iPhone

Ever wanted to do battle with dreaded Elder God Cthulhu? Do you own an iPhone or an iPod Touch? If the answer to both of those questions is yes, and you like card games, then this news should please you. Developer Lucidsphere Media will officially release it's first title, Necronomicon: The Card Game, for the iPhone and iPod on June 19th.

Mixing table-top RPG elements with the card battles of Magic: The Gathering, the title plans to bring the horrors of Lovecraft's fictional universe to an audience who wants to experience them in small doses while on the go:

If there was ever a reason for a horror fan to seek induction into the cult of Apple and Steve Jobs, a Dawn of the Dead video game developed exclusively for the iPhone is a damned good one.

According to Know Your Mobile, developer Byte Mark (how appropriate), the game, which features a top-down approach not unlike the Jurassic Park game for the Super Nintendo (how's that for an obscure reference?) has recently been submitted to the Apple store. Other games similar in style to Dawn of the Dead include iDracula and Alive 4-Ever, two other popular iPhone shooter games.

One would expect such a game to be bloody, and judging by the screen shot, it doesn't look like the developers skimped on the red stuff. Sadly, its dark red hue belies the humor found in the bright red blood of the film, but alas, this is something iPhone owners and Dawn of the Dead fans will just have to live with.

Most of the zombie killin' seems to be focused on brute force and melee weapons, giving a more up-and-close and personal approach and I think one more suited to such a platform. Interestingly enough it was noted that the characters and game play are more closely related to the Zack Snyder adaptation than Romero's, but does anyone really care? Mall, weapons, zombies. That's all that's needed.

Shock reports via All About the Games that the game should be available for purchase on January 19th.

The incredibly addicting game from PopCap, Plants vs. Zombies, will be making its way to the iPhone/iPod Touch this January, according to PopCap's Facebook page. The tower defense game that was just released this summer has been extremely popular--boasting an imaginative design and lots of gameplay variety. PvZ is a charming little bugger.

If you're one of the 2 people who hasn't played this game yet, it goes something like this: zombies are on your lawn, your garden isn't happy about it and you play mad-gardener to kill the undead and prevent them from entering your house. There are 48 different plants you can grow your army from including things like pea shooters, hot tamales and Venus zombie traps. You have 26 different zombies to contend with so as simple as the game is, there's actually a bit of strategy involved. As the levels increase, you're thrown a mini game here and there which provides a nice little twist from the norm. Four game modes, 50 story mode levels, mini-games, puzzle mode and survival mode equals good stuff.

Personally, I'm hoping PopCap comes up with PvZ for Android soon. I wanna kill zombies while waiting for the subway and Devilry Huntress has lost its appeal for now. Check out the sickeningly cute, pop-tastic music video for PvZ after the jump.

I don't own an iPhone because I'm poor, but if I had the scratch I'd most likely buy one just so I could play some of the games available for download. Friends with the phone (and more disposable income than I) assure me that there are some entertaining gaming experiences to be had for a mere $0.99. One of the newest games available is so odd that I couldn't not share it.

Paramount Digital Entertainment has released a game built around Mary Lambert's adaptation of Stephen King's Pet Sematary, which their press release describes as a "top down tap-to-kill arcade game inspired by the classic horror film". I wasn't aware that Pet Sematary had achieved "classic horror film" status, but that may be the least puzzling bit of news about the title.

The game lets players take control of a lone hero who perches on rooftops with a sniper rifle. The game requires that the player then take out a series of fast-moving zombie children, birds, cats, and dogs before they can attack the local citizenry; this is done through the iPhone's (and iPod Touch's) touchscreen interface. Does anyone know where PETA stands on the issue of cruelty to zombie animals?

In the spirit of fairness, the game may actually turn out to be fun--and for $0.99, anyone anticipating a Grand Theft Auto IV-esque gaming experience probably needs to lower their expectations just a wee bit. Still, the idea of making a game based on a movie that is now twenty years old is a bit confounding--particularly when the game in question seems to only be tenuously connected to its inspiration in the first place.

If you've got a spare $0.99 burning a hole in your pocket, you can purchase the game at the Apple App Store now. Jump past the break for screenshots.