That would be Shaq, or as it says on his birth certificate, Shaquille O’Neal. Shaq has been the star of the NBA court, TV shows, rap albums, movies (if you can call playing the lead in movies like Kazaam or Steel “starring”), and yes, video games. Now he’s back, and we’re at least morbidly curious to see what he has up his sleeve this time around.

Do younger mobile gamers even know who Shaq is at this point? Anyway, it matters not, because he’s just the headliner among five new mobile games we thing are worth checking out, so let’s get to it.

Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn

Because sometimes, you just have to take control of Shaq and kick the crap out of some bad guys, you know? You’ll get plenty of chances to do just that as you take control of Shaq and put him against all kinds of demons hellbent (as they generally are) on bringing our world to ruin. Apparently you can even transform Shaq into a giant mech or an equally large cactus if regular Shaq isn’t doing it for you. Admit it, you want to at least check this out.

• App Store (Free)
• Google Play (Free)

the Sequence [2]

Be careful when you search for trailers for this game, because you’re going to get results for a certain gross out horror movie mixed in. Happily, there’s nothing disgusting about this follow-up to a popular puzzle game, especially since this one is packing all new game mechanics to put your puzzler to the test. We dig the aesthetic here too.

• App Store ($1.99)

DueLito

Plenty of mobile games prove that bigger and more complicated don’t always mean better, and DueLito seems like it will be another prime example. Imagine Wild West gunslinger duels, but instead of who’s faster on the draw, these battles are decided by who’s fastest tapping a sequence of buttons in the right order. It’s so simple we wish we’d thought of it ourselves instead of having to put it in our new mobile games roundup.

• App Store (Free)
• Google Play (Free)

Marble Legends: 3D Arcade Game

We almost thought this said MARVEL Legends at first and got all excited, thinking it was a new game featuring superheroes and whatnot. Nevertheless, this still looks pretty cool, taking the steadfast, old school game of marbles and putting a decidedly 21st century spin on it. Uh, no pun intended, we guess. Seriously, though, if anything can make today’s youth take a look at marbles, this might be it.

• App Store (Free)
• Google Play (Free)

Kung Fu Z

Because why should Shaq have all the fun, besides the fact that he’s much bigger than you and could simply step on you or swat you away like a gnat if he so chose? Tiny Titan Studios combines two of everyone’s favorite things, martial arts and zombies, into what looks like one undead butt-kicking good time. The devs are calling it classic arcade action with an idle twist, and if that doesn’t sound perfect for mobile, we don’t know what does.

• App Store (Free)
• Google Play (Free)

The post Try these 5 new mobile games this week, including Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn appeared first on Gamezebo.

When you’re done with the most ambitious crossover event in history (yes, we know some memes here sometimes), you can jump into the Season 4, Week 2 challenges. Once again, there are seven in all, four standard and three hard.

Here’s what you’ve got to accomplish for Week 2:

• Search Chests in Greasy Grove (7)
• Consume Hop Rocks (7)
• Deal damage with Suppressed Weapons to opponents (500)
• Dance in front of different film cameras (7)
• Search between a Scarecrow, Pink Hotrod and a Big Screen
• Explosive Weapon Eliminations (3)
• Eliminate opponents in Tomato Town (3)

Four of the Week 2 challenges are self-explanatory, and consuming Hop Rocks is also pretty straightforward. You simply need to be around Dusty Divot and you’ll find them on the ground. The usual warnings about how many more players than usual might be landing in that part of the map applies.

So let’s drill down into the two challenges that need a little more guidance.

Dance in front of different film cameras

There’s an undeniable movie feel to the map now that it’s gone through its Season 4 changes, so this challenge actually fits right in. Keeping with the precedent set by previous search-type challenges, there are more cameras on the map than you need to fulfill this one, but they are spread pretty far apart and not all in named locations.

GameSpot has a handy map to 10 different film camera locations, and the following video by pickapixel can also lead you to enough to complete the challenge.

You can do any dance emote that you have access to for the purposes of this challenge, so no worries about what you have loaded up. Also, keep in mind that you don’t need to — and probably won’t be able to — knock out all seven film cameras in one match. Simply get what you can, finish the match and be ready to go for more in your next match.

Search between a Scarecrow, Pink Hotrod and a Big Screen

This is listed as a Hard challenge probably because of how specific it is, not necessarily because it’s truly difficult. What’s tricky is that if you don’t have the map memorized, you might not know where the objects in question are located, which is near the northeast corner of the map, east of Risky Reels.

HarryNinetyFour is on the case for this challenge, showing us exactly where to search, right between a grove of trees and the drive-in theater.

The actual item you’re searching for is a Battle Pass icon, and in mobile, you can finish off the challenge just by tapping on it as you would any other object with which you can interact.

Looking for even more Fortnite tips? Please check out our skins list, guide to vending machines and combat tips, and check back with us every week for pointers on how to solve the new weekly challenges.

The post Fortnite Season 4, Week 2 challenges: Dance in front of film cameras and search between a Scarecrow and a Hotrod appeared first on Gamezebo.

Yep, that’s right. When things aren’t so great outside, there’s nothing like curling up with a good new game for your phone or tablet. What, you thought we were going to say a book? Those are good too, but we’re more specialists in things that can be played on a touchscreen.

With another good crop of new titles in the app stores this week, there should be something that can help you fight off the last vestiges of winter. Let’s start with a brand new iteration of a long-running video game franchise designed specifically for mobile.

The Sims Mobile

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcDy1CCd-F8

It would be hard to imagine that there are many people who haven’t tired a Sims game of some type at some point. Living artificial lives has proven endlessly fascinating, and that should prove the case on mobile too. The focus here is on stories that each Sim can explore in both work and personal lives, while also allowing you to customize your home and clothes as you see fit. A strong social element? Of course, it’t got that too.

• App Store (Free)
• Google Play (Free)

Read Only Memories: Type-M

A while back, long enough ago that Ouya was still a thing, this “cyberpunk thriller” was crowdfunded and brought to life for a handful of platforms. It’s finally made its way to mobile, so you can enjoy its retro-90s gaming stylings on your iOS or Android device of choice. Can a machine and a human uncover the secrets of Neo-San Francisco? You can try the first chapter for free to find out.

• App Store (Free)
• Google Play (Free)

Farm On!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuEyawBHGvI

We have a long-running theory here at Gamezebo that it’s impossible to fully satisfy the overwhelming love that casual gamers have for farming. It’s been a staple of mobile gaming as long as that’s been a thing, and there’s always room for one more entry to the genre. Farm On lets you harvest crops, raise animals, and much more, all with just one hand. Seems like that might catch on.

• App Store (Free)

The Bonfire: Forsaken Lands

Hey, this game fits in pretty nicely with our theme of bad weather. Except in The Bonfire, not only is there snow to worry about, but also monsters that prey at night. Thus, it behooves you to master building up a settlement, crafting and researching new technologies so your villagers can survive and fight back. Plus, you’ve got to love the visual style this game brings to the table. Looks like style and substance meet up nicely here.

• App Store ($3.99)

Heir of Light

Some games, even those in pretty crowded genres like strategy RPGs, grab our attention with their production values alone. Heir of Light is a gorgeous looking newcomer from Gamevil, one with cool character designs, enormous bosses and dynamic animations with oversized weapons. Those are a few of our favorite things, with all due respect to The Sound of Music. Does it play as good as it looks? We’re willing to find out.

• App Store (Free)
• Google Play (Free)

The post Try out these 5 great new mobile games this week appeared first on Gamezebo.

See what we did there? There’s a pretty nice new crop of titles for iOS and Android this week, and we’ve done out usual due diligence in combing through the lot to see what looks most promising. We settled on six this time around, across a variety of genres and price points, because a new month deserves a nice cross-section of choices.

Evoland 2

They said this game wasn’t going to make it to mobile, but then they changed their minds — and since “they” in this case were the developers, that’s worked out just fine. The first Evoland was a tribute to RPGs across the eras, but this one takes the concept and runs even further with it, saluting different genres along the way. We love its sense of humor too.

• App Store ($6.99)

ChronoBlade

Okay, so this one sounds like it should be a Squeenix RPG, but it’s actually a cool-looking side-scrolling brawler. Four different characters to master would be enough reason to take a dive in, but it also offers real-time PvP. How’s that work? We haven’t put it to the test just yet, but we’re anxious to give it a shot. Also, this one’s been in the works a long time, as it was originally announced in 2012.

• App Store (Free)
• Google Play (Free)

Tekken

Speaking of games that have been percolating for a while, we give you the mobile version of Tekken. The venerable fighting game franchise has made appearances on phones and tablets before, but this game is designed from the ground up for mobile with a ton of characters and pure fighting game mechanics with a tinge of CCG thrown in. Will it win over the hearts of the masses? We’ll see.

• App Store (Free)
• Google Play (Free)

Part Time UFO

Normally, UFOs just freak out the conspiracy theory crowd. So what do they do when they aren’t scaring people? Plenty, as it turns out. Live the remaining parts of a UFO’s life in this cute but quirky game, using your claw to perform a variety of odd jobs, unlocking outfits for your spaceship and meeting a bunch of interesting characters. Because a UFO’s gotta work too.

• App Store ($3.99)
• Google Play ($3.99)

Armored Warfare: Assault

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WOp3erhYoY8

Time to get your tank on. Not the kind of characters who soak up damage in RPGSs, but the other kind of tanks. Armored Warfare: Assault pits a selection of military war machines against each other in both 3v3 and 8v8 multiplayer matches. It;s got Unreal Engine 4 visual goodness rendering it all, and it appears to be a must-try for people who just want to blow stuff up for free.

• App Store (Free)
• Google Play (Free)

Peak Rider Snowboarding

Talk about a game that’s releasing at just the right time. Now that everyone knows what a switch backside 1080 is again thanks to the recently completed Winter Olympics, you probably have the urge to go try that stuff out yourself. Now stifle that urge before you hurt yourself and just try this game instead. Yeah, the courses in Korea didn’t have obstacles to avoid, nor different characters and outfits to unlock, but our narrative here still works.

• App Store (Free)

The post We’ve got a sensational list of 6 new mobile games to try this week appeared first on Gamezebo.

Yes, any time. Be afraid!

Ahem. This also isn’t the most robust group of new mobile games, but there are a few that are either already earning raves or just simply look interesting enough for us to point them out to you, as we like to do about this time every Thursday. If you’ve got an itch for something new to play on your phone or tablet, here are four ways you just might be able to scratch it.

Death Squared

We definitely appreciate games that don’t take themselves too seriously, and despite its ominous name, this one belongs in that category. It’s a puzzle game, sure, but one with some pretty unique production values, like an honest to goodness voice-acted narrative. Playable either solo or co-op, it looks likely to test your puzzler, which is absolutely a real part of your brain because The Grinch says it is.

• App Store ($6.99)

Florence

One phrase that can grab people’s attention right off the bat is “from the award-winning lead designer of Monument Valley.” See? You’re already perking up your ears. Florence is something different, an “interactive storybook” with an undeniably unique visual style and a unique way of presenting the challenges with relationships we’ve all experienced. It’s reportedly not the longest game ever, but it’s definitely intriguing.

• App Store ($2.99)

Purrfect Date

There’s a decent chance you’re going to see a game described as a cat dating simulator and go running away, calling us weirdos. But hear us out for a sec. Purrfect Date comes to us from Bossa Studios of I am Bread and Surgeon Simulator fame. It’s been out on Steam for a few months and been very positively received. And it’s not just a cat dating simulator, so maybe we’re not quite as strange as you think. Maybe. Also dig the song in this trailer, because it’s super boss.

• App Store ($4.99)

Nitro Racing GO

Because we wanted to get at least one free game on this week’s list and didn’t want to leave our Android-user friends out in the cold, we present this “idle racing clicker simulator.” How can those words possibly go together? We aren’t 100 percent sure, but admit it: you kind of want to find out. Nitro Racing GO promises numerous cars to collect, dozens of upgrades and special cards to boost your rides through very illegal traffic-dodging races. the visuals look good too.

• App Store (Free)
• Google Play (Free)

The post Try these 4 mobile games if you’re looking for something new this week appeared first on Gamezebo.

You can still try something new as well, and we believe we’ve narrowed down the myriad choices thrown at you by the app stores to the four most promising mobile games of the week. We’re cool like dat (h/t Digable Planets).

The Room: Old Sins

If there are mobile gamers out there who don’t like The Room series, we’d like to meet them and ask them why. Fireproof Games has cracked the code on atmospheric puzzlers, tossing in some narrative goodness for good measure. Reviewers are already raving about Old Sins, so there’s no reason not to get it if you liked the previous games in the franchise.

• App Store ($4.99)

Tactical Monsters Rumble Arena

Sure, you’ve seen turn-based battles on a hex grid before, probably dozens of times. But have you seen them with Frankenstein, Medusa, The Mummy, Bigfoot and other monsters of legend? We submit that you have probably not, and thus you want to check this game out to rectify that.

• App Store (Free)
• Google Play (Free)

Meteorfall: Journey

Who says every card game on mobile has to be a CCG? Not us, certainly, and not the developers of Meteorfall: Journey (with a bonus ‘s’ on Android because why not?). This “deck-building roguelike” challenges you to pick one of four adventurers and then, you know, adventure. With monsters, bosses and all that good stuff.

• App Store ($2.99)
• Google Play ($2.99)

Thumper: Pocket Edition

We’re not entirely sure what a “rhythm violence” game, but the App Store recognizes it as such, so that works for us. With graphics that look like ’70s rock band cover art come to life, you control your space beetle and try to avoid being destroyed by a giant mechanical head. We wish we were creative enough to have made up that description.

• App Store ($4.99)

The post Try these fantastic 4 new mobile games this week appeared first on Gamezebo.

Sure, we all do. And happily, there are always mobile games that take advantage of those super popular franchises. If it’s a thing in pop culture, from movies to TV to comics and even music, there’s a chance approaching 100 percent that it’s been turned into a mobile game, and usually more than one.

This is relevant because our list of promising new titles for the week includes a build and battle game that is based on a little show you might have heard mention of called Game of Thrones. It’s been on mobile before, but perhaps not quite in the way you’re about to see it.

Oh, and of course, there are other exciting new games to check out as well, from the follow-up to a popular RPG to indie goodies of various kinds. But admit it, the famous names always pique your curiosity just a bit. And there’s nothing wrong with that.

Games of Thrones: Conquest

One doesn’t capture the Iron Throne alone, or so we’re told. Game of Thrones: Conquest is one of those slap your own forehead ideas because it’s such a no-brainer: a build and battle game where you head up your own great house and ally with other players to aim for dominance in Westeros. You get to interact with well-known characters from the hit TV series too, making it the perfect thing to try out to fill the long days until season finally hits HBO.

• App Store (free)
• Google Play (free)

Warhammer Quest 2

The first Warhammer Quest was a delightfully good top-down dungeon crawler set in the iconic Warhammer universe. We’re definitely here for the sequel, which pits four different playable warriors against a full on Chaos invasion. The game promises 25 new enemy types, hundreds of weapons and armors and a 10-part story campaign that sounds like plenty of content. It also looks gorgeous, or as gorgeous as the End Times can appear, we’d imagine.

• App Store ($4.99)

Campfire Cooking

Let’s step away from those big name franchises to roast some marshmallows. And other things, apparently, as Campfire Cooking throws 100 different meals at you in the finest puzzle game fashion. There’s more to it than just cooking challenges too, with a family full of characters to meet and learn about and a variety of hiking trails to experience. We’re not really avid campers here at Gamezebo, but this taste of the great outdoors in digital form is right up our alley.

• App Store ($3.99)

Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander

We enjoy the picture that goes along with this game because it appears to be right on the button with its description. The game gets its name from a derelict space station left behind by a long gone alien race. With other extraterrestrials on the way to Earth, the station could be the source of the planet’s salvation. Now it’s up to you to master the game’s base building, technology research, tactical combat and more, and while the game has already proven popular on PC, the devs are calling the mobile version “massively enhanced.” You’ve got our attention, sirs and madams.

• App Store ($6.99)

Returner 77

The first 76 Returner games were so good, you know we had to check out the latest one. We kid, of course. The 77 in the title does not mean this is the 77th game in a long-running series, but rather ties into the narrative as you are the 77th and last survivor to leave Earth during the Crystal War. You have the Wall*E-esque task of returning to Earth to rebuild, but there are some issues to deal with first. If you can solve the puzzles and figure out the alien technology that you encounter, you just might make it. And maybe the human race as well.

• App Store ($4.99)

Mmm Fingers 2

In contrast to the game above, the ‘2’ here does indicate a sequel, in this case the follow-up to a Noodlecake title that the studio says was downloaded more than 22 million times. It seems there are even more monsters who would like to munch on your fingers, because that’s kind of what they do. To avoid them, you’ve got to drag your finger around the screen and not hit anything or lift it. Sounds easy, but then you look at all those teeth and think, “Yeah, maybe this is going to be a little trickier than I thought.”

• App Store (free)
• Google Play (free)

Time Recoil

As many. many sci-fi shows and movies have taught us, you shouldn’t mess with time … except maybe when you’re doing it to execute super cool slow-motion gunfights, because then it’s totally cool. Just ask John Woo or anyone from The Matrix. Time Recoil promises to push your high end iOS device to the limit with both graphics and gameplay, and you can tackle the action with each other touch controls or an MFi-controller. If you need an all-out action fix, this is the best bet for this week.

• App Store ($3.99)

The post You Should Be Playing These 7 Mobile Games This Week appeared first on Gamezebo.

While the business world is fixated on how much Zynga CEO Don Mattrick is taking home, his company is pushing on with some new initiatives. One of those is rolling out real world prizes to players of Zynga Poker, beginning with the start of Zynga Poker Leagues on June 23.

During seasons that last eight weeks, players will compete against pools of 100 players to earn League Points. Those can be used to enter a drawing at the end of the first League season on August 17, with lucky winners getting what Zynga describes as “thousands of real-world prizes up for grabs like dream vacations and tablets.”

One of those prizes could be the aforementioned Ford Shelby GT500, but only if the entire Zynga Poker community makes it happen. Players can choose to opt-in and have a small percentage of their in-game winnings go toward a pool of chips that can unlock the car as the first season grand prize — similar to what we in the real world casino industry call a progressive jackpot. If that pool hits 250 billion chips, someone who enters the sweepstakes is going to be driving something that will turn some heads.

That beats combing through the classified for new wheels, if anyone even does that at this point. The full rules will be available online when Zynga Poker Leagues kick off later this month, giving everyone a chance to figure out exactly how much poker they’ll need to play to have a chance at upgrading in the automobile department.

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