Critique - Coming Soon*

PhoticsPhotics Member Posts: 4,172
edited November -1 in Miscellaneous
* If it passes Apple's review!

For a long while, I refused to buy any apps... not for Android and not for iOS. Although, I decided to check things out. I picked up an iTunes gift card and I started to play the best apps. I figured that I could review them. That's how I started "Critique". It's a review app!

In the premiere edition, I review a dozen apps...

• Fruit Ninja
• Cut the Rope
• Angry Birds
• The Game of Life
• Scrabble
• Spider-Man: Total Mayhem
• Braveheart
• Osmos
• iBomber Defense
• Netflix
• Word Lens
• Remoter

If the app is popular, I can review even more apps. Maybe as frequently as once per week. The app is scheduled to appear as a free app! Even if you're already tried all of the apps in the first Edition of Critique, you still might learn something new.

For example, do you know about all of the specializations in Braveheart? Do you know how to get the Tummy Teaser achievement in Cut the Rope? Maybe you'd like to learn how to turn an iOS device into the poor man's Apple TV. There's lots of great information in this edition.

The reviews are critical too... no promo codes, no secret agendas... these are apps that I have on my own iPhone 4. These are apps that I bought with my own money. I'm putting my degree in photojournalism to good use, by creating entertaining and informative reviews.

Unfortunately, this app was not created with GameSalad. I made it with Xcode. However, there is an advertisement for The Unofficial GameSalad Textbook.

It's scheduled to appear on 1/11/11. Heh, isn't that a nice date? That depends on the speed of Apple's review process... if they allow it at all.

Comments

  • PhoticsPhotics Member Posts: 4,172
    Critique was approved! I'm excited about this app. If successful, it could be the start of something awesome. It should be available tomorrow. It's a free app! :)
  • firemaplegamesfiremaplegames Member Posts: 3,211
    Looks good, Photics! Good luck with it!

    Are you supporting the app with ads?

    Just an fyi, on the fourth screenshot, "Critical" is misspelled as "Critial".
  • PortgasPortgas Member Posts: 71
    downloaded it. Simple, but reviews are big and with screens. Keep up the good work
  • PhoticsPhotics Member Posts: 4,172
    firemaplegames said:
    Looks good, Photics! Good luck with it!

    Thanks!
    firemaplegames said:
    Are you supporting the app with ads?

    You don't even need to ask. It's a free app. You can see for yourself. :)

    As mentioned above, yes, there are advertisements in the app. There's even one for The Unofficial GameSalad Textbook, so maybe it will lead to more interest in GameSalad.
    firemaplegames said:
    Just an fyi, on the fourth screenshot, "Critical" is misspelled as "Critial".

    HA HA... that it is!

    There was an old joke at the student newspaper we used to run. Spelling errors are OK, that's how we can judge readership. (People would point out our mistakes, but not what we did right.)

    Heh, I'm not leaving the mistake in there though. I'm uploading a replacement image. I wasn't sure if you could change the images after an app was approved. It seems that I don't have to launch an update, just to change the screenshot. That's cool.
  • PhoticsPhotics Member Posts: 4,172
    Portgas said:
    downloaded it. Simple, but reviews are big and with screens. Keep up the good work

    Hi! It seems that those that downloaded the app liked it. But unfortunately, there haven't been a lot of downloads. Right now, it doesn't look like a good idea to make another edition. It seems better to just put the reviews on photics.com, where more people can see them.

    It was a cool experiment. At least I had fun.
  • StormyStudioStormyStudio United KingdomMember Posts: 3,989
    its a nice idea..

    maybe if it could be extended...sort of like a 'Rotten Tomatoes' but for apps. Apple have embedded rotten tomatoes reviews into itunes and into apple the for the films.

    Be good if it had a review for 'any' app you were considering.

    Which you could quickly look at, rather than just using the last 5 text reviews in the apps own description.
  • PhoticsPhotics Member Posts: 4,172
    stormystudio said:
    Be good if it had a review for 'any' app you were considering.

    With 300,000+ apps, that would be a seriously big job. HA HA!

    Even if I spent 30 minutes on each review, I'd have to work non-stop for 17+ years just to cover the apps out today. So, with a team of 51 workers, each writing 16 reviews during an eight hour work day, we'd finish in a year. Although, 30 minutes is highly unrealistic. It's probably more like 2-8 hours to write a really good review of an app.

    Maybe I should write up a proposal — 400 workers, for one year, to build the ultimate review app. That doesn't count people for management, HR, accounting, legal, development, editors and other various tasks. So OK... 500 people... average salary... $50,000... which is more like $75,000 per person with various employment costs.

    So, a budget of $37,000,000 should cover it. HA HA! That's like $100 per review. Perhaps there's a way to use the Internet and remote workers to streamline that figure down to $10 per review. So... like $4,000,000.
  • PhoticsPhotics Member Posts: 4,172
    Whoa... it ain't over yet.

    http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/critique/id412438930

    Critique just hit "New and Noteworthy" in the Entertainment section.

    http://www.appannie.com/critique/
  • POMPOM Member Posts: 2,599
    Photics said:
    Perhaps there's a way to use the Internet and remote workers to streamline that figure down to $10 per review. So... like $4,000,000.

    Im willing to pay YOU 10$ for putting a Critique for Party Popper

    Roy.
  • PhoticsPhotics Member Posts: 4,172
    p-o-m said:
    Im willing to pay YOU 10$ for putting a Critique for Party Popper

    That would be unethical. I'm not even sure if that's legal. Heh... unless I clearly stated that I was paid $10 to write the review. That would go against the theme of the app though. If you read the Introduction portion of the app, you'd see the statement of unbiased reviews.

    Yet, I think there is an opportunity for a GameSalad fansite. Part of that website could be reviews for every GameSalad game.
  • PhoticsPhotics Member Posts: 4,172
    p-o-m said:
    Im willing to pay YOU 10$ for putting a Critique for Party Popper

    What about running an advertisement in the next edition of the app? Would you be interested in that? Perhaps that's an alternative to a review.
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