Category: Game Releases

The digital adaptation of popular board game Evolution has been on our radar for a while now – we were hoping it would turn up last year – but sadly it never materialised.

With any luck, this game will join our list of other great mobile board games.

Looks like it’s a sure thing for 2019, however, and we won’t have to wait long! North Star Games’ digital arm, North Star Digital, has announced that Evolution will be releasing on both iOS AND Android on February 12^th, alongside its PC release.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyiWCE2RwcM?controls=0]

The physical game has been played by over 1.6 million people, so the digital version will have a lot to live up to. The press release mentions the digital game is “inspired by” the physical game, so don’t expect a straight 1:1 interpretation, but it sounds like they’re trying to make the best use of the potential of software:

…Evolution retains the elements which made the analog edition so popular with more than 1.6 million players worldwide but offers a swift pace and features only possible in a modern video game. Meticulously designed so even those who are completely unfamiliar with the original board game can jump in right away…

Evolution digital will be a four-player game, and will have the following features:

• A Learn-as-you-Play tutorial.
• A solo campaign mode with A.I.
• Skill-based, cross-platform multiplayer with options for turn-based or simultaneous play.

No mention of pass-and-play, which would be a shame but perhaps it’s something that might be added in in the future.

Evolution will be $14.99 / £9.99 on Steam, where-as both mobile versions will have a ‘free-to-try’ version, with the full game available for $9.99. It’s unclear whether this will be via an IAP or a separate app SKU, but we’ll follow up. There will be a 20% launch-discount during the first week. 

The game enjoyed a successful Kickstarter campaign back in October 2017, where it raised over $100,000 USD.

Are you excited for the release of this game? Let us know in the comments!

Paradox Interactive isn’t exactly a ‘house name’ when it comes to mobile gaming, they’ve dabbled, sure, but they’re mainly known in the PC strategy space. If you’re a mobile gamer and only a mobile gamer, you may recognise them as the publisher of the iOS and Android versions of Prison Architect.

A management/sim game where you can create and run prisons, Prison Architect was released on PC in 2015, and that was AFTER a stint in early access. Another studio (Double Eleven) was brought on board to bring the game to console mid-2016, and then Paradox Interactive and a third developer, Tag Games, finally brought Prison Architect to mobile in May 2017.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8c20XZq5TI?controls=0]

We quite liked it – it was a bit fiddly In terms of interface, and the free-to-try was trying to skirt that awkward line between premium and free-to-play, but it was a decent enough PC-to-mobile experience which fleshed out a rather under-served genre.

Well, it’s possible we’re going to be seeing a lot more Prison Architect and other such games, now that Paradox Interactive has purchased the rights to the IP from Introversion. This includes the IP, and the rights to publish and develop the game across ALL platforms. So instead of just publishing the mobile ports, Paradox will be in charge of the PC and Console releases as well.

It makes sense, given Paradox’s work with other management games like Surviving Mars and Cities: Skylines, but it remains to be seen what this mean’s for the company’s future on mobile. It’s not their expertise after all, but I hope whatever they do for the IP next they remember to send it our way as well.

After the critical acclaim of Alien: Isolation on PC/console,  I imagine there’s plenty of mobile gamers who’d want a decent Alien-esque experience on mobile on their smartphones or tablets. The real question is whether or not the recently announced Alien: Blackout is the droid you were looking for.

This game was teased last week after a trademark filing was spotted last year. Many people thought it might be a full-on Alien: Isolation sequel. I imagine those people are a bit disappointed.

Still, on paper Blackout doesn’t seem that bad so far. It’s billed as being a ‘survival/horror’ game, where you play as Amanda Ripley as she attempts to guide the crew of damaged space station to safety, out of the way of a rampant xenomorph.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXgAMbyZZS8?controls=0]

The choices you make in the game, whether to sacrifice certain crew-members or try to use the station’s damaged systems, will affect the outcome. Pocket Gamer even thinks it’ll be a premium game, given that the action is spread across seven distinct levels. It’s not your typical freemium structure, at any rate, but we’ll have to wait and see.

Blackout is being developed by FoxNext Games, D3 Go! Whose previous claims to fame is some licensed Puzzle Quest titles. Rival Games, from Finland, are also helping out, and you may know them from Thief of Thieves.

No word on a release date as of yet, but we know it’s coming to iTunes, Google Play and the Amazon App Store.