Donut Games has seemingly always had the philosophy of making small, simple games that only have a few bits of gameplay to speak of. Bubble Pig [ $0.99 ] continues that trend by having one touch gameplay that is both fun and rewarding time after time. While pigs don’t exactly fly, their rubbery skins and rotund bodies do lend well to bouncing, and Bubble Pig’s gameplay takes full advantage of this. Bouncing the pig around each level is easy; all you have to do is tap where you’d like the pig to bounce to, and he’ll continue to bounce automatically in that direction. One-touch controls can feel too simplistic if not done well, but this game manages to do it without making it feel like an effortless experience. As some of our forum posters have pointed out, the gameplay is remarkably similar to [ $1.99 ] or Superstar Chefs [ $0.99 ]. Read More

Last week we talked about the massive update to last summer's quirky platformer Bean's Quest [99¢/Lite] that added a ton of brand new levels and fleshed out the storyline with appropriate intro and ending sequences. Basically, Bean's Quest was originally an incredibly short game, featuring just 8 levels. That was the chief complaint in our original review, though we did enjoy the game a lot while it lasted. In about 6 months time, Bean's Quest has expanded to 50 levels and is finally the full and complete game it was always intended to be. For today only, you can grab the full version of Bean's Quest for just 99¢. If you've always admired Bean's Quest from afar, but weren't sure if its "constantly bouncing" gameplay was the right fit for you, then a recently released lite version can help you make up your mind. I would urge all platformer fans to Read More

Bean's Quest [$2.99] from Kumobius launched in July of last year, and it was kind of awesome. Actually, it was kind of really awesome. It was just one of many platformers on the App Store that nailed the neo-retro aesthetic, harkening back to the days of 8 and 16 bits. However, there was one key element that separated it from other iOS platformers – you're constantly bouncing. Picture a sideways Doodle Jump mixed with Super Mario Bros. 3 and you kind of get the idea. The automatic nonstop bouncing was easy enough to get used to if you're just trying to make it through the game, but the real brilliance of Bean's Quest was that it kept track of the number of your bounces and tasked you with completing each level within a certain number of them to maximize your reward. Along with diamonds and a hidden toy creature that had Read More

Bean’s Quest [$2.99] was a pretty okay platforming game. The core problem we had was its almost total lack of content -- we could traverse everything it had to offer in about five minutes, which, you know, isn’t quite up there. BUT, as was promised, the game has since been updated with more levels. Specifically, World ‘2’ has been added in a free update, bringing up the meagre level count up by 9 for 16 total. This update also packs in some hip tweaks. Game Center support has been added, as well as alternate control methods and brand new fancy-pantsy 3D audio. On the bug front, the game has now been optimized for older devices, and several nebulous fixes have been made. This isn’t it for Bean’s Quest. On our message board, the developers have stated that it will bring in four worlds total. The third world, “The Sky Ruins,” is Read More

In this week’s episode of The TouchArcade Show, the cast and crew discuss the usual —- cats, dogs, muscles, and movies from the mid-to-late 1980s. But we also decide to do our duty and talk about the latest and greatest of this week’s news and games. Specifically, we spit a little game about Sid Meier’s Pirates!, Lodsys’ latest lawsuits, Cat Dance Party, and the most recent cloning fiasco to hit the App Store. We’re really pumped about this episode, so we hope you like it, too. As usual, you can grab the podcast just below via direct download or streaming. Additionally, you can check us out on the Zune Marketplace and iTunes if you want to subscribe to our pods. Of course, we do hit a lot more than I mentioned in the opening there. Here are this week’s show notes with the relevant links to the articles / games we Read More

One thing that I love about the App Store is that there's a lot about it that is highly reminiscent of the old 8-bit and 16-bit era of console gaming. Specifically, I'm talking about how seemingly everyone was just dying to make a character that could turn into a potential franchise, or better yet, a mascot for whatever console it might have been exclusively released on (for instance, Plok). There's a ton of these seemingly B-grade character driven games on the App Store, and Bean of Bean's Quest [$2.99] seems like a modern day in that the protagonist has all the character it needs, however, will we ever be clamoring for another Bean game? I know I didn't really care about Bubsy's platforming career, that's for sure. But, I digress. Bean's Quest is a strange beast. It's one of the shortest iOS games I can think of that I've played recently. Read More