Bejeweled-Blitz
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EA, Wooga pulling games from Google Plus
PopCap and Wooga-developed games will disappear from Google's social media platform, Google+. Wooga shut down Monster World prior to May 1, issuing their own "goodbye" to Google+. Electronic Arts will remove Bejeweled Blitz from the service on Monday in order to "redeploy our resources to other adaptations of Bejeweled," a PopCap spokesman told All Things D.A Wooga customer care representative said the company "decided to remove certain games from Google+ because we have a much larger following on Facebook and they are active users." Wooga will remove Bubble Island and Diamond Dash from Google+ on July 1.PopCap's spokesman added that "Google is a valuable gaming partner for PopCap and EA, and we'll continue to develop for Google platforms."
PopCap revamps Bejeweled on iOS, sends Bejeweled Blitz freemium
Very similar to the way EA has revamped its Tetris app recently, PopCap Games (now owned by EA) has decided to revamp its Bejeweled offerings on the iPhone, taking the various versions of the world's brightest match-3 game gem and concentrating them down into a few offerings. There will be two Bejeweled games on the App Store after all is said and done. Bejeweled Blitz is going to go to a freemium model where players can earn coins to unlock content (or just buy it outright via in-app purchase); the app will also take advantage of full Facebook integration. Bejeweled 2 is being reinvented as Bejeweled for iPhone and iPod touch, featuring three gameplay modes, full Retina Display graphics, and a host of various social and profile features. Bejeweled for iPhone will be 99 cents on the App Store. I've been waiting for PopCap to release Bejeweled 3 on the iPhone, but it looks like this is the best we're getting -- the new app has a Zen mode in it, plus all the achievements and ranking the latest PC game comes with. Odds are that if PopCap is bringing other updates to the iOS version, it'll be through this app, not through an official Bejeweled 3 port. Interesting that there's no iPad coverage yet, either -- I for one wouldn't mind playing Bejeweled on my iPad, too. But it certainly seems like PopCap and EA are getting their ducks in a row before the holidays, laying out out their biggest properties so they can be found (and purchased) by players with shiny new iPhones and iPads.
iOS sales this weekend: Bejeweled 2, Crescent Moon RPGs, SFIV
There's something about the weekend, apparently, that makes iOS games want to drop their prices right down to the bottom. There's quite a few good deals out -- this Bejeweled offer is especially one you shouldn't refuse! Yes, Bejeweled 2 + Blitz by PopCap is completely free in the App Store this weekend. Hopefully this is in anticipation for an iOS release of Bejeweled 3 soon. Crescent Moon Games is having a sale, dropping its RPGs Aralon: Sword and Shadow, Rimelands, Hammer of Thor, and Ravensword: The Fallen King down to just 99 cents each. Word is that Pocket RPG is going on sale as well, but it hasn't dropped yet. Neocell Fighters Evolution is a shooter that's gone free. Street Fighter IV is on sale again, 99 cents until the end of August. Although at this point, that's pretty much the usual price for it. And Chunfen.com has dropped the price on all of its apps, including the games Air Star and Air Cross and their HD versions, to completely free. All solid deals for this weekend. Combine all of these games with the big releases from the week (Spy Mouse, Contre Jour, and others), and you should have plenty to play on iOS, all weekend long.
PopCap buys ZipZapPlay for Facebook expansion
PopCap Games has acquired ZipZapPlay, a social games company in San Francisco. The acquisition gives PopCap further inroads into the Facebook game space, which it is currently in third place behind Zynga and EA. ZipZapPlay created Baking Life and Happy Habitat -- yeah, we'd never heard of them either. The financial terms of PopCap's acquisition weren't revealed. ZipZapPlay CEO Curt Bererton (pictured, being eaten by the dragon couch) and CCO Mathilde Pignol will stay on at the San Francisco studio of 17 employees. The company will retain its name and will report to PopCap's social games VP. PopCap expects to have "four or five" games total on Facebook by the end of this year, which includes the already-released Bejeweled Blitz, Zuma Blitz and ZZP's Baking Life.
Torchlight coming to Xbox Live Arcade with new content for House Party series
Runic Games has announced that the Diablo-esque RPG Torchlight is coming to Xbox Live Arcade for the upcoming House Party series of releases. The game has apparently been remade to use the Xbox controller (with dual sticks for moving and attacking, bumpers for potions, and hotkeys assigned to triggers and buttons), and given a new interface for the console release. There will also be "new quests, armor sets, weapons, and a new pet" to play with as well. Consider us surprised -- it'll be interesting to see how a very PC title (that's found a lot of success on Steam) fits into Microsoft's arcade lineup. The House Party will start on February 16, and will also include a release of the Beyond Good and Evil HD remake, Hard Corps Uprising, PopCap's Bejeweled Blitz Live, and Full House Poker. That's a quality lineup right there! %Gallery-112898%
Bejeweled Blitz Live rated by German, Australian boards
Bejeweled Blitz Live has been rated by Germany's USK and Australia's classification board. The Australian listing is quite vague, giving the impression the title could be bound for retailers on PC, but the USK classification blatantly declares it as an Xbox 360 title. Perhaps it will appear for both. Developer and publisher PopCap Games tells Joystiq it is currently "not commenting" on the matter. PopCap introduced Bejeweled Blitz to Facebook gamers almost two years ago, and added Zuma Blitz this year. Let's see if PopCap can beat the ESRB's hat trick of announcing its games.
