Earlier today, Virgin Mobile USA announced via press release that the acquisition of Helio has been completed.
What does the future hold for current and future Helio subscribers? They are saying everything we currently have + more. Hopefully this stands true, and hopefully this means the release of the long awaited Ocean 2 is just around the corner! Don’t disappoint us, VM.
We also had the chance to do a mini-interview with the Vice-President of Your World Games, Robert Sprogis. To read, click the link at the end of this post!
The head of games at Helio, Leo Jun, was kind enough to send us a preview copy of the new Oregon Trail game from Gameloft. Yeah, yeah, I know. Lots of game talk recently, however, there is some cool new stuff upon the horizon.
Most people remember the Oregon Trail from the old Apple II (If you don’t, check out the Wiki article on it). It was probably the best game in the late 80s on that system. If you’ve never played, it revolves around a family traveling along the trail to Oregon back in the 1800s, and you have to hunt for food, avoid diseases, snake bites, drowning while crossing rivers, and essentially getting to Oregon.
Gameloft’s refreshed version definitely does not disappoint. They did an excellent job of reviving the Oregon Trail series, which I was kinda worried about (Since sequels, especially mobile ones aren’t usually great). They kept the core gameplay pretty much the same and added new mini-games, side-quests, and graphics without ruining the classic style of it. I also found some parts of this game hilarious, such as the bear attack animations, the snake bites, and other things I don’t think I should spoil. Everything you would expect and more is there from the original game, such as hunting, and navigating the river when you miraculously make your wagon float and oxen swim. Some new things such as fixing the wagon by whacking nails, and fishing add to the gameplay in a positive way.
This is definitely a hot game so I’ll make a post once it hits the Helio store. It’s just got a few tiny bugs in it, so it shouldn’t be too much longer before it’s released. Stay tuned!
The Shroud, which can be best described as the old-school Harvest Moon and Zelda joining forces, has made it’s way onto Helio with GPS exclusivity.
Complete with quests, puzzles, farming, monsters, and GPS integration, The Shroud appears to be a well rounded game with lots of stuff to do. If you are a fan of RPGs such as the original Zelda and Final Fantasy, you will most likely enjoy this game. Fans of Harvest Moon will especially enjoy this game, as it primarily revolves around Taro, a young farmer who has to tend to his parents farm and earn money by selling crops and raising animals. To add a bit of a twist, there are also monsters and “The Shroud” who will escape from the mines to make things a bit more difficult. A la Harvest Moon, there is a calendar with mini-games on certain days, such as chicken racing and fishing tourneys.
Another cool feature is Your World Games has the ability to add new quests, and create new downloadable content for the game. GPS hotspots (AKA “Breaches”) are defined by real-world coordinates, and provide you with a task, or even the ability to head to the mines without the troubles of being ravaged by monsters.
Overall, The Shroud seems like it has a lot of potential. And at only 2.99/month, it’s not a bad deal at all. We also have the honor of having one of The Shroud team members on our forum! Click here to go to the thread, post your comments, dislikes, likes and whatever else you think about the game there. Want to download it? On your GPS-enabled Helio device, go to the Helio Store > Games > All New or RPG and select “The Shroud”.
I was just watching it out of the corner of my eye, like I do every Monday at 10pm, until about eleven and a half minutes into the 6th episode (”The Boy-Band Superfan Interrogation”) made me do a double take at what Wendy’s oh-so-fine friend Lacey was holding. Yes, she was holding Helio’s first device, the Kickflip.
Since this topic hasn’t really come up in awhile, post in the comments of this entry about where you have seen Helio’s devices in TV shows, movies, or even music videos.
Helio quietly released the white Mysto and red Heat within the past couple of days to the Korean-American market. No word yet if they will make their way outside of the KA market, however if it’s anything like the Mysto’s original release, they’ll probably come out in a few weeks. Otherwise, you should be able to pick one up at a “Powered by SKTelecom” Helio dealer. We’ll try and get some real pictures up soon if possible. That white Mysto is mighty fine lookin’, oh la la je le veux!
Tank Wars is indeed probably one of the best mobile multiplayer games I’ve played. You can play against the computer, or jump on in a online game. The only downside is that online is 1v1, but that’s alright, it’s still pretty great! If you want to check out some ingame play, Guppy Games has a flash video posted of it on their site, just click the Tank Wars banner at the top of this post.
If you’ve decided to download it from the games store on Helio (.99 to rent for 7 days, 5.99 to buy), then post your gamertag that you are using here in the comments of this post. Keep an eye out for your fellow Helions!
It’s finally official. After months and months of ongoing rumors, SKT/Helio and Virgin have finally come to a conclusion of what they are going to do. Virgin Mobile USA will be entering into the postpaid (contractual) market via Helio, and the Helio name will be turned in to Virgin Mobile. Read Virgin’s press release here, or Helio’s statement here.
I’d also like to clear up some common misconceptions really quick. Helio will not become prepaid. And the Ocean 2 is still on track for release.
Since there are a lot of numbers and tech talk in the press release, we think it’d be easier to just list it all out in a nice and easy to read list:
In addition to the press release, we are also told that Helio House (the corporate offices of Helio) will remain, albeit slightly slimmed down, but products, services, and other teams will still be there.
Jin Woo So, who is the President of Global Business at SKTelecom commented, “This transaction and our long-term, strategic investment in Virgin Mobile USA continue SKT’s strong momentum in the U.S. market, and will allow Helio and Virgin Mobile USA to realize significant synergies and strategic benefits. Virgin Mobile’s scale, strong brand power and expertise in prepaid with Helio’s leading technology, innovative services and experience in postpaid will together form a powerful new platform that will bring new value and flexibility to customers. We believe the strength of the business model will serve to enhance the value we built at Helio, and we look forward to a long-term partnership.”
Helio has also posted up their own statement, which covers just a few topics.
What does all this mean? Basically, our bill may now come from Virgin Mobile USA, and future handsets may have the Virgin Mobile logo, but I wouldn’t expect anything to go downhill from here. Since Virgin Mobile has so many customers, the discounts they will receive on handsets and airtime will be great. You can say goodbye to the little blue flame if you want, but I think the only thing we will be missing is that, the logo and the name Helio. It’s a sad day for everyone, especially those whose jobs were cut (my condolences, we’ve met a lot of awesome people at Helio!), but here’s to hoping that it’s just going to get better from here on out. If need be, we’ve made a difference before, we can do it again.
