Retro2Now: Mobile Gaming

Welcome back to Retro2Now: Mobile Gaming.  We dig into the roots of some iconic phone games every couple of weeks.  It serves as the spot for glancing at the golden age of smartphone gaming. This marks our fifth piece in the series.Now we bust right through a wall and we grab that machine gun jetpack too. That is right. We discuss the high octane coin collecting scientist dodging classic which goes by the name Jetpack Joyride. If you owned a smartphone back in 2011, you played this game for sure. Halfbrick Studios developed it. They created Fruit Ninja as well. Jetpack Joyride grabbed the endless runner genre. They polished it up nice and bright and it became one of the most addictive replayable experiences on a touchscreen ever. One Button, Endless Chaos The premise stays simple in a beautiful way. You play as Barry Steakfries who works as a disgruntled salesman. He spots a top secret machine gun jetpack and figures his life needs a real change. He breaks into the lab, straps...

  Welcome back to Retro2Now: Mobile Gaming.  We dig into the roots of some iconic phone games every couple of weeks. This time around, we look at a game that started the crazy train escape and setting new crazy records. That game is our favourite Subway Surfers. Subway Surfers a game that goes beyond a simple run along the tracks. People still talk about it as a classic in mobile gaming. It came out back in 2012, the game hooked players right away with its easy but hard to stop kind of play. This bright endless runner has lasted through the years and it keeps its old appeal even as it changes with the times. Today, we'll look at how Subway Surfers went from an old school hit to something big today. The Golden Age of Mobile Gaming: A Retro Rewind Mobile gaming had its golden time in the early 2010s and everyone was excited about what was coming. A couple of Danish developers from Kiloo and SYBO Games put out a title that took off worldwide(i.e. Subway Surfers). They launched it...

 Welcome back to Retro2Now: Mobile Gaming.  We dig into the roots of some iconic phone games every couple of weeks. This time around, we look at a game that started on PC and grew into a huge mobile hit. That game is the funny and crazy Plants vs. Zombies. Even after fifteen years since it first came out, this title keeps grabbing millions of players. It mixes strategy with humour and some funny wild plant versus zombie fights. You would think it would be a quirky tower defense game which might fade away. But it took over the world and shifted smoothly from an old classic to a big mobile thing. Get your seed packets ready. We dive into what keeps Plants vs. Zombies going strong. From a Coddled PC Pet to a Mobile Monster Hit Think back to 2009 now. The whole gaming scene felt pretty different then. PopCap Games put out this title that hooked many people right away. It was odd but so addictive, the idea behind Plants vs. Zombies was straightforward enough. You use plants as weap...

 Welcome back to Retro2Now: Mobile Gaming. Last time, we got into the basics of mobile gaming stuff. Now, we're jumping into this wild ride through the past with Temple Run. The game that pretty much kicked off a whole genre and turned into a huge cultural thing. It came out on August 4, 2011. This husband-and-wife team at Imangi Studios made it. They dropped it right when smartphones were just starting to get big. The idea was super simple, but man, it hooked you bad. You're this explorer guy who grabs a cursed idol. Then, demonic monkeys chase you forever. You swipe and tilt to dodge through this endless temple path. Run for your life, basically.It even created such a fandom that some fans on Reddit created a whole lore about it! The Genesis of the Endless Runner Craze The whole endless runner craze started with this. Back then, mobile games were mostly these basic paid apps you downloaded. Temple Run changed that with its easy controls and freemium setup, where you play free...