Game Review: BioShock

In the Genre of “Console Ports” there are relatively few options for iOS. With EA Releasing the Mass Effect and DeadSpace titles, there was some hope… it continues to fizzle. The Knights of the Old Republic port is a fantastic console quality game on the iPad, but for those of us who played that game to death on the PC or Xbox, it is an old hat. iOS gamers have been chomping at the bit for another Console quality game to hit the store.

This year, we saw the most notable game of our generation hit the App Store: BioShock.

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Game Review: World of Tanks Blitz

World of Tanks – Simply one of the best iOS Shooting games out there!

You roam a small set of maps in a wide range of tanks trying to wage war and destroy the rival team. There are now more than 50 tanks in the game that meet all gameplay styles, from running-and-gunning to sniping. The game is monetized, but for additional experience boosts (aka. spending less time on the leveling grind). The interface is smooth and crisp, with a great dual analog style. Unfortunately when I play the game with my connected SteelSeries Stratus, the game is clunky and the control mapping does not seem to match with gameplay.

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App Essentials: Blogsy

As a mobile professional, and one who logged 50,000 miles of travel in the last year alone, I have a remarkable need to be able to work on the go. In all of my work, the only thing that is remarkably difficult from a mobile device was updating web content. The Wordpress App has such a terrible interface, that I found it hard to work for hours at a time on each post. What is strange about this situation is that I love using Diet Coda on the iPad – it is intuitive and a great HTML/Code editor.

Where Wordpress stumbles, Blogsy takes off at a sprint.

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App Essentials: Evernote

It has taken a long time, but I have been converted to using Evernote for all of my online note-taking. I was first introduced to the program in 2012 at the ISTE Conference. I hated it. At that point in my life, I was an avid doodler, spending the majority of my page area on drawings. When I downloaded and started using the Evernote platform on my PC, it was lacking in the ability to integrate services and features that I wanted. Since my account was created in 2012, there have been some significant changes to the platform and my use of it. The biggest change in my use of note-taking services is my reliance on my iPad.

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Game of the Week: Democracy 3

Democracy 3 is a game that snuck up on me! I was happy and minding my own business when an article came across my desk about a new App with an in “Depth Government Simulation.” I scoffed a bit because who would be able to explain the nuances of government in a single Application. I downloaded the game, and there it sat while I was waiting to review a couple of other simulations. During this past summer, I was cleaning off my iPad and stumbled across the app again, in my queue to delete. It did not seem fair that I delete the App without even launching it, so I took a few minutes to fire the game up. An hour later, I but the game down unable to think straight.

At its core, Democracy 3 is a government simulation game. You take on the role of the newly elected ruler of a country of your choice. Each turn in the game is the span of three months of your reign. During that time, you earn and spend political capital, try to balance the budget, and make changes to further your society. Where the app excels is in its description of the interconnectedness of policies. I was immediately tasked with wanting to reduce the crime rate in my country. I banned drugs, criminalized prostitution, and provided additional support to the legal system – which all made logical sense. After six months, my GDP was down, my parents were upset, and crime had drastically increased.

In an education context, I see this game as a very powerful way to model government. Students have the ability to manage policies and then see the downstream effects of those policies. In the skilled hands of a seasoned educator, this will be a wonderful way to engage students in Government.

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