Weekly Gaming News Roundup Week 3

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Each week MobileCrunchArcade compiles the biggest news from the world of mobile gaming.

It seems some mobile phone gurus were talking about mobile games at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. One of the biggest problems that the game industry has is the pace at which new handsets are developed and released to the public. When someone upgrades to a new handset with all its neat features, old game software doesn’t compute. Game companies aren’t willing to give free game upgrades when a customer upgrades to a newer phone, so many people become disillusioned with mobile games. There have been hundreds of game releases but many of the games are so poor consumers don’t want to risk buying a new game after having a few bad experiences. Because of all these problems, sales of mobile games have remained relatively flat when compared to the overall growth of mobile phones. But the wise ones at the CES foresee a good future for mobile gaming based on the growth of smartphones and the public’s becoming used to downloading software to their handsets. Once everyone on Earth plays mobile games we can say that the human race has been truly civilized. There won’t be war or poverty and everyone will just get along ….

Greystripe, a distributor of ad-supported mobile games, announced the early results from its partnership with Opera, a mobile web browsing software company. In the first month since the partnership, Opera users have downloaded over 1,600,000 games and applications. It seems that Greystripe’s catalog of over 900 mobile games is a hit with Opera users. If you don’t mind ignoring a few ads, why not take a look at the Greystripe’s gamejump achieve? Greystripe reaches millions of mobile game players through its online portal GameJump.com , through the mobile web (http://gjmp.tw), and through its 20 AdWRAP Catalog Platform partners.

If you enjoy golf but can’t play because of the winter months, Microforum’s game Arcade Sidegolf may be just what you need to get through those long and cold nights. The game is reminiscent of the old 16-bit console games of the late 80’s and early 90’s. The screen is viewed from the side in 2D as your golfer swings trying to hit the ball. You can choose between a wood, iron or wedge with which to navigate the terrain and avoid obstacles with. A classic golf game device, the power bar, is used to determine the strength of your shot. Arcade Sidegolf won’t improve your real game or keep you warm on cold winter nights like your girlfriend, but it may be the right mobile game for the golf enthusiast.

If you enjoy classic computer RPGs, Gothic 3: The Beginning will keep your thumbs happy for many hours. You play the role of Xardas, a young man who has been chosen to recover a set of magic rune stones. At the start, Xardas can be a fighter, archer or magician. As he fights his way through a myriad of monster, Xardas increases in level and abilities. There are over 50 levels to explore as you search for those pesky runes. Non-player characters can be talked to for clues to the location of the lost stones. Xardas can smash barrels and pick locks looking for lost treasure. There are 28 weapons and 10 types of armor to aid the intrepid Xardas in his quest. As you can see, the game sticks to the fantasy RPG formula so it isn’t for everyone. But if you want to send some time killing monsters and taking their treasure, Gothic 3: The Beginning may be for you.

That is this week’s mobile gaming news roundup. Remember to exercise those thumbs, recharge the battery and never take your eyes off the screen.