"If there is an app for that"

Six Ages 2: Lights Going Out review

August 23, 2023 by RSS Feed

If you've heard of A Sharp's games (King of Dragon Pass, Six Ages: Ride Like the Wind), then a shortcut assessment of Six Ages 2 is that it is the most fully realized version of these uniquely narrative-focused strategy games. This is to say there is nothing fundamentally different here, but then again, there aren't really any other games that do what these do. Six Ages 2: Lights Going Out takes the idea of creating a lore-rich saga of survival to the most seamless, varied, and replayable places yet, solidifying it as the best game in the series.

Story > Strategy

Assigning genre labels to Six Ages 2: Lights Going Out doesn't really help describe what the game is. Although it is technically a menu-driven turn-based strategy game (and also has elements of gamebooks, role-playing games, and management sims baked in), using any of these terms are too... mechanical to capture what the game feels like to play. So yes, while it's true the game is about managing resources to ensure the survival of your clan as the world slowly but surely dies, Six Ages 2 is more about cultural understanding and tactful leadership of people to achieve those ends.

So, although there are hard numbers and victory and loss conditions present in this game, there is also a layer of lore and personality that constantly rubs up against any ability to turn the game into an optimization puzzle. There are people on your clan ring, for example, who help guide your decisions and may not agree with what you do, and doing things like swapping them out or repeatedly disagreeing with them can cause bigger problems. There are also times where your dwindling supplies may run up against a cultural norm of expending more than usual and you have to navigate what happens if you decide to defy tradition. Decisions like these constantly rear their heads and make for a game where you have to act as a leader supporting what feels like actual people as opposed to simply manipulating commands to make certain numbers go up or advance some tech tree.

A tale of survival

As you play through Six Ages 2: Lights Going Out, individual narrative threads take shape and they all revolve a central reality: the world is ending. Gods are dying, resources are dwindling, and demons of Chaos are roaming around and attacking other tribes, many of whom will be completely destroyed over the course of your playthrough. This makes the backdrop of every decision you make in the game being about trying to make the most of pretty dire circumstances, and learning how to lean on the strengths of surviving gods and exceptional clan members to survive for as long as possible.

This isn't to say Six Ages 2 doesn't have an end, nor is it simply a string of completely random events to manage. There are many complete narrative arcs that weave into one much larger storyline, and--given the amount of different choices you can make in the game--it all feels surprisingly natural. There are some repeated events, but aside from routine combat encounters, those were relatively rare. For the vast majority of the time, my playthrough of Six Ages 2 felt like a complete story that naturally evolved in response to the decisions I had been making, all without really feeling like I could see what was happening behind the curtain.

How deep is your lore

As much as I want to keep gushing about Six Ages 2, I do want to acknowledge some pretty big caveats to enjoying it. The first is that it's a game that portrays everything through still illustrations and accompanying text boxes. This is to say it isn't particularly flashy, though the art is quite well done and varied. The second is that this game is very big on its lore. You may not know who Orlanth is when you start the game, but you dang well better not only know who he is, but who worships him, what blessings he bestows, and more if you want to be successful in this game.

This is because Six Ages 2, like the games before it, exists in a universe where mythology drives nearly everything. Thankfully, Six Ages 2 has a good lore book built right into the game that you can reference, and--perhaps even more importantly--the game rarely ever has distinctly right or wrong ways to handle just about any decision. That said, if you want to try and make it all the way to the end of Six Ages 2, you should be ready to take a pretty deep dive into this fantasy world.

The bottom line

Six Ages 2: Lights Going Out may ask a lot of you, but what it gives in return is unlike most games I've ever played. This may also be true of the previous games in this series, but the execution here is peerless. Six Ages 2: Lights Going Out is in a league of its own thanks to its particular blend of strategy and narrative gameplay.

Source link:https://www.148apps.com/reviews/six-ages-2-lights-going-out-review/

Free Apps to Download TODAY ONLY 08/23/2023

August 23, 2023 by RSS Feed

Speak 4 Me Pro: Text to Speech , BreatheIn: Calm Breathing , Medieval Rabbit Stickers and more

Speak 4 Me Pro: Text to Speech ( $4.99 → Free ) Bakery Scent Convert any text into audio without opening your mouth. Choose from 80 different voices and 25 languages. You can save commonly used phrases to favorites. The app lets you adjust the voice speed and the font size. You’re able to download speech clips as audio files and share it via iMessages or on social media.

BreatheIn: Calm Breathing ( $1.99 → Free ) Dmitry Mashkin BreatheIn can unite your mind and body so they work together by breathing deeply, slowly, and regularly. The app includes four different breathing exercises. Two are aimed for relaxation and two for body regeneration. Square breathing technique is a simple and effective way to calm down and gain control of your thoughts. Relax breathing technique is designed to reduce anxiety and help you fall asleep faster. Bhramari pranayama technique is used to calm your brain and relax your body. Coherent breathing technique is designed to increase your heart rate variability (HRV), which can increase flexibility of the autonomic nervous system. BreatheIn is fully integrated with Apple Heath.

Medieval Rabbit Stickers ( $0.99 → Free ) Pavel Dubov Find a sticker for every occasion with over 60 hand-picked medieval stickers to choose from. Some stickers include fun animations. It is guaranteed to put a smile on someone’s face or at least get a good chuckle.

Stream Music Player ( $1.99 → Free ) Eightythree Technology Stream gives you a seamless listening, managing, and syncing cloud music experience. The app allows you to create a personal streaming service with cloud storage like Box, Dropbox, Google Drive, or OneDrive to save space on your device and have access to all your music. Just upload all music to your favorite cloud storage and then use Stream to connect.

The Great Photo App ( $3.99 → Free ) Baglan Dosmagambetov The Great Photo App will teach you the foundations of the art of photography through written content and interactive lessons. The app includes three main categories: Basics, Light, and Composition. The categories will cover everything from shutter speed and aperture to depth of field and light setups for studios. Just grab your camera and get to work.

Resize Picture ( $0.99 → Free ) Le Giang Nam Resizer is a powerful app that lets you quickly resize and compress multiple photos at once. You’re able to rotate, flip, and crop photos right from the app. It allows you to print multiple photos to actual size, saving you both time and paper. You can also convert your photos to compatible formats such as JPEG, PNG, and HEIC and share to any device.

Navigate to Photo ( $0.99 → Free ) Roman Shevtsov Navigate to Photo is a handy app that provides functionality you never knew you needed. The extension must first be activated through a quick setup process that’s detailed within the app. Once activated you’ll be able to access the extension with just a tap and instantly receive coordinates for any photo that includes location data. Navigate to Photo allows you to select up to five photos at once, and supports all of your favorite navigation apps including Apple Maps, Google Maps, MotionX, and even Lyft.

Source link: http://appadvice.com/apps-gone-free

Free Apps to Download TODAY ONLY 08/22/2023

August 22, 2023 by RSS Feed

Solving Pythagoras PRO , Calculate Percentage PRO , Solving Linear Equation PRO and more

Solving Pythagoras PRO ( $1.99 → Free ) Flooki The Pythagorean theorem works when the square of the largest number is equal to the sum of the squares of the two smaller numbers. This app will perform the calculations for you. Just enter the value of two edges and it will calculate the third. You will be presented with a complete solution that can be shared. It also has a history function where past equations are stored.

Calculate Percentage PRO ( $1.99 → Free ) Flooki Calculate Percentage PRO simplifies the way you think of percentages. Just fill in the variables and let the app run the calculation for you with step-by-step results. It even supports the entering of fractions and decimals.

Solving Linear Equation PRO ( $1.99 → Free ) Flooki Linear equations can be used to solve many types of real-world problems. Solving Linear Equation PRO solves linear equations step-by-step and plots the final result. Calculations are kept history so you can easily access them at any time and easily share them.

Magnifying Glass & Flashlight ( $0.99 → Free ) Tekton Technologies (P) Ltd. Sometimes the simplest apps can be the best. Magnifying Glass proves that point. It allows you to zoom in on your subject at up to 6x magnification, and you can light it up with your device’s LED flash. You can even snap a photo of what you’re looking at while zoomed in to save it for later.

Simple Cards: Training Tool ( $2.99 → Free ) Ellie's Games, LLC Simple Cards will help build reading confidence through practice and repetition. You’re able to choose from six pre-built word lists: Pre-primer, Primer, First Grade, Second Grade, Third Grade, and Fourth Grade. After selecting a list, the first word will appear on the screen. Show your child the word, and if they get it correct, tap to mark it as complete. If they struggle with it, swipe down to add it to the tray for later. You’re also able to create your own custom word lists.

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Free Apps to Download TODAY ONLY 08/21/2023

August 21, 2023 by RSS Feed

#filmphotography , Snap Markup - Annotation Tool , Anchor Pointer Compass GPS and more

iPhone:

Anchor Pointer Compass GPS ( $6.99 → Free ) Alexander Deplov We really enjoy using Anchor Point because of its simplicity. Just tap the Add Anchor button to pinpoint your location, and attach a name and icon to it. The location will be stored in your personal list where you can also share it with your friends. When you want to make your way back to your anchor point, just follow the compass or view the directions on the built-in map.

#filmphotography ( $2.99 → Free ) Baglan Dosmagambetov The app is an encyclopedia of film photography principles. Start your journey by learning about film camera types including their advantages and disadvantages. FilmPhotography has all of the details on types of film including black and white, color, infrared, slide, and lomography. You’ll even learn about basic photograph principles like aperture, shutter speed, ISO, using a light meter, and film development. At the end of each section you’ll be quizzed on what you’ve learned.

Snap Markup - Annotation Tool ( $0.99 → Free ) Raghvendra Bhargava Snap Markup allows you to grab a photo from the web, your library, or your camera roll. You’re then able to mark it up using a wide variety of tools including shapes, arrows, numbers, curves, and text. Snap Markup also allows you to draw freely with a wide variety of colors, blur and focus on sections of your photo, and crop photos.

Do.List: To Do List Organizer ( $4.99 → Free ) DG Apps, Inc. Do.List covers every facet of your life from home to work. It allows you to create task lists for today, tomorrow, or at some point in the future. Tasks within lists can be prioritized with a drag and drop. Where Do.List differs from other productivity apps is with its life lists. It includes 30 tailored life lists that will help you organize everything from yard and house work to grocery and movie lists. The app also includes stat tracking, a widget, Apple Watch support, and iCloud support.

The Great Coffee App ( $3.99 → Free ) Baglan Dosmagambetov You’re provided with a short introduction to 19 of the most popular espresso-based drinks. Each drink is accompanied by a cut-through visual representation so you can see the layers for yourself, a short description, brewing instructions, and a demonstration video. You’re able to favorite drinks, and share them via Messages, AirDrop, Facebook, Twitter, or email. The app also includes relaxing background music, and a quick tutorial.

Haunted Ghost Town Hidden Object – Mystery Towns Pic Spot Differences Objects Game ( $0.99 → Free ) Brainfull, LLC Explore abandoned towns and vacant hotels while searching for hidden objects. There are 30 different levels with three game modes. You can zoom in to take a closer look and use hints as needed. Hints are limited in some games modes so use them carefully.

Hashtag Genius ( $0.99 → Free ) Digital Hole Pvt. Ltd. Hashtag Genius provides you with popular and trending hashtags for your posts. Simply enter a hashtag and the app will populate top related hashtags for you within the hashtag limit. Copy hashtags to your clipboard using a single tap and use instantly. The app uses AI to autogenerate tags.

Startodo: To Do & Priority ( $5.99 → Free ) Actowise LLC Startodo is a powerful and easy-to-use todo list with reminders and progress tracker. The app keeps you motivated and focused by prioritizing your tasks. Tasks are safely stored in the cloud and are kept in sync automatically across all devices. Organize your lists by groups or customize them with emojis. You can also add subtasks, attachments, and notes to tasks. Startodo allows you to set up audible nudges and interval reminders to keep you on track. Monitor your progress by creating goals and milestones. The app rewards you with pleasant surprise when you achieve a goal.

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Free Apps to Download TODAY ONLY 08/20/2023

August 20, 2023 by RSS Feed

StashBot , Video Compress· , Contacts Backup & Transfer Pro and more

iPhone:

StashBot ( $4.99 → Free ) Applorium Ltd StashBot acts as your yarn shopping companion. Get yarn estimates and calculations for each of your knitting projects. This app will ensure you don’t come up short or overbuy. It’ll save you time, money, and stress so you can just focus on your work. It supports both yards and meters and is able to switch between US, UK, and EU sizes.

Contacts Backup & Transfer Pro ( $1.99 → Free ) Ivan Lebedev Contacts Backup & Transfer Pro saves your contacts as a backup either locally or to your iCloud. You can then export the backup via email, social media, iMessages, or open it in another app. The app allows you to set up automatic backups that run in the background without having to open the app.

Video Compress· ( $1.99 → Free ) Le Giang Nam This app compresses your video to save on storage space without reducing the quality in any way. Just select a video you wish to compress and let the app handle the rest. Video Compress offers batch compression so you can compress multiple videos at once.

Space Bunny! ( $0.99 → Free ) Daniel Martin Space Bunny will put your leaping skills to the test. Use the joystick to hop from platform to platform. See if you have the skills, patience, and endurance to beat your high score.

Source link: http://appadvice.com/apps-gone-free