Play to Cure: Genes in Space - iOS/Android

Gamers have been given a unique opportunity to help scientists in the battle against cancer, thanks to a collaboration between Dundee-based software developer Guerilla Tea and Cancer Research UK.

The game - a free download on both iOS and Android - is called Play to Cure: Genes in Space and tasks the player with planning a route and then guiding a nifty-looking spaceship along an intergalactic track made from Element Alpha. Back on Earth, this fictional substance - which is actually Cancer Research UK's gene data - can then be analysed by scientists to find genetic faults, which will ultimately help scientists to develop new cancer treatments.

It's an exciting development and one which brings to mind Sony's Folding at Home project on PS3, where people were encouraged to use their games console to run biomedical calculations in an effort to aid research into diseases.

The game itself is simple but encourages players to keep playing thanks to a range of incentives. Collected Element Alpha can be traded for credits, which can be used to upgrade your ship. Experience points are also dished out which are used to level up and unlock new stuff.

Hannah Keartland, citizen science lead for Cancer Research UK, said: "Every single second gamers spend directly helps our work to bring forward the day all cancers are cured. Our scientists' research produces colossal amounts of data, some of which can only be analysed by the human eye - a process which can take years.

"We hope thousands of people worldwide will play Play to Cure: Genes in Space as often as possible, to help our researchers get through this data. We urge people to give five minutes of their time wherever and whenever they can - whether they're waiting for their bus to arrive or they're in the hairdressers having a blow dry. Together, our free moments will help us beat cancer sooner."

Well done to both Guerilla Tea and Cancer Research UK for getting their heads together and producing this ground-breaking game.

Rymdkapsel - iOS/Android/PlayStation Mobile

Over the last week or so, I've been spending chunks of my time playing a few strategy titles. I'm slowly working my way through the wonderful and complex world of Europa Universalis IV, but late at night, when I'm looking for something to chill out with, my attention has been fully focused on Rymdkapsel by Martin Jonasson on iOS.
    Presented in a beautiful minimalist style with a hypnotic, droning soundtrack by Niklas Strom, your task is to construct a sprawling space station and in doing so, uncover the secrets of mysterious monoliths which lie scattered across the vast expanses of space.
    Starting out with just a duo of intrepid explorers, you have to build reactors, become self-sufficient by creating food supplies, extract minerals from gas clouds, fortify the station with weapons and create living quarters for your fledgling, spacefarers to thrive.
    The twist is that at certain times, your Tetris-style complex comes under attack from snaking enemies and, as the game progresses, these attacks become more frequent and deadly. Balancing construction with exploration and defence is the central mechanic and it's beautifully executed.
    It all works flawlessly thanks to a refined control system, which simply requires the player to swipe and tap to command the pixel like crew. Games last upwards of an hour and it's a real test of nerve as you try and keep all the plates spinning as the alien enemy swoops in with deadly intent.
    One of the most absorbing games I've played this year and a title I'll keep coming back to in the weeks and months to come.

God of Blades - iOS

God of Blades by developer White Whale Games is an atmospheric side-scrolling slasher, which beautifully combines fluid combat with an eye-catching art style inspired by Seventies prog rock and pulp sci-fi novels.

Playing as either The Nameless King or The Whispering Lady, the player dashes ever onwards, hacking their way through swathes of enemies with gusto, sending them into oblivion with timely sword swings.

As the game handles forward movement, the player is free to concentrate on the satisfying, meaty combat, which comprises of swirling strikes, devastating upward-strokes and hefty downwards smashes. A parry move is also worked in and all moves simply require the player to swipe a direction on the screen at the right moment.

There’s a nice variety of enemies to slice through and dexterous use of all the abilities is essential to make it through to the end. Not only that, but the varied selection of swords all have their own special powers with which to wreak havoc.

New swords can be unlocked through the Campaign mode, but not all of these desirable prizes are dished out for completing levels or garnering experience. Using the Loreseeker option - which takes advantage of Foursquare and GPS on iOS devices - players can find new blades in their local library – which is a really neat touch.

Along with the Campaign mode, there's a nerve-shredding Eternal option and the new Revenant mode. The latter allows you to create and level up a character, deck them out in a variety of armour and then challenge your friends to a brutal showdown.

The visuals throughout are excellent and the high fantasy backgrounds are packed with detail; marauding armies cause bloody chaos, neon-tinged expanses of space float by and dank caverns flicker with the constant flow of lava. The character animation is also spot on and it's incredibly satisfying to chip away at an opponent's armour, before finally delivering the killing blow.

While the game is only currently available on iOS, White Whale have teamed up with Venus Patrol to release Slayers - a free PC/Mac spin-off which tasks two players with knocking seven bells out of each other as they charge headlong into the fray. It provides brilliant and tense scraps and the frantic action is a real test of timing and rhythm.

White Whale have really pushed the boat out to deliver a compelling and delicious romp through wonderful ethereal environments and God of Blades is definitely one of the best mobile games I've played this year.

Find out more about the iOS version at the official website. For more about, Slayers on PC and Mac, click here.

Super Crate Box - iOS

Vlambeer, along with Halfbot, have just released Super Crate Box on iOS and it's a bit of a cracker. Fusing platforming antics with shooting is hardly new, but few games are as frantic as Super Crate Box straight out of the gate.

As the player dashes around the levels snaffling crates containing a fabulous array of weapons, foes rampage across the screen to stop you in your tracks.

Points are awarded for collecting crates rather than how many kills you rack up - a neat twist - but as every wooden crate contains a different weapon, you never know quite what to expect.

Personal stats are kept in neat displays while a running total of crates collected across the world is constantly updated on the main menu. At the time of writing, the figure stands at an impressive 6,718,831.

With delightful chiptunes and retro style visuals, Super Crate Box is fast-paced fun and works splendidly on iPad. For only 69p, it is well worth picking up.

DenGo Yamanote Line - iOS

Regular readers of this blog will be aware of my love for the Densha de Go! series. I can't get enough of speeding through Tokyo and surrounding areas, trying to reach the next station on time with a carriage full of happy passengers.

Well there's a new addition to the series - this time on iPhone and iPad - called DenGo! Yamanote Line. Yes, once again Taito have based their neat little game on Japan's most famous rail line - but unfortunately, this is a half-baked version which fails to match the fun of previous titles.

Initially, DenGo! Yamanote Line looks to have everything in place - both inner and outer loops of the Yamanote line are here - complete with 29 stations - and all the familiar sounds from the series are present, including the announcements which are read out in Japanese and English.

The touch screen controls work extremely well, with vertical swipes used to control the train and the framerate is smooth, with no sign of the graphical pop-up which has blighted the series in the past.

The Arcade mode breaks the line into small chunks, challenging the player to reach a series of stations on time, while the Free Run feature lets players pick and choose their starting points. Even the menu's pop-rock track fits the bill perfectly but unfortunately, it doesn't take long for things to derail.

Part of the joy of previous games in the series was travelling at different times of the day and night in varying weather conditions. Sadly, you only ever seem to travel in the morning under blue skies - a real shame as the subtle lighting effects gave the game some much-needed cosmetic flair, while rainy conditions affected stopping distances and speeds.

Another problem is the lack of action on the tracks. All the games so far have featured other trains going about their business, something which helped liven things up a bit. But here, the tracks are always empty - especially strange as you are driving on Japan's busiest line.

The workmen from Densha de Go! Final are also sadly absent. A quick blast of the horn when approaching these white-suited gents rewarded the player with bonus points, but as they are now nowhere to be found, the inclusion of a horn seems largely redundant.

External views have also been scrapped, leaving the player with the default bumper camera. Again, this is another cosmetic change, but it's unfortunate that Taito saw fit to scrap this extra feature.

Densha De Go! Final - and the PSP series of games - featured the chain point scoring system, which rewarded the player for hitting target speeds along the route. Sadly, since then, this system has been scrapped and Railfan (PS3), Densha de Go! Showa Yamanote Line (DS) and now this version all suffer because of its absence.

DenGo! Yamanote Line costs 800yen (£6.45) and it's possible to buy extra trains via in-app purchases. There are also 30 Game Center achievements to grab but the whole experience simply feels rushed.

Trundling between stations is fun in short bursts but those looking for portable Densha de Go! fun would be much better off hunting down any of the PSP games or taking the plunge with last year's fab DS title.

The Last Rocket - iPad/iPhone

I stumbled across Shaun Inman's The Last Rocket when I was having a good old rummage through the App Store looking for some tasty morsels.

One glance at the glorious old school visuals and I handed my £1.99 over without a second thought. I've been playing it since last weekend and I can safely say it's a little slice of brilliance.

With the intergalactic war now over, mass production of rockets is due to cease, leaving Flip - the last rocket - on board a starship. Fortunately for the squidgy yellow warhead, he's not redundant quite yet, as a solar flare hits his ship, sending it spinning towards the heart of a nearby star.

By collecting gears for the ship's main computer, our little rocket chum hopes to avert potential disaster - but it's not going to be easy.

The ship is a maze of spikes, fans, flames, moving platforms, switches and conveyor belts. Luckily, the controls are simple and Flip is a dab hand at gravity-defying antics.

A tap on the screen launches him and he’ll stick to any surface he comes into contact with, while a second tap reverses his direction mid-flight. He can also ride air currents, hover, inch along surfaces and crouch to avoid incoming dangers.

Snaffling the spinning gears might be Flip’s main mission, but he doesn't have to collect them all to leave the level - just as well, too, as many of them are perched in precarious positions which could turn Flip into scrap with one false move. In fact, sometimes it is challenge enough simply making it to the exit in one piece.

There are 64 levels to figure out, each one taking up a single screen. And although frustration can creep in occasionally, The Last Rocket has enough charm to pull the player through.

Beautifully presented and a thrill to play, it's a wonderful arcade puzzler. It features lovely retro visuals, an excellent chiptune soundtrack and an adorable new star in the shape of Flip.

So go on, take The Last Rocket on a journey to the stars - it's an adventure that is simply out of this world.

Mos Speedrun: Half price!

Apple's App Store is crammed full of brilliant titles, but few are as much fun as Mos Speedrun.

The retro-flavoured platformer has been out for a while, but for this weekend only, you can pick it up for just 69p.

Developer Physmo have halved the price to celebrate Edinburgh Interactive 2011 and if you haven't bought it already, I would urge you to try this wonderful and charming slice of platform action.

The game has also just had an update to include an excellent video mode, so you can now record your fastest runs through the devious levels.

I took a look at the game back in May and you can check out my review HERE

While you're browsing through the App Store, you might also want to check out Physmo's SeaGlass. It's a Tetris Attack/Puzzle League spin-off, where the aim is to swipe and match coloured blocks to create huge point-scoring chains. It plays beautifully and for just 69p is another must-have title from the App Store.

To find out more about Physmo's games, visit their website

Async Corp - iOS

Being forced to work on a never-ending production line and sending packages into the ether isn’t exactly the most exciting premise for a game.

But Async Corp's world of corporate drivel, fused with a wry sense of humour and solid gameplay makes for a brilliant little package.

Like the best of puzzlers, Async Corp keeps things simple. Starting with two 6x4 grids filled with coloured blocks, your job is to arrange neatly squared-off data packages of 2x2 or greater by moving blocks of the same colour from one grid to the other.

Once the package has been put together - complete with smiley, feelgood face - the player taps on the slab of colour and sends it on its merry way.

Various modes add neat twists to the formula, but they never veer too far from the original idea – meaning the player never gets their fingers in a fankle due to over-complicated rule sets.

Visuals are clean and simple, while the delightful retro soundtrack helps keep everything moving along nicely.

For just 69p on the App Store, Powerhead Games have created a lovely little slice of puzzle fun which carries a surprising amount of charm under its blocky exterior. Well worth a punt.

Sword of Fargoal - iOS

Back in 1982, Jeff McCord created Sword of Fargoal - a beautifully crafted dungeon crawler on Commodore’s Vic-20. It’s been ported to other systems since then, but this iPhone version deserves special mention. 

Fargoal is a Roguelike, a game with its roots deep in the early days of computer adventures. Despite primitive visuals, Rogue and other similar games that followed, offered deep and rewarding experiences and are still popular today. They feature randomly generated dungeons and perma-death. When you die in a Roguelike, there’s no going back to a previous save. Once your dead, the adventure is over and you need to start again from scratch. To today’s modern gamer, such gameplay mechanics are archaic, but recent games such as Shiren the Wanderer on DS and Sword of Fargoal prove this type of game can be immensely enjoyable.

Fargoal has you fighting your way ever deeper through a devious dungeon in the quest for a fabled sword. However every step you take is fraught with danger. Elves armed with bows lurk in the shadows, grotesque gargoyles pounce when you least expect it, monstrous dragons try and roast you alive, while numerous pitfalls and traps hinder your progress.

Even when the sword has been collected - no easy task - the player must make their way back up through the dungeon to escape.

The iPhone’s touch screen has been used well, with finger swipes sending your hero towards his goal. Attacking another creature is simply a case of moving your hero towards the foe. Combat is instantly engaged and while early encounters are easy, care and intelligent use of spells is needed to best creatures deeper into the dungeon.

Gold lies scattered about the levels, which can be traded at temples in exchange for much-needed experience points, while bags can be unearthed which allow you to carry more loot.

Presentation is slick, with lovely lighting effects and a deliciously creepy soundtrack. Special mention goes to the descending stairs animation between levels which is wonderful.

For just £2.99 you’re getting one of the best games on the iPhone and with more updates promised, this is one adventure you should definitely undertake.