Rovio Mobile is still attempting to court the four or so people on the planet that don't own Angry Birds [$.99 / HD] proper. The beloved creator of the ever-popular physics-based puzzle game has just released two new "free" versions of the title that, in contrast to the Lite versions, feature no content from the actual release version. In fact, Angry Birds Free [Free / HD] offers brand new, never-before-seen levels.

In total, it's twelve levels split into four episodes. The App also supports Game Center and, just like the full, yet free Android version of the game, ads. I suppose if the game doesn't convince you to pony up $.99, perhaps the Nike promotional stuff might. Or, hey, how about these super-cute kids:

Photo courtesy of The Review Crew

Think of this app as an updated demo of the core game. Rovio, as you well know, has vigorously supported Angry Birds with content over the last year, dropping in new level after new level and new bird after new bird in a constant stream of free updates. This demo reflects that. If you still haven't taken the plunge, definitely give this a look. Or, hell, give it a go if you're just looking for more levels.

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Strapping my iPad into a faux arcade cabinet is the last thing I want to do with my tablet. Oh, I can get behind PAC-MAN and Space Invader ports, for sure, but the device has become much more than a toy for me over the last year � it's become a browser, an e-reader, and a respectable game machine capable of offering some compelling modern experiences.

But for those of you who do actually want to relive those coin-op days, know this: Ion and Atari are teaming up to put out the "iCade," an arcade cabinet for the iPad this Spring ($99).

The cabinet, as you can see from the following Engadget video from CES, features a full-sized joystick and eight arcade-style buttons. The apparatus itself is gleefully decorated in a retro style, though it's missing the scratches and smoke damage that we've started to associate arcade cabinets with.

According to Ion, the iCade "ensures safe loading and unloading of your iPad," as well as a secure fit. It also positions the iPad at a decent viewing angle for arcade play. The stick and buttons, by the way, will operate via Bluetooth.

The kicker here is that Ion's business partner, Atari, will be publishing "a huge suite" of classic games to market with the device. In the press release, the only game name-dropped is Asteroids, but I'd imagine that we'll also see ports of Centipede, Tempest, Missile Command, Crystal Castles, and Gravitar at the very least.

OK, so maybe I do kinda want to strap my iPad into an arcade machine. Anyone with me?

[via Engadget]

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I struggle to find a mechanic or point of level or enemy design in The Flying Hamster [$5.99] that I can use to put the game on a pedestal, to show you that its better than the rest of its side-scrolling, shoot 'em up brethren on the App Store.

I find myself in this backbreaking dilemma because the game is so goddamn cute � it's so full of life, character, and expressiveness, that I'm compelled to justify my adoration of it by conjuring positive opinions about its design that just aren't present.

The experience is basic. You control an avatar with a limitless primary attack against a diverse range of enemies, each type possessing a unique range and rate of fire. Your goal is to reach an endpoint, to successfully navigate the storm of bullets and enemies to some arbitrary destination guarded by a bullet sponge of a boss.

Your ability to recognize and memorize patterns is the difference between success and defeat. Enemies, including bosses, aren't erratic � enemies are scripted and each level plays out the same, which is a good thing considering that there are no checkpoints.

But here's the deal: all of this simplistic, rote stuff is awash in color, inspiration, and genuine character. Your avatar is an anthropomorphic hamster that can fly. Your enemies are penguins floating down from the heavens while shooting rounds from their hand cannons, angry rams, seagulls, cuddly vampire bats, and red scorpions that shoot pellets out of their venom-laced tails. Your weapons are your own loogies, streams of root beer, and seeds.

And the expressiveness! Each level is capped by a cut-scene of this adorable hamster created in a Japanese style that emotes a bright and cheery tone that permeates into the level design, the equally upbeat audio, and even the boss fights.

The character, I think, hides something a little more feral than you'd like � The Flying Hamster doesn't give you many opportunities to continue. You start the game with five lives and it ends after you lost them. Plus, the points you accumulate are based on what you scored in a single life; it's not cumulative.

The controls can be a point of frustration. The standard layout gives you the ability to move your character wherever, no matter where your finger is on the screen, which is a nice touch… whenever you're not inadvertently hiding an enemy with your flesh. Those times, however, are few.

But while that controls and difficulty can be a bummer considering how little this game gives you to work with in terms of chances and tools to succeed, I feel like its art and character triumphs. Sure, The Flying Hamster is not even close to being the best shoot 'em up available on the App Store, but it's one of the best-looking and most artistically inspired of the bunch. Give it a shot if you don't mind routine design or a challenge. Or if you're into looking at cute animals.

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Orbotix is an unconventional developer with a project we posted about a while ago. Its mission is to bring smartphone controlled, open devices to market. The first of these is Sphero, a robotic ball that responds to inputs from an iPhone or iPod Touch via Bluetooth and an device-specific app.

It'll be about six months before Sphero is ready for store shelves, but the lack of polish didn't stop Orbotix from taking their balls on the road to CES in Las Vegas where, of course, Mac Rumors got their hands on them.

The demonstration, which took place in a mini-arena of sorts, yielded some neat pieces of intel about Sphero. Most relevant to us is the fact that Orbotix wants to release the API to App Store creators, allowing anyone with the knowhow to sculpt games around the device.

At the event, Orbotix suggested soccer or bowling games could be made, which yeah, I totally could see that happening if the device took off.�But will it take off? I don't know. I lost my fortuneteller license in a fire. But I do know that people like crazy little devices that can move around.

Orbotix hopes to launch Sphero in "late 2011" for under one hundred bones � and hopefully well under $100 if it hopes that more than 12 people will take a look at it.

[via Mac Rumors]

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Ever heard of Steam? It's a digital distribution platform created by the ever-clever minds at Valve. When it launched, it was PC-exclusive. Now, it supports the Mac and Valve has even created tools for developers to port their games over.

The "Games" section of the Mac App Store feels like Steam, with some benefits that Eli mentioned in his first impressions post such as being able to move games around in their own self-contained .app bundles instead of being tied to the Steam folder. Of course it all comes down to developer support, but currently the cost to developers to publish their games on both Steam and the Mac App Store are equal, although Steam offers benefits like cross-platform support, microtransactions, achievements and leaderboards � all features that Apple could conceivably add to the Mac App Store in the future.

While we watch Valve and Apple battle it out, here are three games we've been spending some time on from the Mac App Store:

BEJEWELED 3 � Fun As Ever
There's been a lot of creative takes on Bejeweled since its last numbered sequel, but for my money, Bejeweled 3 [$19.99] is the best match-3 experience yet. It's gorgeous, simple, and stylized and boasts several game modes that push the tempo or turn the core play on its head. I'm not much of a purist, so I've been spending the glut of my time with the standard mode of play, which has a few twists, too. For example, whenever you line up like-colored gems in an "L"-shaped pattern, you earn a special lightning gem that, when matched with other like-colored gems, annihilates rows of gems.

It's these kinds of additions that make Bejeweled 3 so special, though of course, there is a standard Classic mode. This is a tired phrase, but if you like Bejeweled, you probably shouldn't pass this one up.

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AND YET IT MOVES � Tilt and Platform
This is a unique one, so I'll start at the top. And Yet It Moves [$9.99] is a 2D side-scrolling platformer set in a world created from pieces of ravaged paper. In the game, you'll play as a sketch that isn't so dissimilar from that dude in the "Take on Me" video.

The goal in each level is to reach an end point, but developer Broken Rules is ridiculously clever about how you go about doing this. While you can run and jump over hurdles, you'll also need to rotate the game world in 90-degree increments in order to navigate and traverse the ever-growing number of traps and barricades. Physics, as you can imagine, play a key role as your sketch builds momentum from these world-turning activities.

This is one of those indie titles that takes a great singular idea and mechanic and runs with it throughout the entire experience, all the while mixing up the action surrounding it in satisfying ways. If you're in the mood for a 2D platformer that does doesn't involve a fat plumber with a coin dependency problem, this is definitely up your alley.

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PRECIPICE OF DARKNESS 1 AND 2 � Insert Your Money *Here*
This two-part RPG series (Episode 1 [$3.99], Episode 2 [$3.99]) is an interesting animal. It manages to be crude and hilarious, as well as informed, self-aware, and unique. It also stars its own writers and artists, Penny Arcade's "Gabe" and "Tycho" of Penny Arcade fame, of course.

I haven't spent a tremendous amount of time in the Mac App Store ports because both games are long by downloadable games standards, but I believe I've put enough time into them to confirm, at least, that they're stable like their PC counterparts. I have, however, been around the block�both these games took up a lot of my time back when they were released over Xbox Live Arcade on the Xbox 360, so I can confidently say that they're good games.

But what makes them so good, you ask? It's a combination of things. These games have a real sense of character. Penny Arcade's aware, disgusting humor lives and breathes in this game world, filing up every aspect of it from monsters to locales. The series also has a pretty hip Active Time Battle system similar to old-school JRPGs, with the exception that it forces you to manage time and skills as opposed to drill the "attack" button. I also need to mention that these games are well written, a feature most games don't have, for sure.

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The best part about these three games is that nothing in any of them really requires a keyboard and mouse � making it somewhat conceivable that they might eventually get ported to the iOS platform. I'd say Bejeweled 3 is almost guaranteed, and Precipice of Darkness likely would require the screen real estate of the iPad. I've got my fingers crossed. <!-- PHP 5.x -->

Last week we took a look at the upcoming Mad Skills Motocross from Turborilla and Racer X Online. The game is a 2D side-scrolling motocross game with colorful graphics, a fun physics system, and a lot of content. I've spent the past week with a preview build of the game, and I have to say I've been having a ton of fun with it so far. We've seen our fair share of these motocross games over the years, but Mad Skills Motocross does justice to the genre, and even throws in a couple of new features to set itself apart from the rest.

My favorite part about Mad Skills Motocross is the excellent physics in the game. There are so many subtle nuances with how you're able to lean on your bike when accelerating and taking jumps that it adds a lot of skill and strategy to how you race. It's very organic, and the gameplay just feels right. With a little practice, you'll quickly learn when to lean back to gain speed or tilt in the air to land smoothly into a jump. Also, the ragdoll physics of your rider when you bail can be pretty hilarious, and after taking a spill you'll hear a painful sounding crack as his body flops around the course. It's sadistic, but fun.

Another neat aspect to Mad Skills is the ability to send challenges to friends. The game uses OpenFeint for the standard leaderboard and achievement tracking, but also utilizes the challenge feature where you can send a challenge to a friend from your buddy list after you've completed a track. This feature works really well, and suits this type of game perfectly. The Racer X Online website is a big part of the actual motocross racing community, and as a result of their involvement in Mad Skills Motocross many actual professional racers have preview copies of the game and have been helping out during the development process.

This video shows the challenge feature in action with a real professional racer versus "just some guy", and shows how the world of video games can level the playing field in competition:

Aside from the physics system in Mad Skills Motocross, there is also an interesting set of special moves you can perform during a race. These must also be mastered if you're looking to maximize your potential for fast lap times in the game. We'll delve more into these intricacies when the full version of Mad Skills Motocross launches as a universal app for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad early next week. Until then you can check out the upcoming thread in our forums for some discussion on the game, or download the desktop version demo to get a taste of the game before the iOS version launches on January 10th.

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