2011
We are thrilled to announce that Phoenix now has 50.000 players competing online around the globe!
2010 was a great year for Firi Games, a year that saw the release of our first two titles Flare Elite and Phoenix. 2011 will bring great new content to Phoenix through various updates as well as other Firi Games projects. We hope you all enjoyed 2010, we sure did, and hope you will have a blast with what we will bring in 2011!
Phoenix Patch Live
Phoenix received its first patch today. The goal of this patch is to fix a couple of small issues that were revealed at launch and implement the first round of user feedback. That's right, we implemented changes based on your feedback! We received a lot of feedback via the popular channels Twitter, Mail and the Touch Arcade forums. So head on over to the App Store on your iOS device and update Phoenix! The full patch notes can be found on this new patch notes page.
Phoenix was reviewed even more sites in the past week, among which pocketgamer.co.uk and industry behemoth Eurogamer! Check them out!
Phoenix Now Available!
Phoenix was approved over the weekend and is finally available right now, right here! The launch thread on Touch Arcade already attracted hundreds of players who are competing for a spot on the World Ladder. Overall reception is great with super positive reviews and ratings. Thanks guys!
Perhaps the most important release information is the rock bottom price of a mere $0.99. This is not a promotion or introductory price, we simply want this great game to be as accessible as possible.
So, head on over to the App Store and give Phoenix a try, you will not regret it!
Phoenix Submitted!
Phoenix has been submitted for the App Store! It is in Apple's capable hands now and will be available as soon as it is approved. Currently the game has been localized in English, French, German, Spanish and Italian!
Accompanying the submission is a fresh batch of screenshots which you can already enjoy right now!
Phoenix Release Candidate
Phoenix has its first Release Candidate and it is looking mighty fine! As we are ramping up for release we are slowly adding more and more information to our Phoenix section, so go check it out! We have also created a teaser trailer of what to expect!
Final Steps
Phoenix is in a state that we feel the game itself is about finished (yay!). What remains are some tasks outside the actual gameplay; tuning sounds with our third party, optimizing the high-score servers, finalizing UI and finalizing the in-game text to be sent to translators. All in all not necessarily big tasks, but stuff that needs to be done nonetheless. We hope we can wrap this all up next week!
As for the gameplay itself, we have arrived at our 'short and explosive' goal with a nice learning curve. Games range from two to eight minutes on average, depending on how far a player manages to come. It is attractive to do 'oh just one more try', whenever you have the time. On top of that, full multi-tasking support makes sure that any interruption does not destroy your try that was finally going to give you that new high score.
Of course, a news post needs a screenshot, so here it is. Showing some nice explosions and score pickups where bullets used to be, SCORE!
Phoenix Hands-on Previews and Schedule
Both TouchArcade and TouchGen have posted their hands on experience with a beta build of Phoenix, check them out!
A returning question we currently receive regards support for Apple's Game Center. We are happy to announce that Phoenix will have Game Center support right away. It will allow players to compare their high scores with friends right at launch. Further support of Game Center features will arrive through free updates soon afterwards. Of course Phoenix will still use our regional high score ladders as well.
Regarding our intended September release date; we struck a slight delay due to the long wait time for app approval these days. Our beta builds have successfully passed approval each time, though it took our latest version a whopping 10 days to get to the front of the line. Apple is working hard to get through the thousands of submissions they are receiving, so we cannot really say how this will impact our schedule in the upcoming weeks.
We are currently tuning the pacing of the game, to ensure the games are fast and explosive. Especially when you achieved a new high score, we do not want the next game to feel boring for the first minutes, while you wait for the challenge to pick up. Considering we also want to keep this a 'pick up and play' game, we have to walk a very fine line to ensure it does not overwhelm new players, but still provides a satisfying challenge for the expert player.
However, we think we solved this for Phoenix with a couple of great systems operating behind the scenes. We ourselves love difficult games, so rest assured shmup fans, this game will definitely be a challenge for you.
Below a screenshot showing the interface in its current form, with some new elements (and yes, this guy is about to get fried).
Phoenix Progress
Touch Arcade just posted some new info about our game Phoenix, due out this month. Head on over there to check it out.
As the remaining work is mainly balancing content, we can say that these screenshots are very close to what the finished game will look like!
More info!
We have posted some new information over at TouchArcade concerning our new game Phoenix, so head on over there to find out.
This information is accompanied by some new screenshots, enjoy!
There Will Be Missiles...
Phoenix is progressing nicely and we are enjoying great feedback! The performance and visual output of our tweaked Flare Engine is amazing. We will try to get some video online soon as well, because it looks even better in motion.
Several bonus pick-ups provide shields, health and weapons. One of these, called the Gamma Strike, triggers a barrage of missiles, destroying all enemies on screen. We like this one so much we just had to post a beta screen shot of it, enjoy!
Presenting Phoenix
There it is ladies and gentleman, the title of our new game is Phoenix and we are making great progress!
Phoenix is a top down arcade shooter focussed on short, intense and screen-shattering action. Players are challenged to survive as long as possible and destroy as many enemies as they possibly can in an infinite gauntlet of increased difficulty.
It features real-time generated content based on the player skill and progression, making each try unique, fresh and custom tailored to each player. Enemies, weapons and power-ups differ per try, but are balanced to keep the game fair and competitive. More details will be released soon!
A new beta has been sent our to our testers, but we decided to share some screenshot from this build for everyone to enjoy.
New & Noteworthy and a Beta Screenshot
We are thrilled that Flare Elite is currently enjoying a 'New & Noteworthy' listing in the Apple App Store of several european countries. The price has been lowered to $0.99 to celebrate the occasion and make the deal even sweeter.
Below you will find the first screenshot of our next game. The first beta release was sent out last week and is receiving great feedback from our testers.
The game is a top down shoot'em up, like Flare Elite, and uses the next iteration of our Flare engine. The game is scheduled for a June / July release date, so check back soon to find out more about this upcoming new title! For now, enjoy the screenshot!
Price Reduction & Reviews
Flare Elite just got its price reduced to $1.99 on the Apple App Store!
If you need more convincing, check our review section, which has been updated with great reviews from Finger Gaming and 148Apps.
Glimpse of Things to Come
We are progressing nicely on our next projects, one of which will be along the lines of our previous title Flare Elite, yet not at all. Here is a little teaser image.
Queen's Day Discount
The 30th of april is known as Queen's Day in Holland, a day for festivities nation wide. As a dutch developer, Firi Games is also celebrating this occasion, but we do this for gamers across the globe.
From friday the 30th of April till friday the 7th of May, Flare Elite will be available on the Apple App Store at a reduced price. The regular price of $2.99 will be reduced to $0.99 during these 7 days in all regions! Join the Queen's Day festivities and immerse yourself in this innovative, action packed and challenging space shooter.
Flare Elite Gameplay Trailer Online
A picture says more than a thousand words, and a video says more than any number of screenshots, so we made a nice gameplay trailer for Flare Elite! It shows our beautiful star map and the frantic action you can expect while playing. Do not forget to turn sound on, so you can hear our original retro soundtrack. For more information about Flare Elite, go to this page or go directly to the App Store.
Flare Elite Reviewed by iPhoneclub and AppSpy
The first reviews for Flare Elite have arrived, one by the largest Dutch iPhone enthusiast site iPhoneclub, and another one by AppSpy. The reviews are very positive, with both noting our innovative control scheme and recommending Flare Elite. Flare Elite scores 8 out of 10 at iPhone Club, and 4 out of 5 from AppSpy. Some quotes from the reviews can be found at the Flare Elite reviews page.
If you are already convinced (how could you not be?), then this link will take you straight to the App Store. If you need some more convincing, take a look at the Flare Elite overview page for a summary of the great features of our game, and an extra dose of screenshots.
Flare Elite Website Online
Our recently released game, Flare Elite, now has its own page with screenshots, a description of all different weapons, and a FAQ with tips on how to play.
Flare Elite available now!
Flare Elite smoothly passed the approval process and is now available world wide on the App Store. Click the Flare Elite icon to immediately go to the App Store.
Flare Elite Coming Soon
We are proud to announce our first game, Flare Elite!
This space shoot'em up is inspired by classics from the past, but with modern gameplay additions and a touch control scheme that has been designed specifically for the iPhone. Contrary to most other iPhone games, it features a full length campaign with 13 missions, a lot of different weapons and ship upgrades, and most importantly, massive and exciting action! Additionally, to stay true to the touch interface of the iPhone, we decided to remove all those boring menus and instead created a gorgeous touchable Star Map to navigate between missions. We are certain you will like it as much as we do! The best part though, is that the game is finished and should be available on the App Store soon!
In the mean time, enjoy these new screenshots and head over to our Flare Elite section for more information. As soon as it is approved, we will let you know.
First Details
We are currently hard at work finishing our first game, making sure it will be amazing when it is done. Here are the first screenshots.
Welcome
Firi is a new game studio based in The Netherlands and working on games for next-generation mobile platforms. We focus on developing games that are both fun, challenging and suitable for competitive play. More information about our first game will be made available on this website soon. In the meantime you can follow us on Twitter or Facebook.
