Meridian

It's Halloween night, and while you're sitting on the couch waiting for trick-or-treaters to show, why not curl up with one of these terrifying iOS games? A lot of games feature friendly monsters and zombies, but we've picked our favorite creepy, dark, and freaky iPhone and iPad games to make your evening a little scarier. 10. Contract Killer: Zombies Glu's latest freemium first-person sniper game has a few notable improvements over Contract Killer. For one, you're sniping undead zombies instead of mafioso, and two, the gore factor is upped in a big way. Some missions even have you defending a human ally while they're surrounded by zombies-- a scary position to be in. Our Bottom Line: If you’re looking for a bloody shooter with busty undead blondes and shotgun fun, how can you say no? 9. Dead Escape In this adventure game, you have to combine items to puzzle your way through the zombiepocalypse. Ordinary items, which your character picks up at a convenience store and other survivor holdouts, are your only key to surviving. If you like an end-of-the-world game with more puzzles than twitchy shootouts, check out Dead Escape. Our Bottom Line: Dead Escape moves slower than one-legged zombie, but it's a good choice if you desire a puzzle-based adventure game. 8. Dream:scape There's no horror like psychological horror, and Dream:scape really gets inside your head. You play as a recently deceased man named Wilson, who has to explore his own memories to reconstruct his life. As you wander the beautiful yet desolate environment, you'll have plenty of time to reflect on your own frightening existence. Our Bottom Line: Dream:scape is an immersive and intriguing mystery/ adventure game that will keep you playing to the end. 7. Paranormal Activity: Sanctuary The Paranormal Activity movies showed us that evil spirits are all around us, but this iOS game lets you fight back. Paranormal Activity: Sanctuary is an augmented reality/ GPS game where the real-world map of your neighborhood will be splashed with color depending on how evil or good the local magical charge is. You can then cast spells and photograph pentagrams to battle for your side. This might be a good one to load up before you roam the streets looking for candy and/or souls. Our Bottom Line: Restless demons lower property values. Better do something about that. 6. HellGore (formerly iRequiem) Action games don't get more sick and Read More

Better known for their gory zombie shooter, Alive-4-Ever [$2.99 and its sequel, Meridian takes on an entirely different genre in Airport Terminal, pitting you in the shoes of an entrepreneurial airport mogul. In doing so, they show off the spectrum of their creative output by not only being capable of gory zombie shooters, but also charming time management games. In each of the whopping 70 levels in Airport Terminal you are faced with a variety of different customers from all walks of life. Basketball players, movie stars, snotty kids; each have distinct needs that must be catered for. Firstly, this involves delivering them to their respective First, Business or Coach class check-in, before sending them off to a number of different amenities and services invariably found in an airport terminal. What separates Airport Terminal from other time management games on initial observation, is the dual-screen challenge presented by the check-in and boarding process. If you manage to incur the wrath of a patron or incur delays at check-in, expect these patrons to be equally sour and tardy come boarding time. This is especially so when faced with the endless customs queues that we're all so fond of. Activities are different between the two screens (though some actions are shared, such as hitting each customer up twice at duty-free) and comprise events such as passport stamping, customs scanning, restroom stops and even a chow-down while waiting for your plane. As seems to be the trend with the better time management games, sending a customer to a facility triggers one of 8 mini-games that require your immediate attention. These range from fun to effortless (read: mindless) but all importantly add up to further time sinks and distractions that compound the frantic pace of the game. Besides its huge number of levels, spanning 7 different airports, each with individual setups, customers, assortment of minigames and strategies; Airport Terminal also features 70 individual upgrades to customize and improve your terminal. These include upgrading the light rail between areas, increasing the staff at various service points, and increasing staff competency levels (to name but a few). Though these upgrades promote bettering your score (and thus earning more money to spend) even the most expensive items never seem too far out of reach. Airport Terminal is an endearing time management game that will hold your focus for hours as you coordinate the activities and improvements of each Read More

It's about that time for many gamers to start heading back to school, and it can be a difficult task to say goodbye to the lazy days of summer. Your friends at Sega want to make this transition just a little bit easier by offering just about all of their App Store titles at a discounted rate until September 1st. And Sega's not alone, as developer Meridian is celebrating the one year anniversary of their popular dual-stick shooter Alive 4-ever by putting their entire selection of games on sale for the next three days. If you haven't had a chance to pick up any of these titles before, now is your chance to do so and save a bit of cash in the process. Sega titles on sale: Meridian titles on sale: Besides these specific sales, there's pretty much always other titles with price drops at any given time, as most App Store shoppers are aware of. Make sure you check out the latest price drops on AppShopper to stay on top of your iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad bargain hunting needs. Quote: Originally Posted by What happened to Little Lambs? Is that now defunct? I sure hope this is just a name change cuz it is way too fast to be changing an app. Little Lambs still going to get the new levels? Support? Hi We just changed the name. And we are preparing new levels for our customers. Enjoy our games Thank you Slam Dunk King 1.2.1 is now out: ○ Auto rotation support ○ iOS 5.0 compatibility fixes and general crash fixes ○ Upgraded OpenFeint (gamefeed for ipad) ○ General Bug fixes. Grab that update now!   #3   Yesterday, 06:07 PM Junior Member iPad 2, iOS 5.x Join Date: Dec 2011 Posts: 1 It takes a little bit of time to know the rules, but once you know them, the game is worth to try. Interesting by its original rules, good ambiance, good potential ... If you like board games, you should like it....   #4   11-30-2011, 03:37 PM Senior Member iPhone 4, OS 4.x Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 3,808 Looks like an interesting version of breakout. I'm working, so missed out on the promos, and unfortunately, the vast majority of people that snag them never put any impressions up. I'll be looking forward to some mpressions in the forum. iTunes Link: Description Tetroms are Read More

Last year, Meridian showed us a top view shooter like no other. Now they finally bring a sequel to their most appraised game, Alive 4-Ever. Alive 4-Ever Returns was redesigned based on a new game engine. But did the game truly improve and is it worth a look at? Presentation Taking note that Meridian decided to reengineer how the game worked, it is evident that many details went into consideration. One of the first things you’ll notice is the graphics. The environment now has a realistic feel that puts you in combat. Everything from blood splatter to bullet shells looks better. You will also find that a few new weapons have been added, such as dual handguns and sticky grenades. Although the story doesn’t quite seem to catch my attention, the fact that you can customize your character with newer features, made it worth it. If you happen to finish the 40 levels of campaign and still want more action, there’s always local wifi coop, a feature that was not released upon launch of the first title. Controls If you’ve played any shooter, the controls are what you would expect. A virtual Dpad allows movement, while a virtual stick on the right autofires whenever you touch and hold in the area. As you level up and equip skills and abilities, they will appear on the bottom of the screen. You can then tap on their icon and for a given seconds, you will have that powerup. Other controls will appear on the far right side of the screen, such as icons when you need to grab a certain item or rescue survivors. On the upper right hand side you’ll see the current weapon being used. You can swipe to switch between primary and secondary or tap to manually reload. Gameplay Just like the first A4E, you have a campaign with 40 levels, where you are given a primary objective and a challenge. You have to complete the objective, whether it be to rescue survivors, kill a certain amount of zombies, or survive for a certain time, in order to unlock the next level. If you weren’t able to complete the challenge, you can always replay the missions. However, by completing challenges you unlock weapons and equipment. Every time you level up, you get skill points to use on your character’s traits. And skills are unlocked based on your character’s level. The Read More

By Jeff Scott on May 29th, 2010 Looks like the big holiday sales aren’t just for used cars and mattresses anymore. In a move that we’ve seen repeated the past few holiday weekend, many of the app and game developers are putting their wares on sale this weekend. There are sales from the big guys like EA, Gameloft, Glu, Handmark and more [...] Looks like the big holiday sales aren’t just for used cars and mattresses anymore. In a move that we’ve seen repeated the past few holiday weekend, many of the app and game developers are putting their wares on sale this weekend. There are sales from the big guys like EA, Gameloft, Glu, Handmark and more below. With Glu putting nearly all of their games down to $0.99, EA marking most of their games a huge amount, and lots of Indie developers dropping prices, it’s a great time to pick up a few new games. Here are some of the more notable apps on sale — or at least the ones we’ve noticed so far. But we can’t list all of them here, you can check out our full list of all of the iPhone app sales on our price drops page. See one of your favorite apps or games on sale but not on our list? Leave a comment below and let us know. $0.99 Released: 2008-07-11 :: Category: Games $0.99 Released: 2009-12-21 :: Category: Games $0.99 iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad Released: 2009-09-23 :: Category: Games FREE! Released: 2009-12-03 :: Category: Games :: Family FREE! + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad Released: 2009-09-19 :: Category: Games :: Family $0.99 Released: 2008-07-11 :: Category: Games $2.99 + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad Released: 2008-10-16 :: Category: Games $2.99 Released: 2008-10-31 :: Category: Games $0.99 iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad Released: 2008-12-03 :: Category: Games $0.99 Released: 2009-08-09 :: Category: Games $2.99 Released: 2009-05-23 :: Category: Games $0.99 iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad Released: 2009-04-01 :: Category: Games There are really just too many to list on the front page. Hit the jump for the full list or check out our price drops page. $0.99 $2.99 + Universal App - Designed for iPhone and iPad Released: 2010-04-01 :: Category: Games FREE! + Universal App - Read More

Dual-stick shooters are popular at the AppStore with titles suitable for almost any taste. Mindless fans adore Minigore (TMA Review) and iDracula – Undead Awakening; while mature, story-loving fans may prefer the stylish Garters & Ghouls (TMA Review) or the addictive Guerrilla Bob (TMA Review). In 2009, the smart-looking, deep RPG-shooter, Alive 4-ever (TMA Review) wowed us. And now it RETURNS, bigger, bloodier and more gorgeous than ever. Alive 4-ever RETURNS is a zombie-themed dual-stick shooter in many ways true to the original. It has been about a month since the virus was first set free in Nefount City and the authorities have just arrested Dr. Lederman and extradited him to the US. Unfortunately there has been an accident and the ship has sunk somewhere around a small island off the coast of California. A handful of survivors unaffected by the original outbreak now have to find a way to leave the island in the hopes of salvation on the mainland from the hordes of hideous monsters. But what will they find there? One of the main features of Alive 4-ever RETURNS that make it stand out of the crowd is the mission-based gameplay. The campaign consists of 40 missions designed to take about 2 – 7 minutes each making it perfect for on-the-go playing. Each mission has a main mission goal and an additional challenge one, completing which unlocks new weapons and/or equipment in the shop. The goals are quite varied and may range from surviving for a set amount of time or killing x number of enemies to collecting gold/vaccines and rescuing survivors. For zombie-destruction mayhem you can choose one of four characters to play, each with his/her own strengths and weaknesses.  The game features a basic RPG system with 4 abilities you can assign points to on a levelup – Max HP bonus, Critical hit chance, Weapon Damage and Clip size. In addition special skills are unlocked on hitting certain levels, making for some additional tactics available. On the equipment side you can buy various weapons and gear in the shop. The characters have only two weapon slots – a sidearm with unlimited ammo and a main weapon. The arsenal is quite impressive and almost everybody will be able to find one suited to his style – be it a weak but quick firing SMG or a massively damaging grenade launcher. The additional gear gives various bonuses, like slightly increased Read More

It's Friday, and that means it's time for a Friday Five! April is ending, and May is just around the corner. What better way to end a month than with a smattering of interesting apps from this week’s releases? FOX News Most major news networks have had apps for a while now, but if you’re a fan of the “fair and balanced” network, you’ll be glad to hear that their app just hit the store this week. As you’d expect, it features videos, audio clips from FOX radio, headline news stories, and photo galleries. You can also subscribe to alerts and check showtimes for your local FOX broadcast. The app itself looks solid. Some users have reported issues with crashes and video streaming, but don’t let that deter you from downloading it—after all, it’s free, and using dedicated apps still tends to be easier than using Mobile Safari. FREE! iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad Released: 2010-04-26 :: Category: News Alive 4-ever RETURNS The sequel to a zombie shooter from last summer, Alive 4-ever RETURNS is a top-down dual-stick shooter with more zombies, more guns, and more wonderfully bloody action. There’s gore a-plenty in the 40 new levels, along with enough features to make Alive 4-ever RETURNS a cut above typical zombie games: 4-player co-op, skills, different zombie and weapon types, OpenFeint achievements, and more. If you’re a fan of horror games and zombie massacres, this is one for you. $2.99 iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad Released: 2010-04-27 :: Category: Games Linkin Park 8-Bit Rebellion! Although this game has Linkin Park branding all over it, it’s no rhythm game. Instead, 8-Bit Rebellion is a side-scrolling fighting game in which you have to lead the band members in their quest against the evil Pixxelkorp. As you progress through the game’s six areas, you’ll unlock various Link Park tracks—both the originals as well as some new 8-bit mixes—and at the very end you’re rewarded with a previously unreleased track called “Blackbirds.” There’s a strong social aspect to this musical side-scroller, too; you’re constantly connected to the online game world and you’ll see other players’ avatars wandering around. Fans of Link Park or just simple side-scrollers in general should look into this one…retro-themed games from music groups aren’t something we see every day. $1.99 iPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with Read More

I’m actually not sure how big the dual stick zombie shooter, Alive-4-Ever, was in its prime, but I had always thought of it as a sleeper hit. I thought it was a lot more entertaining than iDracula, and it delivered quickly on the promise of local co-op gameplay (something Minigore has been promising for a good long while now). What’s more, these co-op missions had different objectives, different kinds of monsters, and upgradeable weapons to keep people hooked and wanting more. Alive-4-Ever RETURNS looks a lot like all of the above, but doubled in zombie-ness and weaponage (both real words, I assure you). It’s also currently a dollar cheaper than its predecessor, at $1.99. That’s zombie logic right there — take advantage of it. Read More

The sequel to the well received Alive 4-ever dual stick shooter has finally arrived. Alive 4-ever Returns expands on the same zombie-invested formula but seems to add many new features to the mix. The sequel offers a new graphics engine with weather effects, RPG elements as well as 18 types of zombies and 37 types of weapons. Feature list from the developer includes: Here's a recent gameplay video which shows off the new features.   #5   Today, 12:21 AM Senior Member iPod Touch (4th Gen), iOS 5.x Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Houston/Austin, TX Posts: 9,979 Quote: Originally Posted by A free Glu game without IAP's? I guess the world IS becoming a better place :P There are iAPs, and just as many as usual..you have to wait a while before it shows up on the iTunes page.   #11   Today, 01:16 AM Senior Member Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 535 Check out the promo vid! It's alive! And to celebrate the release of our Free version, the full iPhone version is at a reduced price for a limited time. Get to playing, Piggies! HV2 is basically an expanded version of the original. It's the same strategy card game as the original, but with better art, sound effects and music. Two notable additions: 1. Two board sizes: An original 5 x 5 and larger 7 x 7. I found the longer gameplay good when traveling across the Atlantic. 2. Two Draw Styles: The original random card draw style and a slot-machine-like draw where the player can attempt to pick the card...if they are fast enough. The AI is ok, but can't hold up to an experienced player. This game is best as a 2 player board game. Also, I totally dig it.   #3   11-19-2011, 07:39 AM Junior Member iPhone 4, iOS 5.x Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: London Posts: 20 Quote: Originally Posted by Quite fun and polished physics puzzler with some nice graphics (and sound). Would like to be able to shoot the bats a bit faster tho. Btw, it's not free for those wondering. You get a demo and can unlock the rest 2 worlds for $1,99 each. Thanks for that. One thing I HATE about houses of late is the constant lack of adding the word "Lite" or "Free" at the end of the title. I don't mind paying for a game, but if Read More

Guerrilla Bob looks like he’s a cigar-chomping, bad-guy-stomping soldier with a gruff voice and a lot of killer weaponry, but he’s not. He also used to be the best friend of John Gore (of Minigore fame) until the two had a falling out, and so Mr. Gore actually plays the role of your arch nemesis throughout the campaign mode. It sounds epic, but it’s not. Only the graphics are “wicked” The sad thing about Guerrilla Bob is that it looks so darn good. I would say “damn good”, but I don’t want to make ol’ Bob blush. Everything about Guerilla Bob is corny, and not in a charming B-Movie, Bruce Campbell kind of way. Guerilla Bob’s hero isn’t Duke Nukem, but rather the Mario Bros. These are other action heroes who fight evil, but do it in a very goofy, cartoony, and basically harmless way. That’s not to say that I expected brutal neck-snapping, head-shotting action from Guerrilla Bob, but the dual stick shooter action we’ve come to expect from iPhone titles like Minigore, iDracula, and Alive-4-ever has been castrated in this title. There are a lot of different and impressive graphical effects in Guerrilla Bob, but none of them feel quite right. Many bullet weapons lack punch, explosives fizzle like firecrackers, and all enemies simply topple over, as if they’re taking a nap — not like they’ve been ventilated by a high-powered minigun. I could go on about this, but there are other reasons not to play Guerrilla Bob aside from the lackluster weapons and combat. Mutated Saved Games Guerilla Bob features four save slots for your saved games, but they’re handled in a truly ridiculous fashion. There are currently three modes of play in Guerrilla Bob: Survival, Arcade, and Mercenary. Arcade and Mercenary modes are basically a campaign mode — with arcade forcing you to find weapon pickups throughout the levels, and mercenary allowing you cash to buy upgrades after completing a level. The game is kind enough to auto-save for you (as you’d expect most iPhone games to do), but should you lose all of your allotted lives, the game will actually *delete* the saved slot you were using. This is an absolutely absurd way to handle a saved game, and it actually nuked my campaign progress twice before I realized how this roundabout system worked. You can actually get around it by occupying at least two saved Read More