CountDown: DownToZero version 1.4 submitted

we've submitted a new update to CountDown: DownToZero that lets the player choose between 3 different graphical "skins"... this leaves in the updated graphics from the previous update, brings back the original retro graphics, and also adds a new "modern" visual style as well. hopefully it will be approved soon. Here are some screenshots of the new version:

DownToZero's new name...

Countdown

We just submitted version 1.3 of DownToZero to Apple. This version changes the name of the game to "Countdown", and has a new visual style and icon. We will see if these changes have any effect on the sales of the game!

Once the update goes live we will update this blog to reflect the new name and visual style... The image above is the new icon for the game.

DownToZero on sale for $0.99!!!

The title says it all, DownToZero is now on sale for just $0.99! Get it while it's cheap :)

Ouch! version 1.4 submitted to Apple!

We have submitted version 1.4 of Ouch! to Apple, hopefully it will be approved within a week or so. This version adds 1 big new feature (and also some new props as well) :

Replay Sharing!

One of the best things about Ouch! is the ability to save and watch a replay of something funny or amazing that happened while you were playing the game. With this new update, you will now be able to share your replays with all of the other Ouch! players around the world.
Because of technical limitations, custom faces (for example a face you made of your brother) cannot be shared... players who download your scene will see exactly what happened, with a character exactly the same size and shape (and outfit) as yours, but with the custom face replaced with a standard face. Hopefully the replays will be just as funny/amazing/interesting/ridiculous with a standard Ouch! face :)

We've also added a few "summer" themed props to the game:

1. Backyard BBQ
2. Bicycle (left and right versions)
3. Lawn Mower (left and right versions)
4. Lawn Chair
   

Ouch! v1.3 approved, thousands of scenes uploaded!

Ouch! v1.3 was approved by Apple a little over a week ago, and the scene sharing feature has been a big success! So far over 3,000 scenes have been uploaded by Ouch! players, which is truly amazing! There are some really great scenes in there.

We are constantly monitoring the scene sharing system, and making improvements to it. So far we have added more search features, fixed some bugs, and made the process of approving scenes simpler.

We've received many comments suggesting that the ability to rate scenes, and add descriptions for scenes is something that players want, so we are looking into adding those features in the future. We're not the most experienced web development team though, so these things take some time.


We are also hard at work on the next update to Ouch!, which will add more props and content, and a few features that we think players will be excited about.

Introducing DownToZero

DownToZero
...is an arcade puzzle game.

** NOW AVAILABLE **
Full Version - $1.99

The rules of the game are simple:

3. Drag your finger to connect blocks that subtract down to zero.
2. Connected blocks will disappear after 2 seconds.
1. Connect more blocks before they disappear to create chains!

0. Good luck!

- - - - - - - - - -
GAME FEATURES
- - - - - - - - - -
* 4 GAME MODES:
- Endless Mode
- Time Attack: 1 minute
- Time Attack: 3 minutes
- Clear the board



* GLOBAL LEADERBOARDS
- Leaderboard for each game mode.
- If you are away from an internet connection when you get a high score, the game will resend the next time you launch the game in an area with a connection.

* FULL RESUME SYSTEM
- Don't worry if you get a call, text message, or just have to exit the game in the middle of the action. The next time you start the game, your previous session is immediately restored!

* IDEAL FOR SHORT BURSTS OF PLAY
- Loads fast, menus navigate quickly.
- Time attack modes are perfect for when you just have a moment while waiting in line, etc.

GAME TRAILER

DownToZero: Gameplay Trailer

A quick gameplay trailer for our new game, "DownToZero". The game has been submitted to Apple, hopefully it won't take long to be approved! A Lite version has also been created and submitted, they will be released simultaneously.

New Game coming soon!

A sneak preview of the icon for our new game "DownToZero". More details soon!

Ouch! Version 1.3 submitted to Apple

Version 1.3 of Ouch! has been submitted to Apple, and is now in review. Hopefully if there are no problems the update will be available in about a week or so, depending on how busy the reviewers are at Apple.

Version 1.3 adds 1 big feature: scene sharing!

Anyone will now be able to upload their custom scenes directly from inside the game, and browse and download scenes created by other players. You can sort through the available levels by date, tag, or number of downloads... and even click on a username to view all levels by that creator. Updating your scenes is easy as just reuploading them as well.

We're very excited about this feature, so hopefully the update will be approved soon!

Ouch! v1.3 - Scene Sharing!

We are curently finishing up work on the next update to Ouch! (version 1.3), which is a huge update, because it adds online scene sharing from right within the game! We will explain how it all works in more detail once we get closer to releasing the update, but below are a few screenshots to show the current work in progress.

Version 1.2 Feature: Exploding Objects!

Version 1.2 of Ouch! was submitted to Apple today. Hopefully they will approve the update within a week or so, and all of the new features will be available for everyone! One last feature that we're excited that we got into the update is...

Exploding / Breaking Objects















Here is the full list of other features that will be in version 1.2:

1. Gravity is now adjustable for custom scenes! You can control the direction and power of gravity, and also adjust whether tilt controls should only be left/right, or full 360 degrees.
   
   
2. A "Ghost" character is now drawn after previewing a custom scene in the editor. This way tou can see exactly where the character ended up, and place new objects more accurately.
   
   
3. New Content:

• 10 new scenes from Hondune Games
• 4 new player-created scenes
• 3 new props
• 2 new outfits
• 1 new hat

Version 1.2 Feature: "Ghost Character"

Another new feature being added in the next update to Ouch! is a "ghost character" in the scene editor. Have you ever been creating a scene, and you found it difficult to place objects along the path a character will fly when being thrown from pinball flippers, etc? This new addition will really help with problems like that when creating your own scenes.

Now, whenever you preview a scene, and then return back to editing, a "ghosted" version of the character will be drawn in the exact location and pose that it was in when the preview ended:


hopefully this will make creating custom scenes even easier, and faster!

version 1.2 should be submitted to Apple within a week or so...

Player Submitted Scenes [04]

Wow, Ouch! has made it into the top 50 paid applications on the App Store! Many new people are playing the game, and that means we've been getting some great scenes sent our way. Tonight we updated our flickr set with many new cool player-created scenes. Make sure you navigate over there and check it out!

Player Submitted Scenes Flickr Set

** The images that you can import into Ouch! are the images that look like a grid of colored blocks. That is the data for the scene stored as an image file. In our flickr set we also have screenshots of the levels, so you can see what the level looks like before you download it. The screenshot is always followed by the image file for that level.

How to Import Scenes
1. From the main menu, choose "Edit"
2. Touch the new scene / import scene toolbar button (bottom right)
3. Select the appropriate place to find the image (if you saved the image from safari on your device, select "stored photos", if you downloaded on your computer and synched with iTunes, choose "photo library)
4. Find the image for the scene, and select it!
5. To continue to import multiple scenes, touch the import button (top left) and choose another image.

Ouch! Lite now available!

Ouch! Lite was approved by Apple, and is now available in the App Store! If you are curious about Ouch! and want to give it a try before the big "commitment" of your $3, give it a look :)

Upcoming Feature: Custom Scene Gravity

** EDIT ** To clarify, below is a feature that will be in the NEXT update to Ouch!, which will be version 1.2 ***

We are currently working on the next update for Ouch! (v1.1.1, which fixes some bugs and adds a few new props is currently in review with Apple), and one of the new features we are adding is the ability to alter the gravity for your custom scenes.


You can change the strength of the gravity (from zero to twice the default gravity), the direction of gravity, and also enable a new mode that lets you control the ragdoll by tilting in ALL directions, not just left-right. This is especially useful for zero-gravity scenes, where you can slide the ragdoll all around just by tilting.

We still have some other features to add before we submit the update that includes this feature, so we will post again as we get closer to submitting!

Player Submitted Scenes [03]

Great scenes keep rollin' in from Ouch! players! we've updated our Flickr set with several newly submitted scenes... here are some screenshots of the scenes, click any of them to go to the full gallery (where you can also download the data images).

Lite version delay...

On Wednesday we got word that Ouch! Lite had been rejected by Apple. :(

it turns out the problem was a (simple, but) stupid mistake on our part. We've already resubmitted Ouch! Lite, and if all goes well it will be available on the App Store in about a week.

sorry for the delay!!

Ouch! Lite available soon!

We have recently submitted Ouch! Lite to Apple, and it should be available soon in the app store (for free, of course). If you are interested in Ouch!, but haven't yet decided it's worth $3, hopefully the Lite version will help you see why it's such a good value!

The Lite version has a few scenes to play, and a large selection of replays that you can watch from the full version. It does not have any character customization or scene creation available.

Player Submitted Scenes [02]

Our Player Submitted Scenes Gallery has been updated with all of the great recent scenes everyone has posted, thanks to everyone who sent them in! We have an active thread going on toucharcade.com where most of the players are submitting these.

click any of these to go to the full gallery where you can download the data files as well...

 

  

Version 1.1 Released!

version 1.1 of Ouch! was just approved, and is now available in the App Store!

This version makes many improvements to the game, and also adds several new props, and scenes (including several player-submitted scenes), and features. Here is the full list of changes:

1. Multi-select added to the editor! Double tap and drag your finger to select multiple objects, and then move them as usual. You can also delete and copy selections of objects now, making level creation and modification much easier.

2. New props:

• Left-facing cannon.
• Trashcan
• Little Red Wagon
• Sled
• Trebuchet

3. New Scenes:

• 2 new scenes form Hondune Games
• 6 scenes from Ouch! players! Look for them in the "Community Selections" scene set!

4. Dragging objects near the edge of the screen in the editor now causes the camera to pan in that direction.

5. Custom face image selection explanation message added, to avoid confusion.

6. "End Scene Now" option added to pause menu, to allow exiting a scene without waiting for the countdown (but still keeping your score)

7. Message box added to editor when the scene complexity limit is reached.

8. Ability to reset high scores for single scenes from the scene editor added.

9. Props are now listed alphabetically in the add prop window.

10. hitbox for game pause menu doubled in size.

11. Rocket prop fixed to be static until launched.

Ouch! v1.1 Preview - Multi-Select!

We are currently hard at work on the first update to Ouch!, which we hope to submit to Apple in the next few days. The update will include many improvements based on early feedback to the game, to hopefully make some areas smoother and more intuitive... However there is also one major new feature that is being implemented:

Multi-Select in the Scene Editor!

Just double tap and drag your finger to select multiple objects at a time:



Once selected, you can move the entire group of objects quickly and easily. If you've ever started a scene, only to realize that you should have started the entire scene up closer to the top of the world, you can now make that adjustment very easily!


Not only that, but you can also delete and copy multiple objects at a time as well.

We think this addition really makes the scene editor more useful, and we're looking forward to the release of version 1.1 so that players can get their hands on it.

Player Submitted Scenes [01]

Many players have been sending us scenes that they have made with the in-game editor in Ouch. Below are thumbnails of what the scene looks like. For the actual scene data image files, click any of the images to jump to the gallery, which contains both the thumbnails, and the actual importable files.

How to Import Scenes
1. From the main menu, choose "Edit"
2. Touch the new scene / import scene toolbar button (bottom right)
3. Select the appropriate place to find the image (if you saved the image from safari on your device, select "stored photos", if you downloaded on your computer and synched with iTunes, choose "photo library)
4. Find the image for the scene, and select it!
5. To continue to import multiple scenes, touch the import button (top left) and choose another image.

Click on any of the images below to jump to the picasa photo gallery, where you can download the scene images.