Mat from Nitrome sent over a short video preview of Skywire 2, the upcoming sequel to one of their most popular games, Skywire. So far it looks like it will be bigger and even better than the original, and is that 2-player versus split-screen I see?!

Noitu loooove Miss Teri Tale! Danger Mouse? In the black forest, ad nauseam, with Albero and the great blue emblem.

For those of you who have been waiting for Dream Chronicles 2: The Eternal Maze to be released at Big Fish, the wait is finally over! The second chapter of this gorgeous series of games is here and offers a unique mix of point-and-click puzzles and hidden objects that are all woven together into a compelling narrative adventure.

This week we have a special edition of Link Dump Friday, a collection of games that were not selected as finalists into our recent Casual Gameplay Design Competition #5. Even though these games didn't reach the last round, there is no doubt that considerable time and effort were put into each one.

I have a confession to make: before August 2007, I knew nothing of Jayisgames. Back then, I was this little guy who keeps coming up with game ideas, but had no drive to execute them. It wasn't because I was lazy or anything; I just kept questioning the games' purpose. I was drowning in a culture where people keep questioning the financial feasibility of a creative piece. Of course, this was the after-effect of being in the advertising industry for some time. In the end, no effort was taken to realize those ideas.

Driving, driving everywhere, but not a brake to squeek. Er... never mind about that lousy rhyme, its driving time! So hop in, close the door, and press that pedal to the floor. And you can also play the other non-driving games. You know, if you want to.

This week's Link Dump Friday pours out a paint-based shooter, a once multiplayer basketball game adapted for solo gamers, an adventure parody and a few twists on some old-style brain teasers. It's better than peanut butter!

On the topic of game design competitions, Brian Crecente over at Kotaku sends word that he's currently running a game design challenge to create a game about teen dating violence without using any violence. There is a $1,000 first prize up for grabs and the deadline is May 15th. For a complete list of the official rules, visit the JenniferAnn.org website.

Our 5th competition today comes to a close and we are here to honor all of the games that were entered, as well as award a few prizes, too. The "upgrade" theme was not an easy challenge, and several game designers rose to the occasion and delivered some of the most compelling and promising games we've seen in a CGDC yet.

In addition to an utterly superb isometric adventure game, on this edition of Weekend Download we'll be teasing you just a bit. Teasing how, you say? Teasing with a Mac-only demo and a preview build of a game that isn't complete! Yes, we're cruel. But you'll love every minute of it.

Wacky. That one word describes half of this week's collection of Link Dump Friday games. Well, maybe wacky and challenging, but challenging in a wacky sorta way. And the other half? Room escapey. Room escapey in a multi-lingual kinda way.

A little bit of this, a little bit of that. This edition of Weekend Download throws a strange variety of games your way, but with one major headliner: Westward 2. Insert obligatory "oohs" and "ahhs" (and maybe even a "cool it's about time yay" or two) here.

We have another winner to announce today, and we also want to thank everyone for participating in our Asylum plushie drawings! Be sure to keep checking the site, as we'll be giving away another plushie again soon!

It's a feast of sound toys and room escape games on this week's Link Dump Friday!

Total from voting... $437.34!Not quite the level of support we've seen in previous competitions. Our sincerest thanks to everyone who voted and for your kind support of these competitions!

This Dolly plushie was recently delivered to JIG headquarters, except the doctor is way too busy to take care of it, so we're giving it away to some lucky visitor with a JIG Casual Gameplay account! All you have to do is leave a comment here on this entry by signing into your Casual Gameplay account. If it's a valid comment, our little mascot (the JIGster) will appear next to your name. That's all there is to it!

Ready for some serious content? This week we spill the beans on two games — one brand new, the other, well, not so new. One is serious, the other... not so much. One is in color, the other— well, you get the picture. It's The Graveyard and a remake of the classic King's Quest II!

We're looking to add an extra layer of support by forming a casual gameplay help squad consisting of a few dedicated readers who can follow discussions on weekend download games and provide hints and support when necessary. It's a simple but fun job that requires you to play through games in their entirety and check in on the comments several times a day, providing feedback, hints and tips when necessary. And the best part is you get free casual games for your help!

We have another winner to announce today, and we also want to thank everyone for participating in our Asylum plushie drawings! Be sure to keep checking the site, as we'll be giving away another plushie again soon!

Dragons, towers of shaky steel, a pink octopus, and stuffy 18th century aristocrats. No, it isn't my last family reunion (steel girders were scarce this year), it's a Link Dump Friday, the happiest weekly-occurring day of the year!

Finally, the moment we've been waiting for, the day all the finalists into our 5th Casual Gameplay Design Competition are now available to play! The extension of the deadline was well worth the wait as we now have 21 solid entries for you to enjoy. Don't forget to leave your kind feedback and constructive criticism for the game designers.

This Kroko plushie was recently delivered to JIG headquarters, except the doctor is way too busy to take care of it, so we're giving it away to some lucky visitor with a JIG Casual Gameplay account! All you have to do is leave a comment here on this entry by signing into your Casual Gameplay account. If it's a valid comment, our little mascot (the JIGster) will appear next to your name. That's all there is to it!

Hangovers, guns, and retro roguelike games. Sounds like a typical Saturday night in the 80s. This weekend, however, we're celebrating the good ole days casual gaming style, which results in less money spent, fewer blackouts, and absolutely no inexplicable bruises.

We have another winner to announce today, and we also want to thank everyone for participating in our Asylum plushie drawings! Be sure to keep checking the site, as we'll be giving away another plushie again soon!

Retro Sabotage edition! We here at JayIsGames love old games. You know, assuming they're good. We also like developers who try something new, which is what Retro Sabotage does with this collection of weekly-updated parodies. The humor is simple, the games are very short and are often more like interactive movies than traditional games. But you'll grin every time. And if you don't, we've still got you covered with more games below. Who loves the fuzzy wuzzy casual gamers out there? Yeees we do, yes we do!

Just a quick note to point you to two new updates to previously reviewed games that you might want to know about: Amateur Surgeon and Bow Street Runner.

This Sly plushie was recently delivered to JIG headquarters, except the doctor is way too busy to take care of it, so we're giving it away to some lucky visitor with a JIG Casual Gameplay account! All you have to do is leave a comment here on this entry by signing into your Casual Gameplay account. If it's a valid comment, our little mascot (the JIGster) will appear next to your name. That's all there is to it!

She is tolerable, I suppose. But she is not handsome enough to tempt me. Bingley, I am in no humour to give consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men. Go back to your partner and enjoy her smiles. You're wasting your time on me. Just give me a few Weekend Download games and that's all I could ever need.

We have another winner to announce today, but before we do we want to thank everyone for participating in our drawings! You guys rock! Keep the great comments coming, we read each and every one and we appreciate all the kind words of support!

But the man he brought with him, Mr. Darcy as he calls himself, is not worth our concern though he may be the richest man in Derbyshire! The proudest, the most horrid, disobliging ... He slighted poor Lizzy, you know, and flatly refused to stand up with her. And furthermore, I hear he enjoys each and every Link Dump Friday! Such a disagreeable man.

The deadline for CGDC5 has come and gone, and the entries are in. Looking over the 25 entries we have so far, although impressed, we think we could be a bit more impressed. Some of the entries need a couple more coats of polish, and many of you wished you had more time to finish up and get your entries in. The judges and sponsors have talked it over, and we have decided to allow a bit more development time by extending the competition deadline by almost 2 weeks.

Today is the day! The deadline for our 5th Casual Gameplay Design Competition! It's time to finish up those games and send your entry in to us before midnight tonight. Even if you have previously filled out an entry form, we still need your game SWF for judging purposes, so don't delay!

This Dub plushie was recently delivered to JIG headquarters, except the doctor is way too busy to take care of it, so we're giving it away to some lucky visitor with a JIG Casual Gameplay account! All you have to do is leave a comment here on this entry by signing into your Casual Gameplay account. If it's a valid comment, our little mascot (the JIGster) will appear next to your name. That's all there is to it!

A very special treat reaches lucky gamers this weekend: a mini-release from Nifflas, author of Within a Deep Forest and both Knytt games. KnyttNano isn't much more than two tiny experiments Nifflas cooked up while trying out new ideas, so don't expect a life-shattering sequel-sized experience, just two simple games worth their weight in atmosphere alone.

It's not often we get to post something on February 29th, so I'd like to take this opportunity to update you on a few things that have been happening around here, including the winner of our Lilo plushie giveaway!

Today's Link Dump Friday, much like the calendar date of February 29, doesn't really exist. Well, it does, but, you know, it's just kinda thrown in there. You see, each year we have precisely 487.25 units of casual gaming love to give to the world. Since none of us are particularly good with fractions, we just express that extra bit of love every few years in the form of a (special) Link Dump Friday. What? That doesn't make sense? Well... um... lookhereatthesegamesasadistraction!

This Lilo plushie was recently delivered to JIG headquarters, except the doctor is way too busy to take care of it, so we're giving it away to some lucky visitor with a JIG Casual Gameplay account! All you have to do is leave a comment here on this entry by signing into your Casual Gameplay account. If it's a valid comment, our little mascot (the JIGster) will appear next to your name. That's all there is to it!

The Weekend Download arrives with glee, Bringing fun games to you, from me. Just download and play, Then sit there all day, On Saturday you couldn't be more free!

It's Link Dump Friday: Kitchen Sink Edition! Why kitchen sink? Because that's practically the only thing we've left out of this weeks article. Seven game in all, almost twice the usual dose, and they range from hamster slingshots to soul-searching cursors to brain teasers.

With only 2 weeks left before the deadline for our 5th Casual Gameplay Design Competition, it's getting down to the wire. With more cash and prizes (over $10,000) up for grabs than any of our competitions to-date, along with a supporting $10,000 advertising campaign via MochiAds from Mochi Media, there has never before been a better time to enter a CGDC than now!

Of all the strange game ideas I've seen, building a platformer around hockey and Randy Savage has to be one of the wackiest. But that's exactly what we have this weekend, along with such unlikely company as a spooky horror-adventure game and a physics sandbox toy.

We've just finished a complete walkthrough (with images) for Dream Chronicles 2: The Eternal Maze!! Be warned: contains major spoilers, so proceed only as a last resort.

Friday has arrived, Bearing games upon its back. Ah, bliss! To waste time. This little haiku, and the five others below, are brought to you by... Link Dump Friday!

It's old-school RPG fest here on this installment of Weekend Download! Three out of five games featured have that special "console flavor" those of us who grew up playing SNES games can't get enough of. Barkley Shut Up and Jam: Gaiden is a must-play simply for its odd setting and premise, while Legacy of Flan turns the RPG battle system on its head and Ethereal Dreams brightens your day with nice artwork. And if you aren't into the role playing scene, give BumperBlast or Teewars a shot for a little more action.

What goes better with a Link Dump Friday than a delicious fruit smoothie? But don't just fly to the produce department and start grabbing shiny melons, as it's important to consider the balance of tastes you fold into the mix. For example: too many kiwis and you might have a tart little drink on your hands, but too many ripe peaches and you'll pucker up from the sweetness. Balance your tastes evenly and you'll have the perfect healthy beverage to accompany today's serving of games.

We are pleased to report that the competition buttons are now ready. Since each button needs to be customized specifically for your entry, they will be handed out individually and upon request. We need to know a few things from each of you as part of your entry, so we have set up a CGDC5 Entry Form for you to both provide us with your entry information as well as to request your buttons.

This week we've got a few mega-doses of nostalgic bliss for our seasoned gamers. At the top of the list is Excelsior, a deceptively simple-looking role playing game that doesn't try anything unconventional but still manages to deliver an excellent experience. Hurrican, on the other hand, modernizes a classic shooter by leaving the gameplay intact and giving the visuals a facelift. And if retro gaming isn't your thing, we've also included some not-old titles that are sure to please your twitching gaming fingers (and eyes).

Happy February! The shortest month on the calendar happens to be quite special in 2008: it's a leap year! So from now until December 31, every time you see a Link Dump Friday on this website, you must leap. Not jump, not bound, not bounce nor hurdle or even canter. Leap. After all, each of these games is worth at least a tiny leap, right?

It's time for Mysterious Mysteries of the Unknown! Mysteries! We've uncovered an old, import-only Japanese Game Boy Advance puzzle game from a company that folded shortly after publishing the title, a 450 year-old investigator/vampire, and a Cactus release drops you in a dream-themed platforming game that makes no sense. What a world we live in.

Steampunk robots, polygon drawings, shaky pinball games, ladybug chains and plywood?! Oh my! Throw in a reminder about JIG Poker Night and it can only mean one thing: it's Link Dump Friday!

Just a quick reminder that we are just a few weeks into the design and development period for Casual Gameplay Design Competition #5, and there is still plenty of time to come up with an idea and to get your game design underway that incorporates the theme: UPGRADE. Up for grabs are prizes worth over $10,000, and the deadline is March 16th.

Enjoy a feisty romp through a flat, 2D dungeon now and again? That's good, because this weekend we've got two games that drop you in the middle of a maze of corridors and monsters with only a pixelated sword to save your hide. And then there's a fish that eats other fish and faeries that collect shiny pollen. Go figure.

Accompanying this Link Dump Friday is a highly unusual paragraph. How quickly can you find out what is wrong? It looks so ordinary that you would think nothing was wrong with it at all. In fact, nothing is. But it is unusual. Why? If you study it and think about it you may find out, but I am not going to assist you. You must do it without coaching. No doubt, if you work at it, it will dawn on you.

Thanks to the thousands who voted (we received close to 25,000 votes) the results for the Best of 2007 are now up. You can see all the winners and view how most of the games performed in their relative categories (if a category had more than 10 nominations we list just the top 10) by visiting the Best of 2007 feature page.

Lemmings as penguins? A game for Mac only? A shmup-based RTS title? A game about mushy emotions and feelings? Games that are award finalists for design innovation? It can only be... Weekend Download!!!

In case you haven't been playing with us, your last chance to qualify for our championship tournament has passed. The following qualifiers will play a championship tournament next weekend for a chance to win an iPod Nano or a Nintendo DS!

What an odd combination of games this week. Both Bloons and StormWinds get a little tune-up with more levels and refined game mechanics respectively, while everyone else gets to enjoy some RPG-style carnage in Paladin, exploration in Key to Adventure, or some artistic splendor in ritMika. Make Bouncy Bouncy has an odd title, but the gameplay is strangely satisfying, and it's a great-looking game to boot.

It's the first Link Dump Friday of 2008! *confetti emoticon*!!! To celebrate we're dancing to random pop music and knocking each other off a perilous cliff with a baseball, all while journeying through an abstract world of random objects throwing pies.

We are pleased to announce our 5th Casual Gameplay Design Competition! Up for grabs are more prizes than ever before: over $10,000 in cash and prizes, including Adobe CS3 Professional licenses and the opportunity to have your Flash game appear on other platforms! We're kick-starting the new year with our biggest competition yet, and you can help make it our BEST ever! Update: Entries are all in!!!

It is difficult to believe another year has passed, but we have tons of games and reviews to show for it. And what better way to celebrate the passing of another year than with a look back to give credit where credit is due by giving props to those special titles that stood head and shoulders above the rest. This is our fourth annual "Best of" feature and, like each year before, we invite you to participate. Update: RESULTS ARE IN!

I hate having cold feet. Once in a while it helps to put on an extra pair of socks. But what about those days when it's 6 degrees Celsius? That's when I put on a third pair of socks. And what about 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon? Well, as you can tell, I'm now stretching for a joke, so we'll heat up some hot chocolate, throw another log on the fire, and enjoy this week's Link Dump Friday!

The holiday season is a time of joy. It is brought into our lives through the gifts we give and receive. And it should be fun. Over the years, we've seen a lot of great holiday and winter-themed games come and go, and here we are to suggest a few to give you all some festive cheer.

It's Link Dump Friday, special hyper mega Christmas holiday edition! Spread a little end of the year wintertime cheer with these festive games, most of which involve presents and/or destroying things!

This week's Link Dump Friday is dedicated to viruses. Yes, those pesky little creatures that invade larger organisms, hijack their cells and force them to make more of the virus to continue the biological shenanigans. Fortunately a little video game of sorts plays out and the immune system kicks in, sending forces to destroy the invaders with really cool sound effects. It's kind of like a tower defense game, only with sneezing.

By now, everyone's heard of The Fancy Pants Adventure. If you haven't, it's only one of the most polished, whimsical and entertaining Flash-based platforming games released in the last few years. Creator Brad Borne has been hard at work on a sequel to The Fancy Pants Adventure for some time and he was kind enough to share the latest build with us. Read on for a preview of one of the hottest upcoming Flash games around!

Yay, a second weekend download! Woo hoo! There were so many games to feature this weekend, we had to split it into two parts to accomodate them all. Also, I had to clone myself, and if anybody asks, that was a necessity, not a fun weekend project.

Trilby: Peril at the Static Art of Rocks'n'BOMB is our featured game this weekend. Or... something like that. Gameplay involves placing bombs on the screen to guide a gentleman thief through each level (stealthily) while finding hidden objects along the way. Don't forget to grab an emerald while hopping through the confusing mass of animated static!

Link Dump Friday = Kaboom!

Weekend Download is here! Caution: Weekend Download may suddenly accelerate to dangerous speeds. Weekend Download contains a liquid core which, if exposed due to rupture should not be touched, inhaled, or looked at. If Weekend Download begins to smoke, get away immediately. Seek shelter and cover head. Weekend Download may stick to certain types of skin. When not in use, Weekend Download should be returned to its special container and kept under refrigeration. Do not taunt Weekend Download.

A healthy smattering of link dumped games this Friday, many of which are from developers you already know and love. The creators of Warp Forest, Bloons, and Submachine each have a new game available to play, and as luck would have it, they're all different genres than the titles that the developers are famous for!

Did you know that today is the 328th day of the year? You only have 37 days left to ponder the events of 2007 before you leap into the future and begin living the life of a 2008ian. Hope you have your hoverboots ready.

Woozy from the post-holiday food rush in the U.S., Link Dump Friday attempts to set its mind on other things. Namely, free online games. Trains have nothing to do with food, so they're fair game for today, as are Japanese numbers, being dumb, and brains. Well, brains could count, but not really. Something's missing, though. Just one more game to complete the day. How about... AH! This skydiving game has nothing to do with food, this Lamb Chop — oh, wait, nevermind.

This edition of Weekend Download serves as a firm reminder that some video games used to be painfully difficult. None of this coddling, tutorialized hand-holding gameplay you find today. Back then you were tossed in a blocky four-color world and had to fend for yourself. Brutally difficult games may be a thorn in the side of modern-day casual gamers, but it will help you appreciate the experience programmers have collectively gained over the decades.

The holiday season is approaching so everyone knows what that means: hoards of enemies that never seem to stop coming, training new troops, adding new turrets to your base, cannons with legs, stealing crops from your local agriculture community, and messing with the forces of gravity... All the usual stuffo. Oops. Did I say the holiday season? I meant LINK DUMP FRIDAY! Wooty-tooty!

By far the biggest, most first-paragraph-worthy news of in the downloadable world this week is Sam & Max are back. Not only are they back for another season of episodic adventure games, but the highest rated release from season one is now free. Free as in download it now. No excuses. We've also got a healthy portion of other great games to download, including an almost-too-cutesy casual game, Nanda's Island, that came out of nowhere to steal my afternoon. Don't you just love games that are... good?!

Friday is a day of much rejoicing as it signals the end of another work week and the arrival of a glorious fun-filled weekend soon to come. It is also an indication that a Link Dump Friday feature may appear at any moment on JIG, and it doesn't get much better than that. Commence fun and frolicking.

Are you good with pixels? Are you good at creating eye-popping, awe-inspiring graphics and icons? Do you live and work in the US? If so, we have some freelance opportunities for you. Please inquire at the email address to the right. Thanks!

This edition of Weekend Download is the most love-filled edition ever. There's so much love below, you might think it's Valentine's Day. But it's not, it's just a whole lotta love. For example, tons of people love Dwarf Fortress. Tons. That collective love is now focused here on this very page, and if you download and play, you'll experience some of that love, too. Dr. Daisy Pet Vet is all about the pet love. Just look at those cute animals! And the kitty, she's reading a magazine! The energy orbs in Ballhalla love each other so much all you have to do is click them and they get all cozy with each other. And to top it all off, Mr. Heart just straight-up loves you. Very much, I hear.

This week's introductory paragraph was eaten by my dog. Of course, I don't have a dog, so that makes my excuse a bit awkard. Hopefully the game feast below will distract you from my folly.

The department of Media Management at the University of Ilmenau in Germany is conducting an online survey about online games and they need your help. The survey should take approximately five to 25 minutes, depending on the types of games you use. Your participation is of great help and importance for their academic research of online games.

It's time for adventures in Halloween Land! The ghostly holiday is just a few days away and we're pouring on the spooky games. This special installment of Weekend Download showcases a handful of adventure games that get the Halloween atmosphere just right. Paired with our Halloween-themed Link Dump Friday and sprinkled with a few Halloween-style reviews in the coming days, you should have no excuse not to don that Super Mario costume and head out on the town.

Gene is shorter than Bruce but taller than Imhotep. Imhotep is taller than Gene but shorter than Lord Scotland. Lord Scotland is twice the height of Gene and Brutus combined, but only 1/10 the height of Millsy. Millsy is at a constant height of X-Y. If Gene stands exactly one nautical mile away from Lord Scotland, how tall is Imhotep? Find out in the games below! Or... maybe not.

Hello, faithful readers, and welcome to a special spookified edition of Link Dump Friday! In honor of the season, I've chosen a few of my favorite previously-reviewed games (including a few new ones) with a spooky edge. We've got ghosties, beasties, sleepy vampir-ies, tentacle monsters and, naturally, Garfield! So get out that bowl of candy corn, put on the "Monster Mash" and settle in with one of these fun titles.

On behalf of the Ballistic Wars team, I would really like to thank you and your reviewer-judge panel for giving us the opportunity to show our potential in casual gaming. On top of that, you have ranked us in third place, so I really can't thank you enough.

Four times we have made a call for entries to a competition that celebrates and rewards excellence in casual gameplay, and four times we have been, ourselves, rewarded by the Flash game development community and the exceptional level of quality within the entries submitted. Choosing a small group to represent the best of those submitted, whether for the selection of finalists or for the top awards, is not an easy task. We wish we could reward everyone who submits an entry, but for every competition there must be a winner.

Three new hidden object games have recently hit the web, each one with a different setting and storyline wrapped around familiar seek-and-find mechanics. They don't go out of their way to bend the rules of item hunting, but if you're one of the many people who can't get enough of these games, these should keep you busy (and entertained) for a while!

It may surprise you to know that each and every Weekend Download article is written by a team of highly trained elves adept at both gaming and making waffles. This week, however, the elves have been replaced. By gnomes. The gnomes do a comparable job with words, links and images. But let me tell you, the waffles aren't nearly as good. It's like that old saying that neither I nor anyone else has ever heard before: If you want waffles, better get the elves.

We're sorry to announce that today's Link Dump Friday is delayed due to unforeseen circumstances. We hope you don't mind waiting. In the mean time, here are some other links you can try...

Total from voting... $652.89!Wooty! We have exceeded the donations record set by CGDC #3!!! Thanks to everyone who voted. Thank you for your kind support of these competitions.

Since beginning the Casual Gameplay Design Competitions in August, 2006, each competition has presented us with an impressive collection of entries, as well as a few challenges to deal with, too. This time the unprecedented number of entries received was unexpected, which has forced us to take steps to reduce that number to facilitate the next two stages: community voting towards the Audience Award prize, and the final round of judging to determine the winners of the competition.

Today is a special day for the Flash game development community, as it is the day that MochiAds throws open its doors to everyone. Previously an invitation-only closed beta, anyone with a Flash game and a dream can now sign-up to begin earning ad revenue with MochiAds.

Got a little bandwidth to spare? We've got a fresh batch of downloadable games to clutter up your hard drive and eat up your precious weekend time. Most of the games have what we like to call a "classic" look or feel that hails back to the days when polygons were nothing more than scribbles on your high school math notebook.

This special edition of Weekend Download highlights two games that are a bit less accessible due to their large download size and lack of a playable demo. We feel they deserve some attention, however, as each one pushes the envelope by delivering an immersive gaming experience that's both fun and engaging. We've spent a lot of time with them and are ready to sing praise from the roof (in the form of short mini-reviews), so read on to see if one could be your next slice of delicious gaming pie.

Two major events, the 13th Annual Interactive Fiction Competition and the 10th annual Independent Games Festival, are underway, sending a deluge of top-quality games right into our collective gaming laps. Interactive fiction continues to blossom as authors push the boundaries of gaming with better stories, deeper gameplay, and more rewarding gameplay using nothing more than words and creativity. Most of the IGF games aren't available for download just yet, but you'll recognize some of the games/authors and immediately jump for joy.

Whew! After rolling out tons of amazing competition entries over the last two weeks, it's time to take a little breather to see what the rest of the casually-oriented internet has been up to. A small sampling of what we found: a new Nitrome game, prawn, exploding cats, aliens fighting humans, and a guy reading a newspaper. In other words, business as usual!

Now that all the entries are up, I think most everyone will agree that nearly 50 entries is quite a lot to include in a competition like this(!) And while we want everyone to have the opportunity to receive the valuable feedback and constructive criticism the JIG community is so good at providing, we must also take steps to reduce the field to a more manageable size.

The final entry(!) to the 4th Casual Gameplay Design Competition is from Will Emigh, Ian Pottmeyer, and Rory Starks of Studio Cypher. Entropic Space is an action game of colliding planets to collect the debris they leave behind while avoiding black holes and supernovas. The "ball physics" theme is well represented and integrated within the gameplay.

The next entry to the 4th Casual Gameplay Design Competition is from Guilherme Töws of Brazil, another fresh name to the CGDC. Bisection Dominion is an arcade-style action game that uses gestural input to split bubbles, which incorporate the "ball physics" theme, in two until they are so small they are eliminated from play. Please leave your kind feedback and constructive criticism for Guilherme in the comments.

The next entry up is from Aqui Griffin of Washington (US). You might remember Aqui from our "grow" themed competition back in March with his entry, enQbate. Bug Bug in Sky Tower is a platformer in which the "ball physics" theme can be seen within the player character itself as well as in other elements of the game. Please leave your kind and constructive feedback for Aqui in the comments.

The next entry up is a game designed by Andrew Paradise with art and characters by Georg Pedersen. The authors are from Massachusetts (US). Fluke Ball is a turn-based strategy game in which players take turns throwing common office objects toward a microwave and the strange phenomenon that surrounds it. The game includes a creative interpretation of the "ball physics" theme.