While the jury hasn't even begun to assemble to decide if gaming on the iPhone is going to set records and become an extremely viable platform, we already know some those time-wasting casual games are addictive and fun.

Zecil Software is jumping into the fray with iBreakout, now available for $4.99 in the iPhone App Store, and it promises "75 meticulously crafted levels, with striking graphics, featuring 50 different backgrounds!" Striking graphics? Well, if by striking they mean you can make the ball hit the bricks, then okay. However, you can submit your high scores to leaderboard right from your phone, which is fairly nifty. Try breaking out of it at your own risk.

We've been able to pry some exclusive images out of the i am 8 bit showrunners -- here they are in gallery-tastic form, just for you. As a wallpaper-friendly reminder, be sure to click the "Hi Res" button in the upper right corner to get some enormo versions of the art. It's the best way to have a technicolor Samus gracing your desktop.

The new gallery show will open on August 14th in Los Angeles, and will run through September 7th. If you can't make it West, don't worry ... Joystiq will have you covered. Check back on the evening of the 14th for a plethora of photos from the show. That is, if we haven't hocked our laptops to buy this Dig Dug meets Animal Crossing piece.

Most of us have probably dabbled around with a Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator before, but have you ever crammed one into a TARDIS? Those things are supposed to be bigger on the inside than the outside. Anyhow, one man decided that having a dedicated stand-up gaming cabinet wasn't enough, so he built this pillar of geek awesomeness.

Check out the two different sections, one on the building of the iconic blue Police Box, and the other on the console. He even had the 7th doctor, Sylvester McCoy, autograph the thing. Is it still a sin to covet thy neighbor's sci-fi gaming cabinet? If so, mark us down in the "sinner" category.

[Thanks, Douglas!]

The official Japanese Xbox 360 blog has posted prices for Xbox Live's "Summer of Arcade" series (i.e. five weeks of awesome releases). Let's review:

• July 30: Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2 (800 MS points / $10)
  
• August 6: Braid (1200 MS points / $15)
  
• August 13: Bionic Commando Rearmed (800 MS points / $10)
• August 20: Galaga Legions (800 MS points / $10)
• August 27: Castle Crashers (1800 MS points / $22.50)
  

At $22.50, Castle Crashers would hold the record for most expensive XBLA title. The total price for the Summer of arcade is $67.50, which is a little bit more than a standard Xbox 360 title + applicable tax. The prices are currently set for Japan only, but they generally don't differ with the North American releases. Is your wallet prepared?

Update: Microsoft tells Shacknews these prices are incorrect, and that the final prices won't be revealed until the Monday before each respective game launches.

[Via X3F]

Singling out Japanese PSP system seller Monster Hunter Freedom 2G, Capcom trumpeted its "best Q1 net sales and operating income since quarterly release announcements began." Net sales were ¥16,352 million, up 14.5% from the same period a year ago, thanks mostly to strong performance in its Home Video Games business, citing "exceptional sales of approximately 2.4 million units" of the aforementioned Monster Hunter title. The Home Video Games business saw quarterly sales of ¥10,406 million, a 31.5% jump from the same period last year.

So, what's keeping the rest of Capcom down? Arcade operations were particularly weak; Capcom said, "The number of customer visits and average customer spending grew at a sluggish pace reflecting market stagnation and declining customer confidence, forcing us to struggle." Ouch! That unit had an operating loss of ¥73 million, versus an operating income of ¥261 million in the same period last year. Arcade Games saw an increased operating loss "due to an increase in development costs" while "character-related licensing royalties" were up 25.7%.

So, what's the lesson? More developers should target the PSP because, really, people just want some games for it. And second, arcade games aren't even doing well for Capcom ... in Japan.

It appears NinjaBee is ready to talk a little about its upcoming city builder, A Kingdom for Keflings. Teasing the title in a viral video last month, the company finally gave some details to IGN, details which make the game look and sound like a cross bee-tween SimCity and Gulliver's Travels.

It appears the player takes on the roll of a Gulliver-esque character and must build a kingdom for the Keflings, with the final goal being to create a castle. The game features 50 buildings, a tech tree and optional quests. Isn't it interesting that all the different smaller-scale city builder games, like Hinterland and My Life as a King, are releasing this year? Check out video for A Kingdom for Keflings after the break.

[Via X3F]

If you've been able to make it out to any of the i am 8-bit exhibitions in the past, then you've seen some incredibly cool artwork from the 8-bit movement. If you haven't, then just check out the scads of pictures from their past two shows, or pick up their book featuring high-quality photos of the pieces.

If you're in the Los Angeles area from August 14th through September 7th, then stop by the World of Wonder storefront gallery at 6650 Hollywood Blvd. They're having an opening night party, and we'll be on hand to get plenty of pictures of the new art to pass along like we did last time. Hopefully, we'll have more Evil Mario this year.

Some would say Geometry Wars Retro Evolved was Xbox 360's best launch game -- it beat early hyped games like Perfect Dark Zero, Call of Duty 2, and Kameo to win the heart of 360 early adopters, despite the fact that it was 2D and a cheap XBLA version of a game that had previously been included with Project Gotham Racing 2. It held the record for a long time as the system's most-downloaded game, and that title was well-deserved, considering that a lot of $60 games haven't held a candle to the kind of frantic fun you can find pushing that little red ship around the board.

Now Bizarre Creations is attempting to follow up with Geometry Wars 2, and after our playthrough at E3, we're sold. Not only has the developer filled out the game with multiplayer and co-op modes, but Bizarre has figured out a way to make the super simple, yet extremely fun gameplay go deeper than ever before.

Scott Austin, Microsoft Director of Digitally Distributed Games, tells us that there are talks in progress with "a potential partner who has lots of board game IP." He says that XBLA's boardgames are considered evergreen content by Microsoft -- games like Catan and Carcassone sell well all the time -- and that Microsoft is definitely looking to include more traditional board games in the Arcade. They expect the same kind of evergreen popularity for their Xbox Live Primetime service, which will combine online gaming on XBL with a television-style format.

We asked Austin if the potential partner in question was a maker of more complex board games -- a D&D-esque board game like BattleLore or Runebound would likely work very well on Xbox Live -- but he was not forthcoming. For all we know a deal is being struck with a more traditional board game maker like Parker Brothers. Either way, fans of board games on Xbox Live will definitely have more to look forward to.

Update: The relationship between potential board game content and the Xbox Live Primetime service was clarified.

Uno Rush has been confirmed for release on Xbox Live later this year. No details on what the game is yet, but we hear that you'll be able to win actual, real-life prizes while playing it, including possibly Xbox accessories, Microsoft Points, or even other games.

We'll keep an eye on anything else we can find out about it -- if old school Uno isn't giving you a Wild Card Draw Four lately, keep an eye out for Rush.

As if we didn't already have enough ways to purchase Joust, Midway has launched the "Midway Arcade," which offers just as much quarter-pumping excitement as the name implies. The online store -- really, it's just a store -- features 14 ancients for purchase and download in preset bundles, along with, oddly enough, $5 PC versions of select games from Midway's TouchMaster compilation for DS. Midway's also selling some of its contemporary efforts -- in another location -- for direct download to PC, highlighted by titles like Unreal Tournament 3 and ... what's this? Midway Arcade Treasures! That's right, today alone, we've got two new ways to own Joust. You know, just in case.

The full list of releases is posted after the break.

Capcom's World War II shoot-em-up 1942: Joint Strike is set to launch the week after E3, July 23 for Xbox Live Arcade and the day after for PlayStation Network. It will cost 800 MS points (US $10), according to a press release. The game is yet another HD remake for Capcom, after giving similar treatment to Super Puzzle Fighter II and Super Super Street Fighter II.

Developer Backbone Entertainment went the extra mile, however, in creating new backdrops, levels and enemies. The game features a new score by frequent Metal Gear Solid contributor Norihiko Hibino. What hasn't changed? It's still a shoot-em-up, so for better or worse, you know exactly what to expect.

Capcom's Seth Killian has posted a friendly note for fighting fans on the official Capcom blog, reminding us that Street Fighter IV begins hitting Japanese arcades the week of July 21. Not all that helpful for those of stuck in the States. Thankfully, "S-KILL" also has the lowdown on where and when the general public can experience the game for themselves on this side of the Pacific.

The final coin-op version of SFIV will be playable July 24-27 at San Diego Comic-Con and at the Evolution 2008 fighting game competition finals in Las Vegas from August 8-10. As an added bonus for EVO 2008 attendees, Capcom will have the latest build of Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix on hand as well.