Lost Cities
Description of App
Lost Cities by the world-renowned board-game author Reiner Knizia takes you on a journey to undiscovered countries and mythical places. Compete against a friend, a stranger or one of 4 different computer players, in what has been called a "two player Solitaire with an extra portion of suspense". Designed and polished for the iPhone by TheCodingMonkeys, makers of Carcassonne for iOS.
- online matches against game center friends or strangers
- voice acted interactive tutorial
- comprehensive rules section
- 4 different AI players with emotions
- full-length atmospheric soundtrack
- a plethora of single- and multiplayer achievements
- fully playable via VoiceOver
Version
Free or Paid
Compatibility
Device(s) App Was Tested On
Accessibility Comments
I think VoiceOver support of this game is exemplary. I recommend playing with hints turned on, as you will hear information about cards of the same colur when you touch a card. This can be helpful, because you won't have to look at the whole board to get the info.
VoiceOver Performance
Button Labeling
Usability
Other Comments
This is basically a card game. I suppose the discover lost cities part is more relevant if you can enjoy the game's graphics, which apparently are beautiful. There is a spoken tutorial, i.e. the tutorial character explains the game to you while both of you are playing. You can play with other players on Game Center. When I let the game automatch me with another player, I always found someone within a few seconds. At currently $4 some might think it a little pricey for a card game. However, I think VoiceOver support has really been well made, not just labels stuck on the cards and buttons, but the hints give you the info that is relevant to your current playing situation. Also, there is no dragging cards across the board, you can do everything by double tapping. And I find it's great fun to play the game.
Comments
#1 Its great this is now
Its great this is now accessible,
I purchased this back when it wasn't, but I never got around to asking for my money back from Apple.
I have read the rules, and I think I understand them, but how do you access the tutorial?
I can start a new game, and scroll through the character list, but I have no clue what all the stuff about them having a shield or other equipment means,, or what there trend stat means.
I guess all this is answered in the tutorial, but I see no mention of this anywhere in the new game menu or the options menu.
Any help would be appreciated.
#2 Just go to the menu and
Just go to the menu and select rules. At the bottom of the screen you'll find the tutorial.
#3 I buy an Iphone 5 on
I buy an Iphone 5 on wednesday night, I finally! get through the apple id shenanigans on thursday at 5.pm, i buy lost cities, and within five minutes I know the games' interface, and within half an hour I win my first match against the easiest computer opponent.
If "accessabler" was a cromulant word, i'd say there is nothing "accessibler" than this. A game that I, a vo novice can pick up and play just with basic gestures (sandra is dead right that everything can be done with flicks and double taps), indeed play rather successfully!
the only thing I found a little confusing was understanding the turn order, sinse if you select a card to play or discard, it doesn't actually leave your hand until you pickup a card from either the draw pile or one of the discard piles. Thus sometimes, i'd play a card and wonder if I'd not played it correctly sinse it was still apparently in my hand, and it didn't get played until I picked up another card.
I also liked the fact that the draw pile was really easy to find sinse it was at the bottom right hand corner, which sped the game up nicely..
All in all a very fun and strategic card game that I think will more than justify the princely some of two pounds sixty I paid for it, and something I'd recommend to anyway.
#4 tournaments
I've had this game for sometime and am absolutely addicted to it. :)
Sometime ago a friend (and fellow user on this site) said that she was involved in a tournament for this game. Unlike her however, I hadn't seen any info on Twitter about it so I asked the twitter account holder for this game and they directed me to a website which I couldn't access at all. Sorry, don't have the website on me right now but was wondering how we find out about such tournaments if they still exist?
Thanks. :)
#5 Fantastic Accessibility
This may be one of the most VO-friendly games I've played. When I play a game like this, I expect it to be (at best) accessible, but a little bit clunky. It's obvious that the developer didn't stop at making sure VO could read screen elements; they put in the extra effort to make the experience more streamlined and enjoyable. I think the fact that the cards slot automatically into the right lane, and that VO reads your opponent's move when they make it, are both great features. This commitment to accessibility would be enough to make me recommend the app - but it sure doesn't hurt that it's absurdly addictive and fun!
(My one gripe: according to the rules, you can cancel a card you played by tapping it before you draw. I can't seem to do this, but I'm not sure if it's an accessibility issue or just me doing it wrong. If I tap the lane I played the card in, it just causes me to draw. If this is an accessibility issue, it's certainly not crippling.)
#6 Cancelling drawing a card, and tournaments
Hi! I'm a big Lost Cities fan myself, and I thoroughly enjoy playing it, mostly against humans, but I have occasionally played against computer opponents. VoiceOver Accessibility in this game is excellent: the only bug I've found is that, when you draw a card from a discard pile, VO reads your opponent's previous move, but things get back to normal if you go out of the game screen and come back in. I only know one way of cancelling a move, and that is, when you double-tap the card, hit Cancel in the little menu which appears, which also includes "Discard, and often Play if the card is high enough. As for tournaments, the only one I know about was organised by someone I follow on Twitter: I don't think there are official Lost Cities tournaments, just private ones organised by groups of players who want to do that. Although I wouldn't describe this game as extremely easy, it's certainly fun, and it brings out the competitive spirit in people, that's probably why there was a tournament: that's nearly over now, though, and I got knocked out, but that won't stop me continuing to play this excellent game, however much I lose at it.
#7 only one criticism
my only criticism is that when you pick up a card off one of the discard piles, voice over doesn't confirm what you've done. by this i mean when you pick up a card off the draw pile, voice over reads back what you've done plus the score. when you pick up off a discard pile, voiceover reads back what your opponents last move was, and what the score was then, completely ignoring what you've just done. ... or at least on my Iphone it does anyhow! :)
#8 It does that for all of us
That bug with VoiceOver reading the opponent's last move when you draw a card from a discard pile is the same for everyone as far as I know: I certainly get it. I've found a workaround, though: double-tap at the top left-hand corner of the screen, where there will be a button labelled Main or Games. If it's labelled Main, you'll go to the main screen of the app, and you can go into Game List from there to get back into your current game, at which time your move will be read correctly by VoiceOver. If the top left-hand button on the screen is Games, that'll take you into the game list straight away, and you can come back into the current game by double-tapping it in the list under Online Games, then you'll end up back in the game you're playing where VoiceOver will now read your turn properly. I hope this helps!
#9 aha!
ah! thanks for that. probably something i should have worked out myself! :) *engages brain*. :)
#10 The Game's Soundtrack
I'm also a Lost Cities fan, but there's one issue I hope can be fixed. The game comes with it's own soundtrack, but it only plays when Voiceover is switched off. Turning it back on stops the music. I'm guessing the developers thought that the music might be distracting for some people, which is understandable, but I wish they at least had an option where you could turn it on or off while VO is running. I was able to purchase the soundtrack through CD Baby, but it's also available on iTunes and other places if anyone's interested.
#11 I agree completely about the
I agree completely about the soundtrack - I was actually wondering why it wasn't playing.
#12 I didn't even know there was
I didn't even know there was supposed to be a sound track; Lol!
Also, I'm not sure if it's just me, but I notice sometimes (perhaps 50% of the time), when I make my very first move, it only shows me a few cards instead of the seven, I might get four shown to me; a bit annoying but it seems to right itself once I've made the first move.
#13 I've had a similar issue -
I've had a similar issue - the cards are actually there if I drag my finger over them; but if I try to navigate to them by flicking left through my hand, I only get the first three or four and then it stops at the draw pile. Corrects after the first turn, and like I said, the cards are there - I just have to locate them manually instead of flicking...so I don't mind too much.
I really would like to see an update that allows VO to operate simultaneously with the soundtrack. I love good game music - and from what I've listened to from Lost Cities, it's got a pretty decent score.
#14 I've thought of trying this
I've thought of trying this game, how ever I suck at solitaire anyways so not sure I'd do well in this game or not. and card games really are not my thing. BTW why do the devs call it lost cities?
#15 I finally turned VO off last
I finally turned VO off last night during a game and heard the sound track for the first time; it really sucks that we don't have access to it when VO is on; hopefully as the above commenter said, this will be fixed.
#16 yeH I heard it to. Wow it
yeH I heard it to. Wow it sounds amazing. I want to have the option of hearing it at lower volume of corse whilst vo is on. yeah!
#17 Should be optional, though!
I agree that it would be great to have the Lost Cities soundtrack music in the background while playing the game with VoiceOver, but I personally think there should be an option to turn it on or off, as not all VoiceOver users will want the music even though some do. Speaking for myself, I might want the soundtrack music when I'm playing Lost Cities with no other sounds in the background, but sometimes I play this game while listening to music, either on my iPhone or elsewhere, in which case I'd want to turn the Lost Cities soundtrack music off.
#18 lol. I believe I suggested
lol. I believe I suggested that, that, and a toggle between full blast or like 50 percent lower that way it's not too over baring. but like the sound of on hold music on steroids. lol!