The Rumour Mine: Call of Duty: Black Ops and Camping Mama for iPhone, Back to the Future iPad in 2011

This week the trend of console franchises coming to iOS continues. Two series - Cooking Mama and Call of Duty - are likely to further flex their muscles on iPhone and iPod touch.

While the move to Apple devices is sure to continue, the impending release of Nintendo 3DS will likely slow the bleed in the year to come. For now, though, expect plenty more big name games to find themselves on iPhone as cheap hits.

The question, though, is whether these games will be reduced in size to accommodate a lower price point or simply sold whole at a cheaper price. The former seems likely, particularly given previous Cooking Mama releases that have stripped away mini-games and modes to justify cheap pricing.

Do you mind smaller games for less money or would you rather pay higher prices for a full game?

Camping Mama to pitch a tent on iPhone and iPod touch

Siliconera reported earlier this week on a trademark filed with the US Trade and Patent Office that sent the gaming industry abuzz with speculation about a new Cooking Mama offshoot. Camping Mama is all but a certainty, but you may not have known that there are plans to bring the mini-game maven to iPhone and iPod touch.

It's not exactly surprising news given that Cooking Mama and sister game Gardening Mama have both appeared for sale on the App Store. Gardening Mama will simply be an extension of the series, although hopefully with an eye for higher quality gameplay.

I expect mundane camping tasks to be a part of the game - starting a fire without matches, cooking meals, pitching a tent. But what about the nitty-gritty outdoor chores like digging a latrine, laying bear traps around the campsite for protection against grizzlies, and removing ticks with the edge of a heated knife?

We can only hope.

Back to the Future episodic adventure won't make it to iPad until 2011

Developer Telltale Games finally confirmed what we've long suspected: adventure series Back to the Future will be released as individual episodes for iPad. It's great news if you like adventure games and the Back to the Future movies, but you may not have caught the release date.

That's because it's looking likely that the first episode won't appear for sale on the App Store until January 2011. The initial PC and Mac release is schedule for December, with iPad soon after. That could be a few days later or a few months.

Given the staggered release for Puzzle Agent, it's not out of the realm of possibility that Back to the Future would come out several weeks after the primary PC release. While slightly disappointing, the extra time might be good for getting the game in tiptop shape.

Call of Duty: Black Ops to be ported to iPhone and iPod touch

With sales of Call of Duty games continuing to decline on Nintendo DS, it's only a matter of time until the franchise takes a risk on a new portable.

Black Ops may very well be that opportunity with speculation swirling that the Nintendo DS version is being ported to iPhone and iPod touch later this year.

According to developer n-Space, the Nintendo DS market has all-but "collapsed," which means there's interest in seeing how well the game can sell on iPhone and iPod touch. The concern is that the demand for low prices on the App Store will limit sales, but underwhelming sales on DS are somewhat forcing Activision's hand.

If true, don't get too excited - the game would only be a port and not fully optimised for iPhone in the same manner as other shooters like N.O.V.A. 2 or Modern Combat 2: Black Pegasus. Still, the prospect of Call of Duty: Black Ops on iPhone and iPod touch is tantalising.