Android is starting to become a major mobile gaming platform with the release of four classic titles on the Android Market. Full versions of best-selling Namco games, Inspector Gadget, Rolling with Katamari, Brain Coach with Dr. Kawashima and More Brain Exercise with Dr. Kawashima, are now available to worldwide.
The new games were developed by Namco Bandai Networks Europe and will be distributed by Namco Networks. They follow the success of PAC-MAN which Namco made available to Android users at no cost to support the launch of the first ever Android handset, the T-Mobile G1, in September 2008. According to T-Mobile, sales of the G1 far exceeded expectations with over 100,000 sold in the UK and one million sold in the US in the first six months of availability.
The Games
Inspector Gadget is a classic platform action game in which mobile gamers guide the world’s first bionic detective through multiple action-packed levels on his mission to defeat the evil Dr. Claw. Faithfully assisted by his niece, Penny, and uber-intelligent dog, Brains, Android users will be able to use the bumbling inspector’s world-famous Gadget ‘Copter, Gadget ‘Brella and Gadget Coat, as well as his spring-loaded shoes and extendable arms to progress through the game.
In Rolling with Katamari, the King of All Cosmos has knocked the stars out of the sky on a drunken night out. Playing as the pint-sized Prince, mobile gamers are charged with rolling their sticky Katamari ball around various levels to collect enough junk to fire into the sky and replace the lost twinkle in the heavens. The cute and quirky format, coupled with the humorous asides from the King as he alternately encourages, then berates you from his vantage point, has elevated the Katamari series to cult status with a global fan base.
Brain Coach with Dr. Kawashima and More Brain Exercise with Dr. Kawashima bring the popular brain training genre to Android users who can now test their brain age and undertake a gruelling training programme to get their neurons in tip top condition. Users of More Brain Exercise with Dr. Kawashima will also be able to upload their scores to Facebook allowing them to compete for the title of Biggest Brain with friends and the rest of Facebook.
