The recent launch of Asphalt 7: Heat on Windows Phone 8 was just the shot of vitality that Microsoft’s newest mobile OS needed. Considering the rocky start that Xbox Live releases have had this year, we might have expected a puzzle game or no release at all. Well, we needn’t fear such a bleak scenario this week either. Hot off of Asphalt 7’s heels, Gameloft will follow up today with not one, but TWO new Xbox games for Windows Phone 8. And one of them is even free! Are your minds blown yet, mobile gamers?
Yes, two of the 12 Gameloft games announced last year have popped up today: The Amazing Spider-Man and Real Soccer 2013/Real Football 2013. We haven’t put them through their paces just yet, but we do have plenty of details, screens, and pricing! Note that both titles require 1GB of RAM, so they won’t work on the Lumia 620, HTC 8S, and other low-memory devices.
The Amazing Spider-Man
Gameloft’s mobile Spider-Man title is based on the 2012 movie starring Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone. The film has some structural problems due to a major last-minute change in story that required numerous reshoots, but I absolutely love it for its superior acting, Spidey action, and authenticity to the comics.
The game adheres to the movie’s basic structure, complete with cinematic sequences voiced by so-so sound-alikes. However, Gameloft’s adaptation is completely different from the console title from Activision. Both games use the classic Spider-Man 2 movie game as a template for their gameplay though, so they do share some similarities. And who doesn’t want a free-roaming Spider-Man game to play on the go? Super villains, that’s who.
Get ready for some sticker shock, as The Amazing Spider-Man costs $6.99, the highest mobile Xbox pricing tier. That’s how much it runs on iOS and Android too, though of course those versions are far likelier to go on sale than this one. Plus we are talking about a console quality game here, other than the voice acting. How much does the Xbox 360 game sell for again?
While it costs a lot more than Asphalt 7 (which needed to be cheap in order to build an online community), Amazing Spider-Man still offers optional in-app purchases. Here players can buy in-game currency in order to advance in the game quicker, just like Asphalt 7. This currency can be spent on health refills, new moves, and unlockable costumes such as the black suit from Spider-Man 3.
Of course, gamers can simply earn money through normal gameplay and grinding, so the microtransaction element doesn’t hurt the game. Protip: buy upgrades that increase XP and currency gains before anything else to naturally speed things up.
Get The Amazing Spider-Man here at the Windows Phone Store. File size: 565 MB (requires approximately 2 GB of space to install)
Real Soccer 2013
Alright, so the first Real Soccer for Windows Phone 7 was a horrible mess of missing modes and broken Achievements. But Gameloft is taking Windows Phone 8 development much more seriously, so this version should come with less bugs while retaining all of the iOS game’s modes and features. Fingers crossed!
The real reason to get excited for Gameloft’s latest soccer game is obvious though: it’s free! Yes, Real Soccer 2013 has become the first free Xbox Windows Phone 8 game. As you might expect, it relies heavily on in-game purchases in order to speed up progression. The necessary currency can be earned through gameplay as well, but it takes a lot longer to progress without spending real money in this one.
Real Soccer also boasts the FIFPro license, off-the-field simulation aspects like building facilities for your team, and motion-captured animations. I’ve never been too good at soccer games, but given the sharp visuals and free price, I might have to give this one a chance. Plus it looks like the Achievements will be stackable for users who download both versions through regional trickery.
Windows Phone Store links: Real Soccer 2013 (US and Canada) Real Football 2013 (the rest of the world). File size: 809 MB (requires approximately 4 GB of space to install)
