Facebook Pokémon clone MinoMonsters migrates to iOS for $1

You might remember MinoMonsters, game developer Josh Buckley's take on Pokémon for Facebook. Well, that game was either just a test or a flop for the 17-year-old entrepreneur, as his new studio has re-released the game as an iPhone and iPad app. In this new-and-improved MinoMonsters, players must journey across the Kingdom of Zancardi, capturing and battling creatures called Minos for, well, the sake of battling monsters. Come on, it's not as if Pokémon's plot is rock solid either.

The youngin's new studio is called MinoMonsters Inc., so you can tell the guy's dedicated to the concept, which will cost you $.99 on the App Store. Once purchased, you can start trading blows back and forth in turn-based bouts with opponents' monsters either within the game's story or your friends from anywhere in the world. Just like in Pokémon, players' monsters gain new abilities and will become stronger, which helps players find new monsters and defeat tougher opponents.
MinoMonsters in action
The first thing we noticed with these screens of the game in action are the impressive, seemingly hand-drawn graphics. Seriously, this game looks like an episode of Pokémon--look, the comparisons are inevitable at this point--at least when still. MinoMonsters (the company) promises that you can find players to do battle with in under 30 seconds. The game's primary competition on iOS, Monster Galaxy, doesn't seem to have multiplayer just yet. So, now MinoMonsters is the closest you're going to get a Pokémon game on your iPhone.

Click here to download MinoMonsters for $.99 on the App Store Now >

Are you craving that Pokémon experience on your iPhone? Do you think a game like MinoMonsters can feed the need?

Club Penguin fires a salvo of fun with Puffle Launch for iPhone [Video]

Parents, secure the iPhones and iPads. If Club Penguin isn't going to slide onto Facebook anytime soon, we'll take the next best thing: the iPhone. Puffle Launch, first released as a mini game within the kids world of Club Penguin over a year ago, launches onto iPhone tomorrow, Sept. 15. The game, which will be available for the paltry price of $.99, puts players in control of Daredevil, one of the many Puffles available in the existing Disney-owned web game.

Just like in Club Penguin, kids can fire Daredevil from a cannon, careening into obstacles and collecting Coins. Better yet, those Coins can be transferred to kids' existing Club Penguin accounts to buy new items from the web game's store. As players advance through the game's many daring and dangerous aerial courses, they will eventually have to face the Crab Boss.

According to a Club Penguin representative, Puffle Launch is already played by 150,000 kids daily, and a new Puffle is adopted every second in the kid-friendly virtual world. (That amounts to more than 20 million of the little balls of love adopted in 2011 already!) With statistics like that, color us baffled as to why Club Penguin has yet to hit Facebook, especially considering the amount of preteens that are already active on the social network.

Hopefully, this is just the beginning of Club Penguin's expansion beyond its little home on the web and onto new platforms (aside from Nintendo's stable of consoles). Check out the game's trailer below, but you might not want to show the kids just yet, unless you're willing to buy it on every iOS device in the house.


Are you excited that Club Penguin has finally made it to iOS? Where or how else would you like to see the Club Penguin franchise go?

Sky Pirates of Neo Terra soars through Facebook and iOS this fall

Your straddling pod racer territory rather closely there, Day 21--we're keeping an eye on you. The Vancouver, B.C.-based social game developer announced Sky Pirates of Neo Terra, a futuristic racing game based on a graphic novel of the same name, set to hit Facebook and iOS this fall.

The game is displayed in full 3D, though players will need to download Unity in order to join the fun. Sky Pirates hands players the reins of sky-bound racing vehicles and pits them against the online competition in real time.

According to Day 21, this is a first for Facebook. (At least the "racing" part is.) Designed for players aged 10 and up--we all know kids are on Facebook already--the characters and artwork in Sky Pirates is by comic and pop surrealism artist, Camilla d'Errico. In the magic-meets-machine world of Neo Terra, Glidewing racing is the most popular sport, but this year the evil Pirate King just might and get the chance to name the next leader of the tribes ... did we get that about right?
Sky Pirates in Action
Players get to choose between a number of racers and vehicles, and compete with five of their friends in races on over a dozen different tracks. Once they get the hang of piloting a Glidewing, players can customize their very own and take flight against the ruthless Pirate King. And if you happen to win one of the Great Races, you will get the chance to be immortalized in the accompanying web comic. A full 3D racing game on Facebook that's attached to an ongoing web comic? We're intrigued.

Do you think Day 21 will find success on Facebook with Sky Pirates? What do you think of 3D gaming on Facebook so far, and do you think it has a place on the platform?

FIFA Superstars on iPhone yanked from App Store due to 'server issues'

EA is sitting pretty on Facebook at the moment, but on smartphones ... not so much. Mobile Entertainment reports that that the publisher has been forced to remove its recently-released iPhone version of Facebook soccer (football) hit FIFA Superstars from the App Store due to "server issues."

The game, released in late August, provides the 2.8 million monthly players of the Facebook version of FIFA Superstars a near-identical representation of what they're used to seeing in their browsers. However, the game suffered login issues from the get-go, it seems. Players have been unable to access the game after logging into the company's new Origin service.

"We are currently experiencing server issues with FIFA Superstars mobile that have required us to temporarily take the game down," EA told Mobile Entertainment. "This is not a data security-related issue. We are implementing a solution that will ensure users have the best gameplay experience, and will provide an update soon as to when the game will be live again."

According to Mobile Entertainment, EA stresses that this issue does not affect the Facebook version of the game, and that players can still enjoy the game there for now. (When we tried to log into the game, we didn't encounter any issues either.) It's comforting to see that EA is more vocal with the issues it has encountered in this game than it has been with social games in the past.

When its hyper popular Facebook version of The Sims, The Sims Social, suffered launch issues, the company was mum on the details for days before it released a message to its players with an explanation (and later threw them a bone). Since then, the game has enjoyed incredible growth, so hopefully FIFA Superstars for iPhone can bounce back from these hiccups just as well.

[Via Pocket Gamer]

Did you have trouble logging into FIFA Superstars for iPhone, too? What are you doing to scratch the social soccer itch while you wait for the game to return to the App Store? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment

Monster Galaxy makes iPhones even more addictive at no charge

At this rate, we may as well just graft iPhones to our arms ... or make iWatches (©®™). Gaia Online has released Monster Galaxy, its hit Pokemon-style Facebook game with over 9 million monthly players, to iOS devices, Inside Social Games reports. However, the game is a standalone version of what you'll find on Facebook, meaning there is no connection to your Facebook friends in this version.

The game is much similar to its popular Facebook counterpart in that players become Moga Tamers--the Mogas being the 137 monsters you must capture on a linear journey. The game, officially titled "Monster Galaxy: The Zodiac Islands," relies heavily on the astrological theme with many of its monsters and much of its art reflecting the Zodiac. Players navigate several islands, finding wild Moga to capture and plenty of other Moga Tamers to do battle with.

Speaking of which, combat in Monster Galaxy is a turn-based affair, much like its primary source of inspiration, but rewards players for good timing as well as matching up Zodiac types correctly. (Just like in Pokemon, certain Mogas are more powerful or weaker against other types.)

Monster Galaxy: The Zodiac Islands
Unlike Pokemon and more like Facebook games, Monster Galaxy limits how much players can do in a given sitting, as each step the player takes between battles consumes Energy. Yes, the Facebook gaming staple has encroached upon iPhone games, and this is far from the first. Of course, you can buy more Energy and other items for the green stuff. Hey, the game is free, and looks to be the only Pokemon-like fix you'll ever get on your iPhone. Is that enough convincing for ya?

Click here to download Monster Galaxy: The Zodiac Islands for Free Now >

Are you psyched that Monster Galaxy is on iPhone? What other popular Facebook games would you like see come to iOS? Sound off in the comments. 3 Comments