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Trials Franchise Hits Apple TV as Trials Frontier, Requires Controller

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Boiled down to its essential elements, Redlynx’s Trials series is a 2.5D physics platformer with a focus on speed running. While it’s a common enough genre, the franchise has garnered fame and hardcore gaming credibility due to the precision demanded from players, made possible thanks to the developer’s meticulous application of balance. Balance across the controls, the momentum of the avatars, the ability to redistribute weight to achieve the impossible, difficulty versus playability, and the balance within level design that mixes fun with challenge.

This week the series hit Apple TV and after spending a few hours with it, I can’t wait to spend some more. Hit the page 2 link below for more.

From PS4 & Xbox One to Apple TV? “Xenoraid should make it…” says 10tons

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Having recently reached out to developer Legendo and received the good news that Dracula Twins should be hitting Apple TV soon, I thought I’d do the same with studio 10tons.

10tons already have a presence on Apple TV, but after their press release in 2015 talking up the platform, I thought I’d follow up to see what else is on the way, and in particular, the twin-stick shooter Neon Chrome, currently out on iOS, Steam, and current-gen consoles.

“…we’re not sure if we’ll be able to bring Neon Chrome to the platform. Mainly the issue is about controls, pretty hard to do twin stick shooter with the Siri remote, and we’d strongly prefer not to make the game require a gamepad…” was the not so encouraging reply from 10tons. It isn’t an outright no though, with the studio adding, “…now that we’re back from holidays, we will resume investigating the matter.”

So there may still be hope for Neon Chrome on Apple TV. There’ll be an update here on ATVG if I  hear more.

The good news however, was that its vertical shooter – Xenoraid – currently available on Steam, PS4, and Xbox One, “…should make it to Apple TV though.”

The mission-based vertical shooter looks like a nice fit for the platform, with the ability to switch out your ship to one with differing abilities mid-mission adding a nice tactical element to the arcade action.

Check out the trailer below, and keep an eye on ATVG for more details as soon as they come to hand.

Thanks to Minecraft, Dracula Twins is coming soon to Apple TV

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In September 2015, not long after the unveiling of the fourth-generation Apple TV, developer Legendo Entertainment confirmed three games for the soon to be launched platform: Armada of Undead, Pure Pinball, and Dracula Twins. With no sign of those games over a year later, I reached out to Legendo for comment and received the exciting news that the excellent Dracula Twins would be “hitting the tvOS App Store soon!”

“We were/are waiting for the platform to mature,” replied Einar Charles of Legendo Entertainment, “and now that Minecraft is available, I think it may be getting its legs.” With Minecraft seeming to be the catalyst for Legendo to head to Apple TV, I wouldn’t mind betting that other developers will be thinking along the same lines, meaning we might see quite a few exciting releases on the heels of Mojang’s juggernaut.

A very stylish 2D action platformer, Dracula Twins should be a nice addition to the Apple TV’s catalogue, and I look forward to seeing how it translates to the big screen. In the meantime, while waiting for its release, Apple TV gamers have some excellent options with which to scratch that 2D platforming itch. Check out the platforming section in ATVG’s Best Apple TV Games: Year One. Titles such as Dan The Man (full review), Rayman Adventures, and Tons of Bullets are easy recommendations. Also, I’ve recently discovered the brilliant Le Parker: Sous Chef Extraordinaire, which I’ll have a full review of in the near future. Spoiler alert, it’s c’est magnifique!

The Best Apple TV Games: Year One

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Putting together the list below has caused me to make a decision: I’m no longer calling Apple TV a ‘microconsole.’ With the quality of games on the fledgling platform it seems like a superfluous label that takes away from what’s on offer.

‘Console’ is just fine from now on.

Sure, it’s a different level of gaming to PS4, Xbox One, and high end PC gaming, but if you have a fourth-generation Apple TV in your lounge room and you love gaming, then throw some money towards a compatible controller and you’ll soon discover some excellent titles that you can’t play on big screens elsewhere. And some that you can, which is why I’m dispensing with the ‘micro.’

For more on who The Apple TV Gaming Blog is, and why it’s here, mash this link.

To find out what the best games are for your Apple TV, read on.

Big Names, Small Games – Apple Features Square Enix and Disney in This Week’s New Releases

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Apple TV’s App Store refresh hits just before each weekend, with the first few tiles being replaced each week by featured new releases. In this relatively early stage of the platform’s life, it’s especially exciting to switch on each week to see the catalogue evolve. Watching which games get featured by Apple will also be an important part of determining the direction Apple TV gaming heads as far as style and substance goes, and while free-to-play has its place, it’s nice to see priced games getting a nod as well.

This week we see Square Enix’s trio of “Go” games taking pride of place, which have been very well received mobile distillations of triple A counterparts Hitman, Deus Ex, and Lara Croft.

The essence of these franchises are boiled down into a mix of puzzle and action, with a stylised board game aesthetic. It’ll be interesting to see how they translate to the big screen.

Next in line is Hipster Whale’s Disney Crossy Road. The original Crossy Road was a launch title for Apple TV, and saw the hit iOS smash translate to the big screen with an excellent multiplayer addition, which is great frantic fun. I haven’t had a chance to try out the Disney version on Apple TV yet so I’m not sure if it includes the multiplayer mode as well, but the description doesn’t mention it. It would be a shame for it to miss out, because it’s really what makes the big screen version shine,  but I’ll update this post if it does have it.

With one more week of releases before Christmas, it’ll be very interesting indeed to see which games score these few featured spots. Minecraft was hinted at releasing before the end of the year at this year’s WWDC, so watch this space.

Review: Atomic Super Lander – Elon Musk’s SpaceX meets Bruce Willis’s Armageddon

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Many reviewers have spied the now ancient Lunar Lander within the DNA of developer bitWeird’s Atomic Super Lander, with the studio even referencing it within its promotional material.

It’s a great jumping off point, but I’d like to propose a much more modern reference, that of Elon Musk’s reusable rocket program. Musk’s aerospace company SpaceX has pioneered the space age equivalent of reverse parking, and you’ll need to master the technique in order to succeed within Atomic Super Lander’s wonderfully fun gameplay loop.

After touching down on an extinction-level meteor, action then switches to 2D platforming with a very specific focus – blow shit up, get the hell out of Dodge, rinse and repeat.

It’s a simple concept that bitWeird have executed with style and humour.

Review: Dan The Man – Halfbrick Goes Large

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The concept behind Halfbrick’s excellent Dan The Man is something you could easily imagine being born from within a cloud of smoke shared between two stoners at opposite ends of a couch: A seven part animated web series inspired by classic video game tropes, with the eighth part – the series climax – playing out within an actual video game.