Don't Fix Some Things that aren't Broken (January edition)

Sigh* Sometimes new things just take a while to get used to, even if they are improvements over the old. This holds especially true for me and my opinion with cars. First impressions can't always be trusted. I try not to jump to conclusions, like I did with Microsoft Word 2010 from 2007. Lots of things were changed and those changes did not help me at all when doing hectic research essays. Some buttons were thrown and here and there and behind this new tab that confused me and took me time to find. (I often last minute work). It didn't take longer or more clicks to do the same tasks once you get used to them, but was it really necessary to move features around if it didn't actually really help or improve anything? Why the headache? This Microsoft Office issue was smaller than the ones I'm going to list as a few alterings that I gave about a year to warm up to me.

-Windows 7's Windows Media Player. (My biggest issue is that the Playlist used to be a lot more convenient to use and find.) I enjoy my visualizations. This new editions like to take you to the library where nothing pretty is to be seen. The "Now Playing" and "Playlist" were easily accessable before (at least in Windows XP) with an on screen button. With the annoying version you gotta right click and it's the first on the list, (no longer a button? Why not just make it a button?!?) I skipped Windows Vista because my desktop with XP was still working just fine. Plus I liked the change from boring gray rectangles in Pre-XP to smooth blue edges in XP was kinda epic for me.

-Windows Movie Maker Videos and music used to overlap with a small section for text in a timeline fashion. Now those animations take longer to do and I don't thing the Music could overlap. Text transitions were also worsened because they couldn't overlap each other or fade through or into each other. I could be wrong and these could be a features activated through some sort of menu. But these things used to be the default features and were there for use to use right away SMOOTH and AWESOME they were. Getting used to them was fast and natural and buttons/features placement made sense. I consider myself not too bad with the computer and those features took very little time to learn and use in the XP version of things so I blame Microsoft designers for this inconvenience.
The Rise of Windows Movie Maker grew with Youtube. In fact I think they contributed to each others growth. Youtube isn't getting smaller or worst, why are you WM Maker?

-Right Click DRAGGING items/icons in Windows Seven. While right-click dragging, the item may become undragged. Or when you let go of right click after a drag, the item drops as if it were left click. I am confident in my simple left and right clicking skills so again I blame Microsoft guys and women. This was not in issue in all my computer experience(except maybe sometimes with Apple products).You can't just right click an item if another item/file is already highlighted. You have to click to highlight or select the item you want to right click, then you can right click like previously possible in XP OS.

-USB Microphones. -with a growing population and the popularity of singing competition shows such as American Idol, X Factor, the Voice and America's Got Talent (sort of) I would expect Desktops and Laptops and all sorts of computers to have improved microphone friendliness, or at least not worst. I am researching this to see if there are common fixes. But my opinions still stand this should have been not even a problem in the first place. Further research suggests this isn't a software issue but may be due to the Rockband Mic that delays with computers. I have to mention that I never tried USB Mics on older versions of windows so this isn't a comparison. I am still looking into this matter.


I am not a professional and sort of noob compared to experts, but I do use computers frequently and casually. Some of these ticks may just be a personal preference or issue or my one desktop may be faulty. If you can confirm these problems or give fixes, I would appreciate it.



Let me know your thoughts.(especially if you agree with something so I don't feel so alone).

Garden Puzzle Lite Review

Garden Puzzle Lite comes out of the development inferno that is the Ukraine. A simple sliding block (or classic game of 'fifteens') as it is know by our ex Eastern bloc developer pals. There's only so much you can do with a sliding block puzzle, but what little Garden Puzzle for iOs does it does quite well. A chirpy nature orientated soundtrack combines with a numerically orientated game board done out with quite a realistic graphic style which makes good use of textures.

If a bit of app relaxation with a simple sliding puzzle app is on the game menu for today then please visit the AppStore to see the iTwins Garden Puzzle App.

Galaxy Note 3 Rumours

Latest rumours on the Samsung Galaxy Note 3

Display

Korea Times is reporting that the Galaxy Note 3 will feature a 6.3-inch OLED display with 1080p resolution. If this is true it remains to be seen if the public will take to a screen size that is bigger than the already large 5.5inch sported by the Note 2.

What Processor can we expect the Galaxy Note 3 to have?

The Galaxy Note 3 is rumored to have a Samsung Exynos 5 Octa 8-core processor, which Samsung claims uses 70% less battery power than comparable processors. Benchmarking site Antutu apparently clocks this at a blitzing 1.8ghz. Spammy is of course proud of their new overkill processor so we could probably expect it to make up the brains of the Galaxy S4 too.

Internal Memory

No changes are expected from the current storage: We're talking either 16Gb or 32GB of flash memory, with up to 64GB in external storage via SD slot.

What is the release Date for the Galaxy Note 3?

The Wall Street Journal citing Samsung Sources say that a first half of the year release can be expected -a very fast turn around considering many customers are still levering out their Note2's from the Samsung packaging with safety box cutters to hand. 

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Dead Trigger Updates are like Free DLC's

After months of playing almost every day, Dead Trigger continues to add more content that improves the game.(check out my original coverage article here) The FREE updates aren't small minor updates. There were not big bugs to fix in the first release. I started on version 1.5 and skipped 1.6 because I was afraid it could be a Facebook type of bad update and not work anymore after installing. I didn't want to lose the ability to play the game.

Update 1.5 was a Halloween Update  and adds a cool new arena and gives zombies pumpkin heads. I really like this new open map. It also included the addition of the CROSSBOW in the shop. The crossbow has the highest accuracy at 100% but shoots in an arched path for longer distances. It costs gold to purchase, but money to upgrade(the first of it's kind to do so).




Update 1.6 was a Christmas Update. It adds another arena map more story missions(just 2 additional missions though). This time, the map is more narrow and cramped. Zombies in this arena may wear santa costumes. Yeah that's right, zombies in santa outfits. Although I like this newer map less, I had to get this update. 

           The reason, the amazing GRENADE LAUNCHER(pictured above). It has become my top secret weapon against my arch nemesis and mini-boss enemy, the red eyed swat armored zombie. The launcher ignores the armor. I don't care if it's armor penentration or just ignoring the suit, as long as it helps me. It shoots similarly to the crossbow in a parabolic path. (I haven't tried the crossbow and don't plan to). The launcher is the second weapon to cost gold to buy, but dollars to upgrade. At first I didn't have enough to get it to level 3, but level two was quite fun. At rank 36 it took the (stage 2) grenade launcher two shots to kill the female zombie and armored swat zombie. Within two days I upgraded the weapon to it's maximum level. They non-boss zombies stop walking dead after getting a good hit with a blast. Zombie close to the blast will take less damage and/or get temporary stunned.

Aiming to take a shot and run away reminds me of the old Devil Trigger days of Playstation 2. If you're into the Call of Duty games, no you cannot noobtube in Dead Trigger. Shooting the ground or buildings will not cause the bullet/grenade to explode. Explosions will only occur when it comes in direct contact with a zombie or it has bounced/rolled off the environment for a few seconds like a frag grenade. This is a little odd, but for this game it's better. This causes you to play better with more skills and not cheat very easily. Plus you get to be immune to your own explosions, lucky for you...and me. Although the weapon can hit 6 targets(maximum spawned zombies) if they are in the proximity of the explosion, it becomes dangerous if you fail to hit a target at close range because the fire rate is a little slower than other weapons and will leave you vulnerable. Reloading only takes one magazine, similar to the Striker Shotgun but a bit longer. 

Another reason I finally got an update was because on January 12th I got JACKPOT!!! This ensured me that I had enough gold to purchase at least one item in gold that I would want after updating. The jackpot was 200 gold. After the update, you no longer really see the items come down the slots as much because it is becomes a nice cartoon like blur. It still works and functions as before by the way. Don't know if any of the mechanics for chances of winning changed. I'm positive I have gotten those items lined up before and didn't get jackpot. Getting three 7's in a row doesn't a jackpot neither, but it has given me 10 gold. 3 Purple Grapes get you 5 gold.


  These updates aren't minuscule, they're almost like mini Downloadable Content (DLC) packages for console games, except these are FREE. Again, my original review of the great and wonderful app can be found here.

In the meantime, here are some screenshots. I didn't want to put them in the original article because that article already was already long with photos and I didn't want to take time to take these pics back then.
 

 Yeah I cut their arms off. Chainsaw Massacre.

He didn't seem happy about it. Then again, zombie are never happy except maybe when they are gorging on some warm blood.

Doing some Carnage in a collect the supplies mission. Learned that C word from watching Spider-Man tv series.

 And now for a cheat. At this map (Mall) sometimes you have access to the escalators. Facing the escalators, you can go up the left one. Zombies only way of reaching you is going up that path. You'll have a much easier time to "aim" and shoot down and survive. It might not be necessary for me to tell you this as you will probably discover this for yourselves anyways. 

Been sticking with the Mini-gun since it's easier to get Carnage with, therefore a little more money.

 


 Those Madfinger people are crazy. Crazy good that is. 

Amazing Ants-quick guide to coins

Amazing Ants really only becomes a great game when you're prepared to spend money in coins for all of those unlockable extras. So you want to get coins as quick as possible don't you?

How to get coins fast in Amazing Ants
Like many free,I'm games try to eke the most out of Amazing Ants before spending coins (earned or otherwise). Naturally gifted players grinding out repeated 3 star levels will be 'coining it' quicker than the rest of us.

Expect a lot of laborious work to get those 'free' Amazing Ants coins, there's only so far that your skills can take you. Here's how to make the most of your gaming labours:

On the first level of  'Hungry Hoppers' skip the video by tapping the screen. Then, tap the ant to start the colony moving, and leave your mobile nearby.

Here's the mathematical genius of using this method to get coins-It takes 15 seconds to complete this first level - this is the quickest way to get more coins , you'll get 60 coins for collecting all fruit and a 120 coins for doing it in a good time.

Hit the 'retry' button at the end, then tap the ants to start them. You can quickly play the sequence over and over. It's not fun, and really is coin (any) farming! The reason your mobile is on the table is so that you can do something else while continuing this game currency accumulating process.

Get slightly more involved

You can try a similar process on higher and more demanding levels, but will need to more involved in the ant's explorations.

The first level in Set 4 - Dirty Business will pay lots of coins for Example.Here, you need to drag your finger through dirt to remove it, making a channel between ant and fruit.

Almost as soon as you start the level, the timer begins, so don't hang about. Tap and hold over the purple grape and draw a diagonal line all the way to the ants waiting patiently. Now, set them off immediately and draw another line from the green apple to the grape, then from the apple to the gap in the tunnel's walls.

Your ants should be heading towards the apple by now, so remove all the dirt from under the boat with the watermelon so that it drops to create a path to the exit. Et voilà: a not-inconsiderable 456 Coins have been added to your purse.

General game tips

There are too many levels in Amazing Ants for me to start going into specifics on how best to complete them, but there are some general tips you should be aware of while playing.

Once you do have enough Coins to move on past a set of levels, go ahead and enjoy the next ones. You'll gain Coins and more enjoyment this way

When you do have to go back into the grind - or if you're intent on earning every star on each level - remember that time is key. To get the highest level rank possible (a.k.a. the Brilliant award), you need to get all the fruit quickly.

Make sure to go for Bronze Apples (the rarer, more lucrative fruits) whenever you see them. If you want to increase the frequency with which they appear in levels, by the way, there's an IAP with your name on it.

Route plotting and memorisation is important and if you can come up with the best solutions you'd do well to keep on repeating it for coins

Viatun - Best VPN for Android. Save on data usage

Ever wondered if there was anything you can do about your data usage without using less data or paying more? With Viatun you get just that, and a whole lot more. The smartphone app decreases your carrier data usage by using compression software. Up to 80% of your data can be saved from being counted by your phone carrier. If the in-app traffic meter is accurate, just a Youtube video test on HQ saved me 50%(it's gone up a couple percentages after some additional testing with light usage of more videos and some browsing). Sometimes the traffic meter takes time or a relaunch to change it's numbers.  The application also claims to be the "fastest VPN on the market."

 
Other benefits and features of the Android app includes:
-hiding your IP so you can use the internet more anonymously.
-Viatun servers give you built in anti-virus protection
-Bypass and get Access to blocked or restricted sites (apps, features) in your area(country) with no effort. 
-the ability to use VOIP apps in wifi spots that usually don't allow it.
-no advertisements



Set up is easy. Just install the app. Enter your email address and retrieve the 5 digit password from your email.
Enter the pw into your app and you're good to go.

This shows a smooth and neat convenient connection speed checking tool.

According to some user reviews on Google Play, Viatun also has quick customer service. Start your FREE 3 day trial (1 GB Limit) today. One year of Viatun is only about $10, which is still a huge savings compared to your average data rates of about $30 for 3 GB per month. This version runs on Android 2.0 - 3.7. For a newer version that runs on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, get Viatun 4 here. They are both very similar to each other, just operable on different versions of Android. Results may vary depending on location, carrier, names of device, and other factors.










Your next surprise from a your phone bill could be a good one.

Santa RockStar APP REVIEW and Song List

    Just in case your winter break isn't over yet (harder to get winter college courses nowadays), or you still feel a little jolly from Christmas, you have a new FREE app to enjoy your phone and remaining time. Last Christmas one of my wishes came true with the release of Santa Rockstar. Like the name suggests, Santa has become a rockstar and is rocking in this smartphone app. Although my version claims to be Xperia Exclusive, you may also find the application in the App Store(itunes) and Google Play for other devices. My device isn't compatible for the non exclusive version for Android. I don't understand the introduction or how Saint Nick become so muscular, but that's not important for now.

I have been a longtime fan of Rock Band and some of the songs in the Guitar Hero Games. Just copying Rock Bands gameplay won't be enough to make me like the game. Luckily the smartphone application has awesome rock remixes or rock versions of classical Christmas songs (or winter song if you want to be politically correct). Santa Rockstar: Metal Xmas is way better than the Rock Band and Guitar Hero Demo apps. All 3 are FREE, but this one takes the cake, whatever that means. I wouldn't be too surprised if Santa Rockstar got sued by at least one of them. I am not a fan of most cover songs or generic remixes.  Trust me when I say these songs are great. If you don't trust me you can give the game a try and see for yourself.


Here is the list of songs and their location in order:
North Pole
-Silent Night
-Hark of the Herald
-Joy to the World

Frost Valley
-Jingle Bells
-March of the Nutcracker
-We wish you a merry Christmas

Greenlands
-Carol of the Bells,
-God Rest  Ye Merry Gentlemen
-Santa Journey Begins

Night city
-Come all Ye Faithful
-Little Bells for you
-Snowball Fight

Magma Palace
-Three Wise Men
-No Presents for You,
-Rondo Alla Turca



There are two other places to unlock "Burning Alien" and "Dragon Shrine" (cool names by the way). A quick internet search didn't yield any results for "list of songs for Santa Rock", not even for the above songs. You may unlock:
Burning Alien: by getting all 5 stars in normal or using $0.99.
Dragon Shrine: by getting 5 stars on all songs in difficult difficulty or spending $0.99.

You must beat all the 3 songs in a location before being able to play the next set of songs at the next location. Each location must be unlocked for it's difficulty.

 Go to the store to purchase different types of temporary boosts, guitars with special effects, other playable characters, and the two unlockable places. Playable Characters include Genny (a gingerbread man), Rudolph(buffed up), and Santa Jaws (a humanoid shark). They are all 3D and animated as in lively and not stiff.
    Even the shop looks cool and well organized. 
 Watching the guitar in the shop rotate around reminds me of looking at keyblades from Kingdom Hearts. Your avatar or selected character will even hold the selected guitar in the main menu. (However not in the in-between level screenshots if you want to get picky).



    What kind of guitar game wouldn't have some sort of Rock Power? This game has one. Fill up your Rock Power gauge by hitting all the white notes when they come down. If you make an error once a group of these have appeared, they will disappear and you would have to wait for your next chance. Unlike in the console rock games, the length of the white notes and their bonus isn't dependent on how you were doing in the segment before they showed up. When it's time for the notes they are a fixed amount or notes and power.  Activate the special by tapping outside the frets area or shaking the device. Here are some tips and hints concerning this special:
-A full gauge cannot store up more than 1 special. However you may refill the special gauge while using Rock Power.
-A few songs have long pauses in them and they are "Three Wise Men" and "Little Bells for You".
-Practice doesn't always make perfect, but it can help.

Again, my Xperia Play isn't great at taking screenshots. And I double checked, those are my scores for medium, not on easy.

I was wondering how can a Sony exclusive game be this polished? Did Sony do this or make this? Further research tells us that the answer is no. Santa Rockstar had been an in-browser flash game hero (at least 3 times) before traveling to smartphones. The developers at Bekhotteam had time to perfect their game...And I agree with their tastes. "Metal Xmas" somehow associated with Santa Rockstars title, but I'm not sure what the official name(s) are.  Yuisy is the name of the publishers, at least for the app.



There are a couple exclusive bonuses that Xperia players get. Those are unlock Santa Jaws, and a coin doubler. I am not sure how long this double coin feature lasts, but maybe forever as there is no indication to suggest otherwise. I didn't activate this until I only had about 4 places to unlock. Either way, this bonus doesn't double the 1000 bonus for going to the next location (I think that's also another bonus in itself and like most promotions, deals excludes other deals and only one may be used at a time).

Sadly that picture on the right is a screen capture of one of the first few seconds I get when I start the app. It's probably a loading screen and does not effect the game experience at all except scare me the first time I tried playing.

  

Other Miscellaneous information:
Your drummer is a reindeer who's nose isn't red. If you really want to know who it is, I cannot help you there and cannot understand why you would want to know so badly anyways. There are 3 round icons that resemble three types of bonuses and whether or not you have them. The first one is the percent of your score bonus. Second is the notes you may miss/backup notes. And the third is the length of extra Rock Power you get for your next use. There isn't an icon that represents your total % of rock power bonus(still only effects once you collect or gain rock power during gameplay by hitting all the white notes that are together in a group.) One big famous song that seems to be missing from their regular lineup is "Twelve Days of Christmas". Besides giving you a higher score to brag about possibly saving you from game over, I don't think the boosted score counts towards your rank/stars, mainly your percentage does. I checked and it was in previous versions of Santa Rock. There is a chance the song is in one of the unlockable areas, but the song isn't as good as the ones already selected for regular gameplay(I agree that it shouldn't have made the lineup).
My one complaint would be that the congratulations or "you're doing a great job" notice that pops out at 25 notes, 50 notes, 100 notes, and 200 notes sounds like an error buzz and is annoying. I sometimes feel like I'm getting punished for making a mistake and realize "oh, I'm doing good." A Whammy Bar function or feature isn't available, but you can make a similar effect just by the distance the phone is from your face while playing if you are daring enough.  

This is not one sleigh you would want to miss.
Enjoy

Timon's Birthday (app for kids) Review

Timon is one of those character that we will always know, maybe not remember but know. The Lion King hero has his very own app. Characters have birthdays too (some of them anyways). Celebrate Timon's bday with this app. The Disney smartphone application is for children, but tricky enough for an adult. I myself had some tough times with the app. The graphics aren't state of the art, but as expected from an official Disney app, the graphics are at least smooth and clean.  I wonder if he'll get any insect or bugs to grub on?

What's the objective or how do you play? Just place all of his gifts in the spot in front of him and in a stack from largest to smallest. The numbers represent the size of the present. A gift may only be place on a larger gift. You have 3 columns to move around your items. Tap or touch a column and if there is a moveable gift, it will move up and be place on the next column you touch if that move is valid.

Don't underestimate things that are made for children as simple and easy. For example the Spongebob television show and Shrek movies have some older than kid themes. Another example is Transformers toys(action figures) either impress you or "pwn" you for a few seconds or more. My short term memory doesn't allow me to effective play until the very end so after midway I sometimes lose my way. The stop, replay, and main menu are assessable with the right hand corner button. Next to it is the time elapsed. To the left of that is the amount of moves made. Picking up an item and putting it back down doesn't count as a move. I do not think there is a score or rank system required for certain feats based on moves made and the time it took to complete.

The Android app is available on Googly Play, and exclusively it seems. It's a brand new app and has an average of more than 4 stars out of 5 so far. Download this app for your children and stimulate their brains without violence. It'll make you a better parent and/or caregiver. One question remains though, where's Pumba and Simba?

The smartphone app is FREE, so Hakuna Matata (it means no worries), Enjoy.

Are you a Glass Explorer?

Google Glass is set to be the big buzzword for 2013, with the first of two hackathons planned in late January/early February "Glass Explorers" are set to get their first taste of the new wearable Google product.

If you haven't heard of it yet you soon will: the Google Mirror APi code named Glass Foundry will allow hands on time with the new bit of kit that promises new ways to interact with the world from gaming, to location based apps and even at its greatest extent to making a free website builder using the APi! In San Fran and New York you can attempt to get hands on in the Glass Hackathons that will show off the augmented reality head mounted display at its best. If you're a developer then expect to pay $1500 for the privilege of getting to know the Google X Lab created product intimately.

MintCoins (Make Money) Beta - like the apps name says

I'm sure almost all of us have seen promotions in apps that give you extra gold or kudos for watching an ad or signing up for certain things, or for just downloading another app. Next up for discussion we have the MintCoins app. According to the user reviews, each time you do one of the offers you get $0.50. The smartphone application also gives you $0.50 for making a referral, and $0.25 for using a referrers code when you get started/join. Some users have stated that it sometimes disconnects you and doesn't give you credit. The payout is quick and easy, 1-2 days and directly to your paypal account. Some user reviews from Google Play state the app as the best money making app for Android users.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                      That's my actual referral code. 

       Screen Shots                                                                                                                     

As stated it's currently in Beta stage, so improvements and updates and more deals are likely coming in the future. It has been released since early November 2012 and has gotten over 1000 downloads so far(in 2 months) with an average rating of 4.5 on Google Play. 

The minimum payout or withdraw amount is $3 (previously $5). You may get credit for the referral once a person joins, but you cannot withdraw that referral credit until that person has made their first withdraw. This is a smart requirement method by the designers/developers so that your referral counts only when a person really joins the app, not just install the app. Just make sure you know what you are trying out or signing up for. Some of the offers are cool and interesting.

Happy earnings.

Clash of Clans Heroes Update 2013

Fancy using a Barbarian King or Archer Queen Hero in Clash of Clans? The new 2013 Clash update is a massive New Year start to Supercells's popular game. Now there's even more reasons to upgrade your Town Hall!
Clash of Clans Dark Elixir
To get access to these new heroes you'll need to get Dark Elixir. Luckily even lower levels can just steal this from other players as you'll be able to build a dark elixir storage at just Town Halll level 7. To build the dark elixir drill you'll need to be a level 8.
More wall defences
If like me you've laboured hard and spent a lot of gold on building your wall defences to the max you'll be shocked/surprised that even more Clash of Clans wall defences are ow available. It's not just any decor stores cheap cosmetic upgrade as these walls mean business with a formidable Spikes of Pain and Flaming Magma upgrade available. The games upgrade also now gives you access to more upgrades and additional Xbows.
How to get Clash of Clans Heroes
The new game upgrade allows you to recruit and improve the Barbarian King and Archer Queen. You'll either need to steal Dark elixir for this-in which case a dark elixir storage will need to be built. Or drill for it-if your town hall is a level 8 you can build a drill.
Who's your best Clan Member?
Now Clan members who donate more troops will be given a score and an additional achievement has been opened up for benefactors.

The bad news...
Say goodbye to the Unpleasant present and Santa Spell! Winter is now over and Clash of Clans is no longer so festive so no Yuletide theme remains. Clash on!

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App For New York

If you live in the New York Area or us the Metropolitan Transportation, this app may be able to help you manage your life a little better. Set reminders to let yourself know you have an appointment. Track your current location (some have reported this to be quite fun).




It's called NYC MTA - Bronx (live alerts) for short because if spelled out it would say "New York City Metropolitan Trasportation Authority - Bronx (live alerts)" . The smartphone app is brought to you by MGNAapps and is available on Google play for Android devices.



Give yourself a break from your hectic schedules by making it easier to get around. Save time and effort and yourself from being late. Manage your routes and compare times differences to calculate the fastest route.


The smartphone application uses your phones G.P.S. to locate where you are at. Just in case you forgot which buses connects to which, the Android app shows you which one you could and should take. If I were you and this app applied to me, I would definitely give this app a try and see how much time I can save.

Monster Galaxy and Monster Galaxy Exile (2 -in-1 Review)

 Monster Galaxy: The Zodiac Islands and it's sequel  Monster Galaxy: Exile bring you a FREE game that is largely based on the Pokemon type of gameplay and yet has a unique touch to it. A shared theme is that you gotta catch em' all. I am not sure how necessary catching all of them are, or how unnecessary, because I was tempted into catching them all anyways. One thing that differentiates the Monster Galaxy games from the Nintendo games is the humor. It's funniness and unique and interesting characters plays a large factor in the playability of the game. Another difference is that this smartphone app uses the Energy concept also found on some other apps. Energy(represented with a lightning icon) can be replenished or gained by 1 for every 4 or 5 minutes and has a maximum of 100. Coffee, which also looks like a teacup, are this worlds version of potion or revive. You may also use one coffee to fully restore your energy.  Starseeds are this worlds version of Pokeballs. There is only one type of Starseed (unlike post generation 1 Pokemon games if you don't count the 1 Masterball). It's graphics/artwork reminds me of computer internet flash games. I believe the MQ series was originally a browser based game, for example on Facebook, before becoming applications. Oh, and you can only carry up to 3 Moga's with you at a time. Don't worry, the same goes for your opponents too. There are more than 125 monsters to get.

You can name your pet monster too.

  Story: In Monster Galaxy 1 you discover that you have the power to tame(catch) creatures called mogas. The world is doing kinda bad under the ruler/tyrant, King Otho. You take it upon yourself to approach him by going through a series of islands that the king has control over. On the way you meet a bunch of characters, and I mean characters. Hints:Your Moga's heal upon leveling up, so try to use this to your advantage to save from having to use up coffee.

Story in Monster Galaxy Exile: So you were unsuccessful in part one. In the previous game you probably won the battle against the evil King Otho, but upon defeat he banished or sent you to another dimension and you ended up in a space-like more purple world. Again you try to find a way back home or defeat the king. Whatever the purpose, you must travel through islands and deal with humorous characters again. 

Also unlike Pokemon, it will delay your progress if you try to keep each moga for more than two islands(including your starter moga). In fact, most of the monsters aren't really meant to be used to battle anyways. At least 6 monsters from each island are common. The rarity of the moga reflects the mogas stats and usefulness. All attack and HP rely on a monsters level and rarity. For example, Two different types or species of monsters that are at the same level and rareness will do the exact same amount of damage if their attack bar was stopped at the exact same spot during an attack.There are no defense or speed stats in this game. DO NOT STRESS ON CHOOSING YOUR STARTING MOGA, YOU WILL GET RID OF IT LIKE BAD POKEMON TRAINERS DO WITH WEAK POKEMON.

Be sure to often check your QUESTS in your menu before leaving each island. Completing quests will earn you more coffee and starseeds so you will have to search for them less. In the beginning you will have plenty of those items, but late game you may need to battle monsters just to see if you found some. Battles that complete your quests will guarantee you a prize, while other battles do not. I had to go back and do battles with some weak monsters to complete missions because I ran out of said items. Those weak battles did not make my strong monsters any stronger. Each island has a level cap. If a moga has reached the maximum level for that island, it will no longer get experience for battles(sometimes this wasn't completely true in the first game. Although the experience bar showed no progression, it seems less experience was gained). This makes those quests more efficient use of your Energy while you are around that islands level cap, preferably right below of course.

Tip:Be Sure to collect or claim your daily prize.

How to Battle
While on an island, you may only go to the an area adjacent to where you have been. Once you select an area, it's name, description, and Energy requirement will be shown. Once you select that the battles commences. Battles are not in real-time so, but attacks and action selections have timers on them.
-Choose a Moga to send out and start the battle. 
-Attack or use a Zodiac Attack (Special Attack)  
ATTACKING Once you select to attack in MG1, a circular meter will pop out and you will have to tap the screen to stop the moving icon at a desirable location on the bar. If you don't stop it, the attack will miss or do 0 damage. (reminds me of field goals in Madden or 2K games). Increases in damage according to the bar are more exponential than in regular increments.
In MG2, a horizontal bar will pop out at the bottom of the screen and have the same function. This bar made it a lot harder for me to gauge my timing for specific amounts of damage for the purpose of catching a monster. I had done many battles in MG1 and completed it. For both games the Zodiac Special Attack is carried out by tapping the screen to fill up the sign before the time runs out. If the bar/sign isn't filled up when time runs out, the attack will do nothing and you would had lost that turn.

-You can Switch out your moga with one of the other moga's you have with you by tapping on the current moga's icon on the top left hand corner. A list with icons of the other Moga's will drop down and you can select one to come out. You can also give coffee/heal/recover a Moga with this drop down list. 

(ASIDE) The strength of a Special Attack at full strenth is based on the zodiac sign of your current moga and the enemy moga. Each zodiac have advantages over others, some neutral, and some disadvantages. Personally I was too lazy to remember the advantages of each sign so I just waited until the computer did a zodiac attack against me. If it was ineffective against me, then I would know that I should use my zodiac attack because mine would be effective against the enemy. I forgot but it was either 150% or 200% as damaging as a perfectly timed regular attack. There are no critical hits in these two games.

Catching a Moga
This part is similar to Pokemon. Your chances of a successful starseed/pokeball throw depends on the opponents remaining HP. This is where attacking from 1 - maximum strength with the attack bars in MQ games come in handy. Minimum attacks increase from 1 as you reach higher levels. I am not sure it is necessary to have the target moga's hp down to the lowest possible because the chances of catching them that is shown seems to not change very much when already low. Although rare, high level moga's may be captured with just one or two starseeds. This is less rare than in the pokemon games.  Once you throw, the moga picture starts slides back and forth. If it wiggles/almost like vibrating instead of sliding a second time, then you have captured it. Catches are more obvious than in Pokemon. Sorry for the many references or comparisons, I just can't help it.

Each island has a rare moga that will show up(be catchable) once you "master the island" by getting the maximum 3 stars at each location on that island(defeat the island). You may need to level up before attempting to catch the moga because it's level will be higher than average on that island. It is not necessary for you to defeat or capture this moga before accessing the next island. 

Monster Galaxy 2 is a lot more purple.

Differences in 1 and 2.
One has a more natural green world that I like than 2. However, the artwork in 2 is more vibrant and seems to have cleaner drawings and edges. Both have good looking backgrounds that look hand painted and are uncommon in apps. All monsters have the same regular attack animations and maybe zodiac attacks special effects. (In the trailers they have unique looking attacks, but this could be from the browser version). Monsters are nicely drawn and have different levels of originality and creativity. It's tough to come up with monsters now that there have been hundreds of pocket monsters created. The artist(s) still manage to create lots of unique and interesting looking monsters. It's a good trait that rarer stronger monsters do look better and stronger than nonimportant monsters. Oh and you can choose to be a female in part 2. Comparisons to the record breaking pikachu games are unavoidable. I still give props to Monster Galaxy designers for their creativity in monster design and humor to make itself similar and different enough.
 

I didn't get very far in Monster Galaxy Exile. Both smartphone applications require a decent amount of internal memory which my phone lacks. For testing of further apps, I had to uninstall them as I was just about done researching and testing them two. It was fun while it lasted though. The energy requirement may be annoying at times, but it keeps the game going longer and still be enjoyable. My biggest complaint is that at later stages of the game, it takes more than a few scrolls to reach the end of the list of collected monsters(starts from lowest level to highest). This gets irritating because switching out monsters in your three slots is often necessary in the game(almost after every high level battle). Both Monster Galaxy 1 and 2 has an average rating of over 4/5 stars on both Google Play and iTunes. The games are brought to you and developed by Gaia Interactive. I believe they are the same ones responsible for Gaia Online. Get your FREE copy and enjoy. And that's me taking a shot at getting 2 birds or apps with one stone or article.  Oh and this page/forum helped me keep track a lot easier after I started the game and lost track of who I caught and didn't catch. http://www.gaiaonline.com/forum/ios-android/a-full-list-of-mogas-and-where-to-find-them/t.74647353_1/        Other pages probably had the browser editions and that had a different list of monsters.

Puzzling Cubes (App Review)

Happy New Years everyone!
 
Next up and first for review this year on Gametrender.net is Puzzling Cubes for Android OS. It's a FREE app that takes place in space on a long connected world of platforms made of squares. No helmets or breathing tools necessary. The objective is to move your character around and solve the puzzles to open the door to the next level.When you've made it to the next level, the screen shifts to the next play area. The smartphone app doesn't stop and wait for your input to go to the next level as the game loads the close levels in real time. At first this confused me as to whether or not I had accomplished anything. The transition is smooth and reminds me of Jak and Daxter. Each stage is a puzzle. I have a feeling that perhaps some of my experience of using HM04 (Strength) in Pokemon caves came in handy. Completing some stages will give you a sense of accomplishment.

How to Play: 

Swipe the screen up down left or right to move your character. One step or block is of movement is made per swipe(even if the character isn't done moving). Doors unlock when their respective square has something on them. Push and move the cubes around to do your bidding. Blocks with "X" cannot be moved. Once you go pass the door, you may not go back (unless you go to the the level select screen which may be accessed with the 3 white bar on the top right hand corner of the screen). Other buttons on the screen is a sound/mute icon, a hint(move made for you), and restart stage icon.

       Puzzling Cubes had me puzzled at stage 15 (the screenshot above from Google Play is actually a stage or two before the stage I got stuck on). Locks must be opened in order, so far I've gotten to 3 locks on a stage. First to be open has to be the Green one, then the white one, then the gray one. The gray lock is above ground level until it can be unlocked. The Android app is brought to you by developer Gordon Roberts. I am not sure if the other characters on the opening screen are or will be playable. The usable character has some resemblances to a ninja, while the others to a hunchback, a prison outfit, and a monster creature. If you see yourself as cunning or wise, try this app. 

Welcome back to work people,
Joshua Yang