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Infinity Blade II benefits from Apple's anniversary promotion
To help celebrate five years of the App Store, Apple recently launched an iTunes promotion wherein a number of popular iOS apps were made available as free downloads. One such app was Infinity Blade II, an extremely popular and critically acclaimed gaming title which normally sells for US$6.99. If there's one thing we can all agree on, it's that people love "free." To that extent, AllThingsD reports that Infinity Blade II saw an absolutely huge influx of new users thanks to Apple's App Store promotion. The action-RPG sword-fighting game added 5.7 million new players in seven days. Laura Mustard, publicist for the game's developer, Chair Entertainment, said 1.7 million downloads occurred on Monday, the first day of the promotion. Those new downloads, three times what the iOS-exclusive IB2 gets in a normal week, amount to a short-term spike that could pay off big in the long term. So just how will Chair Entertainment benefit from giving away its app for free to 5.7 million users? Well, if you've ever taken a gander at the list of top grossing iOS apps, you undoubtedly noticed that many of them are actually free to download. As it turns out, there's a lot of money to be had via the freemium model whereby users can download an application for free, but fork over cash for additional features and / or functionality. What's more, opening the door to so many new customers also caused a spike in the original Infinity Blade, which, according to Chair Entertainment publicist Laura Mustard, saw 2.5 times as many downloads as it did in the preceding week.
Infinity Blade 2 updated, Spider goes free for iPad, and a Super Strategy Sale
It's Friday, and if you're looking for something good on iOS to play this weekend, boy howdy, you are in luck. First up, Infinity Blade 2 has been updated recently, adding in a few new expansion packs to play with. And, perhaps more importantly, the game's been updated to work with the iPhone 5's wider screen, as well as to run beautifully on the iPad mini. Odds are that you already own this one, but if not, it's available for $2.99 on the App Store. Second, perhaps in celebration of the new iPad, the critically acclaimed Spider: Secret of Bryce Manor HD has gone completely free. This is a really great game that's a little older, but especially if you play it in full HD on the iPad, offers up a lot of really great exploration and casual puzzle gameplay. The non-HD, iPhone version is also free for a limited time, so grab both while you can. Finally, as if that wasn't enough already, there's also a "Super Strategy Sale" being put together for a few top turn-based strategy games. Rebuild, Call of Cthulu: The Wasted Land, Hunters: Episode One and Episode Two, and Tactical Soldier: Undead Rising are all on sale, most of them available for just 99 cents. There's no shortage of great games to play this weekend, so pick up that new iPad mini and start swiping and tapping.
Kindle, Evernote, Vimeo and more get optimized for the iPad's Retina display
As we saw the iPhone 4's release, a massive bump in screen resolution means that plenty of apps need to be updated to fully take advantage of all those extra pixels, and today has seen a few big name ones get optimized for the new iPad's Retina display. The biggest of those is Amazon's Kindle app, which now promises sharper fonts than ever, along with a few other changes including the ability to switch between books stored on your device and in the cloud. Also getting a Retina-friendly update is Evernote, which offers improved text editing in addition to the display tweak, plus the otherwise unchanged Vimeo, and Weather Pro, which now boasts high-resolution maps. Of course, those are just among the first of many -- we're guessing you won't have to wait too long for most of your favorites to be similarly updated.Update: Twitter for iOS and Infinity Blade II (pic after the break) are also among the apps getting high res iPad makeovers just in time, let us know in the comments below about any others that appear.
Infinity Blade 2 tips from Chair Entertainment
There are a ton of great games to buy and play from the App Store today if you happen to have found an iOS device under your tree this past weekend. Infinity Blade 2 is one of the best you'll find, with high-end graphics, tight gameplay, and a whole bunch of fun features that really build on the last popular game in the series. Whether you're a Blade newbie or a veteran, Chair Entertainment has released some tips for the game that will really help you roll through the generations. Some of them are very straightforward (no kidding -- you need to parry in the same direction for it to work?) but some of the tips are things you might not have picked up otherwise. I didn't know that parrying with Heavy weapons gives a block charge back, or that a parry in general will open up more combo moves than just a standard dodge or block against an attack. It's also worth looking through the rest of the official Infinity Blade blog. There are some cool developer interviews, some other solid gameplay tips, and more Infinity Blade news to read. This is definitely one of the best games on the platform, and having tips like this will really help you explore all that it has to offer. [via App Advice]
App review: Infinity Blade 2 (iOS)
The 3D duel-fest is back, and attempting to answer some of the questions left over from its first installment (and a few major updates). Infinity Blade has had a huge effect on promoting the iPad and iPhone as valid gaming options, with high quality visuals and intuitive touchscreen controls. Well, Epic hasn't tampered with the formula too much, but has tried to instill some considered expansions and pour even more eye-honey all over it. Will it stretch gamers beyond the original? We've now spent a fair bit of time slashing away at those pesky immortals and their underlings -- see what we thought of this little big adventure after the break. %Gallery-141444%
Daily iPhone App: Infinity Blade 2
Yes, it's out. Go get it right now. Oh, you're still here? Well then I guess I'll tell you that Infinity Blade is even bigger and better than before. There are now multiple classes and play styles, including dual wield and two-handed in addition to the standard sword-and-board hack and slash gameplay. You can now forge your own weapons and upgrade them with gems, explore a much bigger and more exciting world, and see a little bit of story along the way. Combat itself has been tweaked and fixed up, so parries are much smoother to pull off, which is good, because there are new enemies and attacks, too. In other words, Infinity Blade demonstrated how to make a brilliant iOS game, and Infinity Blade 2 is the idea expanded and writ large. There's even more to come, as Chair has promised more updates. Since first title eventually got free content, level cap raises and a multiplayer update, it's a good bet this game will get the same post-release attention. In short, Infinity Blade 2 is as triple-A as iOS games get. Consider that top-shelf console games sell around US$59.99, and it's quite nice that iOS gamers can get ours at just $6.99. Chair and Epic are still setting the bar for major studio gaming on the iPhone, and this time they knocked it up there pretty darn high.
Infinity Blade 2 launches tonight, into world of Deathless tyrants and legion of Titans (video)
In the realm of brutal hand-to-hand combat, Infinity Blade 2 promises to be without peer. The game will launch tonight on the App Store, and while its said to run just fine on the original iPad, iPhone 3GS / 4, it packs special optimizations for the A5 chip found in every iPad 2 and iPhone 4S, which allows the enhanced lighting and shading effects to fully shine. A follow-up to the original Infinity Blade, battle-hardened warriors will discover 40 new locations, along with added weapons, spells and fighting styles. Priced at $9.99, the 941MB download is expected to hit around 11PM Eastern time. A full preview video follows the break, and for those unfamiliar with Infinity Blade, the original game will soon be available for a limited-time promotional price of $2.99. Game on, everyone.
Infinity Blade 2 and The Sims FreePlay get previews
It's likely going to be another banner week of releases on the App Store, headlined by the long awaited sequel, Infinity Blade 2. Chair Entertainment has released a developer diary, which you can watch below, and holy swords of power, Batman, this game looks good. As we've heard before, the game is much bigger, offers all-new styles of gameplay (dual wielding can apparently let you duck lower, to replace the absence of your shield), and has more enemies, weapons, and content. It'll be great, and it's out Wednesday. Elsewhere in upcoming iOS releases, EA has announced that it's turning The Sims into a free-to-play title for iOS, with time-based elements similar to games like We Rule and Battle Nations. The Sims FreePlay will use The Sims as a backbone, so you'll still be running a simulation of life in The Sims' world, but there will also be things to do such as baking or gardening that will take time and earn XP, and the game will be monetized with in-app purchases that will likely speed up or add to gameplay. It should be interesting. EA's freemium take on The Sims is due out next month sometime.
The Verge goes hands-on with Infinity Blade 2
The Verge has been hands-on with Infinity Blade 2 and has provided a first look at Chair's upcoming sequel to its blockbuster iOS game. The site's review can essentially be boiled down to this: Infinity Blade 2 is exactly the same as the original Infinity Blade, but with some added features and improvements. Gameplay in Infinity Blade 2 will be mostly unchanged compared to the original. You still can't freely roam through the environments, combat is still kind of rock-paper-scissors, and if you didn't like grinding for three hours to afford that $2,500,000 sword in the first game, things are apparently worse in Infinity Blade 2: "the sequel is a little stingier with doling out cash," according to The Verge. On the other hand, weapon customization options have been expanded, and you'll now have the opportunity to dual-wield swords, which should help spice up the gameplay a bit. Chair has amped up the graphics in Infinity Blade 2, and it's easier than ever to mistake screenshots of the game as coming from a full-fledged HD console like the PlayStation 3. That extra graphical detail will only be available on the iPad 2 and iPhone 4S, as they're the only iOS devices with the graphical horsepower necessary to push the game to its limits. Infinity Blade 2 will hit the App Store on December 1 and will cost US$6.99. We'll have a review of the game when it comes out; meanwhile, you can check out The Verge's first look at the link above or watch the video embedded below.
Infinity Blade II previewed, has bigger world, more enemies, and new gear features
With the launch of Infinity Blade II just a few short weeks away, Chair has shown the game off to IGN Wireless, and they report that it looks terrific. The game mostly follows in the path of the first title, with the player having to navigate a path over and over while upgrading their equipment and skills while doing so. But this time around, the "loop" is significantly bigger (with an intro section that's apparently as long as the last game), and there's another reason for going around it a few times, which we'll learn as we play through the game. There are also some significant updates to the gear system, including the ability to dual wield one-handed blades, or even use a big two-handed sword (with its own mechanics for blocking). The magic system has been updated, and gear can now be adorned with gems for extra stats or bonuses. There are a few new varieties of enemies, and enemies will now use tactics like magic also. The world itself is upgraded, too -- various trips through the game will unveil new paths and story lines that play out as you go. And the preview hints at even more interesting features, like "clash mobs," where players all around the world can whittle the health of a huge boss down and then all get a reward for killing it. Sounds really interesting -- Infinity Blade II is due out on December 1. Can't wait!
Epic Games announces Infinity Blade 2, coming 12/1 on iPhone 4S
Mike Capp from Epic Games has taken the stage at Apple's iPhone event in Cupertino today to show off Infinity Blade 2, the upcoming sequel to one of the most popular games on iOS (a game, incidentally, that Epic says it's made $20 million from already). The new game will reportedly take full advantage of the newly announced iPhone 4S' A5 graphics chip, and even implement "some graphics techniques that aren't even available on home gaming consoles." The demo shown was of course beautiful, featuring lots of reflections and shadows, and even in-world details like koi swimming in a pond and fireflies in the air. The game is essentially the same kind of swordfight gameplay, though in this version, the player will be going after the creator of the Infinity Blade itself. Dual wielding, with one sword in each hand, will be possible as well. No price yet, but Infinity Blade 2 is set to come out on December 1. There's no word whether it will require an iPhone 4S to run (hope not), but Apple did say that it would only run at its best on the new version of the iPhone.
