it's way through sixty levels that spans four worlds. And it's not all destruction. You have dangers to avoid and power-ups to collect. The death worm can take on damage and too much damage results in...well...death.

Death Worm is an entertaining and addictive game for your Windows Phone 8 device.  There's room for improvement but overall, Death Worm is worth a try.

The main menu for Death Worm holds options to play the game, access the game's options, view the game leaderboards, and view your achievements. Options cover sound/music levels and on-screen control orientation.

Death Worm has three game modes; Campaign, Survival and Mini-Games (three of them). Campaign is the sixty level game that you have to devour a set number of items before advancing to the next level. Survival is just that... devour everything in sight and survive the attacks.

The three mini-games include Super Dash, Air Defense and Countdown games. Super Dash is a racing game, Air Defense has you battling air craft and Countdown has you catching as many underground creatures before the timer hits zero.

Game screens are fairly universal. From left to right you'll find your score, the death worm's health, worm size, gaming level, fireball and speed boosts information. On-screen controls line up along the bottom of the screen, your campaign goals are displayed in the upper left of the gaming screen and your upgrade alert in the right.  It sounds like a lot of information on the screen but the developer did a nice job of managing the clutter.

A virtual joystick controls the worm and you can gobble up creatures beneath the surface, things on the surface and jump to take out those things in the air. Enemies can be eaten or smashed with the worm's body. Along the way the natives get restless and start shooting at the worm. Health appears to be regenerate with time.

You can collect fireballs and speed tokens and collect enough, you'll get a boost. When the upgrade alert flashes you can increase the worms size, speed, skin, fireball power and more.

Death Worm is a fun game that has an addictive quality to it. Game play challenging, animations nice, and sound effects painful (with those that get devoured).  There are over fifty different enemies to take out. Add the four worlds, sixty levels and mini-games and Death Worm is a rather healthy game.

There are two downsides though with Death Worm. First, there is no help section to at least explain what all the boosts, displays, and feature do. Next, there isn't a trial version available to let you try things out before buying. Death Worm is a great game to pass the time with but it may not appeal to everyone.  Hence the need for a trial version.

Death Worm is currently running $1.99 for our Windows Phone 8 devices and you can find it here in the Windows Phone Store.