NVIDIA announces 5 new titles for Tegra Zone

This week at Mobile World Congress NVIDIA’s partners announced a ton of new Tegra 3 devices, but the big focus was on mobile games and other experiences that Tegra delivers. Last night we had the opportunity to attend an NVIDIA party where we got some hands-on time with several upcoming games headed to Tegra Zone.

NVIDIA had set up several classic consoles including Xbox, PlayStation 2, Atari, and Dreamcast, which were placed next to Tegra devices running similar games. It was a night filled with nostalgia, but it was also cool to see how these devices that fit in our pockets are now replacing dedicated game consoles. Read on to check out which games are coming to Tegra Zone.

Sonic 4: Episode II

Growing up I was a Nintendo fan so Mario was always my favorite character, but I had several friends who preferred Sega and their blue-haired hedgehog. This week NVIDIA announced they had partnered with Sega to bring Sonic 4: Episode II to Android devices. The latest episode in the historic franchise features 17 all-new levels, co-op mode with Sonic’s old sidekick Tails, and real-time water effects and dynamic backgrounds in 720p HD. Hopefully this is the start of a long-term relationship with NVIDIA that will see Sega’s other franchises find their way to Android devices.

Eden to GREEEEN THD

Eden to Greeeen comes from popular Japanese developer iNiS. This turn-based strategy game is a mix of tower offense and plants vs alien machines. I had the chance to play through a couple levels at an NVIDIA event, and it was one of my favorite mobile games at the show. The graphics were powered by Unreal Engine, which we wished more Android developers used. Look for the game to be available for free on Tegra Zone later in 2012.

Dark Kingdom THD

Dark Kingdom is a classic role-playing game that has now gone mobile. This version optimized for Tegra devices features higher-polygon models, dynamic shadows, dynamic lighting, and even rag-doll physics.

Hamilton’s Great Adventure THD

Hamilton’s Great Adventure is another epic PC puzzle game that has gone mobile. The developer Bitsquid has ported their DirectX 11 engine to Android with Tegra 3 optimizations and quad-core scaling.

Golden Arrow THD

I didn’t get to play Golden Arrow THD, but this hack-and-slash game looks pretty awesome. The version optimized for Tegra devices will feature higher-resolution textures, high dynamic range lighting, soft shadows, lens flares, explosions and fires galore.

Via Android and me

Temple Run for Android delayed till March at least

So, Temple Run. Easily one of the most-anticipated Android games in the world right now. Android owners have been waiting patiently (though judging by the comments on our previous stories, not too patiently) for months. And according to the game’s official Facebook page, they’re going to have to wait a little longer. The deveoper posted that the game is taking longer than expected to complete, though it’s still coming along. The post says that it’ll give Facebook followers at least a week’s notice before the game is released – which means that if the notice came later today, Temple Run still wouldn’t be coming until March 3rd. At the absolute earliest.

For the uninitiated, Temple Run is an iOS game by developer Imangi Studios. In a nod to the original Indiana Jones, the player must control an adventurer fleeing from a temple, pursued by hoards of demonic monkeys. Various touch gestures allow you to manipulate your character, jumping, dodging, turning or ducking as necessary. It’s a bit like a 3D version of Bit Trip Runner. The developers announced back in November that the game was headed to Android, but as development draws to a close eager fans have been disappointed time and again with vague delays.

Imangi takes care to note that any game pretending to be Temple Run on the Android Market or elsewhere is a fake, until their full app is released. That’s not without precedent: like many popular iOS converts, copies and fakes have been appearing in the Market with depressing regularity. The game is in the final Beta stages and should be wrapping up soon – but not before next Saturday.

Via AndroidCommunity

'Game of Thrones' Trailer? HBO's Got an App for That

The interminable wait for season two of HBO's Game of Thrones is finally nearing an end and the premium cable network announced Thursday that fans can soon view an all-new trailer ahead of the April 1 premiere online or via the HBO GO app.

Viewers got their last dose of Arya Stark, Daenerys Targaryen, Tyrion Lannister, and all the assorted rogues, warriors, and courtesans of author George R.R. Martin's sprawling fantasy world way back on June 19, 2011. And here we thought the eight-month wait between seasons five and six of Lost was an ordeal!

The trailer can be watched Friday at hbogo.com or by way of the app, which can be downloaded on Apple's iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch, smartphones running Google's Android mobile operating system, Samsung's Smart TV products, and Roku digital media products, according to the network.

It's also going to be broadcast to HBO subscribers, naturally.

The first episode of season two is titled ""The North Remembers." It's directed by Alan Taylor, who was at the helm for the final two episodes of season one, and members of the Emmy-nominated series' ensemble who are returning for season two include Emilia Clarke (Daenerys Targaryen), Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jaime Lannister), Emmy winner Peter Dinklage (Tyrion Lannister), Michelle Fairley (Catelyn Stark), Lena Headey (Cersei Baratheon), and Kit Harington (Jon Snow).

Sadly, Sean Bean won't be back unless the Game of Thrones producers have some sort of Obi-Wan-Kenobi's-ghost surprise up their sleeves (and let's really hope not). His character, Ned Stark, was beheaded as a result of crossing wits with the Lannisters in season one—although not before he got his own Internet meme, so there's that.

Via PCmag

Tata Docomo offers unlimited premium Android games for a monthly charge

Tata Docomo customers can now play unlimited premium Android games for a monthly charge.

Tata Docomo has partnered with Exent, which provides a subscription based gaming service under the brand name 'GameTanium', to offer game subscription services to its subscribers in India.

The new service, called Let's Play, provides Tata Docomo customers unlimited access to full-version games with no advertising. The service will offer the Android games like Zenonia, Wave Blazer and Edge.

GameTanium catalog will also offer editorial features such as ratings, reviews and an extensive collection of game trailers. The service can also be played even while offline.

Tata Docomo customers can subscribe to 'Let's Play' service for a low monthly fee by sending the keyword 'Play' as an SMS to 53333 from Android mobile devices. A free three-day trial of the service is also available.

"The emergence of sophisticated mobile devices at affordable prices and wider range of smartphones along with greater wireless mobile broadband penetration has led our customers to expect much more from their service beyond calling and texting. Android is believed to have a rich user interface that adds functionality to the device and increases the overall mobile experience, especially gaming," said Sharad Arora, head mobility, wireless solutions, Tata Teleservices.

Via Themobileindian

Shogun Rise Of The Renegades Brings "Bullet Hell" To Android With Hours Of Flying Bullets, Sheer Chaos

The developers at int13.net introduced Shogun Rise of the Renegades to the Android Market today, bringing "bullet hell" gameplay reminiscent of Japanese arcade games from the 1990s to the palm of your hand.

For those not in the know, the Japanese sometimes call "bullet hell" style games "danmaku," referring to insane shooters in which players can generally expect most of the screen to be filled with flying bullets.
Shogun definitely delivers on this reputation, providing a continuous stream of chaotic scrolling shooter action. One of Shogun's claims to fame is its dynamic, addictive gameplay - it's easy to get hooked on the manic action and crisp, retro environments offered by Rise of the Renegades, and  the game keeps things interesting with hours of entertainment.

While the full version of Shogun will run you about $2.49 in the Android Market, int13.net suggests trying the free demo version first to avoid compatibility issues. Just click through either of the links below to grab the download and start blasting through enemy spacecraft.

Via Androidpolice

Order & Chaos' new update fixes connectivity issue, Double XP weekend and more

About a week ago we talked about an Order & Chaos update that ended up causing a lot of problems, mostly regarding actually connecting to the game itself. This means the game was unplayable for a lot of Android players who nabbed the update.

According to a tweet from Gameloft and some comments left on here, a new update has been pushed out though that has fixed the issue. Once you download the update, you should not have any problems connecting to the servers and being able to play.

As a token of thanks for everyone's patience, Gameloft will be making this weekend a Double XP one where all XP is doubled. Also, when you receive the update, you will be treated to 25 free runes as well. So if you haven't updated to the new version yet, now is a good time to do it

Via Droidgamers

GetJar launches virtual currency for games across Android's app stores

GetJar has launched a new virtual currency that works for games released across Android's various app stores, including its own free app store, Android Market, and Amazon's Appstore.

The company claims the currency and its linking to global advertisements solve two problems similar platforms have previously faced: low free-to-paid conversions due to complicated user experiences, and the lack of access to global markets.

Consumers earn GetJar Gold by downloading a free, GetJar-powered game from any Android Store. They can then spend that virtual currency on microtransactions or on upgrades to purchase premium versions of free games.

Developers then collect the virtual currency that users spend in their games, and exchange it with GetJar for real money. They can sign up for the program and download the GetJar Gold software development kit at the company's site.

GetJar claims that early results from its virtual currency have significantly grown revenues and conversions for developers, and it expects that participants in the program will eventually see those numbers increase by as much as 10x.

The new virtual currency increases the visibility of Silicon Valley-based GetJar, which operates a mobile app store that serves 350,000 free games and apps for devices running Android, Java, Symbian, and other platforms. The company allows developers to upload their games for free, and bid for ads to promote their titles on the service.