Crescent Moon is publishing its first racing game later this May. It's called Slingshot Racing, and as its name implies, the core action loosely revolves around slinging your cars around tracks. Its twists are in its hooks, literally. Each car is equipped with a grappling hook, so you'll actually be flicking cars' hooks on pieces of the environment as you race. The steampunk-stylized visuals help to explain this weirdness away.

Slingshot is being developed by Snowbolt Interactive, which is a collective of ex-Frontier guys who helped with titles like Lost Winds and Kinectimals. We expect to be impressed with this one considering those chops.

We'll be hearing a lot more about this in the future, so stay tuned. Also, check out these screens. This thing is a looker.

If you watch a lot of the Discovery Channel, you've likely caught several episodes of "How It's Made." If you're lucky, you might even have seen episodes of apple juice and orange juice. While these might be accurate depictions of how juice is made in the real world, on your iPhone, things are substantially different.

Enter Juice Belts, yet another ultra-casual puzzle game with a three star fruit rating system, physics-based gameplay that centralizes around a drawing mechanic, and tons of gizmos to use to complete your goal. This might sound like a bad thing, but I assure you it's not. What sets Juice Belts apart is that you're actually drawing conveyor belts, and through a stupidly simple interface are able to build these oddly elaborate contraptions to transport fruit from its box to the juicer.

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As promised, TransGaming has delivered the version 1.3 update to Puzzle Quest [App Store]. The new free upgrade offers continued graphics, sound and performance enhancements as well as the entirety of Chapter 2.

With Chapter 2 upgrade brings 20+ more hours of gameplay to the $7.99 game which brings the total game time to 40+ hours. Puzzle Quest was originally released for the Nintendo DS and PlayStation Portable in early 2007 and became a surprise hit.

Puzzle Quest brings together Role Playing and Match-3 gameplay into a harmonious package. Set in a traditional fantasy world occupied by knights, orcs, wizards and warriors, you must complete quests in order to progress the storyline. Beyond the actual storyline, there are also a number of side-quests that can also be pursued.

A free demo version remains available for those to try the game out.

Our gameplay video from Version 1.0 provides a feel for gameplay, though there have been graphics and performance enhancements since:

[ Full HD version | Low Bandwidth version ]

App Store Links: Puzzle Quest Free, Free, Puzzle Quest Chapter 1 and 2, $7.99

As promised, TransGaming has delivered a free trial version of Puzzle Quest [App Store, Free].

This introduction to Puzzle Quest offers you the ability to create your hero, embark on some quests, and learn to battle on the head-to-head puzzle board.

To further stimulate sales, TransGaming has also simultaneously dropped the price of the full version of Puzzle Quest down from $9.99 to $7.99 [App Store]. As we previously reported, the full version of Puzzle Quest will be getting a Chapter 2 update included in the coming weeks. This should offer over 40+ hours of gameplay total.

Puzzle Quest is a very highly rated game on multiple platforms. If you've never played the game, you might be surprised by fun to be had in an RPG Match-3 game. With a free trial version now, there's no reason not to try.

App Store Links: Puzzle Quest Free, Puzzle Quest, $7.99

Paramount Digital Entertainment has reduced the price of iPhone flying shooter Iron Man: Aerial Assault [App Store]. The game has dropped from $4.99 to $0.99 for a limited time.

We took a look at Iron Man: Aerial Assault back in mid-December.

Iron Man: Aerial Assault is an on-rails shooter that is more or less a modern take on the 1985 Sega arcade classic Space Harrier. Equipped with a variety of weapons, the player guides the accelerometer-controlled Iron Man through wave after wave of enemies and bosses of increasing complexity. The goal? Destroy everything and remain intact. (Where have we heard that before?)

While it's true that Iron Man for the iPhone is a rather more limited outing as compared to the PSP version, it nonetheless offers solid 3D shooter action.

[ full HD version | low bandwidth video ]

App Store Link: Iron Man: Aerial Assault, $0.99

The remarkable success of Ethan Nicholas' iShoot Lite [App Store] seems to have inspired many developers to deliver free/lite versions of their own games. Here are some notable free/lite versions of games we've covered in the past and feel are definitely worth a try. App titles link directly to the app store.

Alien Mangle

Alien Mangle Lite - While the full game is a little rough around the edges, it provides a somewhat satisfying experience. And with the dearth of first person shooters on the iPhone, it's certainly worth a shot. See our review and gameplay video.

The Creeps!

The Creeps Lite - The full game ranks amongst our favorite Tower Defense games and offers some unique gameplay features. The colorful graphics and new sound effects add to the overall package. See our review and gameplay video

Space Ninja

Space Ninja Lite - Defying traditional categorization, this "dodging" game offers great controls in a fun game. Even if you find no interest in this type of game, we still highly recommend downloading the lite version to experience the "bullet time" slow motion and well executed gameplay. See our previous review and gameplay video.

Ivory Tiles

Ivory Tiles Lite - Another great iPhone experience. This is a puzzle game with excellent graphics and controls. Move the tiles to the proper location if you can. Another "must have" lite version just to experience the overall package. See our previous review and gameplay video. For those who have already completed Ivory Tiles, the developer has released a followup game called Shift [$2.99] which offers the same basic gameplay with 70 new levels.

7 Cities TD

7 Cities Lite - Some feel this Tower Defense game to be the best in the App Store. See our previous coverage and video.

Earlier this month we reviewed Yose Widjaja's rather unique iPhone game Space Ninja [App Store].

Space Ninja is set up like a traditional vertical shooter in which you control the flight of a spaceship. Instead of shooting the enemies, however, the objective is to dodge enemy fire by-the-skin-of-your-teeth and make it to the end of each level. There are 40 progressively difficult levels and 5 challenge levels. The accelerometer-controlled game features an unlimited "bullet time" (slow motion) mode where by simply tapping down and holding your finger to the screen, the action slows down and the view slowly zooms in so you can perform more exact movements.

Those who've spent any real time with Space Ninja know that the game is quite a challenge. And so we were rather impressed to see the video posted by forum member 'spmwinkel' showing evidence of his completion of all 40 levels without using powerups. His completion of the final level can be seen in the video below.

Strong work, spmwinkel.

JadeGame, who brought us Ultranium 4 and Metal Angel, has recently released an iPhone adaptation of their Mac platform game Android [App Store] through the iTunes App Store.

Android is an out-of-this-world kind of game: It's the biggest tiny game you'll ever play! Though it's set in a teeny tiny universe, it's worlds of humungous fun! ... There are gold bags amidst the playing fields of Android, so look very carefully because you'll need to collect all of them before you can leap to the next level!

Android is a 2D platformer very similar to Broderbund's classic Lode Runner. The goal is to guide an android around each level, collecting every bag of gold on the screen while avoiding roving enemies and collecting bonus fruit. As with Lode Runner, gameplay involves running, climbing, hanging, and dropping bombs in order to dig holes or trap enemies. All is done via touchscreen controls.

As was the case with Jade's MetalAngel, the iPhone version of Android is notably slower than the Mac original, but this is much less of a negative in this title versus the company's more speed-critical space shooter. The Mac version features 100 levels across five different worlds. We've not played the iPhone version to completion and, in the lack of specifics from Jade, can't speak to the number of levels available to iPhone gamers.

Fans of Lode Runner and the like will certainly enjoy Android and may find the $1.99 iPhone version worth an app slot on their device. This is easily Jade's best iPhone title yet.

Mac users can download the free demo version of Android to get a feel for the gameplay. Have a look at our gameplay video to get acquainted with the iPhone version.

[ Full HD version | Low Bandwidth version ]

Namco has released a version 1.0.1 update to their iPhone Katamari outing, i Love Katamari [App Store]. As reported by the company, the update provides:

• Improved control response
• Added tilt indicator to game screen

Our forum readers have reported mixed results, with overall indications of improved performance. Wegmans had this to say:

This makes the game playable!! I wasn't able to beat the second level before (ran out of time/frustrated) and now i beat it with a minute to spare! The game is much better, and makes turning a little less frustrating as well.

I just played that one level to see if it was better, and it certainly is. The controls are perfect now and there is no recalibration or anything like that.

App Store Link: i Love Katamari, $7.99

Riding on the success of LED Football, TouchGrove has released LED Football 2 [App Store]. The $0.99 sequel offers new features, including:

• Running. Scramble in any direction, even backwards
• Kicking. Punts, runbacks and field goals.
• Passing. Go for a touchdown or gain yardage

The celebrate the launch, TouchGrove is giving away a 24k Gold Bezel iPod Touch 1.0 that comes pre-loaded with a limited-edition copy of the LED Football 2 app. Contest details will be posted to their website. The developer provides this video:

[ low bandwidth video ]

The original LED Football [also $0.99] was based on the electronic handheld game from the late 1970's. TouchGrove is expecting to release LED Baseball in January.

App Store Link: LED Football 2, $0.99

Kevin Calderone's Trace game [App Store] has been released to the App Store. The game had been announced in early September on our forums. Trace offers similar mechanics as Line Rider by letting the player add to the level by drawing on the screen. The developer describes the gameplay:

Trace is a casual platformer where you draw your own path through the levels. Use the touch screen to draw platforms and navigate past obstacles to reach to goal at the end of each level. The game is easy pick up and play anytime, and high scores add another level of challenge.

The free game features 6 unique worlds, 120 levels, and an original soundtrack.

This teaser video demos the game:

App Store Link: Trace

iPhone developer Moopf has released a free Lite version [App Store] of their peg puzzle jumping puzzle game Hiqup.

We previously reviewed Hiqup and found it to be a highly polished and fun game.

The game is a fresh twist on the old peg-jump game in which you try to eliminate as many pegs as possible by jumping over other pegs to remove them..

Hiqup, however, takes this concept a step further and adds its own twist to the game with bombs, black holes, teleports, free jumps and special spaces that must be filled.

The full version of the game comes with 10 standard peg boards and 47 original levels. The lite version offers a reasonable sampling of these to give you an idea of the gameplay, and the full version is only $1.99.

App Store Link: Hiqup Lite (free), Hiquip ($1.99)

There has been a lot of Breakout news in the iPhone gaming scene of late.

First, Atari's legal team started going after Breakout clones in the App Store. Days later Atari released Super Breakout [App Store] for the iPhone, giving the platform an official version of the company's 1976 classic brick breaking game. Just two days later Gameloft, who brought us Asphalt 4 and Real Football (Soccer) 2009, released an iPhone port of their mobile title Block Breaker Deluxe 2 [App Store].

Both of these titles are highly polished and provide a rather lavish Breakout experience. We thought readers might appreciate a look at both to help determine where to spend their dollars. We've prepared a back-and-forth video comparison that should convey the overall feel of both games.

Before looking at each title, a quick word about "Breakout clones." These games and any such games made in the last 20 years are actually Arkanoid clones. Arkanoid, released by Taito in 1986, took the Breakout formula to the next level by including various powerups and penalty items which dropped from the occasional destroyed brick as well as hugely improved graphics and more varied level layout.

Atari's Super Breakout

Straight away, Atari's Super Breakout wins the battle for the truly retro inclined, as it features a Classic mode which looks and plays like the 1976 original. The core of the game, however, is the much more widely appealing Super mode.

Super mode offers two play scenarios: Normal and Progressive. Both start the player off in an underwater world and move the player, via unlocked areas, through other environments such as wood, mountain, flame, etc., each with its own set of backdrops and ball effects. In Progressive mode, the bricks advance downward toward the player's paddle, Space Invaders style, while Normal mode features stationary bricks.

Gameplay is straightforward and very Arkanoid-like. Destroy bricks by deflecting a ball with the paddle which is controlled by sliding a finger left / right along the bottom of the screen. Powerups drop from certain brick eliminations and some bricks are indestructible. In a bit of a twist, certain portions of the background scenery will deflect the ball when hit right. Players can choose between the game's own soundtrack (a relaxing "new age" collection) or tracks from his or her own music library.

Super Breakout allows a photo from the iPhone's photo library to be used as the playfield backdrop.

Gameloft's Block Breaker Deluxe 2

Block Breaker Deluxe 2 is Gameloft's iPhone port of its mobile title which is available for a wide variety of platforms. Block Breaker veers much farther afield from the basic Arkanoid formula than does Atari's offering. All of the standard components are present--a player controlled paddle at the bottom of the screen, powerups dropping from eliminated bricks, etc.--but Block Breaker offers much more, as well.

The game is divided into eight different locales on a paradise island. Each locale contains eight levels, the completion of which unlocks the next locale, each with its own look. Block Breaker's onscreen action is frantic. Once the ball starts knocking out bricks, it's basically a hail of powerups, stars, and cash sliding down the screen. Stars and cash can be used in the island's Shop to upgrade the paddle. A finger tap on any of these falling items as they descend adds them to your arsenal. Some powerups are quite unusual, such as "yoyo," which tethers the ball to the paddle with an elastic string, a shield powerup that temporarily prevents the loss of a missed ball, and a finger-controller guided missile. The entire layout of bricks can transform based on certain prize eliminations. It's actually hard at times to keep one's eye on the ball. Certain "boss" levels don't involve bricks at all, but require the elimination of various moving objects as can be seen in the comparison video.

The default paddle control method is a left / right swipe at the bottom of the screen, as with Super Breakout. A Gravity Mode, accessed in the game's options, allows tilt control of the paddle. In this mode, bricks can be arranged to a certain degree with a tilt, and when only a few bricks are left onscreen, a quick upward jab with the iPhone will "throw" the ball at the bricks.

A nice feature of Block Breaker is the support for multiplayer games. In this mode, the one-player paddle is mirrored at the top of the screen and two opponents can battle their way through the levels on the same device. This can also be a fun challenge for a single player engaging in a two-handed game.

Block Breaker is set to a high quality, pounding techno-esque soundtrack.

And the winner is...

Both of these titles are high quality takes on a popular formula and offer attractive visuals and enjoyable gameplay. But Block Breaker Deluxe 2 is much "more" of a game than Super Breakout, offering more lively onscreen action, more varied and interesting powerups, and allowing for multiplayer game sessions. That said, Block Breaker's gameplay may veer too far from the standard Arkanoid formula for some people's liking; Super Breakout is definitely the more "traditional" title. We hope our comparison video will help in your decision making.

Fans of this genre should not overlook the various other Arkanoid clones in the App Store. We posted a roundup of these games back in July, the best of which was Ikanoid [$0.99 App Store].

Yesterday, Gameloft released their anticipated racing game Asphalt 4 Elite Racing [$9.99, App Store]. So far, early responses have been overwhelmingly positive.

A MacRumors forum reader posted a YouTube video (embedded below) which steps through all the gaming options as well as some gameplay.

The game offers three distinct methods of control:

The first two controls are demoed in the video. App settings and menu options are explored during the first part of the video. Gameplay begins at 3 minutes in:

Kotaku reports on a rumor that LEGO Batman will be coming to the iPhone. The original source of the information is Pocketgamer which is not available at the time of this writing. Few other details presently available but Kotaku speculates that the iPhone's multi-touch could be used to its advantage:

The possibilities for manipulating LEGO bricks using multi-touch gestures could make for an interesting twist on the LEGO gameplay. Even if it is just a port of the DS version, though, it should be worth checking out providing the thorny issue of lack of D-Pad is resolved.

LEGO Batman is an upcoming game that is scheduled to be released on multiple platforms on September 23rd. In the game players will be able to fight on land, sea and in the air using the Batmobile, Batboat and Batwing.