D.A.R.KPosted in Utilities on 20 Sep 2011
  (4 votes, average: 4.25 out of 5)  Loading ... |
 |
D.A.R.K. is a darkly imagined, outer space horror themed dual stick shooter from Chillingo. It°Øs fashioned as a super-soldiers vs. aliens mystery thrill ride in 3D.
As a member of the D.A.R.K. Squadron, the player finds himself on a mission to unravel the events leading up to the current condition of the USS Stormbringer, an enormous military spacecraft. The D.A.R.K. Squadron is a military unit?think outerspace version of the Marines, or maybe Special Forces. Serious tough guys encased in serious armour and packing serious heat. Which is a good thing, because the crew of the USS Stormbringer might be gone(ish), but it°Øs definitely not empty. The Stormbringer is inhabited by zombies, monstrous alien life forms, and malicious mechanical spider-like things. Getting out in one piece is as vital as getting the down low on what went down, and this game supplies plenty of action.
The controls are quite simple. Steering the character via touchscreen couldn°Øt really be any easier, with the top-down angle of the view and the narrow corridors. Combat controls are also simplistic and intuitive. You°Øre basically just mowing down enemies; it°Øs experience and survival that boost the character during leveling. Proficiency with individual weapons also levels up as you progress, giving more oomph to your firepower.
The game°Øs not exactly a gamechanger?we°Øve seen games of this type in the genre before. What it is, however, is a well-executed example of the type with graphics that pop and attitude to spare°¶ And more action to come. Because D.A.R.K. is only the beginning of this ride?episode two is supposedly on the way as a free update. It°Øs a visually rich game, and if you like having a horror element thrown in with your shoot °Æem up space epics, D.A.R.K. is a great choice.
Visually, the game is impressive. The top down view is gorgeously executed and crisp. The close ups for cut scenes can be a little shaky, but that°Øs to be expected?it would be nice to see that cleaned up for the next episode though. The game has a nice gritty post-apocalyptic feel to it. The audio is fantastic, with separate themes for combat engagement and travelling which is a nice touch. Overall, D.A.R.K. presents excellent material in a great way, which adds a lot to the game°Øs playability factor.
D.A.R.K. sells for $2.99 on iTunes, and if the future episode is as good as this one, that°Øs an incredible deal. As it stands, though, $2.99 is still a great price for a game of this caliber. It°Øs compatible with iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad (iOS 4.0 and up).
D.A.R.K. is a darkly imagined, outer space horror themed dual stick shooter from Chillingo. It’s fashioned as a super-soldiers vs. aliens mystery thrill ride in 3D. Read the rest of this entry » |
 Written by Allison Wahl |
Rococo’s Proximity Effect (4 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5) Loading ... |
 |
In a world where virtual and physical worlds are becoming indistinguishable, proximity is the name of the game. And it is also the focus of Rococo, an up-and-coming software developer. While they themselves do not have smartphone applications, you can expect to see their services everywhere in the near future, from games to social networking apps to location-based marketing tools. Using bluetooth, Rococo enables links phones to identities. For apps, this means that simply the presence of a person’s phone will signal his or her presence without any added steps or check-ins. Their primary platform, LocalSocial, will be of particular interest as it will not only facilitate the capabilities of a range of social media and LBS apps, but it will also present infinitely more proximity-based social opportunities for a wide variety of other apps and scenarios as well. For instance, checking-in at places or for events will become instantaneous, business owners will be able to better target potential and loyal customers, social networking agents will be enhanced, and gaming platforms will benefit from knowing more about who and where their players are. Read the rest of this entry » |
|
Written by Allison Wahl |
A CardStar is Born (10 votes, average: 4.10 out of 5) Loading ... |
|
 |
Love the benefit of reward, loyalty, and membership cards but hate having to lug them around with you everywhere you go (or worse, being caught without one when you need it)? With CardStar on your iPhone, this conundrum is cured. CardStar enables you to enter all card information for regional and national merchants, including but not limited to grocery stores, gyms, pharmacies and specialty stores, so that you can access all your frequents through the app with one click. Furthermore, you can check in with Foursquare integration, access Groupons, and take advantage of save-to-card grocery coupons from Zavers, and use the app to discover even more deals and promotions from your various merchants of interest. Finally, CardStar makes accessing your favorite locations even easier by providing you with merchant and contact information as well as store locators. Get rid of the plastic but not the rewards; CardStar makes loyalty even better. |
|
Written by Allison Wahl |
Apps for the Best DPG (Dollar Per Gallon) (8 votes, average: 3.38 out of 5) Loading ... |
I’ve written about apps that help keep the MPG down and offer greener alternatives to fuel consumption, albeit from an environmental standpoint. Let’s face it though: gas prices are through the roof, and they’re only getting worse. So, it’s time to get eco-friendly — economically friendly that is. Even if you can’t spare your gas consumption and you can’t help your mileage, there are apps that can help you maximize your dollar. Here are some of the best tools, and best of all, they’re all free: Read the rest of this entry »
|
Written by Allison Wahl |
Remote Control (14 votes, average: 3.21 out of 5) Loading ... |
We all know that the iPhone can do an infinite number of things, and now it’s time to add remote to that list. While the App Store is featuring a number apps that turn your device into a remote for everything from ZipCar to Keynote, I think it is very interesting to see how many of these apps are also targeting the entertainment domain. With certain apps, traditional TV remotes become obsolete (no need to worry about losing the clicker in the couch!) and the iPhone becomes your entertainment center, assuming all control capabilities and more. Here’s a look at two of the leading cable services that have handed the remote to the iPhone (and iPad): Read the rest of this entry »
|
Written by Allison Wahl |
Superstash: Super Internet for the iPad (10 votes, average: 4.30 out of 5) Loading ... |
|
 |
With so many things out there on the world wide web, how do you choose what web pages and images to focus on? What is also the greatest thing about the internet is also incredibly frustrating — namely that you can access everything (but there is only so much time in the day). Well, if you come across something that piques your interest, don’t worry about forgetting to revisit it or trying to archive it for later. Superstash is an enhanced web browser for the iPad which enables you to quickly and easily snap screen shots of any page on the web, add notes and comments, and file it away for later usage. You can also share your findings with friends through e-mail, edit the image by cropping or adding intelligent meta-data (such as tags, ratings, scribbles), and store it in the app’s built-in library, which you can organize with folders. Furthermore, Superstash contains a companion website that links you to interesting and creative sites, sorted by category, so you can surf, discover, and draw inspiration from the endless resources that exist on the web. Superstash will not only give you a certain peace of mind while perusing everything in cyberspace, it enables a much more engaging and efficient experience of the internet. |
 Written by Sungtae Park |
iDisplay 1.3(New Version) – Hotter, Better, Faster, Stronger (14 votes, average: 4.57 out of 5) Loading ... |
|
 |
…and works for both Mac AND PC. The only app which supports Windows 7 Aero. We live in the age of – Multi-Tasking. Thanks to the technology such as computers, anybody now has the ability to get a million things done at the same time on a single screen. Take an example of an average high school kid. On a single computer screen, he/she chats on AIM/facebook, goes on facebook, listens to music, surfs the web, talks on Skype, checks e-mail, writes an essay, blah. And it all works out-somehow – amazing. But doing all that on a small, limited computer screen could be inefficient and frustrating. Then, everybody wondered whether there could be a way to increase the viewable area. Then comes the iDisplay. Read the rest of this entry » |
