Punch Quest: Raising (and Punching) The Bar

Not too long ago I heard about a game called Punch Quest which reminded me of the very good (and very free) Jetpack Joyride. Now months later, Punch Quest has hit the iOS App Store and has become one of the most addicting iPhone games I've played all year. Coincidentally, it's the first game I've really put through the paces on my iPhone 5, and the pair is insanely fast, clear, and colorful. In the midst of Hurricane Sandy, with internet service coming and going, and power threatening to shut down at any given moment, Punch Quest was a boon to my fingertips, helping me to avoid boredom.

Punch Quest is very simple really, you run endlessly and you have two buttons controlling your highly customizable avatar. Left button jumps and uppercuts, useful for platforming and attacking, right causes you to dash ahead and simultaneously throw a straight punch. As you further yourself along the game you gain increasing amounts of Punchos (in-game currency, great name for a cereal) to purchase and unlock loot (in-app purchases to buy more currency) and upgrades, both cosmetic and functional. Once I started unlocking more advanced techniques and learning what the ever-advancing stage was throwing at me - including multiple paths - I realized how complex this little game actually is. Once you begin perfectly stringing together 80+ hit combos while avoiding enemy attacks and pitfalls, it becomes more hardcore twitch platformer a la Super Meat Boy than casual Temple Run-and-jump, without alienating either fanbase.

+ Hardcore twitch-reflex action while remaining casual friendly
+ Tons of customization options (both cosmetic and functional)
+ Insanely addictive
+ iPhone 5 support (both portrait and landscape)
+ Free

I'm really struggling trying to think of some negative things to say about Punch Quest, but the reality is that there is little to nothing wrong with this rewarding, addictive, free and just plain enjoyable mobile title. RocketCat Games has taken the endless runner genre and has meticulously elevated it to the next level. The bar has been raised, iOS developers better start bringing the heat on their next sidescrolling runner (I'm looking at you Super Meat Boy iOS).

The Score: 9 outta 10 Blasters!

Let's See Siri Try This: Scribblenauts Remix for iOS

If you own a Nintendo DS and have never played either of the Scribblenauts titles, shame on you. The premise is simple: you're tasked to clear a challenge with nothing but the English language to aid you. Need to cross a large gap? Type bridge, and voila. Attacked by a zombie? Type sword, problem solved. The real fun lies in getting creative with your solutions. The dictionary is expansive, so most anything you type will appear. Dinosaurs, robots, businessmen, jet packs, basketballs, Draculas, even a Keyboard Cat. The dictionary is your weapon, use it to great hilarity. 

This ain't no review. But this is. iPhone gaming hub Touch Arcade has raved about Scribblenauts Remix in their write-up, calling it a greatest hits of the Scribblenauts series, optimized for iOS. Or something along those lines. I believe them, yo. After mucking around with the DS version to side-splitting results, I can't wait to download Remix. At a $5 buy in, this shouldn't be missed by fans of problem solving, Mad Libs, and plain stupidity.

REVIEW: Game Dev Story

We're all game enthusiasts here. We play, we watch, we read and write about, and then we play some more. Given the opportunity to develop a game, do you think you could? If you had the skills, knew the people, and was driven by a sense of entrepreneurship, would you create a game development studio? There's no need for could have and would have anymore, with Game Dev Story, now you can do just that. 

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Jailbreaking Your iPhone: Easy, Fun, Legal

Jailbreaking: the art of unlocking your iPhone to run programs that are not approved by Apple's app store. In the past, I would have never discussed a sensitive topic such as jailbreaking. Why?

• Reason numero uno: Apple is fucking crazy in the head. Did you hear what they did to that poor Gizmodo editor who got his hands on the iPhone 4.0 prototype? 
• Reason numero dos: jailbreaking is (or should I say was) a worry-inducing process, in which you could lose all your information, or possibly even brick your phone
• Reason numero tres: jailbreaking is (or should I say was) illegal! Apple's got the Million Dollar Dream on everything they do, meaning fucking with them is a quick path to getting your shit deaded. I try to keep a low profile, ya know, cuz I got warrants!

But now, everything has changed. Last week, a ruling from the Library of Congress deemed jailbreaking the iPhone does not violate copyright laws. Fuck yeah! This makes me want to turn a new leaf in life. I will hereby make good on all of my outstanding warrants (that don't require me to pay more than $100 in fees.) It's a start, right? 

To accompany the excellent news that the law is finally working in our favor, a new tool has been released that makes jailbreaking your phone as easy as pointing mobile safari to http://jailbreakme.com. Swipe your finger, and a minute later, voila! Your phone is now installed with Cydia, the black market App store that Apple doesn't want you to know about. And the best part is that this little maneuver works on all device and OS combinations. 3G, 4.0, GS, iPad, no problemo; http://jailbreakme.com, swipe, done. 

There are sooooo many excellent and useful apps that can only be had on a jailbroken iPhone, because Apple is too tight-ass to relinquish their death grip on what can enter and exit the app store, which a lot of times are really innovative and handy user-created programs. So in essence, jailbreaking turns your iPhone into a open source device, similar to what Android handsets are. Fully customizable, the user experience designed the way the user wants it to be.

Now, go forth. Jailbreak. Make your phone more enjoyable. If you need a head start on some handy jailbroken apps, check this out.