Games

Namco Bandai may be best known for their Pac-Man and Katamari Damacy titles on Windows Phone, but the publisher does dip into other genres from time to time. Case in point, their next game centers on the sport of pool. Pool Pro Online 3 comes to Xbox Live very soon, and Windows Phone Central has exclusive first screenshots to prove it.

Head past the break for our full preview and more screens!

This week's roundup takes a simple approach on things. We'll take a look at the top platformer games for your Windows Phone. With no rhyme or reason, we tapped half a dozen of the top fifty platformer games. We have a rolling ball, a running dude, ninjas without legs and temples of death.  Most are fast paced, entertaining games that are challenging enough to keep you interested without being too frustrating.

Keep in mind that if an app doesn't make the roundup it should not reflect poorly on things. These are just a collection of apps or games that have stood out to us. If we've missed an app that you think should have been included, sound off in the comments.  With 100K titles, we'd be scrolling for hours to cover them all in one round up.

There’s nothing the gamers at Windows Phone Central love more than revealing the contents of Xbox Live title updates to our dear readers. Scratch that, we especially love revealing new games... And interviewing Xbox Live developers. But title updates are definitely up there!  So then, let’s look at the recent Sid Meier’s Pirates! Update.

Sid Meier’s Pirates! Version 1.1 release notes

• General bug fixes

Yep, that’s the official word from 2K Games. I’ve heard tell of the game losing players’ save data prior to the update, so perhaps that’s one of the bugs they squashed.

In Pirates! gamers play as the son of a man whose family was unjustly imprisoned by a nobleman in the 1600s. The path to rescue them is fraught with peril, as he’s forced into the life of a pirate. From there, players must form alliances with some nations while warring on others, collecting treasure, upgrading their ship, and hiring new crewmen all the while. Pirates! May be a strategy title, but it packs a wide variety of gameplay, including ship battles, sword fighting, city bombardment, and even dancing. Ladies love a pirate who can dance.

Sid Meier’s Pirates! costs $2.99 and the download weighs in at a hefty 225 MB. No need to consult a map; get it here on the Marketplace.

A few weeks ago at E3 2012 in Los Angeles, we managed to get some hands on with the upcoming Xbox LIVE title 'Mush'. The game is from studio Angry Mango and it looks like it will finally bring some new life into some of the slightly boring and repetitive titles of late. 

Mush is a fairly adorable and cute casual game where you use tilt controls to move your character around the board. Full of puzzles and bold graphics, the game has a unique trick up its sleeve: you manipulate the character's emotions to get by the levels.

What was that again? 

Basically if you draw a smile on the screen, he floats. Draw a frown and he sinks. Shake the device and yes, he gets angry (and he will smash through things). Call us crazy but with the LocoRoco-esque graphics, the unique animation and the creative way to control your character, we're super excited for this title. It should appeal to the regular gamer, kids, the ladies, fans of Ilomilo and anyone who enjoys some fun challenges.

Look for Mush on Xbox LIVE for Windows Phone next week on July 4th. See their website here and check our hands on with the game after the break on what to expect.

Let’s face it; there just aren’t enough monkeys in your life. That’s where SEGA’s Super Monkey Ball 2: Sakura Edition comes in. The Super Monkey Ball sequel is now available on the Marketplace and as expected, it’s packed with both monkeys and balls. How could you go wrong?

After the first game’s high levels of crapulence, I was concerned that Super Monkey Ball 2 might follow suit. Well, it's pretty much the same, for better or worse. The tilt controls are as finicky ever, often making it a challenge to slow the monkey ball or bring it to a stop. A new tilt meter at least shows how the game is reading your device’s tilt, slightly reducing the difficulty. Basically, the tilting is not as good as a virtual stick could have been, but you can get used to it after a level or two.

The secondary goal of earning crowns on every level (by picking up all 10 bananas without dying) is just as frustrating as before. If you fail to earn a crown on a level, you’ll have to play a batch of 10 levels in order to get return to it and have a shot at earning the crown again. Smart ideas like allowing players to pause and retry a level or pick a specific level and try for its crown have sadly remained in the waste bin, covered in discarded banana peels and (presumably) empty whisky bottles. Anyway, if you can put aside the desire to get all the crowns (hard as that is for Achievements lovers to do), the game will be a lot more enjoyable and less frustrating.

SMB 2 definitely one-ups its predecessor in one key area: minigames. All three minigames: Monkey Bowling, Monkey Target, and Monkey Golf work nicely and have easy Achievements. The minigames only support pass-and-play multiplayer though, unlike the iOS version, which had local Wi-Fi multiplayer. Perhaps this one got ported before Microsoft finally started allowing Wi-Fi multiplayer. You never really know with Microsoft; they don’t seem to have a coherent multiplayer game plan for Windows Phone.

Super Monkey Ball 2: Sakura Edition costs $2.99 and there is a free trial. Get it here on the Marketplace.

Thanks to Zebrasqual for the tip!

Good news for you Xbox LIVE game fans as the huge version 1.1 update planned for the super popular (and WPCentral favorite) Chickens Can't Fly (review) by Amused Sloth is now available. The update was planned months ago and like usual, the update has taken literally months to pass Microsoft's rigid certification process for Xbox LIVE games.

You can hop to the Marketplace to grab it now. To refresh just what this update entails, we'll report the changelog:

• Dive deep in the new Aquarium Laboratory
• Xbox LIVE Multiplayer: Challenge your friends and see who's better!
• Customize your chicken with new skins
• Unlock Avatar Awards!
• PDLC: The Dojo Laboratory and more skins
• A new ringtone
• Option to change the game's language manually
• Performance improvements

A new ringtone, Avatar Awards (detailed here) new levels, chicken customization...what doesn't this update have? As always, we're impressed with Amused Sloth's dedication to the platform and this game.

If you haven't tried Chickens Can't Fly, then you can do so by clicking the link here for the Marketplace. The game is chock full of fantastic animations, hilarious levels and innovative obstacles which will keep you plenty busy. While the early levels are very easy, once you enter the other labs you'll have a challenge on your hands.

What's more, the game is at the low-low price of $0.99 which is one heck of a deal. Grab Chickens Can't Fly here in the Windows Phone Marketplace. Video of our hands on after the break...Thanks, DarkSynopsis, for the heads up

Monster Island is an Xbox Live title with a tumultuous history. First it launched in the US-only rather than worldwide and with Achievements that broke the Live rules by requiring players to spend money off the bat, and then it got pulled. The game eventually came back with fixed Achievements, and shortly thereafter became available in the United Kingdom too. When would other nations get to visit Monster Island (which is actually a peninsula), we wondered?

Today’s the day, it seems! Monster Island is now available in the frost-bitten climes of France. The region is known for its year-round snows and deadly walrus attacks. It’s also one of the last nations on Earth to still use Latin as its official language. Also, Rayman comes from there (really). Okay, so I don’t know anything about mysterious France, but I do know people from there can finally grab Monster Island and start earning Achievements like the rest of us.

Monster Island costs $2.99 (in the US) and there is a free trial. Get it here on the Marketplace. Now that the game has launched in France, could it be available in others as well? Let us know in the comments below, readers.

Thanks to Zebrasqual for the tip!

The new Monkey Target minigame

Back when we discovered Final Fantasy would be coming to Windows Phone, we also learned about another upcoming Live title: Super Monkey Ball 2: Sakura Edition from SEGA.  Well, Final Fantasy just launched two weeks ago to much acclaim, and now we’re due for some monkey business. Super Monkey Ball 2 arrives on June 27.

As you can see from our exclusive screenshots, Super Monkey Ball 2’s graphics are now fully 3D (the original used 2D sprites for the monkeys). It’s also said to have better controls and stage design. Let’s hope so, because the first game was far too frustrating. 125 stages, six themed worlds, and some tough Achievements will ensure a lengthy experience. One of those Achievements is tied to the game’s new 4-player mode. Hopefully said mode uses the internet rather than local Wi-Fi, but Microsoft wasn’t able to say either way at press time.

Super Monkey Ball 2: Sakura Edition rolls out on Wednesday, June 27 and will cost $2.99… We’re cautiously excited for it.

Update: Multiplayer will be pass-and-play only. Bummer. Good for Achievement hunters though!