A few weeks ago we took a look at a preview of Vacuum that the developer, Door-6, made available prior to the general release this week. It had come a long way since its top 20 finish in the Arcade/Action category of the Android Developer Challenge 2 when it was known as “Atmosphere: Trainer.”

They listened to the feedback they received during the preview period and added music to the formerly eerily quiet game along with the ability to invert the axes. You can check out some video of how the finalized game play looks and sounds below.

The game is a play on the tunnel racer genre, but it differentiates itself a little from the likes of Speed X 3D by allowing you to move in any direction within the 3 dimensional space of the tunnel. The basic concept is simple, but there are definitely some tricks to pick up along the way. Quick tip: In the options you can select how you are holding your phone and getting that setting right is critical.

It’s an entertaining game and at $1.99 it’s worth picking up especially considering the big hook for Vacuum which is the fact that the developer is offering cash prizes of $500, $250, and $100 respectively to the top 3 high scorers between April 1st and May 31st. This is a first for an Android app so we’ll have to see how this little experiment plays out for Door-6.

I had a brief exchange with Jeremy Shafton, the CEO of Door-6, and he confirmed for the first time that while at present the April-May prize competition is a one-off they are certainly looking at additional rounds of competition if Vacuum proves successful in its current form.

Due to a bout with insomnia last night I’m currently in second place, so hit the QR code to download Vacuum and try to beat my score while you warm up before the scores reset on April 1st and the real competition begins.

Replay value is extended by the infinite levels from easy to nearly impossible. Users can also compare their high scores with an online leaderboard.

We had a chance to sample an early preview of the game and it has undergone a major overhaul. Before you got to roam in free space, but now the play area is defined to a never ending tunnel. The game kind of reminds me of SpeedX 3D except you can move in all directions instead of just left and right. It definitely still needs some work (like music), but the gameplay is addicting at these early stages.

Vacuum should hit the Android Market by March 20th and the first round of competition will begin April 1st. We are still waiting on the exact details of the contest and the amounts for the cash prizes. Check out the video below for a quick preview.

The press release:

MADISON, WI – March 4, 2010 – Today Door-6 unveils Vacuum, a fast-paced competition on the Android platform. The game blends classic arcade action with a dynamic 3D environment. Players must navigate a perilous, asteroid-filled obstacle course, competing for the top score and cash prizes. In this successor to the acclaimed “Atmosphere: The Training Mission”, a finalist in Google’s Android Developer Challenge 2, your phone becomes the joystick of an agile spaceship maneuvering to collect targets along the course.

Vacuum will be released into the Android Market by March 20th, and the first round of competition will begin April 1st. The details of the contest, and its prize amounts, will be announced soon.

From ADC2 winners gallery: “WaveSecure is an innovative security product that provides users with complete mobile device and data protection. It enables users to remotely lock down and track down lost phones, get a copy of their data securely backed up, and remotely wipe data of the phone to protect user privacy.”

WaveSecure allows the user to protect their phone by:

• Lock: Remotely lock down your phone. Make it worthless to a thief. Show messages and sound alarm.
• Track: Tracking of new SIM cards. SMS Alert to buddy. Aut0-lock when SIM changed.
• Back up: All personal data coverage. Zero-effort auto-backup. Remotely trigger backup.
• Wipe out: Remote wipe out of private data. Wipe all data types (SMS, pics, etc). Protects your privacy and security.

I have personally never used the software, but it looks like a good opportunity test it out for free. It is normally hard to recommend a security software when you do not know the developer, but tenCube has been around awhile and received numerous industrial awards. If Google felt it was worthy of winning ADC, then you should feel safe using it.

We prefer to use Mobile Defense for tracking our phones, so it will be interesting to see how the competing services match up. If you have tried both, please sound off in the comments.

Overall winners:

• SweetDreams
• What the Doodle!?
• WaveSecure

Education/Reference Winners:

• Plink Art
• Word Puzzle
• Celeste

Entertainment Winners:

• A World of Photo
• SongDNA
• Solo

Games: Arcade/Action Winners:

• Speed Forge 3D
• Graviturn
• Moto X Mayhem

Games: Casual/Puzzle Winners:

• What the Doodle!?
• Totemo
• Mazeness

Lifestyle Winners:

• SweetDreams
• SpecTrek
• FoxyRing

Media Winners:

• Buzz Deck
• SPB TV
• FxCamera

Productivity/Tools Winners:

• WaveSecure
• Hoccer
• Tasker

Social Networking Winners:

• Ce:real – Everyday trends
• SocialMuse
• SpotMessage

Travel Winners:

• Trip Journal
• iNap: Arrival Alert
• Car Locator

Misc Winners:

• Rhythm Guitar
• Andrometer
• Calton Hill GPSCaddy

For more information about each app and full list of the top 200 ADC2 entries, please visit the official Google Code page.

What were you favorites? Did any of the apps you rated make the cut? Any of the results surprise you?

We have received sufficient scores and have now closed public judging for ADC 2. We are reviewing the final results and will announce the top winners this coming Monday, November 30.

Some of our carrier and OEM partners may want to connect with you for future opportunities. If you are interested in participating, please fill out this form:

[link removed]

In addition, we will be highlighting all of the top 200 applications on code.google.com. We plan to include your previously submitted icon and description. If you have an update to your description, please also include it in the above form and we will update it in future refreshes to the site.

Thanks for your entry, and good luck!
ADC 2 Support

There are close to $2 million in prizes, with the top winner receiving $250,000. This is going to be an exciting announcement for several developers and should launch a new app to stardom. Check back next week for the winners and we will try to interview the top devs.

ADC2 Awards

Prizes will be distributed as follows; all prizes are in USD:

For each of the 10 categories:

• 1st prize: $100,000
• 2nd prize: $50,000
• 3rd prize: $25,000

Overall (across all categories)

• 1st prize: $150,000 (meaning the overall winner will receive $250,000)
• 2nd prize: $50,000 (meaning the 2nd prize winner will receive up to $150,000)
• 3rd prize: $25,000 (meaning the 3rd prize winner will receive up to $125,000)

The following is a sample email that Google is sending out.

Congratulations! Your application ‘Todoroo’ was selected by Android users as one of the top 20 in the Lifestyle category! We’re excited that you chose to participate in the ADC 2 and wish you luck in the final round as your application is evaluated by users and a panel of judges.

For full information on the challenge, please see our official site: http://code.google.com/android/adc/

Thanks,
ADC 2 Support

There are 10 categories with 20 finalists in each which means 200 apps will be competing for top prize.

Update: Google has posted the list of top 200 apps on the official ADC site.

Categories

• Education/Reference
• Games: Casual/Puzzle
• Games: Arcade/Action
• Social Networking
• Lifestyle
• Productivity/Tools
• Media
• Entertainment
• Travel
• Misc

Awards

Prizes will be distributed as follows; all prizes are in USD:

For each of the 10 categories:

• 1st prize: $100,000
• 2nd prize: $50,000
• 3rd prize: $25,000

Overall (across all categories)

• 1st prize: $150,000 (meaning the overall winner will receive $250,000)
• 2nd prize: $50,000 (meaning the 2nd prize winner will receive up to $150,000)
• 3rd prize: $25,000 (meaning the 3rd prize winner will receive up to $125,000)

Go vote

Search the market for ADC2 or scan the QR code above.

After installing the app, random applications are downloaded to your phone in order to let you review them. The voting application sends a message to your notification bar when an app is ready to be installed and another message reminding you to score the app.

Users score the applications in the following categories:

• Originality of concept
• Effective use of the Android platform
• Polish and appeal
• Indispensability

Round 2 judging is expected to end in November (estimated) so vote before time runs out. The first round ended abruptly so there is no telling how long the 2nd will last.

If you find an application or game you really love, leave a comment and let us know.

For their third game, Hexage decided to go retro.

Radiant is an old school shooter that plays tribute to classics like Space Invaders and Asteroids. The controls are ultra simple and the game is all about action. Hexage plans to release the game next Thursday October, 1 2009, but they gave us an exclusive demo to share with our readers.

Download Radiant Lite

Click the link above to download the apk file. You can grab it on your PC and copy it to your SD card or download it directly to your phone. If you need a file manager to install the apk file, we suggest Linda File Manager. If you have any issues downloading the apk file, grab Linda File Manager first and it will get the file correctly.

Radiant (along with Totemo) is entered in the second Android Developers challenge. Get the ADC2 judging application and be on the look out.

For the latest information on Hexage visit their official site or follow them on Twitter @hexage.

Scan to download.

Google released the Android Developers Challenge judging application today. After installing the app, random applications are downloaded to your phone in order to let you review them. The voting application sends a message to your notification bar when an app is ready to be installed and another message reminding you to score the app.

Users score the applications in the following categories:

• Originality of concept
• Effective use of the Android platform
• Polish and appeal
• Indispensability

Google will use the community votes to calculate which apps will advance to the second round.

The twenty (20) Entries in each category with the highest scores (for a total of 200 Entries across all categories) will be determined to be “Qualifying Entries” and will advance to the Second Round. If any category does not contain at least 20 Entries, all Entries in that category will advance to the Second Round. In the case of a tie,a panel of judges selected by Google will determine the Entries, from among those that are tied, that will advance to the Second Round.

The first round judging will end sometime in October and the winners will be announced in November when the second round judging is over. It will be interesting to see how the community scores the apps since most are a month old and the developers are not allowed to update them with any bug fixes or new features.

If anyone stumbles across a really cool app, leave a comment and let us know about it.

Update: Google posted on the official Android blog about ADC2 judging.

[Thank you supernova for the tip]

MARS 2142….
It has been 60 years since the colonization and thousands of factories and mines have sprung up across miles of the inhospitable Red Planet.
In the past decade, industries prospered leading to vast settlements of over half a million inhabitants.
Crime is rampant, time is abundant and the citizens are looking for some entertainment…
“Speed Forge”: Heavy duty hover vehicles, normally used for mining are now seen in illegal races organized in abondoned factories and dark Marsian alleys. The rock crushing explosives once used in these machines now serve a different purpose…

Unfortunately, the game is not available for play yet. The developer told me he was trying to enter both games in ADC2, but I don’t know if he met the deadline. I’m working to get some more details or a playable copy of the game to bring you more footage.

Check out the video preview below while we wait for more information.