Crave

Protect your shack from the undead in the amusing, innovative TD game Zombie Attack.

If there's a bigger game genre for the iPhone than Tower Defense clones, I haven't found it. A quick search of the App Store reveals well over 100 titles matching that description.

No surprise there: the iPhone's touch screen lends itself perfectly to this kind of game (which, for the uninitiated, requires strategic placement of defensive armaments to ward off increasingly powerful attackers).

OK, but which TD titles are worth your time--and cash? Here's a roundup of my five favorites. It's by no means a definitive list, but I think fans of the genre will enjoy them all.

• Bloons Tower Defense Balloons. Monkeys. Darts. Nearly everything from the beloved Web-based classic appears in the iPhone version. The controls are a little finicky, but if you want to introduce young kids to the world of tower defense, this $2.99 game is the one to get.
• Navy Patrol: Coastal Defense Though the learning curve is a bit steep and the onscreen action can get a little cluttered, this naval-themed, open-path TD exercise offers some of the most in-depth and challenging gameplay I've found. And the $1.99 purchase price includes new maps as they get added to the game.
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This is what happens when the EZ Pass lane isn't working.

(Credit: Microsoft )

With the March 3 release of Halo Wars for the Xbox 360, one of gaming's most popular brands took a potentially risky step into uncharted waters. Instead of a twitch-based first-person shooter, Halo Wars is a real-time strategy game. This complex genre, perhaps best described as Stratego meets the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, has befuddled mainstream gamers for years, even with occasional hits such as Command & Conquer and Starcraft. (Despite having covered the video game business off-and-on for the past 10 years, I'm still an RTS novice.)

Having had a chance to get some serious hands-on time with Halo Wars during the week before its release, we were actually kind of shocked to find that the game was, for the most part, simple enough that even we could understand it. Most real-time strategy games require players to move lots of little soldiers around a big map, controlling a whole army rather than a single character. But to get those soldiers, one must first gather natural resources, construct buildings, and even research new technology. Of course, this all happens in "real time," so while you're trying to figure out how to do one thing, the rest of your miniempire is getting blown up somewhere across town.

Halo Wars automates much of the tedious resource gathering and construction, to instead focus on the combat, which is what Halo fans want anyway. Most of the game's levels involve building new soldiers and tanks, waiting until you have dozens of them hanging around your base, and then telling everyone to blindly rush the enemy while you sit back and hope for the best. That said, the simplified gamepad-friendly controls may even be a little too stripped down. Telling everyone to attack one target is easy, getting some guys to go right and some other guys to go left is much more of a challenge.

While Halo Wars has gotten a mostly positive critical reception during its first few days of release, we'll have to wait and see if the millions of gamers who bought 2007's Halo 3 are willing to try a Halo game without a first-person point-of-view and without a star turn by series protagonist Master Chief.

Screenshots: 'Halo Wars' readies for battle

This ain't your grandma's SpeedPad.

(Credit: Belkin)

Belkin has announced the successor to the n52 SpeedPad, the n52te. What does the "te" stand for, you ask? Tournament Edition. This professional-grade SpeedPad promises to improve your response time in PC games like first-person shooters, real-time strategy games, and MMORPGs.

Teaming up with elite gaming peripheral manufacturer Razer, the n52te carries with it a customizable software suite allowing players to completely modify their gaming experience. The device will support multiple player profiles in addition to Razer Synapse onboard memory, which allows for plug-and-play functionality without the need to install additional software wherever you take it. Also new to the SpeedPad is a fully backlit keyboard and scroll wheel.

In celebration of the n52te release, Belkin has launched a monthlong contest where gamers submit their best frag sessions caught on tape. The "Proud to PWN" submission deadline is November 4, where the 50 best videos will be awarded a new n52te. Check out www.playtopwn.com for all contest details.

The n52te is scheduled for a November 2007 release and will retail for $70.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

After spending the morning hours organizing his documents and case files, Power Downloader decides it's high time for a break. Though he's happy with his organizational progress so far, Power knows that he can't spend all of his time working. After all, a little relaxation and time out from a project often helps to recharge both the body and the mind.

To make the most of his downtime, Power Downloader decides a little gaming is just the thing to help him relax. With nothing new to play on his computer, Power decides to check out the top games at Download.com. After only a few clicks of his mouse, it doesn't take Power long to find Glest an open-source, free real-time strategy game in the vein of Blizzard's older Warcraft-type games. This game lets Power choose between two races, one whose primary ability is magic and the other, which focuses on tech. Once the game has started, the 3D graphics and slow-moving gameplay provide the perfect escape from Power's cleaning tasks. But Power soon realizes that Glest is more than just a relaxing diversion. To build an ultimate fighting force to stave off his computer controlled enemies, Power will need to plan his strategy, secure his resources, and focus on time-management. By the end of his first game, the enemy outmatched Power's abilities, but it only made him want to master the game and come up with a new strategy.

Managing resources and units in the early part of the game is crucial for success.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

Power Downloader knows Glest may not be on par with some of today's popular commercial RTS games, but the classic strategy feel, smooth 3D graphics, and countless weapon- and building-upgrade options make the game both fun and challenging. Also, the variety between the two races gives this free game plenty of replay value.

When Power Downloader finally quits Glest, he realizes that he may have spent a little too much time in his virtual world. With only a few hours left in the day, Power resolves to finish organizing his documents, but when he's done, he'll have more time to build a new strategy for the battlefield.

Add Sierra's World in Conflict to the list of enticing real-time strategy games for 2007. The game envisions a Cold-War-turned-hot conflict between the U.S. and Soviet Union, with an emphasis on pick-up-and-play action over resource management. Look for it on the PC and Xbox 360 in the fall of 2007.

(Credit: GameSpot)

The wait is over. No more speculation and no more rumors. Just a few hours ago, Blizzard announced Starcraft 2 at the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational in Seoul. This will be the first sequel to one of the most popular PC strategy games ever. The Terrans, Protoss, and Zerg are all coming back, each with their own unique style of play. The game's trailer was already up on Youtube by midnight and got almost 27,000 views in just over four hours.

Starcraft 2's release date hasn't yet been announced, but it won't be alone when it hits stores. Supreme Commander and Command and Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars have been out for a few months already, and both are very hot strategy games in their own rights. By the time Starcraft 2 comes around, these other two games might be getting stale, or they might be getting even more popular, perhaps with new expansions. Considering how long the original Starcraft stayed at the top of the charts, I wouldn't discount either option. Blizzard has a lot of work to do if it wants to reclaim the title as king of the real-time strategy game. We'll just have to watch what happens as the screenshots and preview videos come pouring in.

World of Warcraft has been a goldmine for Blizzard, but that can't be all it's working on. Back before WoW ate countless lives with its grinding, raiding, and leveling, Blizzard was known for awesome strategy games such as Warcraft and Starcraft, awesome action RPGs such as Diablo and Diablo II, and even awesome platform-puzzlers such as The Lost Vikings. All of these games seem to have been left at the wayside while Blizzard focuses on keeping its WoW servers up and running, and its players chipping in their monthly fee.

That can't be the whole story. Rumors abound about Blizzard's numerous, purely hypothetical projects. Kotaku recently reported about Blizzard hiring for a "next-gen MMO," and that a Korean Web site claimed that Blizzard will be announcing their next big project in May. All we have are rumors right now; Blizzard is indeed hiring new talent, but they might just be put to work on even more World of Warcraft content.

Still, rumors are fun, and it'll be interesting to see just what Blizzard might be working on. The company has a few great universes and a superlative back catalog of games. Here's a look at what Blizzard might be developing. Keep in mind that this is all speculation and shouldn't be taken seriously until Blizzard coughs up some concrete information.

World of Starcraft
The pitch: Terrans, Zerg, and Protoss continue their war with each other across different planets in a sci-fi MMORPG with plenty of cross-faction PVP action.
The case for: Starcraft is one of Blizzard's most beloved properties, and to this day it's an incredibly popular game. Tons of sci-fi fans would probably love to see Starcraft get the World of Warcraft treatment. Blizzard already has MMO infrastructure in place, so it probably wouldn't be nearly as complicated or time-consuming a development process as World of Warcraft.
The case against: Sci-fi MMOs tend to be tricky, with a lot more high-tech stuff that would be difficult to translate from RTS. Blizzard will have to get pretty creative with missions, since there are only so many Zerg holes a marine can clean out before he just gets sick of it.
The likelihood: Pretty good. Blizzard's already proven it can translate a great RTS property into a great MMO, and World of Starcraft would eat up all the Star Trek/Star Wars/Stargate nerds who are turned off by Warcraft's fantasy setting.

Starcraft 2
The pitch: Starcraft returns to the RTS form with better graphics, more units, deeper strategy, and possibly an additional faction or two.
The case for: The game is nine years old and people still play it to this day. A zerg-rushing celebration with modern graphics would be a sure hit.
The case against: Command and Conquer 3 and Supreme Commander are already wrestling for to billing in the sci-fi RTS genre, a genre that has shrunk in popularity in the last decade. It'll be pretty crowded in there, and Starcraft 2 will be showing up late to the game.
The likelihood: Pretty good. If done right, Starcraft 2 could completely bowl over Command and Conquer 3 and Supreme Commander and reclaim Blizzard's former title as king of the RTS.

Diablo 3
The pitch: The forces of hell are trying to take over the world once again, and you need stop them by creating a hero from a wider selection of classes and specialties, with bigger dungeons and more complex quests.
The case for: Diablo II was one of the most popular games of its time, and the addictive properties of leveling up, collecting equipment, and hacking through hundreds of demons simply doesn't get old.
The case against: Most of the developers of Diablo and Diablo II are working on Flagship Studios' Hellgate: London. Blizzard might not be able to make the same Diablo we knew and love.
The likelihood: Slim. World of Warcraft already satisfies most gamers' need for grinding, killing, and item collecting. Diablo 3 would add a little more action to the same basic, polished formula, probably without the lucrative monthly fee.

Warcraft 4
The pitch: Like World of Warcraft, only an RTS game.
The case for: There's a big fantasy RTS-shaped hole in today's game market that would easily be filled by Blizzard's biggest IP, Warcraft. It started as an RTS and would make sense to continue as one.
The case against: It would break WoW players out of the game with the inevitable major, world-changing storyline. Warcraft's story is already evolving through WoW's updates and expansions, and the sort of changes Warcraft 4 would probably make to the Warcraft universe would seriously unbalance that.
The likelihood: Slim, for now. When WoW starts to run down and Blizzard gets to work on World of Warcraft 2, it will be more likely for a Warcraft 4 to bridge the two MMO worlds.

The Lost Vikings 3
The pitch: Time-traveling Norsemen Erik, Baelog, and Olaf are back, and they're still trying to get home.
The case for: The Lost Vikings were awesome.
The case against: It's not Blizzard's most recognized property, and they've already gotten a respectable cameo in the Uldaman dungeon in World of Warcraft. It probably wouldn't translate well to 3D and modern graphics.
The likelihood: Not gonna happen. They might keep on making cameos, but we're not going to see a new, modern Lost Vikings game any time soon. Maybe a remake or two on the Nintendo DS or PSP, but that's the best we can hope for.

And before any of you ask, I didn't list Starcraft: Ghost because it's cancelled. It's not coming out. You're not going to be able to play it. It is not fated to be released on any platform. That is all.

Video games are almost never known for good acting. Voice-overs and cutscenes tend to be stilted, and use lesser-known and, often, lesser-skilled actors to do the dirty work. Occasionally you can find a good actor or two hired to do scenes, like Patrick Stewart in The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, Vin Diesel in The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay, or Mark Hamill in Wing Commander 3 and 4, but usually you can expect mediocre voicework and cutscenes at best, bumpers to click through in between gameplay.

Then I started playing Command and Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars. The Command and Conquer series has always had well-produced, amusing cutscenes that were worth a watch despite the inevitable camp. The cutscenes in Tiberium Wars are not only well-produced, but laden with a surprising number of sci-fi stars and character actors. It's pretty much an orgy of nerdish cinematic delight.

Battlestar Galactica Cylon babes Grace Park and Tricia Helfer are two of the most notable actors in the game, playing GDI offier Sandra Telfair and NOD general Kilian Qatar. Josh Holloway, Lost's Sawyer, plays NOD's agent Ajay. Billy Dee Williams (Star Wars' Lando Calrissian, and if you didn't already know that then get off my lawn) plays GDI director Redmond Boyle. Finally, Michael Ironside plays GDI General Jack Granger. You might remember his gravely voice as that of Sam Fisher's in the Splinter Cell series and Darkseid's in the Superman and Justice League animated series. He also plays nearly every other crusty, war-hardened soldier in any show or movie that needs one.

Of course, it's not all Hollywood (or Vancouver, or wherever they shoot Battlestar Galactica and Lost) stars in C&C 3. Joseph Kucan reprises his role as the bald, sinister, evil mastermind Kane, mostly because fans of the series would start rioting if EA Games did otherwise. Kucan IS Kane. The Brotherhood of NOD's leader couldn't be played by anyone else. Courtenay Taylor also lends presence as the alien Scrin A.I. You might not know her name, but you probably know her voice from Supreme Commander, Knights of the Old Republic, Call of Duty 2, and God of War. She played the twins in the game's...controversial mini-game.

If you're a fan of Battlestar Galactica or Lost, or just like campy sci-fi scenes with some pretty big names, Command and Conquer 3 is a great pick. Of course, the game itself is darn good, too (it scored a 9.0 and an Editor's Choice from GameSpot). If it wasn't, all the actors in the world wouldn't help it.