iPhone

Android and iOS smartphone users were thrilled last year when Mojang finally released a mobile version of its blocky world-building game, Minecraft: Pocket Edition. Fans of the PC version quickly learned that Pocket Edition offered a very stripped-down take on Minecraft, and they wanted more.

Mojang recognizes this and has been working on giving you more. The problem, as a new blog post from the developer confirms, is that Pocket Edition wasn't originally designed to include things like crafting and monsters and resources and the like. So a wholesale code re-write is necessary. It's happening too! But it's going to take some time.

The Mojang post confirms that the team is shooting to submit the first of a series of script-changing updates on February 8. Crafting won't be in yet, as interface tweaks are required for that, but fans can expect to see "neat looking animals and new blocks" as the update lays the "foundation" for Survival mode.

Source: Mojang

The best mobile video games can be hard to find, simply because of the sheer amount of titles out there. But, worry not! Welcome to G4's Knuckle Up, where we bring you a byte-sized view of our five favorite mobile games every week. The mobile space is filled with incredible games that will keep you busy for minutes, hours, or even days -- we'll let you know what we're playing and why we're playing it. Here's our top five games this week.

GAME OF THE WEEK

KINGDOM RUSH

iPad

I often find tower defense games to be fairly rinse and repeat, but playing Kingdom Rush was a nice change of pace in the often-stale genre. Sure, there are a lot of things that are typical of the category (medieval theme, tower types/upgrades), but there are also some really excellent twists on those old standards.

As mentioned, you’ll have towers to build to defend from the various evil creatures coming at you. As you complete each level, you’ll gain stars to spend on upgrades, and you’ll also get the ability to split off and grab advanced versions of the towers you build. You also get two abilities that are cooldown-based: reinforcements, which you can place to help defend the path every 10 seconds; and meteor strike, a high-damage ability used for boss creeps with a long cooldown. They’re creative additions that help make fights more interesting, not to mention they come in handy when you’re overwhelmed by creeps.

Kingdom Rush is a stylish, fun tower defense game that never takes itself too seriously, and benefits from that mindset. You’ll get hours of enjoyment out of KR, and with GameCenter support on the horizon, Ironhide Game Studios has a great title on its hands.

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According to Angry Birds developer Rovio, the incredibly successful game, and its two iterations, Angry Birds Seasons and Angry Birds Rio, were downloaded a whopping 6.5 million times on Christmas Day 2011. Coincidentally, that's also close to the number of smartphone activations that were said to have happened over the holiday.

“We’re really excited to have such a massive number of new people get acquainted with Angry Birds over the holidays — we have exciting new releases lined up for 2012, and can’t wait to introduce them to the public,” Rovio’s Ville Heijari said.

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The best mobile video games can be hard to find, simply because of the sheer amount of titles out there. But, worry not! Welcome to G4's Knuckle Up, where we bring you a byte-sized view of our five favorite mobile games every week. The mobile space is filled with incredible games that will keep you busy for minutes, hours, or even days -- we'll let you know what we're playing and why we're playing it. Here's our top five games this week.

GAME OF THE WEEK

BUG PRINCESS

iOS (Universal)

CAVE is a Japanese developer that makes some amazing games, so when they port any of their acclaimed shooters to iOS, we tend to sit up and listen. Bug Princess is a port of the 2004 Japanese arcade game Mushihimesama, and it’s been optimized beautifully for iOS.

Bug Princess offers three distinct modes of gameplay (Original, Maniac, and Ultra), as well as four difficulty modes. Along with that, you’ll also have the option of three different ship types, each with a different kind of firing style. It helps make the gameplay more interesting and customized, as each style has its pros and cons.

The last difficulty level (aptly named “Hell”) will test every ounce of your vertical shooter prowess, even for the most hardened veterans. Bug Princess is another magnificent installment from CAVE and provides any arcade fan with some classic action.

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The best mobile video games can be hard to find, simply because of the sheer amount of titles out there. But, worry not! Welcome to G4's Knuckle Up, where we bring you a byte-sized view of our five favorite mobile games every week. The mobile space is filled with incredible games that will keep you busy for minutes, hours, or even days -- we'll let you know what we're playing and why we're playing it. Here's our top five games this week.

GAME OF THE WEEK

SIN OR WIN-- iOS (iPad) $1.99

There’s nothing quite like Sin or Win, and I mean that in the greatest way imaginable. This is a simple game with a simple premise, and yet somehow, it asks some heavy questions of our morality. So, do you feel wrathful, or forgiving? Sin or Win features one screen with twin reapers (Stephen and Arthur) on each side of a fiery pit. Cavemen leap into the air, and you must decide whether to save them by flinging them into the clouds, or smite them by chucking them into the hot hole in the ground.

When the pit fills up -- and trust me, it’s easy to let that pit fill up -- the game ends, and you’re awarded points based on what you did during the game. Sinning is actually harder than winning, since you have to continually find ways to empty the pit, but either way you decide to play it, Sin or Win is an absolute blast. That dragon hiding out in the clouds is a caveman-crisping jerk, though.

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Taking after the Bearded Dragon who was playing Ant Crusher a week ago, we've now found a frog that could be her most fierce competitor for the Ant Crushing title. Check out this new video, featuring gamer frog, taking some serious names in the Android version of Ant Crusher. The end of the video had me in tears it was so funny. Check after the break to see it, and note that it autoplays!

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The best mobile video games can be hard to find, simply because of the sheer number of titles out there. But, worry not! Welcome to G4's Knuckle Up, where we bring you a byte-sized view of our five favorite mobile games every week. The mobile space is filled with incredible games that will keep you busy for minutes, hours, or even days -- we'll let you know what we're playing and why we're playing it. Here's our top five games this week.

GAME OF THE WEEK

SONIC CD

iOS (Universal) $1.99 | Android $1.99

There’s nothing better than recapturing some of that old nostalgia from a beloved gaming mascot, and Sonic CD is doing just that. For those of you old enough to remember the original, you’ll recall Sonic CD was one of the most critically acclaimed Sonic games ever. Sega’s now brought this classic over to iOS (and many other platforms) with some enhanced features and the same exuberance we’ve come to love from the Sonic franchise.

As always, Sonic’s got to stop Dr. Robotnik (“Dr. Eggman”) from acquiring items that will allow him to take over the world. It’s been ported beautifully to iOS, with the same killer time travel mechanic (which allows you to play past, present, and future versions of each level), alongside some nice touch optimizations and enhancements to the original game. In addition, the original Japanese soundtrack is in this version of Sonic CD, making this a must-buy for any old school gamer looking to relive the glory days of 16-bit, especially if you missed it the first time around.

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Last night, Grand Theft Auto 3: Anniversary made its way onto the iOS App Store, and people, let me tell you, it's killer. We'll be bringing you a full review of the title soon, but until then, please enjoy the launch trailer below, or just download it. It's like 5 bucks!

The huge smile that I got on my face while watching this bearded dragon playing the iOS game Ant Crusher was just ridiculous. Ant Crusher is a game where you have to quickly tap the screen in order to splat ants before they can take your delicious strawberries and otherwise ruin your day. Check it out below.



The best part of this video, aside from the whole thing, is when the dragon fails and waits for her owner to restart the game. "Just one more level!?" Oh my, what a cute video.

Who says platformers are a dying genre? This year saw the rise of several epic installments to the library of platforming greats – some new face, some familiar, but all of them every bit of fun, like a great game should be. Below we've got a sampling of what we think are five of the year's best. Whether you’re simply curling up with a cozy old franchise or taking a chance on a newcomer, you can’t go wrong with these fantastic platformers of 2011.

Jetpack Joyride

There have been so many addictive mobile titles released this year, it’s hard to choose only one to represent them all (like Lord of the Rings of the mobile game world). But if hard-pressed to make a decision, we gravitated toward Jetpack Joyride, which isn’t a traditional platformer per se, but a delicious morsel of blue-sized fun perfect for that long commute to work. Your only real concern is keeping protagonist Barry Steakfries from harm as he hurtles through a seemingly neverending laboratory avoiding laser deathtraps and other malevolent speedbumps. This is all accomplished via touching and holding a spot on the screen to propel Barry upward or letting him fall to the ground, avoiding the hazards that would otherwise befall him. It’s insanely fun and the coins collected along the way work to make this 99 cent gem as rewarding as any triple-A title. It's a testament to the fact that spectacular graphics and explosions don't mean a thing if you don't have a solid premise, and Joyride has it.

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Here's some weekend news that you might have missed amidst the barrage of VGAs trailers and reveals. The Behemoth, developer of downloadable console favorites Castle Crashers and Alien Hominid, has released a new iOS game: Alien Hominid: PDA Games.

The $0.99 app offers 500 levels, rewritten and remastered for iOS with all new artwork, The Behemoth's website reveals. PDA Games features 23 new achievements and runs at 60 frames per second. It also, oddly, shows you a video of the last 20 levels you played whenever you pause the game.

To get the collection, snatch up the free download and its 15 levels from the App Store, then choose the in-app option to unlock the rest.

Source: The Behemoth

The best mobile video games can be hard to find, simply because of the sheer number of titles out there. But, worry not! Welcome to G4's Knuckle Up, where we bring you a byte-sized view of our five favorite mobile games every week. The mobile space is filled with incredible games that will keep you busy for minutes, hours, or even days -- we'll let you know what we're playing and why we're playing it. Here's our top five games this week.

GAME OF THE WEEK

BAG IT!

iOS (iPhone/iPod) $0.99 | iOS (iPad) $2.99 | Android $1.99

If someone told me two weeks ago I’d be choosing a grocery bagging game as my game of the week, I’d have laughed heartily and recommended therapy. Yet here I stand, foot in mouth, telling you that Bag It! evokes all the best parts of your Tetris nostalgia and is fully deserving of the praise it’s getting.

The objective is simple: take groceries off the conveyor belt and stack them neatly in the paper bag. Where it gets complicated, however, is in the weights of the different items. Eggs will break under the weight of something heavier like a watermelon, so you can’t just toss everything in the bag and hope for the best. Even worse, the game makes you do a tilt test to ensure the integrity of the stacks you create.

With a plethora of game modes to keep your gears turning (our favorite is Udder Mayhem, in which you crush as much as humanly possible), a variety of supermarket items with individual personalities, and some decent physics, who knew bagging groceries could be so much fun?

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Here's a friendly public service announcement for those among you who love awesome things. Chrono Trigger, which ranks among the MOST awesome things for gamers, is now available for download in the iOS App Store, for iPhone and iPod Touch.

It's the Nintendo DS version of the SNES classic, which means you get some bonus areas to plow through in addition to the main game. Square Enix is using its typical "arm and a leg" pricing for App Store releases, with a $9.99 price tag on Chrono. That said, if you've never before played this excellent game and you happen to have an iPhone or iPod Touch then you really ought to just go ahead and -- brace yourselves -- pull the trigger.

Source: iOS App Store

Batman: Arkham City Lockdown, a new app from Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and DC Entertainment, is out now for iOS devices like the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch. The game was developed by NetherRealm Studios, the creators of Mortal Kombat, on the Unreal Engine, and features many of Gotham's most dangerous criminals like The Joker, Two-Face, Solomon Grundy, and a special iOS-exclusive character named Deathstroke.

The game plays a bit like Infinity Blade 2 and its graphics are honestly amazing. You'll fight through Gotham in a series of one-on-one battles and have use of several power-ups as you, "punch, kick and combo your way to cleaning up Gotham City."

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To go along with the sweeping changes Microsoft implimented on Xbox Live yesterday, the company has released an iOS companion app that allows you to keep track of your friends, send messages, update your profile and gaze longingly at your gamerscore while you count the hours until you can return to your 360. The Xbox Live app is free.  Here's the app store link.

If you're a Windows 7 Phone user, there's love for you, too. The Xbox Companion for Windows Phone 7 is live as of yesterday, and that application lets you do everything the iPhone version does, but also lets you control content from your Windows phone. Amazing...and also, free.

Check out our Xbox Live dashboard preview for an overview of everything new on your system.