The Rumour Mine: Asphalt 6 in late spring 2011, Eliminate sequel canned, and an Angry Birds copycat with bunnies on the way

Games are so rarely cancelled in the world of iPhone gaming. When you consider that it takes only a few months to develop a game from start to finish, there's usually more incentive to release a game than to can it.

That's what makes news of ngmoco's Eliminate sequel being cancelled so unusual. Not only did the game look promising, but it appeared far along in development. Star Wars: Imperial Academy is getting plenty of attention, but it's still hard not to be sad about this rumoured cancellation.

Even so, there are plenty of iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad games still on the way including Asphalt 6 and indie copycat creation Angry Bunnies. 2011 ho!

A new independent studio by the name of Lagosoft has started work on Angry Bunnies, a copycat of Rovio Mobile's hit Angry Birds. Replacing birds with rabbits, the game has you prodding bunnies so that they hop and collect eggs located on the opposite side of the screen.

It's a hilariously blatant ripoff that could light up the App Store sales charts come spring when Easter fever hits. Seasonally themed games have done quite well lately - just look at Angry Birds Halloween, which is still in the Top 10 nearly three weeks after the October holiday has come and gone.

The question is whether Angry Bunnies will be anything of quality or just a shameless hack job. Borrowing and refining good ideas isn't necessarily a bad thing (some of the best games requisition concepts from older titles and make them better), but if it's just an attempt to make a quick buck, Lagosoft may not want to put all of its Easter eggs in this single basket.

With Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit now out of the way, expect Gameloft to start the publicity engine soon for the next instalment of its well-regarded Asphalt arcade racing series. The sixth edition is looking likely for a late spring 2011 release for iPhone and iPod touch.

Gameloft has yet to acknowledge work on a new Asphalt (despite posting a job listing for a producer for the game at the company's Montreal location) but given the success of the previous two iPhone instalments, a new game in the series is a foregone conclusion.

Along with improved visuals (high-definition graphics supporting iPhone 4 and fourth-generation iPod touch handsets is guaranteed), expect support for network multiplayer - a feature previously promised for Asphalt 5.

Licensed vehicles and performance upgrades will return, although it's questionable whether the buxom ladies featured prominently in previous iterations will return.

That's probably a good thing, as I'd like to see more time spent tuning up multiplayer and adding depth to the single-player campaign than on photo shoots of models that have nothing to do with racing.

If you were surprised to learn late last week of ngmoco's newest freemium shooter, Star Wars: Imperial Academy, then you're not alone. Neither ngmoco nor publishing partner THQ Wireless had mentioned the title to anyone. What you may also not know is that ngmoco has abandoned plans for an Eliminate sequel in order to develop this licensed shooter.

Apple editor Tracy Erickson played the game in June, expressing cautious enthusiasm for its unique structure and immediate action. That game has been cancelled, the engine used instead to build Star Wars: Imperial Academy.

The latter is currently available on the Canadian App Store where ngmoco claims it's undergoing a public beta. Unfortunately, early feedback is overwhelmingly negative: loads of technical problems, intrusive advertising, excessive in-app purchases, and clunky controls.

Here's hoping these problems are addressed before the game's general release later this month.