http://www.nomonkeys.com/index.htmlNo Monkeys newseninfo@nomonkeys.comCopyright 2008 No Monkeys2010-04-19T10:44:14+02:00 hourly 1 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00 Sat, 13 Dec 2008 15:46:14 +0100info@nomonkeys.comGeneral2010-04-19T10:44:14+02:00http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/afaa54987766aeb6921d521c9a6c90bb-9.php#unique-entry-id-9http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/afaa54987766aeb6921d521c9a6c90bb-9.php#unique-entry-id-9Super 7 is currently ‘Waiting for review’ and I hope it will be available in the iTunes App Store later this week.

D]]>info@nomonkeys.comReleases2009-08-23T14:50:07+02:00http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/1328fdeebc83e4c2a866c20cc6726062-8.php#unique-entry-id-8http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/1328fdeebc83e4c2a866c20cc6726062-8.php#unique-entry-id-8Green Fingers was approved by Apple a couple of days ago and is available right now! I submitted it to Apple on the 27th of last month but unfortunately it was rejected 14 days later. It was rejected over a privacy issue. They claimed that the game doesn’t inform you about the fact that data will be send to a server and stored there.

It does inform the player about this actually, since it uses OpenFeint and all OpenFeint enabled games start with a general activation screen that includes a message about this. However, the latest version of OpenFeint has a redesigned activation screen and the message has become a little difficult to spot. The difference is visible in the image below.



When Green Fingers was rejected I quickly send an email to Apple to explain the change in the activation screen and to object to the rejection. I was pleasantly surprised when they immediately send me an email back and asked me to resubmit the binary so that they could take another look at it. I quickly send the binary back to Apple and was even more surprised when they promptly approved it last Thursday.

So, even though Apple has received a lot of bad press lately about the review process, I’m happy to conclude that it is not handled by mindless evil robots that reject apps at random for arbitrary reasons but by actual human beings that can be reasoned with.

D]]>info@nomonkeys.comGeneral2009-07-27T18:12:57+02:00http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/3b0156edcacf579ca0c3d367752bc769-7.php#unique-entry-id-7http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/3b0156edcacf579ca0c3d367752bc769-7.php#unique-entry-id-7Green Fingers is done and submitted to apple. It is sort of my third game actually because I have another game in development that is about 70% finished.

A couple of weeks ago I decided to put the game I was working on hold to make a small and simple game in between. Green Fingers is the result of that decision. It will be available in the iTunes App Store very soon for a measly 99 cents. Click here for more details.

So now that this one is out of the gate I think I’ll spend a couple of days contemplating my next move. Do I continue the other game right away or do I start prototyping something completely new?

I’ll keep you posted!

D]]>info@nomonkeys.comReleases2009-04-22T09:26:11+02:00http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/83918e402513e2b9440a2bd856aa1627-6.php#unique-entry-id-6http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/83918e402513e2b9440a2bd856aa1627-6.php#unique-entry-id-6Whew! After 36 long days, Apple finally approved Alphabetic 1.0.4. The Lite version was approved after only a couple of days (as usual) but for the full version I received one of the dreaded “Your application is requiring unexpected additional time for review” emails from Apple. These emails are usually a kiss of death if you believe the internet. There are horror stories out there about people waiting for 8 months for their app to be approved. Yikes!

So, after about 3 weeks of total radio silence from Apple I decided to pull the binary and make a few small tweaks to the game so I could resubmit it (on April 15). And what do you know, it worked! This morning I received the glorious “Your application is ready for sale” email from Apple!

The major change in this version is a new game mode (Custom game) that allows you to play at custom difficulty levels and with or without the timer (by far the most requested feature I received). This mode is especially designed for small children that are still learning their ABC’s and novice/casual players that are looking for a more relaxed experience.

I’m glad that this is all over so I can get back to work on game #2 (it’s coming soon I promise ;)

D

]]>info@nomonkeys.comGeneral2009-01-05T10:42:04+01:00http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/1a9feeef55ae0809192710d0361df66e-5.php#unique-entry-id-5http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/1a9feeef55ae0809192710d0361df66e-5.php#unique-entry-id-5
TouchArcade.com

SlideToPlay.com

AppsAndGames.com

RazorianFly.com

AppVersity.com

People are even posting movies on Youtube about Alphabetic. I love the one below that is set to (totally unrelated) heavy rock music. Very cool! Maybe I should add music like this in a future update ;)

D



]]>info@nomonkeys.comGeneral2008-12-27T16:56:46+01:00http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/068c2d5d96bebbb4242a00953691d019-4.php#unique-entry-id-4http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/068c2d5d96bebbb4242a00953691d019-4.php#unique-entry-id-4Alphabetic page.

As soon as iTunes connect opens up again I’m going to add these to the app description in the app store as well to see if that influences sales at all. iTunes connect (for the uninitiated) is the site I have to use to update my apps, unfortunately it is closed until the 28th.

As for official press coverage, a couple of days ago iPhoneclub.nl wrote a nice article about Alphabetic and that has helped sales along a bit as well (in the Netherlands and Belgium at least). My next goal is to try to persuade a couple of bigger American sites to mention Alphabetic ;)

D]]>info@nomonkeys.comReleases2008-12-21T14:39:31+01:00http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/d6fb9aec2d55a38ecff137e1dab508af-3.php#unique-entry-id-3http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/d6fb9aec2d55a38ecff137e1dab508af-3.php#unique-entry-id-3here to take a look.

Now where is that bottle of champagne ;)

D]]>info@nomonkeys.comGeneral2008-12-16T17:45:59+01:00http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/92d4097026d10411d49df0572fef963a-2.php#unique-entry-id-2http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/92d4097026d10411d49df0572fef963a-2.php#unique-entry-id-2
I’ve entered a 19 December release date but I doubt the game will be released on that date ;) But, with a little cooperation from Apple, it looks like I might just make my original “Lauch a game this year”-deadline!

D]]>info@nomonkeys.comGeneral2008-12-14T22:46:48+01:00http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/0a0fccf931cc2b717dc5ba42d5e5e711-1.php#unique-entry-id-1http://www.nomonkeys.com/pages/news_files/0a0fccf931cc2b717dc5ba42d5e5e711-1.php#unique-entry-id-1
It was long overdue since the first No Monkeys game (Alphabetic) is almost finished and I’ll probably submit it to Apple later this week (I’ve got a couple of small bugs to fix and small tweaks to make first). So hopefully it will be available at the iPhone App Store right before Christmas.

Watch this space...

D]]>