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23
Jun
10

iPhone 4 Now Shipping; Firemint Releases Upgrades for Real Racing, Flight Control


If you’ve preordered the iPhone 4, you might soon find a pleasant surprise at your doorstep. Apple has authorized its shipping services to deliver preordered iPhone 4 devices earlier than expected, with many arriving in advance of its scheduled Thursday release.

Coinciding with the device’s early launch, App Store developer Firemint has released iPhone 4-optimized versions of Real Racing and Flight Control.

Version 1.22 of Real Racing includes support for the iPhone 4′s three-axis gyroscope, in addition to existing accelerometer mechanics. Firemint promises smoother graphics on the iPhone 4 thanks to iOS 4 anti-aliasing, higher-resolution textures, and an improved framerate.

Flight Control has been updated with high-resolution graphics suited for the iPhone 4′s Retina display. The new version also includes a selection of minor performance upgrades and a reworked fast-forwarding system.


1
Jun
10

Interview: Firemint’s Peters On iPhone/iPad-Fueled Studio Independence


After establishing itself as one of the most successful independent iPhone game developers, Firemint gained a strong early foothold on the young iPad platform with HD versions of its major iPhone hits Flight Control and Real Racing.

Those games have been regular presences in the iPad best-sellers charts since their launch, cementing the Melbourne, Australia-based studio as one of the premiere developers on Apple’s App Store.

Notably, touch-based plane landing casual title Flight Control on the iPhone had sold 2 million copies as of January 2010, and a DSiWare version recently debuted, in addition to the iPad version’s success.

Much more complex 3D motion/touch-based racing title Real Racing has also seen major success at higher price points than Flight Control, both on the iPhone/iPod Touch and more recently on the iPad.

Gamasutra caught up with Firemint community manager Alexandra Peters to discuss the company’s quick rise to success, its current development and marketing strategies, and the deceptive simplicity of casual game design.

Prior to your iPhone success, you had a history of working heavily with publishers like EA. Is that in the past for you, now that you have a direct channel to your customers?

Alexandra Peters: We haven’t stopped entirely. We’re still doing a bit of publisher work. We’re not going out and looking for it anymore, so this is the first year you see [at developer shows] where we haven’t had anyone meeting with publishers trying to sign up new work. We’re being asked to do more work than we’re really wanting to do.

I would say we’ve gone from 20 percent doing our own stuff to the other way around. We’re doing 80 percent our own and 20 percent on a few publisher projects. We’ve been able to be more selective about the publisher projects that we do, so if something really interesting comes along that we’re keen to work on, that’s a win-win for everybody.

I’ve heard you have a strategy of developing at least one full-scale game and one smaller, cheaper game simultaneously, so you have acccess to different avenues. Is that an ongoing strategy?

AP: I’m not sure I would call it a strategy. It’s more about wanting to make good games. When we have an idea for a game that we think is going to work really well, we’ll make that game.

There’s nothing to say that we wouldn’t do two casual games at the same time or three hardcore high-end 3D games at the same time. This is why we go for great big long stretches of time not really having much to talk about in terms of what’s coming up.

Having said that, we’ve seen the advantages of what that strategy will do for you. You don’t get pigeonholed for one thing. People know that, yes, we did Flight Control, but we also did Real Racing. Similarly, you’re talking about different audiences and different ways of marketing these games, so it’s always good to have a mix, so you can be quite diversified.

It’s always better to have a few irons in the fire rather than all your eggs in one basket.

As long as you don’t get your eggs in the fire.

AP: Scrambled eggs!

Read the rest of this entry »


2
Apr
10

Feature: Your Survival Guide to the iPad’s Launch Lineup


ipad2It’s almost here. You’ve waited patiently. You’ve put down your $500. Tomorrow, you may be holding an iPad in your grubby, unwashed hands.

First of all, wash your hands. The iPad may be magical, but its touch screen isn’t magically protected from filth.

Now, once you’ve wrapped your clean, fragrant hands around an iPad for the first time, you’re probably going to want to put it through the paces with some new games. Loading up iTunes, you may be slightly horrified to find out that more than 700 iPad applications have been released in the days leading up to the device’s U.S. launch.

Given that many iPad-optimized games are significantly more expensive than their predecessors for the iPhone and iPod Touch, you’ll want to do some research before downloading anything that catches your interest. Download a dud app for your iPhone, and you’ll be out 99 cents, or a couple of bucks at the most. Buy a bad iPad game, and you may have wasted fifteen dollars.

Here are 10 iPad games that you’ll want to check out in preparation for tomorrow’s launch.

geowars

Geometry Wars: Touch for iPad (Activision, $9.99)

Twin-stick shooters don’t get much better than this. Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved was an early standout for Microsoft’s Xbox Live Arcade service, and the iPad version of Geometry Wars promises to be an equally important title for Apple’s new platform.

The premise: Left thumb moves. Right thumb shoots. Kill all of the evil geometric shapes before they kill you.

Why it’s better on the iPad: Geometry Wars is a frantic game in which swarms of enemies threaten to overwhelm the player at any moment. The iPad’s bigger screen gives players greater visibility — and a better chance at survival — than the iPhone or iPod Touch ever could.

Worth it? Twin-stick shooters are surprisingly playable on an iPhone and iPod Touch, and if it’s as enjoyable as its console predecessors, you’ll get plenty of playtime out of Geometry Wars: Touch.

Read the rest of this entry »


22
Oct
09

Volkswagen Launches New 2010 GTI Through Firemint’s Real Racing


realracinggti

Firemint’s Real Racing GTI is more than just a free Lite demo of the developer’s popular sim-styled racer Real Racing. Car manufacturer Volkswagen is sponsoring its release, and the app marks the official introduction of the upcoming 2010 GTI automobile brand.

“With the personalization of media and the challenges inherent with reaching constantly connected consumers, we tasked ourselves to rethink the way we launch vehicles in order to engage our consumers in a meaningful way,” said Tim Ellis, Volkswagen of America’s Vice President of Marketing.

Ellis continues: “The GTI customer is a tech-savvy consumer who enjoys social networking, playing games and spending time on mobile devices — most often an iPhone. Launching the all-new 2010 GTI via the Real Racing GTI App allows us to connect with this savvy GTI consumer within his or her everyday life in a way that no 30-second spot ever could.”

In Real Racing GTI, players will take one of six 2010 GTI sport hatches for a test drive over a single main race track. In addition to a Quick Race mode that pits the 2010 GTI against five competitors, the game also include a solo Time Trial mode, along with a GTI Cup championship that splits the main track up into three races.


8
Jun
09

Firemint’s Real Racing Zooms Onto iPhone, $9.99


Over the past several months, iPhone developer Firemint has maintained a difficult balancing act. The company remained faithful to its fans, keeping the air traffic control sim Flight Control updated with new content while also developing its next anticipated title. Today, Firemint’s second iPhone release, the 3D racer Real Racing ($9.99) is available in the iTunes App Store.

Boasting an impressive 3D racing engine (which won Firemint the Technical Achievement award at IGF Mobile), Real Racing features 36 selectable cars, 12 tracks, and three racing divisions. Multiple single-player gameplay modes are available, including a full multi-circuit Career mode. Players can also challenge rivals via local WiFi multiplayer and online league play.

Real Racing includes a variety of control schemes to accommodate varying player skill levels. Beginners can enable automatic acceleration and braking assistance for an easier experience, and cornering can be controlled with either touch- or tilt-based input.

While many competing iPhone titles in the genre offer arcade-style experiences, Real Racing’s focus on realism and authenticity could successfully fill a necessary niche in the App Store. A gameplay trailer is below.


19
Aug
08

Firemint Shows Off Real Racing Game


Pocketgamer.co.uk has posted a video on YouTube that has Firemint showing off a racing game, called Real Racing, that may possibly come out for the iPhone/iPod Touch sometimes before Christmas. They demo the game being played on an iPhone, and it looks fantastic! It blows away the last racing game we’ve seen, GTS World Racing, in terms of visuals, and realistic control. It even features an in-car view showing the steering wheel, dash, etc. The biggest news is that it’ll feature multiplayer head-to-head racing via Wi-Fi, and feature social networking capabilities (show off your race results on Facebook, MySpace, etc.)

Check out the game in action below: