Pocket Planes (NimbleBit - iOS)

[AteBit]

Will NimbleBit's new free to play airline sim soar to the same heights as Tiny Tower (Apple's AppStore Game of the Year 2011)?

The goal of the game is to ferry people and cargo from airport to airport to earn coins and plane parts. Then use those coins and plane parts to expand to new aiports, and build new planes for your fleet. Like their previous games it runs on real time timers as the planes travel from airport to airport, and the ubiqutous real cash currency is available to speed up planes, and purchase new planes. Though in true NimbleBit style, they are ways to earn the cash currency in-game without spending a dollar. I found Tiny Tower to be surprisingly generous compared to other social games.

It looks like they decided to add a few more social elements than they had in Tiny Tower. Players can trade plane parts they earned with their game center friends, and players can form teams called Flight Crews (just type in the name, no need to add/friend everybody) and compete with other Flight Crews at global events. The one example shown of a gobal event was a target city was said to be hosting a large convention, and for the next 2 days everybody who drops off people/cargo in that target city earn a point for their Flight Crew. After the event is done, prizes (special planes/cash currency) are awarded to Flight Crews, and players who scored the most during the event. Which is a pretty cool idea.

I'm going to pick it up when it becomes available in my area tonight, and give it a shot.

Haven't had a slow burner like this on my phone in a while. This one looks promising to me.

Now I just have to find a decent size Flight Crew to join, I'm thinking Gaf, or the Touch Arcade forums will have a decent size crew.

[BigJKO]

Didn't care for Tiny Tower much. I missed some sense of my personality being reflected in the tower. I don't know, I wasn't expecting SimTower or anything, but just let me give the tower some unique flavor instead of just constantly building a new floor.

I will check this one out, though. See if they've improved on their formula.

[Hermie]

Great timing, as I've almost beaten Tiny Tower (yes).

[AteBit]

Well for those who did pick it up, and are wondering about what flight crew to join here is the break down.

The current global event is a chemical spill in Calgary.

Rewards are 100bux for first place, 50bux top10, 20bux top 100, 10bux top 1000 flight crews.

You need to do a minimum of 10 drops to be eligible for the Flight Crew's prize.

#TOUCHARCADE is leading with 13,052 drops in Calgary.

#SOMETHINGAWFUL follows with 9226.

#GAFAIR is thrid with 7581.

#IGN (i'm told) is fourth with 1390.

Not to sure who the others are... but those are the big players at the moment.

From there it quickly drops down with the 10th place Flight Crew having only done 210 drops.

Seeing as I've made 62 drops myself already, that's not to hard to do.

So pick a crew make a path to Calgary, and start hauling those doctors, nurses, hazmat guys, and medkits to Calgary.

[Murdoc]

Ah shit, what happens when they take their last game and mash it together to something that might remind me of Aerobiz?

I really love their characters and themes of thier game(s) but sadly after realizing there wasn't much a "game" in the last one I hope theres more going on in this.

I'll check this out and report back or go dig up my superness and just play Aerobiz.