Joystiq

Ivy the Kiwi? springs onto iOS, free and paid versions available now

Sinan Kubba — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 08:00:00 EST

Ivy the Kiwi?, the Wii and DS game by Sonic creator Yuji Naka, is now available on iOS. The iOS port of PROPE's chirpy platfomer arrived on the App Store today in paid and free versions. The paid version is on sale for a limited time, slashed from $4.99 to $2.99.

Naka's game came to Wii and DS as a perpetual motion platformer, so an iOS port makes total sense. As before, the startled newborn sprints forward of her own accord, so it's up to players to guide her safely to her destination. This is done by drawing vines across the screen, done via a simple swipe. Vines can be used as ramps and bridges, and they can also be twanged to catapult the flightless chick through the air.

There are 50 levels in the iOS version of Ivy the Kiwi?, the same as the DSiWare 'Mini' edition released two years ago. The retail Wii and DS versions have 100 levels. The free version of the iOS release comes with ads and has a limited number of levels. As the above video shows, the game is compatible with iOS 6's Game Center challenges.

Ivy the Kiwi? springs onto iOS, free and paid versions available now originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 11 Oct 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NintendoWare Weekly: Sonic 4, Ivy the Kiwi Mini

JC Fletcher — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 10:03:00 EST

Filed under: Weird But True, Opinions, New In Pop Culture

It's sort of a Yuji Naka day on the Wii and DSi shops today, with Naka's old game series (Sonic the Hedgehog) receiving a new entry WiiWare, and his latest series (Ivy the Kiwi?) marching onto DSiWare.

Also on DSiWare this week: games about protecting the world as a superhero, and protecting information as a data-gathering robot. Sonic is also joined on WiiWare by a trio of jumping sports.

Gallery: Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1 (WiiWare) (10/11/10)

Continue reading NintendoWare Weekly: Sonic 4, Ivy the Kiwi Mini

NintendoWare Weekly: Sonic 4, Ivy the Kiwi Mini originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 11 Oct 2010 10:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Review: Ivy the Kiwi? (Wii)

JC Fletcher — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 12:30:00 EST

Prope's Ivy the Kiwi? is a simple game. It has a simple story: a newborn chick, still half-stuck in an egg, searches for her mother. It has simple gameplay: draw vines on the screen to propel Ivy through mazes, avoiding enemies and hazards. But despite (or maybe thanks to) its simplicity, it thrives: the presentation is almost unfairly charming, and Ivy is just plain fun to manipulate in the world. Besides, for such a simple game, it's not easy.

Gallery: Ivy the Kiwi (Wii, 8/24/10)

Continue reading Review: Ivy the Kiwi? (Wii)

Review: Ivy the Kiwi? (Wii) originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 24 Aug 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Interview: Yuji Naka on Ivy the Kiwi and life after Sonic

JC Fletcher — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 13:00:00 EST

Yuji Naka grew to fame within the game industry as one of the founders of Sega's Sonic Team, the core group of designers and programmers that created the Sonic the Hedgehog series. In his tenure at Sega, Naka produced titles like Phantasy Star Online, Chu Chu Rocket, and Samba de Amigo. He has since left Sega and formed his own company, Prope, who immediately began developing games to be published by ... Sega.

Now, with Ivy the Kiwi?, Naka has emerged from the grasp of the great blue hedgehog, with a game published in Japan by Namco Bandai and in America by XSEED. We spoke to Naka about the design of the game, side-scrollers, and the unique circumstances behind seeing your own game on display in someone else's booth.

Continue reading Interview: Yuji Naka on Ivy the Kiwi and life after Sonic

Interview: Yuji Naka on Ivy the Kiwi and life after Sonic originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 21 Jun 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Preview: Ivy the Kiwi?

JC Fletcher — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 19:30:00 EST

For some reason, I thought of Prope's Ivy the Kiwi? as a mellow title, a generally relaxing and lightweight game -- at least that's what I thought before actually playing the game. To my surprise, I was presented with a challenging, often chaotic arcade game instead of a frothy, low-impact diversion. It's just the kind of game I seek out, actually -- a game whose challenge comes from mastering a single, unique gameplay mechanic.

Gallery: Ivy the Kiwi? (Wii/DS)

Continue reading Preview: Ivy the Kiwi?

Preview: Ivy the Kiwi? originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 20 Jun 2010 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Yuji Naka talks Ivy the Kiwi, teases new action game

JC Fletcher — Wed, 05 May 2010 16:30:00 EST

In a Gamasutra interview, Prope founder and former Sonic Team head Yuji Naka mentioned that his new company is at work on a new action game -- but not the "game like Sonic" on which the studio was once working. "Unfortunately, we had to stop development for the time being for the 'Sonic-like platform game,'" Naka said. "However, we are in the process of developing another action game right now."

As for the company's latest game, the DS- and Wii-bound Ivy the Kiwi?, it came from an experiment by some Prope staffers. "I really felt some great potential in the concept as a game so we decided to make it as a company project and it evolved into Ivy the Kiwi." The project was first released on Windows Phone in Japan, Naka explains, because its touch screen was more stylus-friendly than the iPhone's. "However, Windows phones now have electrostatic type touch panels too and users ended up playing Ivy with their fingers anyways, so maybe we should release it on iPhone as well."

Gallery: Ivy the Kiwi? (Wii)

Gallery: Ivy the Kiwi? (DS)

Yuji Naka talks Ivy the Kiwi, teases new action game originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 05 May 2010 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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XSEED publishing Prope's 'Ivy the Kiwi?' this summer

JC Fletcher — Mon, 03 May 2010 14:00:00 EST

click to see more screens?XSEED has acquired the North American publishing rights to Ivy the Kiwi? for Wii and DS, the latest game from Yuji Naka's post-Sega studio, Prope. The puzzle game, presented in a unique "storybook" art style, stars a baby kiwi trying to navigate her way back to her mother. The player uses the stylus or pointer to stretch vines to bounce Ivy through levels and around obstacles. Along the way, players can attempt to pick up optional orange feathers for extra challenge -- that is, if they don't mind keeping a baby bird separated from her mother even longer, the monsters.

In Japan, the game was originally released on Windows Phone, with console releases published by Namco Bandai. XSEED is planning a "summer 2010" release -- there's still a question mark on the specific date.

Gallery: Ivy the Kiwi? (Wii)

Gallery: Ivy the Kiwi? (DS)

XSEED publishing Prope's 'Ivy the Kiwi?' this summer originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 03 May 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Japanese Nintendo downloads: Ivy the Kiwi, Fatal Fury 3

JC Fletcher — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 15:16:00 EST

We thought it was odd when Prope's Windows Phone game Ivy the Kiwi was ported to DS and Wii as retail games rather than downloads, given its mobile origins. Well, now there are downloadable versions as well, on both DS and Wii. But at 1,000 points, it's one of the most expensive DSiWare games yet.

Speaking of expensive games, Fatal Fury 3 -- once an expensive Neo Geo cart -- is now available on the Virtual Console. Other interesting games include the retro cave-exploring game Fall in the Dark, and the cute hamster platformer Ike! Ike! Hamster on DSiWare.

Fatal Fury 3 (Neo Geo, 1-2 players, 900 Wii Points)
Ivy the Kiwi? mini (WiiWare, 1 player, 1,000 Wii Points)
World Amusing Party Game (WiiWare, 1-4 players, 500 Wii Points)
Almost-Daily Health Notebook (DSiWare, free)
At Enter Taisen Igo (DSiWare, 1 player, 200 DSi Points)
At Enter Block Kuzushi (DSiWare, 1 player, 200 DSi Points)
Ike! Ike! Hamster (DSiWare, 1 player, 200 DSi Points)
Fall in the Dark (DSiWare, 1 player, 500 DSi Points)
Ivy the Kiwi? mini (DSiWare, 1 player, 1,000 DSi Points)

Japanese Nintendo downloads: Ivy the Kiwi, Fatal Fury 3 originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 20 Apr 2010 15:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wii and DS versions of Ivy the Kiwi? revealed

JC Fletcher — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:15:00 EST

Prope and publisher Bandai Namco sent out the first screens and footage (after the break) of the new Wii and DS versions of the once-Windows Mobile exclusive Ivy the Kiwi?, thus forcing us to fill another post with question marks? Okay, we didn't need that one.

The presentation on the console versions of the game is identical to the original, with the unusual sepia-tone color scheme and hand-drawn backgrounds. Both new versions double the number of levels, bringing the game up to a total of 100. And both new versions have multiplayer: local download play on DS and splitscreen on Wii. And, of course, the DS has a map screen. Why not?

Continue reading Wii and DS versions of Ivy the Kiwi? revealed

Wii and DS versions of Ivy the Kiwi? revealed originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Prope's Ivy the Kiwi? migrating to Wii and DS

JC Fletcher — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 17:15:00 EST

In November, Yuji Naka's studio, Prope, revealed a new original IP, Ivy the Kiwi? ... for Windows Mobile. The latest Famitsu reveals that the developer is porting the game to some game consoles! Namely, DS and Wii. Namco Bandai will release Ivy the Kiwi in Japan on April 22 -- it's the first Prope game to be published by someone other than Sega or (in the case of the Windows Mobile version) Prope itself.

However, despite its origins as a mobile game, and its simple pick-up-and-play gameplay (which involves stretching and bouncing drawn lines to move a bird through a maze), Ivy the Kiwi is destined for retail on consoles, at a price of ¥3,990 ($43).

Gallery: Ivy the Kiwi (Windows Mobile)

Prope's Ivy the Kiwi? migrating to Wii and DS originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 03 Feb 2010 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Prope announces Ivy the Kiwi? for Windows Mobile?

JC Fletcher — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 17:30:00 EST

This could be really big news. Yuji Naka's studio, Prope, revealed what is likely to be the "Sonic-like" game mentioned last year. And Ivy the Kiwi?, the studio's new game (the question mark is part of the title), has some interesting mechanics: the game uses drawn lines to propel a character, sort of like Kirby's Canvas Curse or Wireway, but lets players anchor one side of the line and move the other endpoint around while Ivy's on it, for finer control of the character's movement.

However, it's for Windows Mobile (or, as the platform is being called in Japan, Windows Phone). Not what you'd typically think of as a major gaming platform. This game is part of a move to change that -- it's a launch title for Japan's Windows Mobile Marketplace and will be out in December.

Gallery: Ivy the Kiwi (Windows Mobile)

Continue reading Prope announces Ivy the Kiwi? for Windows Mobile?

Prope announces Ivy the Kiwi? for Windows Mobile? originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 13 Nov 2009 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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