Halfbrick Studios
Latest
Fruit Ninja surpasses 20 million total downloads
At this point, Halfbrick's gotta be in talks for a major motion picture deal, action figures, a television show, lunchboxes -- all of it. To say Fruit Ninja is a "success" is an understatement: Halfbrick's Phil Larsen revealed to us during GDC that the game has reached a ridiculous 20 million downloads across all platforms, including iOS (iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch), Android and Windows Phone 7. The figure includes downloads of the free "lite" versions, but Larsen reminded us that the paid iPhone app has been purchased by 6 million players, accounting for a huge bushel of the total downloads. So, where does the game go from here? Well, disregarding the aforementioned movie and action figures, might we suggest making a Facebook game? Oh, right.
Fruit Ninja Frenzy to plant seeds on Facebook
Halfbrick's Fruit Ninja has grown into a wildly lucrative property since first sprouting up on the App Store in April 2010. It's since branched out onto Android and Windows Phone 7, and its first true offspring won't fall far from the (money) tree. Fruit Ninja Frenzy will be a free-to-play Facebook game and is currently in development with no confirmed launch date. Halfbrick says Frenzy will offer "60 second gameplay with many powerups, unlockables and achievements," and will lean on a collectible in-game "juice" currency, which players can purchase with real money. Halfbrick promises that beta tests "will be announced soon."
Machine Gun Jetpack is Halfbrick's next game
You just can't keep a good Barry Steakfries down. Halfbrick's unofficial mascot will star in another game on iOS, dubbed Machine Gun Jetpack. Spawned from a power-up of the same name in Halfbrick's Monster Dash, it's a side-scrolling free-runner (think: Canabalt) in the same vein as Monster Dash, though Barry's offensive capabilities are almost non-existent. Power-ups grant Barry varied abilities, but the majority of the game calls for dodging -- and not killing -- stuff. Barry can also collect coins, which can then be spent in the in-game store to purchase abilities and items, both cosmetic and functional. Machine Gun Jetpack will be a universal iOS app for both iPhone and iPad and will be available this summer. We got our hands on it and will have a preview for you soon, so stay tuned. %Gallery-118258%
GDC 2011: Halfbrick's Machine Gun Jetpack
Halfbrick Studios is one of my favorite developers on iOS. While they've released games on other platforms before (including the PS3 and the Nintendo DS), here at GDC 2011, they told me that "iOS development is always our focus." They've found a huge hit with Fruit Ninja, but they're not resting on their laurels. Fresh off Monster Dash (my favorite Canabalt-alike on the App Store) Halfbrick is going to return to the running genre with a new game called Machine Gun Jetpack. If you've played Monster Dash, you'll know that's one of the special weapons from the game -- a machine gun pointed down that allows you to hover in the air. And the Machine Gun Jetpack game lets you do just that. As hero Barry Steakfries runs along, he has to jump up and hover past obstacles and enemies, adding a vertical component to the Canabalt setup. Just like Monster Dash, things get fast and furious, though unlike Monster Dash, you haven't got much room for error -- one hit and it's game over (unless you're lucky -- read on).
Fruit Ninja and Max Adventure for iOS updated with new content
Two of TUAW's favorite App Store apps (and probably yours as well) have been updated with new content. Halfbrick's Fruit Ninja has a few new swords to play with, including one that plays piano music as you swipe. There are new leaderboards to fight your friends (and everyone else) on for the Classic and Zen modes. Great free update for a terrific app -- no wonder it's sold 6 million copies (inspiring Halfbrick to build up an orchard in order to pay back karma for all that destroyed virtual fruit). Imangi's great Max Adventure dual-stick shooter has also been updated with a new survival level and a few performance improvements and bug fixes. More importantly, it's on sale right now for just 99 cents, so if you haven't grabbed this one yet, now's your chance. I just picked it up again recently, and despite the kid-friendly graphics and storyline, the action and progression are a lot of fun. We've got appointments with both Halfbrick and Imangi at GDC next week, so stay tuned to hear what's coming next from these two great iOS developers.
The Misunderstoods are real-life Fruit Ninjas
While the rest of us wait for a Kinect version of Fruit Ninja, comedy troupe The Misunderstoods has taken the mobile hit to an even realer level, using actual knives to actually slash produce that's actually being hurled at them. Ball's in your court, Jack. ... Ball's in your court.
Raskulls review: Take my skull for a ride
Wait ... a Raskulls game? In 2010? What's next, Pele's Superstar Soccer? Who still remembers the Raskulls, those third-rate Smurf knockoffs from the 1980s? Even the biggest fans of Peter Cullen and June Foray probably recycled their tapes of the Ruby-Spears cartoon, which aired on ABC's Saturday morning cartoon block for a few months in early 1984. The Kenner toy line, Star comics series, and Atari 2600 game (released in the wake of the crash of 1983) were all embarrassing failures. Even the Snorks looked good next to the Raskulls. Okay, absolutely none of this true, but this fake history perfectly fits the tone of Raskulls, an XBLA exclusive from Halfbrick Studios that combines racing with puzzle-platforming. It might be a brand new property, but Raskulls is an obvious parody of The Smurfs and the assorted rip-offs that littered the Saturday morning airwaves back in the 1980s. The self-aware and absurd Raskulls basically Shrekifies The Smurfs. %Gallery-110540%
App Store price war continues, prices drop pre-freeze
I don't know what kind of criteria we need to hit to call the official start of an App Store price war, but quite a few companies have taken EA's lead from last week and dropped their app prices down in an attempt to get them on the top app charts before this week's store freeze by Apple. Pocket Gamer has a pretty good list of sales going -- most Namco apps are on sale, along with the Pac Man titles and Bit Trip Beat. Halfbrick Studios has also dropped prices on their games, bringing Age of Zombies and Fruit Ninja down to just 99 cents and adding new content to both. Samurai II: Vengeance was also dropped to 99 cents, as we tweeted on @TUAW earlier today. A number of apps are trying to compete by adding features -- Touch Arcade has a good list of those, including Imangi's Max Adventure and Capcom's Arcade title as well as Sega's Chu Chu Rocket. The weekend hasn't changed EA's grip on the App Store charts -- 6 of the top 10 are still EA's titles, and Apple is actually running banners on the App Store advertising EA's big sale (which has some smaller developers a little miffed). We'll have to see what happens as the week goes on. The store freeze is set to go down on Thursday through Tuesday, December 28, so any apps in the charts then will stay there over the holiday weekend.
Check out de Wii and DS versions of de Blob 2
The latest de Blob 2 screens and video offer a lot of information about various iterations of the sequel. For example, the DS version, developed by Halfbrick, is revealed as a 2.5D platformer, rather than the 3D paintathon of the console versions. And the Wii version looks pretty similar to its predecessor, with evidence of some more open environments. As for the trailer, it offers an indication of the kind of storytelling we'll see in the games and, most likely, the tone of the SyFy "transmedia" programming as well. And it's as close as you could get to a Raving Rabbids TV show.%Gallery-110318%%Gallery-110317%
Xbox 'Games for the Holidays' feature unlockable crossovers
Raskulls, Ilomilo, and A World of Keflings aren't just connected through the shared "Games for the Holidays" promotion. They also each unlock extras in the other games. In Ilomilo, you can get unlockable Keflings and Raskulls costumes for Ilo and Milo by purchasing the other games. Additionally, "You can unlock ilo and Doug as playable characters in Raskulls," says Raskulls dev Halfbrick, "and also unlock Raskulls characters within ilomilo and World of Keflings by purchasing the full range of games." And buyers of Raskulls or Ilomilo can build homes for characters from those games in A World of Keflings, according to a statement posted by Kotaku. Even crazier: you can actually get Raskulls early by buying A World of Keflings. Raskulls can be bought from within that game, a week before its December 29 release. That's two out of the three games available early!
A World of Keflings, Raskulls and ilomilo dated for XBLA
"But Joystiq," you ask, "isn't there already a way to get the absolutely delightful ilomilo for XBLA right now?" Yes, there is -- or you could wait until it's "officially" released on the Xbox Marketplace come January 5 as part of the "Games for the Holidays" promotion. But really, who would do such a silly thing? (Either way, it'll set you back 800 Microsoft Points, or $10.) Of course, since there's no way to secretly procure Ninja Bee's latest, A World of Keflings, or the puzzle/racer mash-up that is Raskulls from Halfbrick Studios, you will have to wait until their official launches on December 22 and 29, respectively, at 800 points ($10) each.
TUAW's Daily App: Age of Zombies
Halfbrick Studios is quickly becoming one of the best-loved developers on the App Store. They made a nice hit with Fruit Ninja, and I'm still enjoying their Canabalt-style Monster Dash title. Now, they've brought their PSP mini title, Age of Zombies, to the App Store, and it's another good one. Originally created for Sony's handheld, and starring Barry Steakfries (the guy who's running around in Monster Dash, which this game has more or less been made into a sequel for), Age of Zombies is a dual stick shooter with the same old Halfbrick polish and a cool pixelated aesthetic. The action is fast but still friendly. You blast your way across five different worlds thanks to solid controls, a few witty lines from Steakfries and his dialogue, and a few weapons and power-ups to find on the way. Both Game Center and OpenFeint integration is included as well, along with a survival mode and a few other extras. The game is US$2.99 right now as a universal app. It's an excellent game -- maybe a little casual for most dual stick fans, but if you're a big fan of Fruit Ninja and/or Monster Dash, this one is right up your alley. I'm excited to see even more from Halfbrick Studios in the future -- it certainly seems like they're doing very well on the iPhone.
Age of Zombies coming to iPhone/iPod Touch and iPad
Halfbrick has scored big on Apple devices (thanks, Fruit Ninja!) and has initiated a port of its Minis title, Age of Zombies. It's coming to the iPhone/iPod Touch and iPad in the form of a universal app sometime this October. The new port will feature "updated graphics, new menus and the intuitive touch-specific controls and tutorials," along with the original's five game worlds and Survival mode. There's no word yet on pricing, but the Minis game was set at $4.99, so we expect something similar. If you're looking for a taste of Barry Steakfries' antics, head past the break for a trailer of the Minis game or hit up the gallery below for some new screens. %Gallery-103539%
Fruit Ninja sells two million
When people say the job of game industry analysts is easy, we like to point to statistics like this: According to a release today from Halfbrick, the developer's iPod/iPhone sensation Fruit Ninja has moved two million units. To put it in a perspective that's even more difficult to comprehend: 24 billion-with-a-b pieces of fruit have been slashed in-game. So, you really wanna wear Pachter's shoes in a world where two million people buy a game about cutting fruit with the tip of their finger? No, we thought not.
TUAW's Daily App: Fruit Ninja
We've covered Halfbrick's later game Monster Dash here in this space (and it's a good one -- I'm still giving it the occasional run-through on my iPhone), but their great Fruit Ninja title has never actually been given this particular spotlight. Let's fix that now. Fruit Ninja is a simple but well-polished title that has you hacking up fruit by slashing your finger across the iPhone's touch screen. It's only a buck on the App Store (the HD version on iPad is US$4.99), and if you haven't bought it yet, you'll find a fun pick-up-and-play game that looks great and runs smoothly. If you have bought it (and considering that a few million people did, you probably have), then there's good news for you, too. The game just got a free update that added Game Center integration to the mix, and Halfbrick included network multiplayer, which is something we haven't seen a lot of yet. Load up the update, open up the game, and you'll be able to jump in and play with anyone, or send one of your Game Center friends an invite directly. And Halfbrick says more updates are on the way, including a "Secret Banana" mode and more Game Center functionality. So, if you haven't given Fruit Ninja a shot yet, now's a great time to do it.
TUAW's Daily App: Monster Dash
Halfbrick Studios really made a splash with their iPhone debut, Fruit Ninja, and now they've followed it up with a little game called Monster Dash. It's a running game in the vein of Canabalt, but rather than dodging skyscraper jumps and bombs, you're fighting through pixelated monsters while sprinting along. The main addition to the game is a "shoot" button, so in addition to jumping obstacles and gaps as they come up, you can mow down enemies with various weapons, such as the (default) flameburster, uzis, and even a machine gun jetpack (that comes in handy when jumping). It's a lot of fun (as you'd probably expect if you've played either Canabalt or Fruit Ninja), and the game comes with Halfbrick's requisite polish, including excellent lush graphics and full OpenFeint compatibility. If there's a downside, it's too bad that Halfbrick decided to just stick with the usual arcade formula. It'd be cool if they tried for something a little less shallow and a little more engrossing. This is just a bunch of levels and a chance to rush for the high score; nothing else carries over from one game to the next. That's just nitpicking, though. Halfbrick has done another great job on this one and pushed the newborn genre forward with their own twist. It's well worth the 99 cents. And if you do buy it, try tapping on the title screen monsters just for fun.
Halfbrick follows up Fruit Ninja with Monster Dash chaser
Australian dev Halbrick Studios is running with the success of its iOS produce-slicing action game Fruit Ninja, releasing its latest game for the platform, Monster Dash, on the App Store late last night after introducing the world to it last week. Similar to Semi Secret Software's hit Canabalt, the title features similar "run for as long as possible while avoiding pits and walls" gameplay, with the addition of enemies and weapons. As its name suggests, the game's bad guys are mummies, vampires, zombies and the like, and weapons range from a shotgun to the clever (and deadly) machinegun jetpack, which propels you skyward while raining bullets on baddies below. We've been having a lot of fun with this polished $0.99 release. Hit the App Store link below to see more.
Fruit Ninja devs announce iPhone's 'Monster Dash' starring Barry Steakfries
Barry Steakfries, the deliciously-named hero of Halfbrick's PSP Mini Age of Zombies, is back in a new iPhone adventure. Monster Dash doesn't stray too far from Barry's skillset: instead of blasting zombies attacking him from all directions, Barry now runs endlessly forward, blasting every monster in his way across several different monster-themed landscapes. "Blast your enemies with the one shot Pacifier," according to the press release, "electro-charge your way to victory with Mr. Zappy, and look out for the ultimate in raining destruction – the Machine Gun Jetpack!" Monster Dash will barrel into the App Store on August 19. At that point, we'll see if Barry's personality (and anti-monster violence) will be enough to propel Monster Dash into the same kind of success seen by Halfbrick's last iPhone game, Fruit Ninja. Check out a (live-action!) trailer after the break.
Fruit Ninja HD slices up the iPad later this week
Having trouble slicing those kumquats, tangerines and cherries in your standard edition of Fruit Ninja? Then you'll be pleased to know that Halfbrick is preparing an enhanced version for iPad called Fruitninja HD. But improved graphics aren't the only addition to the game, as the iPad installment will also boast input for up to eight fingers and head-to-head multiplayer battles through Classic Attack and Zen Duel modes. Look for Fruit Ninja HD in the App Store on July 14 for $4.99. We know what you're thinking: how can any ninja, let alone one skilled in the ways of battling fruit -- an enemy with barely any defensive skills whatsoever -- wield up to eight swords at once? Frankly, we just don't know. The ways of the ninja have long been shrouded in mystery and pulp, but we have managed to secure a brief piece of communication from the ninja clans, which you can watch right after the break.
Fruit Ninja HD gets a trailer and release date
We posted about Fruit Ninja way back when it was first released on the App Store, and since then it's become a qualified hit on the iPhone, with over a million downloads and lots and lots of kiwis and bananas slashed in half. The folks over at Halfbrick have now announced that they're bringing the game to the iPad with Fruit Ninja HD, and you can see the trailer above. The game has updated graphics, of course, and it will also include multiplayer modes -- both Classic mode, and something called Zen Duel. Additionally, you'll be able to multitouch with up to eight fingers at a time, there will be multiple blades and backgrounds to play with, and Halfbrick says that the iPad version will enjoy updates right alongside the iPhone version, with more modes, items, and surprises coming in the future. Sounds good. The game is due out this Wednesday on the App Store and will sell for $4.99.
