Categories
Geek

My (Growing) iOS Board Game Collection

Last week, I met up with my staple group of high school friends who play board games semi-regularly. And one of them was really surprised to see me with an iPhone 4s when I swore by my Android-powered Galaxy S II last year (LOL!).

Well I still have my S II and would never trade it off. I feel that for PIM and multitasking, it’s hands-down Android. They have better means to help you stay productive on the cloud. Despite Apple’s iCloud, I don’t feel it as much (unless if you probably own several iDevices). But because Android is powered by Google and Google has just become so ubiquitous, you can’t go wrong.

There is ONE thing that Android doesn’t have though. And it’s a huge collection of board game ports into iOS. I’m not referring to Monopoly or Scrabble. Or Words with Friends. I’m talking about the geekier ones you can find on Board Game Geek which are so hard to come by locally. On iOS, a huge chunk of these titles are readily available for a fraction of the price. With multiplayer online support via GameCenter.

Here’s a roster of some of my growing collection above:

Hive Online – A hex based strategy game where you need to surround your opponent’s Queen Bee.It’s kinda like Chess.

Carcassone – A classic tile-based kingdom builder that has become one of the pillars of Euro-themed board games.

Ticket to Ride – Another classic. It’s fairly simple to play: each team has to build the longest railway system. You get points for completing train routes. It was free for some time.

Bang! The Bullet HD – This is one of my all-time favorite card games (featured back in 2010). One sheriff, two deputies, one renegade, and three outlaws. The twist is that the roles are hidden from all players except the identity of the sheriff. Game ends when the sheriff and his deputies kill the outlaws or vice versa. The “renegade” wild card wins if he’s the last man standing.

Kard Kombat – From Richard Garfield, the creator of Magic: The Gathering. It’s Mortal Kombat .. with cards. Sort of.

Ascension – One of the world’s most popular deck building games similar to Dominion and Thunderstone.

Caylus – A popular Kingdom builder Euro-themed game, Caylus is a race to build and expand King Philip the Fair’s castle and make France strong!

Puerto Rico HDPuerto Rico is still newly discovered and it’s your job to dominate the island. This is a popular role-playing board game that’s also kingdom-builder themed.

Neuroshima Hex – A hex based sci-fi combat game that’s honestly a lot more fun than Hive Online.

7 Wonders Scorer – This is a scoring app for 7 Wonders, a board game that is coming soon to iOS!

——-

Are any of you guys fond of board games? The experience of playing with cardboard vs digital is very different, but one thing’s for sure — the digital version beats cleaning up afterwards!

Any other games to recommend?

Categories
Mostly Everything

Ticket to Ride (Pocket) is FREE today. Get it, quick!

If you’re a big fan of board games and own an iOS device, I highly suggest you download Ticket to Ride Pocket (that’s the iPhone version) because it’s free. Ticket to Ride is one of the best selling board games in recent history and the port to the iOS is just plain amazing. You know it’s a good game when you consistently see 5-star ratings in the comments section.

If you’re not into board games, I still suggest you pick it up because it’s not at all pretentious and rather easy to pick up for the family.

Ticket to Ride [FREE DOWNLOAD]

Categories
Geek

Student makes 3D version of Arkham Horror. Help her beta test it!

Imagine that, to complete your Bachelor’s degree you design a 3D version of one of the best board games ever made: Arkham Horror.

I’ve been so wanting to get into it, but the sheer number of expansions, time to invest coupled with finding people to actually play with hinders me from this awesome experience. If you ever drop by Hobbes & Landes or Neutral Grounds, you’ll see rows and rows of Arkham Horror core sets and expansions. I really did want it but chickened out for reasons mentioned above and instead got Betrayal at House on a Hill which doesn’t live up to par, but at least doesn’t have a steep learning curve.

Well, anyway.

I emailed this amazing lady (her name is Andi) to ask if I can participate as a beta test and she sent me the game! in exchange for feedback. The game is about 80% polished (as the YouTube vid states) and I’m just so amazed at what she was able to do.

For those asking, this isn’t an official port of the game by Fantasy Flight Games (FFG). It’s by a student. She plans to present this project to them and get an official endorsement. If you’re wondering whether this holds as copyright infringement, well .. it doesn’t. Because this is a school project, it falls under Fair Use Policy in Europe. Wow. Just wow.

If you love Arkham Horror but hate the setup process, I suggest you send her an email. She’s accepting beta testers till the 5th of February 2012.

Categories
Mostly Everything

Jollibee brings NFC technology to their stores with the ‘happyplus’ Card

I laud Jollibee for being the first retailer pushing for fast adoption of NFC technology in the Philippines.

Geeky Explanation: (warning, nosebleed)
NFC stands for “Near Field Communication” and is a prevalent piece of technology similar to Bluetooth or QR codes and is based on the current RFID technology. The difference is that the “near field” in NFC means that as soon as you point your device (in this case a card) to the kiosk sensor within 4 centimeters, the “tag” is recorded. The not-so-recent Android 2.3 Gingerbread upgrade enables NFC for several of their models like the Samsung Galaxy S II.

Non-Geeky Explanation:
Your mobile phone (or any device with NFC) is now a debit card.

The HappyPlus Card seems to be Jollibee’s way to condition the minds of Filipinos to adopt NFC as a part of their daily lives. This is a bridge. It is no secret that the final product will be to use NFC-enabled smartphones (many Android devices already have it built in but aren’t being used by Pinoys) but the cards are a good way of pushing the market to familiarize with this tech. Essentially, it’s something Filipinos have been doing for a while, claiming rewards points with their load, using Passa Load services, etc. Jollibee’s move makes sense as they already have staked their claim in a mobile app for smartphones (aka Netphone).

The service will be available starting January 23 2012. The card itself will cost PHP 100.00 and will enable rewards points to accumulate. You can use the points to purchase from Jollibee, Chowking, Red Ribbon, Greenwich and soon, Mang Inasal. In essence, NFC eventually replaces the CBTL Swirl Cards and SM Advantage cards we have come to love.

Current Phones that support NFC:

Android
Nexus S
Google Nexus S 4G
Samsung Galaxy S II (not all versions)
Samsung Galaxy Note (not all versions)
Galaxy Nexus

Meego
Nokia N9

BlackBerry
Blackberry Bold 9790
BlackBerry Bold 9990/9930
BlackBerry Torch 9810/9860
Blackberry Curve 9350/9360/9370

The iPhone does not officially support NFC technology.

2012 is the year NFC will be introduced and will grow. Smart has started pushing it as well for bazaar entrances. You can use your smartphone (w/ NFC) to enter bazaars. Who knows what’s next? Concert tickets? MRT tickets? Endless!

Categories
Geek

Download the “It’s More Fun In the Philippines” Android App

Developed by Lester Bambico, Android users can now create their own “It’s More Fun In the Philippines” meme with this easy to use Android app. It’s free!

[DOWNLOAD HERE] or do a search for “It’s more fun in the Philippines” on the Android marketplace.

More details and screenshots after the jump.