Popular Android game, Balance 3D, has just been ported over to Windows Phone. It boasts 10-50 million downloads from the Google Play store, and now it's over at the Windows Phone Store as Ball 3D. It's a fully 3D game in which you go through mazes with unstable places, and unpredictable gravity.

We've installed it on our Nokia Lumia 930. Watch the gameplay video to see if it's worth your time.

The goal is simple. Look for the end of each level without falling off. Navigate the ball through narrow paths, tubes, and other pathways. There are different ways to control the ball. Experiment with each one to see which is most comfortable for you.

• Arrows on the right to move and swipe on the screen to drag camera view.
• Arrows on the right to move and joystick on the left to drag camera view.
• Tilt phone to move and swipe on the screen to drag camera view.
• Joystick on both sides of the screen. Left side to drag camera, right side to move.

After experimenting with the controls, we are most comfortable with the default one, which is arrows to the right, and drag anywhere else on the screen to move the camera. You can also change the size of the arrows. There's a slider in the settings. We've made it a little bigger, which makes it a little easier to control the ball.

Ball 3D can be played in portrait or landscape mode. We appreciate having these options, but we mostly play in landscape view.

We have one major complaint for Ball 3D. There's no sound or music. Perhaps that will be added in an update.

Ball 3D is a free download from the Windows Phone Store. There are currently 31 levels, but more will be added. Check it out and let us know what you think in the comments.

We are seeing a string of simple, yet challenging, Windows Phone games landing in the Windows Phone Store. Most of these games aren't very complicated but a fun way to pass the time. You will also find some of these titles to be fun to play for a short time but lack staying power.

Match It is a relatively new gaming title that hopes to fall into the 'fun way to pass the time' category. The game tests your reflexes and speed by requiring you to tap the screen as two balls that change color match.

Available for low-memory devices, Match It has potential and worth trying. However, you may find that the game needs a little more chutzpah to keep you pulled into the game.

Simple Menu, Decent Game Play and Annoying Ads

Match It has a very simple main menu with options to view the tutorial, play the game, view your best score and check in on the online leaderboard. You also have a mute button in the upper right corner.

Another feature of the main menu is an annoying full-page ad that pops-up from time to time. I can understand the important of ad-support. It helps the developer earn a little revenue while keeping the game a free title. But the ads should not overwhelm the gaming experience.

The tutorial does a decent job of covering game play and the various game modes.

Speaking of which, game play is simple but challenging enough to avoid being too easy. You have two colored balls that bounce around the gaming screen changing colors. When the two ball's color matches, you have to tap the screen as quickly as possible before the colors change and no longer match.

Across the top of the game screen, you will find your score and gaming mode displayed. Your score will also appear center screen. Along the bottom of the screen is your point multiplier and skip counter. The skip counter counts down the number of matches you failed to act on. When the counter hits zero (wouldn't worry about that for a while), the game is over.

As you progress with Match It, the conditions of the game can change. You can randomly go from a single tap to double-tap to score points as well as a flashing screen or random vibration to serve as a distraction.

Once you tap on a mismatched pair of colors, the game ends and you have the options to enter a player name and submit your score to the online leaderboard, retry the game or share your score via social networks.

Overall Impression

The concept behind Match It makes for a nice time waster of a game. The game will test your reflexes and speed with very simple mechanics. While I liked the concept, the execution could have been better.

And the biggest issue with Match It has to be with the full-page ads. I would have preferred the bottom of the screen ad-banner on the main menu and scoring summary than the full-page ad that takes over the screen.

Match it is a difficult game and it would not hurt my feelings if the pace of the game started out a little slower and then build up in speed. It would give most a fighting chance of seeing scores in the double digits and get everyone acclimated with game play. As is, don't be shocked if it takes you a few games to get your score past single digits.

All in all, I won't say that Match It is a bust but some may see it as too simple of a game needing a little more sip to keep them coming back for more.

• Match It - Windows Phone 8 - 1MB - Free - Store Link

Microsoft has just revealed a new game in their long running Age of Empires franchise that's being made for Windows Phone and Windows 8.1 touchscreen devices. It's called Age of Empires: Castle Siege and the free-to-play game is due out in September.

Details about the game are scarce at this point, but a new trailer for Castle Siege shows that it will concentrate on building castles as well as attacking and destroying them. The trailer shows that the game is being developed by Smoking Gun Interactive.

The game will get its first public demo this weekend in Seattle as part of the PAX Prime convention. Microsoft says:

"Be the first to demo the new touch-based, free-to-play game, Age of Empires: Castle Siege, grab medieval weapons and get your picture taken in the OneDrive booth, or compete in other Age of Empires games on our daily Twitch stream at the Age of Empires booth! All will earn you your own limited edition Castle Siege Pinny Arcade pin and your Castle Siege bandana (while supplies last). Join The Siege!"

What do you think of this new Age of Empires game?

Source: Age of Empires on Twitter

Age of Empires: World Domination, the RTS game from developer KLab and publisher Microsoft, will now see its release for Windows Phone, iOS and Android delayed from summer to sometime in the fall of 2014.

In a post on the game's official website earlier in August, KLab stated:

"To all our fans eagerly anticipating the release of Age of Empires: World Domination - in the past months, our development team has been working hard on the game as well as releasing snippets of the game to you all. We have also been listening to what you, the gamers, have to say. To reflect those changes, we will unfortunately be pushing back the release of the game to fall 2014. We believe that the extra development time will give us the opportunity to create a first-rate mobile game experience that players will love. Thank you for your patience, and we will make a further announcement when an official release date has been decided."

This means that two Age of Empires games made for mobile devices will be coming out in the fall time period. Earlier today, Microsoft confirmed that Age of Empires: Castle Siege will be released sometime in September for Windows Phone and Windows 8.1. What do you think of this delay for Age of Empires: World Domination?

Source: Age of Empires: World Domination website

When console gamers think of Namco Bandai, they probably think of Pac-Man or Dragonball Z. But you might not know that Namco also publishes quite a few racing games – they have no less than three racers planned for Xbox consoles later this year. Let's look at that lineup!

Project CARS will make a big splash on Xbox One this November. On Xbox 360, Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures 2, Digimon All-Star Rumble, F1 2014, and MotoGP 2014 all arrive this fall. Finally, Dragonball Xenoverse and Tekken 7 are coming in 2015. Read on for impressions and trailers!

Coming in 2014

Project CARS

The Xbox One already has a strong racing lineup, with Forza 5 filling in the simulation end of the spectrum and the upcoming Forza Horizon providing a more arcade-style experience. Project CARS from developer Slightly Mad Studios and Namco Bandai play much closer to Forza 5 than Horizon, as it aims to be a serious racing simulation.

The scope of the racing is one thing that sets Project CARS apart – players will take control of a wide variety of vehicles, including karts! The developers promise over 60 different tracks, including real-world tracks like the Silverstone Circuit, the Hockenheimring, and the Dubai Autodrome. That's a lot of road to tear up!

Another unique feature is 2-player co-op! Players can team up as driver and co-driver, which sounds like a lot of fun. The game will also feature dynamic weather (cool!) and user-created content.

Project CARS is due out on Xbox One, Playstation 4, and PC on November 30.

• Project CARS – Xbox One – $59.99 – Amazon Preorder

Digimon All-Star Rumble

It has been much too long since a Digimon game came to America. You'd think the series had died, but it's still going strong in Japan. All-Star Rumble is the sequel to Digimon Rumble Arena 2, which graced the original Xbox way back in 2004!

The story of All-Star Rumble involves the "Digimon Evolution Tournament," a competition meant to restore the Digimon's lost ability to Digivolve (transform) into more powerful monsters. The campaign provides an actual story as well as 3D stages to explore.

The Digimon Rumble games started out as Super Smash Bros. clones, but All-Star Rumble opens up the stages a lot more. Up to four local players can battle it out in 10 different stages. The controls are designed to be easy to learn, making this a great fighting game for kids and family.

The stars of the show are (of course) the Digimon themselves. All-Star Rumble allows players to select from 12 Digimon favorites, including Agumon, Biyomon, Dorulmon, Gabumon, Gatomon, Gomamon, Shoutmon, Tentomon, and Veemon. Each monster can Digivolve into a different form, doubling the total number of characters.

Digimon Rumble Arena arrives on Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 on November 11. Yes, I still like Digimon and I'm excited for this one!

• Digimon All-Star Rumble – Xbox 360 – $39.99 – Amazon Preorder

F1 2014

We covered the announcement of F1 2014 earlier this summer. The game is being developed by racing experts Codemasters and published by Namco Bandai in some territories.

This year's F1 game promises another serious racing simulation. But a new driver evaluation system will make the game more accessible to beginners by tuning settings to the player's skill level. That sounds useful to me, as I tend to slide around and bump into things a lot in racers!

The game features many authentic tracks, such as Austria's Spielberg circuit, a track filled with dramatic elevation changes. This is the first time the Spileberg circuit has appeared in one of Codemaster's games. Three more tracks make their debuts in F1 2014, including the Sochi Circuit in Russia, the Hockenheimring (also seen in Project Cars), and the Bahrain Grand Prix.

F1 2014 arrives on Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and PC on October 17. An Xbox One version is planned for next year.

• F1 2014 – Xbox 360 – $49.99 – Amazon Preorder

MotoGP 2014

The latest in Namco Bandai's long-running MotoGP series comes from Italian developer Milestone s.r.l., who also made last year's version. If you're a fan of motorocycle racing, MotoGP is pretty much the only game in town.

This year's MotoGP features a whopping 18 tracks and more than 100 riders to put them to the test. Players can also create and customize their own unique riders and then put them through a detailed career mode.

All official nike manufacturers and racing classes appear as well, making for an highly authentic experience. Namco Bandai calls 2014 the most refined entry in the series.

MotoGP 2014 crosses the finish line on Xbox 360 and Playstation consoles on November 4. Let's hope we get an Xbox One version next year!

Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures 2

Last year, the CG animated cartoon series Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures debuted on the Disney XD channel. The show finally arrived on Netflix recently, and I must say it's quite a good show for kids. It must be doing pretty well, because Disney renewed it for another season.

Naturally Namco Bandai released an Xbox 360 game based on the Ghostly Adventures last fall, which we previewed from E3. The sequel promises more of the same great 3D platforming and colorful Pac-Man worlds. Think Mario 64-style gameplay, but with Pac-Man and ghosts.

Like the first game, Pac-Man can eat special power pellets to gain unique costumes and powers. One new transformation will transform him into a towering Pac-zilla! And new to this game, players will get to control Pac-'s friends from the show: Cylindria and Spiral. The gang will travel through a variety of stages, including an undersea habitat and outer space.

Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures 2 arrives on Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and Wii U on October 14.

• Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures 2 – Xbox 360 – $39.99 – Amazon Preorder

Coming in 2015

Dragonball Z Xenoverse

This year finally saw the US theatrical debut of Dragonball Z: Battle of the Gods. I caught it and came away totally impressed with the amazingly fast action and reverence for the pre-Dragonball Z era of the series. Next year, Dragonball Z fans can look forward to the most exciting DBZ game in ages.

What sets Xenoverse apart from the thousands of previous Dragonball Z games? Players get to create their own male or female custom characters, choosing from human, Saiyan, Namek, and Majin. You'll play as that character in the all-new story mode, which centers around a hub area called Toki Toki City.

The game is scheduled to feature exploration on top of actual fighting… But there will still be crazy-fast battles for up to four players. Thanks to the power of the new consoles, character faces will express emotion and pain during battle.

There are plenty of Dragonball games in the sea, but this marks the series' first appearance on Xbox One. Xbox 360 players won't have to miss out either, since Xenoverse is coming to previous gen consoles as well.

Tekken 7

If fighting while flying through the air and firing planet-destroying bursts of energy are too fantastical for you, the slightly more grounded Tekken 7 might be more to your liking. The seventh numbered entry in the long-running Tekken series will be powered by Unreal Engine 4, making for better visuals than ever before.

Namco Bandai hasn't revealed much about Tekken 7's actual gameplay, instead focuses on story teases. This entry promises to conclude the "Mishima clan saga" that has evolved throughout past games. Players will learn the mysteries behind elderly antagonist Heihachi's misdeeds, including the murder of his wife.

Tekken 7 is due out on unnamed platforms in 2015. The safe money is on Xbox One will being one of those platforms. We'll have more news in the months to come!

That's all for this preview, loyal readers. Which of Namco Bandai's games are you most excited about?

Grab space shooter 2150 A.D. for free this week thanks to myAppFree. Looking for a fun and serious space game to pass the time? Then there's no excuse not to grab 2150 A.D. now that it is available for free in the Windows Phone Store.

Here's what you get with this constantly updated game for Windows Phone:

• 20+ levels (constantly added)
• 10+ different types of enemy ships. Each enemy ship features unique weapon system, visual design and AI behavior
• 10 different weapons system to choose from (missile, bomb, electromagnetic bomb…)
• Multiple types of missions. Missions have vastly different winning conditions and AI environment
• Customize your vessel with 7 different upgradable vessel modules
• Power-ups and more!

This game comes from developer Lumosoft and is available on Windows Phone 7x, Windows Phone 8 and Windows Phone 8.1. Have you already played the game? Let us know what you think of it! Remember if you enjoy the game, please leave a review for the developer. Positive reviews and ratings help with Store rankings and visibility for devs!

• Download 2150 A.D. for Windows Phone

myAppFree

Windows Phone Central is proud to be partnering up with myAppFree, a free app and service that highlights special deals for software on the Windows Phone Store. Make sure you download their app to keep track of all the specials they run weekly, as you'll never know what you may find.

Windows Phone Central is also highlighting select apps from myAppFree going forward as a benefit to the greater community. Stay tuned.

• Download myAppFree

Box It is a Windows Phone arcade styled puzzle game that has addictive quality and not a shabby way to waste a little time with. The multi-level game has you drawing lines to capture portions of the playing field. It sounds easy but there are evil dots lurking about that will test not only your timing but also your patience.

Box It reminds me of an old arcade game that you'd find at the local Aladdin's Castle or convenience store in the early '80s. It's not a terribly complicated game with a simple gaming concept but just enough challenge about it to keep things interesting.

Available for low-memory devices, Box It has experienced decent success over on iOS and Android platforms and should see similar here on the Windows Phone platform.

Simple Controls, Challenging Game Play

The goal of Box It is to draw lines on the gaming board to capture portions of the playing field. To be successful you have to capture at least 70% of the playing field. The catch is that you have evil dots floating around the game board that will ruin your day if they come into contact with the line as you create your box.

The main menu for Box it offers links to rate the game in the Windows Phone Store, view more games from the developer, visit the game's Facebook and Google+ pages as well as muting the music and viewing the help screens. The help screens walk you through a very basic tutorial (the game doesn't need much more) to show you the mechanics.

Box It has over 350 levels of game play, which progressively becomes more difficult with more evil dots thrown into the mix and obstacles.

Across the top of the gaming screen you will find slow motion buttons (slows the speed of the evil dots), buttons to mute the music and turn off the vibration and your life count (you get three per game). The slow motion buttons have a limited number of uses, so you will need to apply them wisely.

Across the bottom of the game screen is a back button that will return you to the level menu, a reset (or do-over) button, your score and the percentage of the game screen captured.

The dot you control will move along the perimeter of the playing field. When you get an open window to draw a line (no evil dots close by) swipe the screen to move your dot off the perimeter and then swipe the screen left, right, up or down to move your dot as it draws a line that will create a box. Your box is complete once your dot returns to the perimeter and you get to claim that area as captured.

Just don't get too greedy and try to capture too much of the screen at one shot. If one of the evil dots comes into contact with your line before you safely make it back to the perimeter, you'll lose a life.

You do have the ability to box in or capture the dots. This will earn you extra points, take those dots out of play and give you a little breathing room.

Overall Impression

While there isn't much to Box It, the game does have its fair share of challenges. The game is one that requires patience, timing and a quick touch. It may take a few laps around the perimeter of the playing field to find that perfect window of opportunity to make your move.

Box It could use a little more meat on the bone such as more colors for the captured areas or maybe more game modes (timed, multi-player maybe).

As is though, Box It does a good job of things and is fun way to pass the time with.

• Box It - Windows Phone 8 - 8MB - Free - Store Link

Cloud Raiders, the highly popular fantasy action-strategy game from developer Game Insight, got a new update today for the Windows Phone version that adds a feature called Treasure Island, along with more additions and improvements.

Here's a quick change log for the new 0.4.0.420 version:

• Treasure Island - Once a week, a treasure-filled island will drift within raiding range of your base. Smash through the defenses on Treasure Island as fast as possible to win prizes, earn a spot on the leaderboards complete with a replay of your raid, and more!
• Valor PvP Challenge - A new global weekly tournament to prove yourself the best raider in the isles. Visit the Top Players leaderboards to find out more!
• Matchmaking improvements
• Lots of other fixes and improvements

Are you a fan of Cloud Raiders and if so what do you think of this new update? Thanks to nikhil for the tip!

Cloud Raiders – Windows Phone 8 – 84 MB – Free – Store Link

Microsoft is allowing Xbox One owners to pre-load and pre-order the digital versions of Bungie's long awaited sci-fi shooter Destiny before the game is officially released on September 9th.

This will likely be a huge but welcome surprise for gamers who have been waiting to play Destiny but didn't want to bother with buying a physical disc. The digital purchase and pre-load for both the regular version of the game, the Vanguard Amory pre-order incentive, and the special digital edition is already available in Europe, according to our tipster. In the US, the pre-load and pre-ordering is still unavailable on the Xbox One but we would bet it will be going live soon.

Pre-loads mean that Xbox One owners can download most of the game well ahead of its September 9th release date and they will be able to grab the final files on 12:01 am Pacific Time on that day to start playing Destiny right away. Are you excited that the game will be available for digital buyers in this fashion?

Update It looks like Microsoft might have turned the keys on the Destiny digital pre-orders a little early as those links are now no longer available. However, it's likely that this was just a case of the company jumping the gun a bit and that Destiny will officially be available for digital pre-orders soon.

Thanks to Dawid for the tip!

There are basically two German developers we can count on to make great Windows Phone games: Flare Games (makers of Royal Revolt 2) and Handy Games. The latter entered the scene with Epic Battle Dude and Aces of the Luftwaffe, two fine free to play games.

This year, Handy Games finally has more Windows Phone games in store for us. A short while ago they released 1941: Frozen Front, a serious turn-based strategy game. We interviewed them about it at Casual Connect a while back. Today Handy follows up with SPS: Football, a very pretty and fun 2D soccer/football game. Both games are free, 512 MB RAM-compatible, and a whole lot of fun. Don't miss our impressions and hands-on videos!

Super Party Sports: Football

You know what tends to be kinda boring? Physics puzzle games. I mean, there are a million of them. I can count five thousand Angry Birds games alone. Some people still love the genre though. Well, I have finally found a physics game I can love again in the form of SPS: Football.

This is no traditional soccer game. The entire thing takes place in a 2D side-view. You might think that limiting soccer to a horizontal plane would change the rules of the game a bit, and you'd be right. SPS: Football is actually a puzzle game in disguise.

The goal in each level is to get the ball past the opposing team's goalie. But you don't just pass the ball from teammate to teammate. Kicking a ball into an enemy player actually knocks the enemy into pieces. As you knock out the opposing team, you'll charge up a shot that can take the goalie down. Send him down in flames to win the level.

You have a couple of side goals during the level. First, complete it as quickly as possible. The faster you finish, the better trophy rating you'll earn for that level. Fail to beat the level within the time limit and you lose, just like everyone who ever went up against me in a spelling bee. Just kidding, I lost on the word rhytyhm. I mean, rhythm!

Also, every level has coins you can collect by kicking the ball through them. These coins can be spent on new uniforms for your team, pre-game boosts, or continuing when you fail to win a match in time. Players can also choose to buy coins via in-app purchases or turn off the banner ads for $1.99. I recommend doing that because the ads are way too big.

SPS: Football is a surprising good game, but it's not perfect. During my short playtime, the frame rate often stuttered on more complex levels. That shouldn't be happening with a 2D game on a Lumia 1520. But if you can put up with a few performance issues, you'll be hard pressed to find a more charming soccer/football game on Windows Phone. And it's coming to Windows 8 eventually as well!

• SPS: Football – Windows Phone 8 – MB – 40 Free – Store Link

1941: Frozen Front

Just as Aces of the Luftwaffe takes inspiration from World War II, so does 1941: Frozen Front. But this one is a turn-based strategy game, not a shoot-em-up. Units move along a hex grid, exploring maps to remove fog of war, and discovering enemy units hiding on the battlefield.

Players begin each mission with a variety of units: infantry, tanks, artillery, planes, and more. You'll move each unit across the map's hex grid, uncovering the fog of war as you search for the enemy. Each unit gets one attack per turn, so you'll need to consider whether it will survive an attack (the game tells you how much damage both sides will take) before assaulting an enemy unit.

Killing enemies gets you gold which can then be spent on new units, armaments, and refueling existing units. Complete missions skillfully to earn a gold bonus too. Or you can buy gold (and turn off the obnoxiously large ads) as an In-App Purchase. I haven't gotten far enough in the game to tell, but the difficulty must spike eventually. Otherwise, you'd never be tempted to make a purchase. Still, grinding previous missions for gold is always an option.

Frozen Front runs very well, but it's not the flashiest game in the world. The units just slide around the map as they move and attack, never turning to reflect the direction they face. It looks a bit odd, but I guess we play games like this for the strategy, not the sprite work.

On the plus side, the game offers pass-and-play multiplayer to keep you busy between campaign skirmishes. Handy Games hopes to release 1941 on Windows 8 eventually, but couldn't say when it will arrive. For now, grab your phone and help keep the enemy tanks at bay!

• 1941: Frozen Front – Windows Phone 8 – 18 MB – Free – Store Link

You probably have not heard of Neonize, because it's a new game that has just released simultaneously on iOS, Android, and Windows Phone. The good news is that Windows Phone users do not have wait after its release on other platforms. It's pretty good, too. Neonize is a mobile arcade shooter game, which the goal is to survive an onslaught of enemy ships trying to ram into you.

We've installed it on our Nokia Lumia 930. Go watch our gameplay video.

Features

• Fast game sessions for a quick burst of fun and challenging for the experienced player
• 3 Fast Paced Levels, each significantly more challenging than the last
• Easy control scheme with 4 shooting buttons to shoot in all possible enemy directions
• Eye-catching neon light based, geometry inspired art style

Enemy ships attack from four directions in a pattern. In order to survive, memorize the pattern the enemies attack from and shoot them down.

Neonize has 3 levels. Each level has a set number of phases. Enemies attack you one by one in a directional pattern within a phase. After completing a phase, the next phase extends the pattern by one additional enemy. You'll need to memorize the attack patterns because enemies become faster.

Shooting down ships earn you points. You earn combos if you shoot down enemies consecutively to the beat. If done correctly, you fire a green laser beam. The higher combo you have, the more points you earn. It's not as easy as it sounds and it can get very frustrating.

Neonize is a free download from the Windows Phone Store. The free version is supposed to be ad-supported, but we have not seen any ads while playing the game. There's a premium version at the store for $1.99, which says "ad-free" in the description. You can also find Neonize on iOS and Android.

Go download Neonize right now and let us know what you think in the comments!

Age of Wind 3 is an action/adventure game for your Windows Phone that reminds me of a scaled back version of Sid Meier's Pirates! The game has more cartoonish graphics, lacks some of the side games (sword play, dancing, land battles, etc.) than Pirates! but the gaming concept comes close.

With Age of Wind 3 you sail the Caribbean traveling to over 35 ports of call, take on hundreds of quests, buy and trade goods, recruit sailors, build up your fleet and, as you would guess, battle pirates. Age of Wind 3 also includes Facebook integration where you can battle your Facebook friends on the high seas.

Available for low-memory devices, Age of Wind 3 is an entertaining gaming title for your Windows Phone. It is a nice option to consider when you need a little help passing the time or when you are in the mood for a more lengthier gaming session.

Hitting the High Seas

Age of Wind 3 lacks a traditional main menu but instead, when you first launch the game, takes you to a series of tutorials that cover ship combat, general movement and what you can expect at each port. Beyond that, the game follows a "learn as you go" approach.

You will have a small collection of colorful characters popping in from time to time to share information on a mission or new gaming aspect but otherwise, the game lacks a dedicated help section.

The general premise of the game has you sailing around the Caribbean in search of treasure, a good fight here and there, as well as buying/selling goods. There are hundreds of missions or quests you can pursue that range from defeating a notorious pirate to finding buried treasure.

As you play Age of Wind 3, you will need to upgrade your ships whenever possible and make sure you have plenty of rum on board. You see your crew survives on rum (a strict liquid diet) and when you run out, don't be surprised if the crew abandons ship.

There is a good bit of gaming involved with Age of Wind 3 and it may be best to cover it all by covering the three main gaming screens.

Navigational Screen

Age of Wind 3's navigational map is where, as you would guess, you plot your course and send your ship sailing. The layout of the screen has your crew and rum numbers in the upper left corner of the screen, your experience top center and your gold and trophy count in the upper right corner.

A settings cog sits in the lower left with a ships wheel located in the lower right. Settings cover sound/music on or off, language, choosing the detail of the water and choosing the Windows Phone accelerometer during battles. The ship's wheel has four options scattered across its spokes that includes:

• Abilities: These are your gaming abilities that can be upgraded as you gain experience. They include such attributes as maneuverability of your ships, gun recharge time, critical hit chances and more.
• Fleet: Here you can view your fleet of ships. Age of Winds will let you control up to three ships, which will give your cargo capacity a nice boost, and help you take on the stronger pirate fleets.
• Map: While the navigation screen will map out your general vicinity, the map view will give you a full view of the Caribbean and let you target an area to navigate to. Any available quests will be marked with an exclamation mark on the big map.
• Quests: At the center of the ship's wheel you will see a scroll with a number on it. This will take you to your active quest list.

Movement on the navigation screen is easy. You can plot a course on the big map and a dotted line will appear on the navigational screen. You can also tap anywhere on the screen create a line to follow. Regardless how the line is created, tap on the screen once to mark where you want your ship to go and tap that point a second time to send your ship on its way.

Scattered about the navigational screen are pirate ship strongholds and buried treasure markers. You also run the risk of being ambushed by pirates as you move from point A to point B. Pirate fights include battles where it is just your fleet against the pirates or where you are helping other fleets defeat the pirates. Completing quests, battling pirates or finding buried treasure will earn you gold, trophy points and experience. All of which can be used to upgrade your fleet, buy rum or stock up on cargo to sell for profit.

Ship Battles

The layout of the ship battle screen has your crew and cargo count in the upper left corner, your experience in the center and a pause button in the upper right corner. Your ships damage meter is displayed beneath each ship. Friendly ships will have a yellow health meter and a yellow marker will indicate their position off screen. Enemy ships are marked in red.

You control your ships steering with two directional arrows are in the lower left corner and your cannon fire buttons sit in the lower right corner. If you prefer to control your ship with your Windows Phone accelerometer, you can change the controls in the game's settings. I found the directional arrows worked best but be careful as you press the left arrow, your finger may stray to high on the screen and activate your notifications center.

In combat, you control the strongest of your ships. If your fleet has more than one ship, the other ships sail seem to do their own thing during combat. Should your strongest ship go down in battle, you'll take control of the next strongest ship in your fleet.

The canon range is highlighted on either side of the ship and as the enemy ships come into range, you tap the cannon button to let loose your cannons. You also have bonus weapons you can use that range from exploding barrels to summoning sea creatures. These special weapons will cost you trophy points.

As ships are destroyed cargo will float in the water for a short time. Some of the cargo items are health points and some are booby traps (flashing red boxes). To collect the abandoned cargo or health points, just sail your ship over those boxes.

While the combat controls are simple, movement can be a little sluggish. Then again, these ships couldn't turn on a dime in real life so why should we expect them to do so in a video game. The biggest downside to the combat screen is there lacks a reload meter. For the most part you have to keep pressing the fire button in hopes that your crew has reloaded the guns.

Some battles can be won by going toe to toe with an enemy ship while others you may have to hit and run to survive. Be careful and avoid running your ship aground during battle and some battle grounds have forts close by that will unleash their cannons on you.

Port of Call

While sailing around the Caribbean has its high points, you will need to set anchor and visit the 35+ ports on the map. Here you can buy/sell cargo, replenish your rum, recruit more sailors, upgrade your ships and get clues that will help you complete your quests.

The port screen has your experience, crew count, rum count, gold and trophy count displayed across the top of the screen. The various stops in each port are labeled (some graphic glitches were present) and to visit an area, just tap on the label. The four areas you can visit at each port include:

• Shipyard: Here is where you build new ships for your fleet.
• Market: Buy and sell cargo for profit as well as buy rum to keep your crew happy.
• Tavern: Here is where you recruit new crew members, play a mini-game and challenge your Facebook friends.
• Set Sails: Head back to the dock, board your ship and hit the high seas.

In the bottom right corner is a ships wheel that includes the abilities menu you find on the navigational screen, quest list and your ship upgrade menu. If you have a fleet of ships, you'll need to swipe down the ship row to upgrade each ship.

If there is a clue to a quest present in the port you are visiting, an exclamation mark will be present and when tapped, a dialog series will start detailing clues, hints or directions on how to complete the quest.

Overall Impression

While there is a lot to Age of Wind 3, it isn't a very difficult game to pick up on. The graphics are nice and game play challenging. You also have plenty of pirates to battle and quests to solve which gives Age of Wind 3 a good bit of staying power. I would have liked to have seen the game have the ability to swear allegiance to a country or run your ships under a pirates flag, giving the game a bit of a personal touch.

The only downsides to the game is the lack of a dedicated help section, a few graphic glitches and the lack of a reload meter on the battle screen. Neither are detrimental and Age of Wind 3 isn't a difficult game to figure out. It may take a few turns at the game but not difficult.

Keep in mind this doesn't mean the game is without challenge. As you move up in experience, the ship battles can be tough to survive.

All in all, if you are looking for an action/adventure game to keep your hands full for a while, Age of Wind 3 is worth checking out. The game receives 4.5 stars in the Windows Phone Store and in playing Age of Wind 3 over the past few days, we won't argue with that rating.

• Age of Wind 3 - Windows Phone 8 - 69MB - Free - Store Link

After enduring a small release drought over the last couple of months, the floodgates of new Xbox One games have finally opened back up. Last week we got Diablo III: Ultimate Evil Edition at retail and two indie games: The Golf Club and surprise hit Fibbage to download. This week, Metro Redux Bundle hits retail while another ID@Xbox game makes its downloadable debut: Stick it to the Man from Swedish developer Zoink! Games and Ripstone Publishing (Pure Pool).

Stick it to the Man is a 2.5D platformer with clever visuals that often appear to be made out of paper. A surprisingly witty and story heavy game, players take on the role of a hapless guy who gets infested with an alien parasite. The parasite causes a giant stretchy arm to grow from his head, which can be used to swing from objects and read other characters' minds. Can your Xbox One handle such a weird and creative little game? Let our impressions and hands-on video help you decide!

It's raining little green men

While Stick it to the Man is technically a puzzle platformer, it also qualifies as an adventure game thanks to a heavy helping of story.

One day "average Joe" Ray Doewood is walking home from his job as a hard hat tester when a mysterious canister falls from the sky and knocks him into a coma. The canister unleashes a parasite that quickly makes its home in Ray, giving him strange and fantastic powers. Meanwhile, the shadowy governmental organization that lost the parasite (run by THE MAN) will stop at nothing to get it back.

The whole thing is fully voiced and endearingly silly. Characters often reference how their world is made of paper, and Ray even respawns from color copy machines when he dies. The game would have worked even without the paper world setting, but that flourish makes the game so much more vibrant and unique.

Stretch Armstrong

Now that Ray has a funky glowing arm stretching out of his head (which nobody else can see), he'll have to learn to use it. At its most basic, the arm can grapple onto pushpins and pull our hero up onto new platforms. Soon Ray learns to use the arm to pull on tears in the background, revealing new areas behind them. And naturally the arm can pick up objects and use them on other objects.

The arm's most unique power, though, has to be reading people's minds. Ray can attach his new appendage to the brains of anyone he meets (even dead people!), hearing their innermost thoughts and desires. These exchanges are often quite funny, but they also serve a purpose. Many of the game's puzzles revolve around helping people based on the contents of their noggins. Ray can even make enemies see things that aren't there so that he can sneak past them.

The arm mechanics remind me a little of fellow Xbox One platformer Max: The Curse of Brotherhood. Both games involve remotely interacting with different parts of the environment. That said, aiming the arm in Stick it to the Man doesn't seem as intuitive as the aiming in Max. When you have multiple objects close together, it's tough to pick just the one you want. Hopefully it becomes easier with practice.

The Achievements should be pretty easy, by the way. They all involve reading minds or avoiding specific dangers. Don't worry about missing those dangers. The game is broken up into ten chapters, which you can replay at will.

Sticking it to You-know-who

Stick it to the Man is a relatively short game (5-6 hours), not unlike fellow artistic platformer Contrast. But this one rings up at ten bucks, making the brevity much easier to swallow. For that price you'll get to experience a striking cartoon world, a strange and silly story, and plenty of platforming and puzzle solving. Plus you get to stick it to the man. That guy pretty much has it coming.

• Stick it to the Man – Xbox One – 1.8 GB – $9.99 – Xbox.com Link

Microsoft will give Xbox 360 owners two free games in September via its Games for Gold program while the Xbox One will get one free game during that same month.

From September 1-15, Xbox 360 owners who are signed up for the paid Xbox Live Gold service can download Monaco: What's Yours Is Mine. It's descibed as a "team-based, top-down, stealth-puzzle game featuring retro-style graphics and a really interesting plot." From September 16-30, the Xbox 360 gets Halo: Reach for free. It's the final game in the Halo first person shooter series that was developed by Bungie. Their latest game, Destiny, will be released for the Xbox 360 and Xbox One on September 9.

Speaking of the Xbox One, owners with Xbox Live Gold will be able to download Super Time Force during the entire month of September for free. It's a retro-looking side scroller shooter that has a cool "time-reverse" feature that not only lets players try again but also has them fight alongside their previous "ghost". In addition, Crimson Dragon, which is already available as a free download for the Xbox One, will stay free during the month of September.

What do you think of the selection of games for Games for Gold in September?

Source: Xbox Wire

Pinball FX2, the virtual pinball game from developer Zen Studios, had added a new paid table to its library of virtual pinball machines for the Xbox One and Xbox 360 game consoles, and this one is based on the mega-hit Walking Dead zombie franchise.

This particular Walking Dead table is not based directly on the comic book or the hit AMC series but rather the recent first season of the adventure game developed by Telltale Games. Zen Studios says:

"With recognizable locations from Clementine's treehouse and Everett's pharmacy in Macon down to the walker-infested streets of Savannah, players will find a breathtaking retelling of Season One that keeps the peril and drama of Lee and Clementine's story intact."

Unfortunately, people who own both the Xbox 360 and Xbox One consoles won't be able to transfer their Walking Dead table purchase from the Xbox 360 port of Pinball FX 2 to the recent launched Xbox One version yet. Zen Studios says, "We are continuing to work with Microsoft in regards to how new tables will transfer from Xbox 360 to Xbox One, but no decision has been finalized at this point. If we can make it happen, the imports/transfers would go from Xbox 360 to Xbox One only, as we are doing now with legacy content. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause."

What do you think of the addition of the Walking Dead table for Pinball FX 2?

Source: Zen Studios

Angry Birds Go! for Windows Phone has just been updated. Today's update brings a new multiplayer mode, new challenges and more to this free game for Windows Phone. Today's update however does NOT introduce 512 MB support.

Head to the Windows Phone Store and you'll see Angry Birds Go! sitting at version 1.4.0.0. Here's what you get with the new update today:

• It's here! Multiplayer racing has arrived on Piggy Island! Race against other players from around the world to be the fastest bird or piggy on the track!
• NEW MULTIPLAYER! Race other players from around the world, or connect to Facebook to race your own friends!
• NEW CHALLENGES! Boast about your super-speedy times and challenge others to be faster than you!

Angry Birds Go! is a free game with in-app purchases for Windows Phone. It's probably one of the most popular kart racing games in the Windows Phone Store and it's only going to get more popular with the new multiplayer support and additional challenges. You still need at least 1 GB of RAM to play the game, but we'll let you know if and when it ever gains 512 MB support.

Favorite kart in this game?

• Download Angry Birds Go! for Windows Phone

Thanks for the tip Jerry and Rufflaxx BPte!

There isn't much to the Windows Phone game Candy Bird. You are tasked with keeping your bird in flight for as long as possible, collecting candy that will randomly appear on the screen. Along the way you will also need to avoid spikes that are at the bottom and sides of the screen that will ground your bird and end the game.

Available for low-memory devices, Candy Bird has simple gaming controls and nice, minimalistic graphics. After spending a little time with the game, we can't say CandyBird will hold up to marathon gaming sessions but for shorter bits of time, Candy Bird isn't a bad time waster of a game.

Minimal Menu and Challenging Game Play

Candy Bird has a simple, no nonsense menu with options to visit the gaming store, rate the game in the Windows Phone Store and launch game play. The gaming store has a few additional bird styles that can be purchased with the candy you collect during game play.

The game lacks a help section but it will not take you long to figure out Candy Bird's controls. Once you tap the 'Tap To Start' link, you are sent directly to game play. The gaming screen has your bird at the top of the screen, spikes lining the bottom of the screen and spikes rotating in on the sides of the screen.

Tapping the screen will keep your bird flying and as soon as you jump into game play, you will need to start tapping immediately or your bird will fall to the ground. When you tap the start link on the main menu, you jump directly into game play.

The bird seems to fly in one direction, bounce off the side of the gaming screen and then head in the opposite direction. You will need to time your taps accordingly to control the birds elevation and avoid the side spikes as it bounces off the sides of the screen.

The goal is to keep your bird in flight for as long as possible and collect as much candy as possible. There are dark gems that will appear that you'll need to avoid and when you reach scores of 50 and 100 you get to visit bird heaven where you can collect extra candies without the danger of spikes.

Overall Impression

Candy Bird is another simple game in the Windows Phone Store worth considering when you are in the mood for an uncomplicated game to help you pass the time.

The game concept is simple but I wish the mechanics offered more control. As is, the game will test your sense of timing but I would have liked to have seen the Windows Phone tilt sensors control the bird's horizontal flight while tapping controlled the vertical aspects. The automatic side to side flight of the bird seems to lend itself to disaster but does add to the game's challenge.

While a relatively new gaming title, Candy Bird does get a five-star rating in the Windows Phone Store. Overall, while we would probably rate the game slightly lower, we see Candy Bird as a nice gaming option to pass the time with.

• Candy Bird - Windows Phone 8 - 2MB - Free - Store Link

The last update to Subway Surfers brought you to Hollywood. The latest update, version 1.28, brings you somewhere new again. This time, you're helping Jake, Tricky, and Fresh escape from the grumpy inspector and his dog in mystical China. If you're a big Subway Surfers fan, head over to the Windows Phone Store right now and download the update.

Subway Surfers version 1.28 features:

• Follow the Subway Surfers World Tour to mystical China
• Pace through the Subway of Beijing with acrobatic Sun
• Add powerful Board Upgrades to selected boards
• Reach for the challenging new Coin Cautious Awards
• Search the tracks for hidden dragons to unlock weekly prizes

Subway Surfers is a free download from the Windows Phone Store. Don't forget, it also supports devices with 512 MB RAM. Check out the new update and let us know what you think in the comments!

Thanks for the tip, ttanay1, and everyone else!

The Xbox One launched with an exclusive game called Dead Rising 3 that, statistically speaking, contains all of the zombies. That game is all about putting hundreds of zombies on-screen at once and then letting players drive cars through them. Plus you can play dress up! It's not the most serious zombie game in the world.

Next year though, the zombie fighting on Xbox One is going to get deadly serious. Today Microsoft and developer Undead Labs announced that Xbox 360 fan-favorite survival fantasy game State of Decay will be coming to Xbox One in 2015! The new edition will include new and improved 1080p visuals, all previous DLC, and brand new content as well. State of Decay: Year One Survivor Edition will be anything but decayed.

Fighting off the zombie hordes

State of Decay was originally released as an XBLA game in June 2013, where it went on to become one of the best-selling XBLA games of all time. If you haven't played the game, prepare for a fairly realistic depiction of human life after a zombie apocalypse. We're talking about a third-person action game with RPG and strategy elements, a combination which makes for a deep and challenging experience.

Step outside into State of Decay's world and you'll find that hordes of zombies roam the streets. You'll have to evade and/or kill them as you work to gather supplies and rescue fellow survivors. These survivors will join your crew and either help you going out scavenging or stay at home and defend your base.

As the player, you'll have to carefully choose how much time you spend outside of the base and how much time you spend at home, fortifying against the countless zombies plaguing the area. Spend too much time away and your base not be strong enough to keep its inhabitants safe. But if you don't go out and look for supplies, you'll run short of food, medicine, ammo, and other materials necessary for survival.

Meanwhile, the team you take out scavenging can fall prey to zombies all too easily. You might enter a house looking for food and find that one of your partners has gotten overwhelmed. You'll want to help them develop their skills as fighters, but don't get too attached.

Another big difference between State of Decay and Dead Rising is that State of Decay has a more grounded story. It follows the player's attempts to meet up with the military who are fighting the zombie hordes. But the military might have another agenda besides simply rescuing civilians… And the story only advances when you complete specific objectives, so you're free to focus on survival if you prefer.

Year One Survivor Edition

The upcoming Xbox One version of State of Decay promises a number of improvements.

Whereas the Xbox 360 version always suffered from performance issues and bugs, the Xbox One version will (presumably) run much smoother. We know the visuals have been upgraded to 1080p, the character animations have been enhanced, and new graphical effects have been added. Let's hope the team at Undead Labs can get the frame rate up to 60 frames per second, too!

Both of the previously released DLC packs, "Breakdown" and "Lifeline" will be included in the new edition. Breakdown adds a true sandbox mode with no ending. Players simply try to last as long as they can, while optionally searching for an RV that will trigger an increase in the overall difficulty. As for Lifeline, it lets players manage a military base that gets besieged by increasingly dangerous zombie raids.

The Year One Survivor Edition will also include new content, including new mission types. Undead Labs promises to reveal more details about the new content as the game's spring 2015 release date approaches. That's a long wait, but you can always try the Xbox 360 or Steam versions in the meantime.

• State of Decay – Xbox 360 – 1.81 GB – $19.99 – Xbox.com Link

Earlier today, Microsoft announced that zombie survival game State of Decay will be coming to Xbox One in 2015 as State of Decay: Year One Survivor Edition. Based on the quality of the original Xbox 360 version, that game should be the ultimate survival fantasy game when it arrives on Microsoft's latest console. Or so I'd have thought…

As it turns out, 505 Games (publishers of Sniper Elite III) have also just announced an Xbox One zombie game called How to Survive: Storm Warning Edition. With a mix of survival elements, humor, and co-op gameplay, How to Survive should be able to carve its own niche when it arrives this fall. Meanwhile, Polish developer Techland and Warner Bros. are preparing a first-person open-world zombie game called Dying Light for both Xbox One and 360 to be released in early 2015. Read on for impressions and trailers!

How to Survive: Storm Warning Edition

Like State of Decay, How to Survive originated as an XBLA game. This one launched in October of last year, right around the time that everyone was gearing up for the new console launches. As such, it flew under a lot of gamers' radars, including mine. And that's a shame, because it actually looks really cool.

You play as one of three survivors who has become stranded on a zombie-infested island. Like the average person, they have little idea of how to handle the situation on their own. Luckily, an eccentric survival nut has created a "How to Survive" guide for just such an emergency. You'll hunt down the pages of the guide, which contains useful (and funny) words to live by.

How to Survive takes place from an overhead view and controls like a twin-stick shooter. But it's still a survival game like State of Decay. Your character has three basic needs: food, water, and sleep that must be met in order to stay alive and kicking. You'll have to hunt animals for food, gather water from wells, and find safe places to rest as you navigate the island's perils.

Besides exploring, foraging, and zombie killing, you'll also have to complete RPG-style quests for fellow survivors. Completing these quests, as well as fighting enemies and crafting unique objects, gains EXP for your character. Use it to purchase upgrades for a skill tree, personalizing your character while gaining useful benefits like a reduced need for sleep.

Best of all, How to Survive has that one major element that State of Decay (as far as we know) lacks: cooperative multiplayer! Two players can team up on one system or online in order to face the zombie island together. Since each character has his or her own strengths and abilities, you'll be able to complement your partner and hopefully keep each other safe.

The Xbox One version of How to Survive naturally includes a few improvements over last year's release. No word on graphical enhancements (though a 1080p resolution is likely), but the developers promise new maps, characters, modes, weapons and survival tips. And the Storm Warning Edition will include an arsenal of content that was previously sold as DLC:

• Heat Wave DLC to equip the 3 original playable characters with fireproof suits and teach them the ability to craft incendiary ammo.
• Kovac's way DLC, which introduces an additional difficulty level to the game with new and demanding gameplay conditions.
• Hello, My name is Nina DLC. Presenting an additional character with the ability to craft flamethrowers and advanced chainsaws.
• "El Diablo" Islands DLC where players will discover new islands, meet new characters and face unpredictable threats.
• One Shot Escape DLC. Allowing players to roam the islands on a highly randomized scenario trying to find and repair an escape vehicle.
• Barricade! DLC. Introduces a new game mode where players will try to protect survivors as long as they can, setting traps and barricades.

It sounds like How to Survive will be less serious and more fast-paced than State of Decay. In any case, it will help keep us all busy as we wait for State of Decay (and Dying Light) to come along in 2015. How to Survive: Storm Warning Edition comes to Xbox One and Playstation 4 this fall.

Dying Light – February 2015

Whereas State of Decay has a third-person behind-the-back view and How to Survive uses an overhead view, Dying Light mixes things up by taking place in first-person. No surprise since developer Techland also made the Dead Island series. But Dying Light focuses much more on speed and mobility, to the point that it almost looks like a zombie-themed take on Mirror's Edge.

Players will have to navigate in a zombie-infested city. The zombies are suitably slow, but they become much more dangerous in numbers. Avoiding them seems to be surprisingly natural and intuitive thanks to your character's parkour-like skills. You can run, jump, and climb things with ease, using the rooftops to get around safely while armies of the undead congregate below. It looks great in motion.

Still, sometimes fighting will be the only way to survive. Dying Light favors melee combat over ranged combat, allowing players to wield over 100 different weapons against the zombies. Those zombies come apart and splatter in a truly visceral and thrilling way when struck with wrenches and other objects. Players will also be able to pull off a number of melee moves, such as jumping over one zombie and kicking another as you land, grappling and throwing an enemy out of a window, or snapping an unsuspecting zombie's neck.

Dying Light is an open-world game, so players have plenty of freedom to explore. It also incorporates a day-and-night cycle. During the daytime, you can focus on completing quests and finding useful crafting materials. But at night, zombies actually transform, becoming faster and gaining the ability to jump and climb to chase hapless humans. You'll have to play more stealthily and use an infrared-like feature called "Night Sense" during the night cycle if you want to see the sunrise.

Being a much larger and more graphically intensive game than How to Survive, Dying Light won't offer local multiplayer. But it does promise 4-player online co-op, which should be even more exciting. Dead Island worked really well in co-op, and I'm sure Dying Light will as well. You'll want somebody watching your back when the sun starts to go down!

Dying Light is due out on Xbox One and 360, Playstation consoles, and PC in February 2015.

• Dying Light – Xbox One – $59.99 – Amazon preorder
• Dying Light – Xbox 360 – $49.99 – Amazon preorder

Zombies games on the rise

Let's count: How to Survive and Telltale's The Walking Dead are on their way to Xbox One this year, with Dying Light, State of Decay, and Dead Island 2 coming next year.

Still, I wouldn't say that we're going to be overrun with zombie games on Xbox One just yet. The zombie apocalypse is just an enduring setting that allows for a variety of different interpretations. All of the games I just mentioned (plus Dead Rising 3) differ in significant ways, with widely varying game mechanics, survival elements, multiplayer features, and tones.

What do you guys think of How to Survive and Dying Light? Will you get one or both of these games, or hold out for State of Decay?