Tapulous

UPDATE: Congrats to the winners! Grand prize winners: The_Offspring and Biblekid2! Runner up winners: Chris_Liquid, KATIEHIGGINS, Shun_ENDO, bernardjoseph, SoFresh_SoClean, and Papas_Con_Chile!

The Band: THE FEATURES

The Songs: LIONS and WOODEN HEART from the new album “Some Kind of Salvation”

America and England. Such a long, crazy history we’ve had with each other. Sure there was that one really bad dust-up in the late 1700’s, and we sent that Werewolf to London in the 1980’s, but we’ve had a very useful relationship, too. For example, we’ll often send over our unknown musicians, you’ll go wild over them, give them back to us, and say, “Hey dummies, these guys are awesome, and they’re yours!” Like Jimi Hendrix, or the White Stripes. We’re still not sure what you did to Madonna…

This week’s artists are a prime example of this phenomenon. THE FEATURES are a very American band, much beloved in their home state of Tennessee. But they’ve found greater success in the U.K., gaining fans, winning awards, and earning glowing reviews from NME and The Guardian. Now it’s the rest of the world’s turn to catch on to their Southern-souled, blues-soaked power pop. When their musical compatriots Kings Of Leon started a new label with Bug Music, The Features were the first signing, and “Lions” the first single. So the band comes well recommended.

Once you’re completely smitten with their uber-catchy, genuine rock and roll, tap over to TheFeatures.com and become a super-fan.

The Features – Some Kind Of Contest

The LOOT: This week you’ll be competing for TWO GRAND PRIZES: Two winners each get an brand new electric guitar — AUTOGRAPHED by the Tapulous crew AND a vinyl copy of Some Kind Of Salvation autographed by The Features. Six runners-up will win signed copies of the CD.

People often ask us, “What does it take to win a contest?” Our answer is always the same: Relentless tapping. For example: If you’re just quickly checking your mail on the iPhone, go ahead and knock out a dozen games. If you’re sitting in class, try a “blind tap” under the desk. If your boss is talking to you, put up your hand, say “Hold that thought,” play a quick game of Tap Tap, then say, “Continue.” We promise he’ll laugh.

If you follow those tips, you’ll be well on your way towards winning THE FEATURES – SOME KIND OF CONTEST.

Now here’s the scoop: Download “Lions” and “Wooden Heart” in Tap Tap Revenge 3. Go hang out in The Features online contest rooms, take down some opponents, and rack up some points. For every online game where you get 1st place — you get 1 contest point. The top two players that have the most contest points at the end of the contest win the grand prizes. The runners-up are the next 6 players with the most contest points.

The contest begins on Friday, January 22, and runs through Tuesday, January 26th. That’s 120 hours to secure these sweet prizes

Wow, what a holiday week it’s been!

Tap Tap Revenge 3 has been downloaded by millions of new users since the game became free last week, and we are still #1 on the App Store.  Thank you… not just for downloading the game and tapping up a storm, but for your patience and support as we’ve been struggling to keep our systems up over the last week!

We are happy to report that things are looking pretty good right now. All of our services (including online play) are back online, and the bulk of the issues related to the online components (points, avatars, levels, coins, online play, downloading tracks, credits etc) have been addressed. We have also spent quite a bit of time addressing individual users’ problems, but we know that there are still users with issues that we need to fix over the next few days. Meanwhile, if you have urgent individual problems (with coins, credits etc) that we have not yet addressed, send an email directly to me [back to normal now, so no more directly email to the CEO please - 1/15/10], including your TTR username, and a description of the problem and I will try to help, but it may take a day or two.

Even the Tapulous crew needs a break every now and then, so we are going into HOLIDAY mode in a few hours, and we don’t plan to work a lot on New Year’s Day!  But then we’ll come back to work in the coming days, and by Monday we’ll all be back with a couple of solid nights of sleep under our belt!

Meanwhile, we’ve got a few of things for you to enjoy tonight and on New Year’s Day!

• Check out the Tap Tap Revenge 3 feed, where in the next hour or so, we’ll be linking to a special New Year’s avatar item, and a fun free song that’s perfect to ring in the New Year!
• Head over to our Facebook fan page! We’re holding a special contest for all of you to organize family TTR tournaments tonight or tomorrow, and share pics from your event on your Facebook page.
• Chime in below with your New Year’s wishes! Make sure to include your TTR user name. Three of your will win a special prize tomorrow.

Happy Tappy New Year!

You’ve been tapping your fingers off for the last month. You’ve put it up with server glitches along the way. You forgot to buy presents for your family because you were worried you might not make the list.  Well, the big moment is almost here!

THE ULTIMATE TAPDOWN IS TOMORROW, SATURDAY!   It starts at 12 noon, California time and ends 24 hours later, at 12 noon on Sunday, California time.

The list of the 1000 players who qualified will be posted in this blog post later this afternoon.  So check back here every few hours!

Here’s how this will work:

1. All 1000 players will win one free premium bundle of their choice!  Congratulations!
2. The #1 player will win $1000 CASH.  #2 will win an iPod touch. #3 will win an iPod Nano. #4-10 will win music and gift certificates.
3. Tomorrow at noon, we will publish a list of 15 tracks.  Play those tracks as much as you want, for the 24 hour period of the tournament.  Make sure all your scores are submitted
4. We will record the highest score you submit for each of the 15 songs that are part of the tournament. Your total score will be the sum of the highest scores you’ve submitted for those 15 songs, combined.  So keep playing, and make sure you submit high scores for all 15 songs!
5. As long as the Server Gods are with us tomorrow, we plan to run a live web page where will show the full list of all 1000 players, and your total score.  That way you can see where you are at all times
6. We need all finalists to be reachable via email between 11AM PST and 1PM PST Sunday, in case there are last minute issues near the end of the tournament
7. We will announce the official Top 10 winners by 1PM PST on Sunday

The Ultimate Tapdown song list:

Amanda Blank – Make It Take It
As I Lay Dying – Nothing Left
Black Robot – In My Car
Drive A – Can’t Sleep It Off
Felix da Housecat – We All Wanna Be Prince
George Acosta – Emotions
Hypnogaja – Things Will Never Be the Same
Let’s Get It – Duck Duck Grey Goose
Patrick Plaice – Falling Out
Sander van Doorn – Grass-hopper
Soul Magic Orchestra – Breakout
Soul Magic Orchestra – Rude Boy Come
The Word Alive – Battle Royale
Wallpaper – I Got Soul, I’m So Wasted
The Format – She Doesn’t Get It

And here are the finalists:

_Ad4n_, _Fire, _jake, _muSick_, _n9x, 01BoyJoker, 0297rob, 123scott123, 1mpossibleisNothing, 666angel666, 96quasarZ28, a1icem, a6×1217, aapur, aaron86v, Abire, aburnight93, Accuracy, Ace245, ace35716, aceauto12, AciD_ReFluX, adamare, adamf89, Adamwuzhere, addsumfuel, adele123, adiii, ads_dont_boder, AdzeonX, afroninjasamurai, Ahmedz, aihao, AimeeeLovesDaaan, Airhead_Oz, akphatman, Alb0ski, albakhan, albertomerry, alejorv, alex_rockt, alex11333, Alex66, alexirra, alexn1990, alexplalex, alexradu, AlisaGADE, All8867, allCovered, allen718, alnandr, AlonsoR, amoses213, AnAznAvery, AndenoIV, Andreas M, andrew84uk, andydam, andydews83, andyman111, angelD123, Angerr, angiem9, ANNotunzdY, Anoesj, anomuse, AnotherIndigo, AnthonyyMB, anubis512, AnyaOtaku, AppleGuy1000, aquaking, AraKeN, Archiemd, Ardipithecus, ashanie, ashtheflasher, atoughchick, Avelynn, awel, awesome666, Aznmiroki, azuazu, Azulpace, b3nj11, BabyHoshi, backstyle, BadAzItGitz, Bahlor, bainch, bakdancer, bakdancer116, bananavice, barbam, barbeauau, Bballa23, bbbecky, bcworks, beacheagle, Beast_Boi, BeatZero, beezo213, Bella22, ben212k, BenDoverr, Beni_m, benllben, BenMcEwan, Bennno, bentley987, Berelul, berlincityrocker, BethIsSpiffy, bex1984, bfftoyou, biglarry23, BigSpenceDaddy, bil600, bilal91, billchase2, Billi60, Billyman, BinacaFreak, Biscuthead221, blackajaney, blackburningice, blackdragonst, blackspade09, blackwing, Blazikener, Blkmaxima, bloody_raven18, bob616, Bosco9, bpp, bradleyalam, Bramgrahm, brewijh, Brobles, broopa, bthomp2000, bUbbl3Sz, bufulo, bully95, bunghole30, bunkadunk, Bunnybeeps, Buttney, C0oki333, C12AZY, c453y, caiocieplinski, Callidlx, canadapilot, capnjay, Carpz, Castipl, cath_2034, CatMistriss, CavemanD, cbrewer, ccocconut, championchap, chario, Charity_L_Mack, Charlie_Ball, Chaserverdi, chatafakap, chaud1, chelsea_youth, ChemicalBrother, Cherry_Tea, chery122, Chicca86, chino5986, chiplasioux, choreboss, Chris1347, Chris7477, ChristianXD, Christien101, christinapandora, chronologic, chytownyo, CindyKay618, cirka, cjjw06, CLarett21, clarinet93, Claueee, ClouDxiv, codamoda, codedisaster, codeman4893, Coimbra, ColgateTotal, cool_angie, coolbreez17, coolpher, corninos, cortye, CougarSlayer, craigloxley, crazy4dmb, crazyFrog_, criminaljustice, cripa, cris001, crisrocks, CrusherDativ, Cryson, CSJD07, ctmonkeys2, Cunac, cyberpower, d_sal, D_Wo, dabnob, DaBomb1, Dai5yBabyy, dakiller45, dakotasthebomb, DamageZ, dametap, Daniel10000, DanielKra, danielsawatzky, DANK07, dannypitt, darkadious, darkjenso, darkmonaco, DarkPro0, darleneplay766, DarnellClayton, daryl178, dav3ydr01d, DDDDDDQUE, DeanKeith, Death077, debasaki, Deborah, Dechcaudron, deefrow33, Define, dejavuer, delkadelkaramous, Dennyburger, deputyrodriguez, deruufdihd, detlef3054, DeviousDios, dfieldz, DGLee, dh082283, Didlidoum, dijamo, disposable420, dizfit, dj007, Djflamemaster, djpommes, dlew, dnav_undead, dnlfallen81, DosJ, dr1ver38, draco23532, drakard, dreamfall, DrewFitz, druche, drulbt, dudeeeeee, dumbtrumm, DuttyBonez, dv3, dwnwitdaswine, dxiao, Easton, ecoopandesmom, Eden83, edgar4499, edithc, eflife, egoist, Ehegi, eineeuq, Eko19, electricfallout, electrocore, Emikojung, emmacobane, emmmtm, emskies, Enigmoid, ennywhales, epadron_21, ericf4201, EricGonzalez_18, ert3, eryxone, evilelf56, exavier24, Exploiter, Fantappulous, Farsuka, FATALITY, Feeeeeeeer, fernando001, ferniee, fiddy08, Figu3r0a, Fillo88, firu3000, fklejm, Fl4m1ngSk1llz, Flame123888, Flamedude, FlashMueller, Flip23, florastar, Florelle, flosch, flyingdutch, FlyinHawaiianBoy, fratatatat, freak081493, FreakY, freaky_k13_2001, Freefalling, FreelancerJ, frescko, friikiinstoner, furry321, fzzymike9, gabe_lueck, Gaga_freak, Gameca, gaph2000, gariity, gAvYnOrtiZ, gdrage, Gelu, Gendo, George_Taps, ghostrider561995, gidek, giggitygiggityq, Ginger12345678, give, Glenden2, Godsmack09, gogichum, gogii_bros, gokartlegend, goldenboy6392, gollum80, gomez2011, greatskillz, greenfrogfl, Grimmj0w, guatemaladaosk84life, Guffi12, gunitgangsta, HaCkErno1, hamper, HanaMomo, hank339, Harkepus, HaveSomeSoup, HeechulKobayashi, hellorules, HennessyLane, Hexxx, hibridormc, hiromyk, hollisterangel, HomerNet, homrb, Honey77, HoppeRocks, hotlatinmonkey, houkiboshi919, hshshsd, iallex, iamtherealme, iceberrywave, ICYOTFSH, idiosyncrasies, iJ3RK, iJavy, iJenner, illutionz, imdavidcelis, iminheaven, iMmAtUrE, inclusivationder, insane, interestingkid, IphoneMaster, iSpastic_Fantastic, iStaYxBakED, iTap4Ua, iwinbyamile, JackieG823, Jake123123123, jalbertox, James168, jamii, janetb, JanJanRevenge, jarjour, Jasondagreat19, jaxz, jayman1, jaythanc, jb666, JBaker, jbraz, JCman7, jdawg2012, jdomacpsp, JDUSOCCER12, jdwusami, Jeff1741, jeffmckeand, Jenn1500, jenwith1nx9, jeremywillo, jeroenmeuwissen, jeromegamez, JesterXR, JetEm, jhloa2, Jimbo, JKayStar, jlim819, jman4371, jo456, Jobec, jocalo, JOELtheJOEL, johnrox, jombul, Jonathan0313, Jonluca, jonmaster, jordber, josh79estrada, Joshiwo, josman3, jrblaze, JrOXar, jrstanley, JS82712, Jstar18, jt111, Jtara, Jugeeya, jumjum98, junkun13, junting1, JustinRudyNitschke, KaiSteelSmith, kaiya122, kalilov, KaMikA, Karen_Mulder, karen320, Katharine_Berry, KATIEHIGGINS, kaylaOfAuz, kbbbbb, kcy06, KelvinAlf, KenKennedy, kepner, kevinCS, kevinmalo, KeyNo, kgmvp, khroop, kiki_cucumber, kill_me, killahkiddkriz, killerplans, Kimarko, kimimishi, kingjames122, kingnile, kippy963, kitowskiv, kkkkyle, kleiner_punk, klossisdope, KmiloRod, kombatwombat, koolyuri, koriz, kratos9, krohn7master, kronex, kryton212, ktlove1, kurtisboyd, kurtvwinter, KurtzZ, Kuzzho, kyasa085, kyon, kzboi, l_ajax0539_l, l8rskater555, LA_boi310, Labratt, lakeeffectkido, LaMorenita, leesmith15, leftfishjet, lenamurao, letafallinluv1, lethalbiscotti, lewise53, lili12, Liqio, ListenstoiPod, LoganChan, lordofmuffins999, los55555, love_addict7, lovetiramisu, lucs, luigipup1112, Luke_E_Mac, lukebob1, lukeholl, lunatixs, lusciouskat27, Luukkeee, LXCyborg, lyssalovely, m3hd1, macadamien, macanweankig, macbrown, magicjames92, majdazem, Majkes, majra245, Malakin, mama_rox, mamuthh, mannymix03, manu_ran, maparturo, Marek2013, MARIKOCCHI, MarioFreak23, martinberlin, mary_volk, mashgotcash, Mason1110, matt81909, MatthewBellamy93, mattmccarty, MattSr, Mattster092, mauriciovanni, Max123123123, McRollin, meaninoflife42, mechanical_tapper, MECHANICAL_THUMBS, meganwhite4971, mekarina, Micahschneider, Michaelasian, mickerlodeon, migu3l8d, Mike_Lindemann, mike7246, mikec, MikeC99, mimiroxxxx, Mizani, MMcQuinn77, Mobius, moho11, mon89, Monkey_D_TOBI, Monstermac77, montrilee, Moomanmitch, Mortale, MostWantedZero, MrDarknesz, mrinnocent, MrKurtz, mrprototype357, mrslou, mskomra24, MsQueen, MTWTF, Muffin63, mumsoi, murderstak, musicgod777, muzaarnold, MWMD, Mystylez, mythos, nadia40, Nadinesky2, nathandunlap, Nelson775, neoflames, nessaliie, NexXtTime, Nicaboy, Nick2400, nicknamedels, nielsk, Nihongo86, nikoipod, nikorrea, Nitro_Noddy, nitsun818, Nkool, nobby, nobody749, nodedos_aka_rxJones, Noel, NoPryingEyes, NotSoFamous, Nozzyy, Nurita, nutsomania, nvalencia, OakleyBlue, oakmont11, Oatster, Obersen, oblady, odin13, oedoemoe, oli_xD, olicf, omegaprime, omlaag, Onad, opacho, oppugno, OpusX, oremetro, Originalryan, oscar1978, ostricheggs, Otoris, ownage1174, OwsOwn, oxfordvalley, Oyoshi, panucci4469, papasmirf, PappyD, paramore2525, Parrappa, patdaman63, Pati_br, PaulAnja, pbenzo, pcsrule, Peabo, Peeter, Petzlwolfy, phil7484, philberttwizere, phomac, Phthalocyanine, PIFFsoLIVE, pinkymechew, pinkysue22, Piotrek21, pitsiriki, PKfireice, PockitDisco, Poobuh, poooui, prettyboy416, princesscj1523, prnoct90, projectdaemon, PtGold, puffz, puls, puppylover171717, puppypower01, pureawesomeness1, Purple_Ghost, qualquercoisa, quietriot85, Qwertyjava, rachjoyjen, radgmr, Rainbowcookies, ramrod3, randomslagathor, RandyKilleen, ratejczak, RAZRKITTY, rcblogman, Ready2Fail, red007, redap, rei999, resistance2713, RevanX, Revslide, reynayrigo, richardarkless, rickvanderbaaren, RideMyMusic, righton, RileyBen, rileymon, ringelpieps, rjborst, rk1relic, robertandalon, Roberto25, Roberto777, robkill, rocket450r, Rockicz, Rodinr, rolllercoaster11, Ronald1nho, Rondolph1985, rothdog, rouglead, roxas93, roxdanslateci, RoxsOutXCore, royalsheep, RyanVL, Ryukentsu, sal08, sam20000, samantha42, sami289, SamiHikari, sammy93, samuraigrifter, sANDR3Wh, sarahmarie0462, say892, Scarevok, scytherz, Seansters, SeaOrFai, Secretpineapple, seebz93, sefter, Seiseman, sekitron, sekundesXtap, SensaX, senseotech, Serge, Sergious, Sh3kill, shafron1, shagwell, shakerchoco, ShakingSpirit, ShannWow, sharker1812, sharonftw, shawnli, shdaun360, Shigeki, shinies, shinoda4321, shivuu901, Shun_ENDO, shun_heko, silentshdw13, SilentShinobi0406, silzrav, simon2, simplez, Sk8rzack95, skandler, skaot, skater1987, Skessler, skull4u, sky232, Skyflier, Slus, Sm0kin_Ace69, smb510, smeeshum, SmellyBelly, Smithereen, Smoley, smoothdigit , snooppigg, Snormax, snugglesroyale, sobaskasu, soccerbrad, soccerluver15, socialreject, soferim, softball_15, someguy1963, Sondogg81, Sourcerer, SpArKy_MaRcUs, Spartacus_Maximus, speedfingers1, spike75, spikyman_eg, Spinky, spooky, spoonfedeg6, Spyder6621, spykedmartini, spyker3292, sroeder, stanleywatch, starstruckt0818, staticslipk, stemz0r, steveo3, strangeplaice, stringerhye, sue121507, sugisan, sungirl72, sunshinethewerewolf, Supdog, superman09724, SWAT1022, sweetsktl, SwimminSurfer256, syumo, Talawa09, Talez, tamukichi, tangshijian, tansky, Tansky, tapdude1, tapgirl1221, tapmaster328, tappering, TappThatAzz, tapstar166, TapTapGirl, TapTapMuse, TapUser431, Tapware, tapwhisperer, Tastythomas897, Tatopuolus, tchoupiii, teamdark, Technoslash, techtiger626, tehmastera, TehStubit, teniwigi, tes753, Testicle1n2, The_Offspring, The_stitt, thebitingcat, thecrazykeeper1, TheDarkHalf, themapplestore, ThePossum15, thepresidenthal, thewertle, three21, Threepeat, ticookie, TijanaM, TimO, TineBiene, tiwax, toekneeg, Tomislav116, Tomo69, tony206, Tony283, TonyHoyle, Toomorrow, Toon_Link, TooTo, TopherMan183, torron, Tossemannen, Totiman, tpgrl, tprotpro, trafalgar88, Tresky, trin42, trolliej, trooth, TTDoggy, tuschen, Tweety9, TwilightAmbiance, TXcougar, Tzeak, udell, uhh, ultrahoho, unalekstacie, unixguy, UnknownPro, uvitha, vaughan93, vc_165, Veronica_Vaughn, vicf, vikram, Vincento, vinmac3, Vinsouille, VMCB, voffcheg, volcom1588, vorksholk, Vpol, vranken, VredesByrd, vzfree, wachaw, watling, waza04, WellPaintedPassion, werty12, whitehell, widgell, wiimaster, willowjae, WinstonHsu, Wolf1, woocooper, xaco14, xavier94, XChaseX, xneox, xx_waking_a_dream_xx, xxabbyxx, XxAlex, xXDALXx, XxhalfbakedxX, XxMURDERxDOLLxX, xXWarpigXx, xXxLiLxSM0K3xXx, xXxMusicMattXXx, xxxxomenxxxx, xydrella, yamington, yerrxmomm, ynnk, yo_mamma217, YOOOOOHEY, YouFailed, YsoEz, YzGoon, z1r0_, z3olyte, zackzachariah, zacmyster, zacraid, zahaan, ZazzA, zbellman, zerolol, zidney88, zilo, zincous, Ziniafish, zivans, Zlouch, zn120, ZOE_ROCANLOVER, zolton, zomglee, Zorrel, zorzdog, zupermann

Bonus entrants: Faab01, Maverick05, ColgateTotal3, Emeraldcollector, Xanadeath, jayoolain, Biblekid2

Didn’t make the list, but you think you should have? Do YOU deserve to be in the finals? Email tapdown@tapulous.com by 10AM PST and the official Tapdown judges will review your request.

Good luck in the finals!

In case you missed it, we had an awesome Tap Tap Revenge roadtrip in Europe a few weeks ago, with stops at Apple Stores in Glasgow, London, Paris, Zurich and Munich.  Here are some of our favorite snapshots from the Europe roadtrip.

Here we go again, this time with stops in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. First stop this time around: New York, in the brand new Upper West Side Apple Store. Join us there this Saturday at 4pm, for a Tap Tap Revenge tournament, followed at 5pm for Q&A time with me, Bart, about lessons learned on the App Store.

Next week, we’ll be in Los Angeles (Saturday, December 19 at the Santa Monica store) and San Francisco (Sunday, December 20 in downtown San Francisco). Follow us here, on Twitter or Facebook for details on those events!

Also known as “Meet The Avatars,” this is going to be a series of live, in-person tournaments held in Apple Stores around the world. Our jet-setting CEO Bart will be there himself, hosting the action in these cities:

• Fri Nov. 20 – Glasgow: 4-6pm. Store information: http://bit.ly/4tfGY5
• Sat Nov. 21 – London: 3-5pm + Meet The Developer event with Bart at 6pm. Regent Street store. Store information: http://bit.ly/lV4zA
• Sun Nov. 22 – Paris: 3-5pm. At the brand new Carrousel Du Louvre Store! Store information: http://bit.ly/i1Kth
• Tue Nov. 24 – Zurich: 4-6pm
• Wed Nov. 25 – Munich: 3-5pm
• Sat Dec. 12 – New York: 4-6pm + Meet the Developer event
• Sat Dec. 19 – Los Angeles: Third Street Promenade store. 4-6pm + Meet the Developer event.
• Sun Dec. 20 – San Francisco: 1-3pm + Meet the Developer event.

Here’s the run-down: RSVP by clicking on the city name above.  To participate in the Apple Store tournaments, just show up at the store at the designated time. Bring your iPhone/iPod Touch and your headphones. Once everyone is in the store, you’ll get to show off your ultimate Tap Tap skills. Bring your friends, and practice up!

As always, we’re celebrating the kick-off of the Tap Tap Revenge Road Trip in style. Keep an eye on your Tap Tap Revenge news feed for updates on all the action!

Who: OWL CITY

The Song: FIREFLIES from the album “Ocean Eyes”

This week, there is no hype. There is no need. The universe, in its glorious celestial dance, has fortuitously shuffled all the stars and planets into perfect alignment, and delivered to us this flawless gift:

Ladies and gentlemen, we give you the #1 app, Tap Tap Revenge 3, and the #1 single, “Fireflies” by Owl City, together on Tap Tap Thursday. BOOYAH!

Go ahead, take a look for yourself. We’re both sitting atop our respective iTunes charts, and now are the greatest pairing since peanut butter and bananas. Some say it’s lonely at the top, but we beg to differ. For TTR3, being on top means more Tappers, more avatars out there in the rooms getting splattered with goo, and more bands saying, “Hey, how do we get our song in this game?”

For OWL CITY, being on top means more people are joining the club that has discovered one of the year’s best songs. Owl City’s sole band member, Adam Young, spent many insomnia-addled nights recording in his parent’s Minnesota basement, and uploaded the treasures to a ravenous MySpace fanclub. The World Wide Web flexed its muscle, and Owl City was elevated to international adoration and exposure for one single reason: the music makes you feel good. And isn’t that awesome right now? Check out owlcitymusic.com for all the info, including tour dates in China!

THE OWL CITY CONTEST

Have you seen the Owl City “Fireflies” video? Are you like me, thinking, “How did they get all the old stuff out of my room? MOM?!!” Well here’s your chance to start rebuilding your collection:

This week’s grand prize is the boxing ring toy from the video, autographed by Owl City’s Adam Young himself! Plus you’ll get a signed vinyl copy of “Ocean Eyes”, a t-shirt, and more! Is this our freshest prize yet, or what?

Here’s how you get that monkey:

First TTR3 challenge/battle contest: Get a high score on “Fireflies” and send out a challenge to your network. You get 1 point for each challenge you send and 2 points for each challenge you win. And that’s not it: challenges in TTR3 count double!

On Wednesday, we’ll take the top 100 earners, and draw the winners. 5 runners-up will get an autographed copy of “Ocean Eyes”. And one stoked Grand Prize winner will get the boxing ring toy from the Fireflies music video!!

This contest runs from Friday, October 23rd at 12:01 AM through Tuesday, October 27th at 11:59 PM Pacific Time.

The Band: DASHBOARD CONFESSIONAL

The Song: BELLE OF THE BOULEVARD from the upcoming album “Alter the Ending”

Now that we’re past the big TTR3 launch, we can refocus the cyborg Tapulous Engineers on their primary directive: Getting killer new themes and fresh free tunes into your hands on Thursdays. Unfortunately, we literally used the word “killer,” and the Programming Bots implemented a special theme that imploded the brains of our Testing Department interns. (Sorry Stanford! Send more interns.)

We’ve locked that extremely dangerous theme on an extremely secure server, and are crossing our fingers it never makes it out into the general TTR3 user population. Luckily, we were able to come up with another special theme for this week’s very special track from DASHBOARD CONFESSIONAL.

The music of Dashboard Confessional feeds your soul. Intimate, sincere, and heartfelt, singer Chris Carrabba draws you in, whether using just his voice and a single acoustic guitar, or fronting the full DC band. With BELLE OF THE BOULEVARD, the first single of the new album, you get the lush, layered, and electric DC. This is a great band whose passion and power will infect your tapping fingers, and might just become your go-to jam.

Be sure to head over to dashboardconfessional.com for tour dates, Twitter, Facebook, and everything else.

THE “CIRQUE DU FREAK” THEME AND DASHBOARD CONTEST

On October 23rd, “Cirque du Freak: The Vampire Assistant” (iPhone site) opens in a theater near you. In it, you’ll meet Darren. He’s 16 years old going on immortal, and finds himself in the middle of an ancient war between different factions of vampires. To celebrate this epic battle, we’re teaming with Universal Pictures to bring you a special “Cirque du Freak” theme and contest.

What side of this war are you on? Pick your team and theme for the Dashboard Confessional song “Belle of the Boulevard.” You can choose:
- The Vampeneze
- The Cirque
- The Good Vampires

Then start tapping, and building your team’s score. Each day, the team with the most cumulative points wins, and then we’ll pick a random team member to win an autographed copy of Dashboard Confessional’s upcoming album “Alter The Ending.”

Out of the overall top 100 scorers from all teams, will pick the GRAND PRIZE: an AUTOGRAPHED GUITAR from Dashboard Confessional! The members of which may or may not be vampires.

This contest runs from Friday, October 16th at 12:01 AM through Tuesday, October 20th at 11:59 PM Pacific Time. You must submit your scores in Tap Tap Revenge 2 or Tap Tap Revenge 3, while online, for entry into the contest. Get your scores in, every point counts.

Good luck, and remember to check your fingers for bite marks.

UPDATE: Congratulations cannavaro999!!! You are the winner of the autographed guitar!

So you think you’re excited that TTR3 is out? Because we’re REALLY excited TTR3 is out. It’s been a ton of work, and we’re all looking forward to a little break…

OK, BREAK TIME’S OVER! Let’s get it going on again with a MASSIVE Fall Out Boy contest!

What can you score? For the Grand Prize Winner, Patrick has kindly given up one of his personal Gretsch G5135PS Patrick Vaughn Stump STUMP-O-MATIC Electromatic Corvette Guitars. He actually played this one onstage at MSG, then got the whole band to sign it, and threw a VIP pass and ticket in the case for authenticity. Then, to top it all off we’ll throw in a copy of Fall Out Boy’s latest album for 5 runner-up winners. FRESH!

So, how do you win? This one’s easy — Play ANY of the six Fall Out Boy songs in Tap Tap Revenge! Every completed game with a score above 50,000 points gets you one entry into the contest. Rack up as many entries as you can, because at the end of the contest, we’ll throw ‘em all into the giant Tapulous hat and draw the winners.

The contest begins Thursday, October 8th at 12:01 AM and runs through the weekend until Monday, October 12th at 11:59 PM Pacific Time.

You gotta win this one. What A Catch!

UPDATE: Love Tap Tap Revenge 3? Make sure you review us in the App Store.

Kiss your life goodbye. Tap Tap Revenge 3 has gone live!

Prepare to immerse yourself in a redesigned Tap Tap Universe where the music is bigger, the action is packed full of new twists and turns, and TTR players can interact like never before.  The rumors and mystery have been swirling for months, and now all the latest features are revealed:

• Improved online play, where you can SILENCE your opponents, throw GOO at them and much more.  You can now also send private messages, browse user profiles, or chat while waiting for the next game to start.
• Create your own unique avatar. Levels, points, and achievements give you status in the game, and also let you access exclusive game rooms and purchase special powers.
• A fresh look and feel, plus many more features, including 90-second Quick Games and the popular instant game replay.

So let’s see, the gameplay, the look, the social network features…What’s that other thing in TTR3?…Oh yeah, THE MUSIC!  How do these names grab you?

Blink 182, Fall Out Boy, Smashing Pumpkins, Foo Fighters, No Doubt, Tiesto, The Killers, (deep inhale), Korn, Megadeth, QOTSA, Weezer, AAR, AFI, Keith Urban, Crystal Method, and Lynyrd Skynyrd, to name just a few of the over 40 premium, specially themed premium tracks available for download.  We’ll add new premium content every week! Plus over 100 free playable tracks. And we’ll keep featuring awesome FREE tracks every week!

Mind, prepare to be blown.  Click HERE to purchase TTR3 for your iDevice.

(And in a preemptive response to everyone saying, “What!  99 cents for TTR?  You guys have changed, man”, we say: In order to take advantage of in-app commerce, which we are the first major game to do, Apple requires us to charge for the app.  There will still be tons of free content, just like always.  So look between those cushions on your couch, find four quarters, and you’ll be back in Tap Tap heaven.)

TTR3 LAUNCHES WITH A FREE TRACK FROM FALL OUT BOY

A big day deserves a big track.  And honestly, who’s bigger than Fall Out Boy?  From their humble beginnings in Wilmette, Illinois, they have become international superstars.  They regularly headline sold-out stadium tours.  They have sold millions of copies of their 5 albums, and have collaborated with a variety of well-known artists such as Elvis Costello, Debbie Harry, and Lil Wayne.  They are the movers and shakers of the modern-rock scene.  In short, women want them, and men want to be them.

We are excited to present “Sugar, We’re Goin Down” as a free download today, and have them as a premium 6-song themed bundle in TTR3, because they get what we’re doing.  Lyricist and bass player Pete Wentz said it himself:

“As a band in the middle of a fast changing music environment, we’re always excited to be able to offer our music to our fans in smart, new formats.  Tapulous has created an amazing game and community for iPhone and iPod Touch users and Fall Out Boy is more than happy to be a part of their ongoing evolution.”

Hit up falloutboyrock.com for all the happs on FOB. Be sure to check out their upcoming album Believers Never Die-Greatest Hits. In stores and online worldwide November 17, 2009.

READY? GET YOUR GAME ON!

To celebrate the launch of Tap Tap Revenge 3, we are having a contest of Epic proportions!  We are giving away CDs and DVDs to 105 winners – the first 5 people to complete any of 21 achievements.  Once all 105 winners have been selected, we will pick three winners at random, who will each get the ENTIRE Tap Tap Revenge 3 catalog of premium tracks!

Click here for the live updated award listing — get your name on the board and you’re IN. We will add more achievements to this list, which means more prizes, and more winners. You can also check out this board right in your Tap Tap 3 news feed…

Who: AFI

What: MEDICATE from the just-released album “Crash Love”

Just because we’re finishing up TTR3, it doesn’t mean we’re going to just sit back and let TTR2 and TTThursday wither away and die. POW! Just like that, here’s a GINORMOUS track that’s going to make a lot of tappers very, very happy.

Over the course of 7 albums and nearly 20 years, AFI have grown out from their hardcore-punk roots, moving through darker periods of goth and industrial, before breaking out to a wider audience with their 2006 multi-platinum album “Decemberunderground,” and the smash single “Miss Murder.”

With “Medicate,” AFI is unencumbered by any previous musical labels placed on them. Punk energy mixes with moody, mysterious lyricism, and it’s all slammed into your ears by a barrage of guitars. Singer Davey Havoc describes “Crash Love” as “a really straightforward rock record. I don’t think we’ve ever recorded one of those before… so it’s very fresh for us.”

Click HERE to download and play “Medicate.” You MUST tap the link on your iDevice and have TTR2 installed. Cruise by afireinside.com for all your AFI info, and check them out on tour all across the USA this fall.

THE AFI CONTEST

We really wanted this week to be a Cannonball Run-style race from Tapulous HQ in Palo Alto up Highway 101, across the Golden Gate Bridge, and through the redwood empire to AFI’s hometown of Ukiah, CA. But our legal firm, Tapum and Shakem LLP, nixed that idea. Instead, here’s this week’s contest:

Your goal: submit the most points on AFI’s Medicate in Tap Tap Revenge. Simple as that. The top 50 players with the most points at the end of the contest are entered into a drawing for some totally awesome AFI prizes.

So what can you win? Think 5 copies of the new album “Crash Love” — and A SIGNED GUITAR! Yea thats right, we went there.

The contest begins on Friday, October 2nd at noon, and runs until Monday, October 5th at 11:59 PM Pacific Time. You MUST submit your scores to the global scoreboard during the contest period, while online, for entry into the contest.