sidescroll

The dead rise again!

Zombieville USA 2 is a side-scrolling arcade shooter that expands on the potential of the original Zombieville USA by adding tons of weapons, more unlockable content (including playable characters), and an upgradable skill system that makes for some fun RPG elements.

The gameplay has remained gratifyingly simple: you run from left to right, kill as many zombies as possible in 2.5 minutes (or longer, if you want to push your luck), and smash boxes and other objects for money and ammo. The RPG elements come in as you choose your buildout for each level, picking three weapons and three … Read more

Classic shoot-'em-up R-Type is back for Android

R-Type for Android takes you way back to the '80s with its classic humans-versus-aliens storyline and retro shoot-'em-up style of game play. Because it's more or less unchanged from its arcade predecessor, R-Type is sure to keep you hooked for hours at a time, just as it did when you were younger.

While there is a rich plot that drives R-Type, its details are relatively inconsequential. All you need to know is that you are piloting a futuristic star ship, and your primary objective is to kill aliens...lots and lots of aliens.

To begin, your ship is … Read more

Go in for a bombing run, soldier

StealthBomber is a free, 2D arcade game in which you pilot a "stealth bomber" dropping bombs on a steady stream of tanks, trucks, and other vehicles.

You hold your device vertically (portrait, not landscape), with your bomber moving back and forth at the top of the screen and your enemies moving left to right on the bottom of the screen. You move horizontally using a touch-screen slider at the base of the screen (or just touch and drag anywhere to move), and you drop bombs with an adjacent button. A set number of enemies, all with varying speeds … Read more

2D zombies are still scary

Zombieville USA is a 2D, side-scrolling arcade game in which you use a variety of firearms to kill an endless supply of zombies across a series of increasingly treacherous levels. The running, zombie-killing part of gameplay is very straightforward: you tap on arrows on the right and left side of the screen to move, and you tap the bottom of the screen to shoot, occasionally ducking into houses to avoid zombies and collect money and ammo. Even with its cool, cartoony graphics (including some whimsical gore, of the flying-eyeball and bits-of-brain variety), Zombieville USA can get a little repetitive--especially playing … Read more

Tank blast-o-rama

HeavyMach Lite is a free preview of the first four stages in HeavyMach, a side-scrolling tank game in which you blast through enemy gun emplacements and trucks, helicopters, and other vehicles on your way to battle big bosses. This is a fun, pick-up-and-play game with solid graphics and sound effects, tons of different weapons, straightforward gameplay, and very intuitive controls: you tilt your device to roll left or right, and you tap to shoot--and where you tap controls the angle of your gun. You can also tap a "booster" lever to jump, to overcome obstacles and avoid enemy … Read more

Tank blast-o-rama

Take a trip to Rolandoland

Rolando Lite is a free preview of the first eight levels in Rolando, a clever and gorgeously realized arcade puzzler in which you coax charismatic little balls (Rolandos) through ever more complex levels. The game makes excellent use of the iPhone and iPod Touch, as you touch or drag to select Rolandos, tilt your device to roll them, swipe upward to jump, drag with two fingers to look around a level, and use your finger to rotate, push, and pull certain objects (these being "sacred" objects that only you--the exalted "Finger"--can manipulate).

These initial levels, … Read more