Posted By: wraggster
In January 2012, we suggested 50 iOS games that deserved your time. These 20 represent the progress of the past two years, and span from cult curios to the big names that spawn clones. You can read our latest in-depth report on the state of iOS gaming here.
[h=1]Rayman Jungle Run
PastaGames, Ubisoft[/h]Of iOS’s copious auto-runners, PastaGames’ reduction of all that’s good about Rayman sits at the top. With none of the microtransaction contrivances that forced Fiesta Run’s spoilsport level design, Jungle Run feels like a complete platform game even without a D-pad.
[h=1]Rymdkapsel
Grapefrukt[/h]Swedish one-man studio Grapefrukt’s game distils the tower defence and strategy genres to their essence, tasking players with constructing a space base from a random selection of tetrominoes. Build, gather and defend to stave off your inevitable death for as long as possible.
[h=1]Year Walk
Simogo[/h]In this disquieting small-screen experience, Swedish studio Simogo combines local folklore with
a series of touchscreen-tuned puzzles. It’s a haunting, and macabre, adventure. A cleverly integrated companion app and a breathless endgame complete one of the App Store’s most intriguing prospects.
[h=1]Ridiculous Fishing
Vlambeer[/h]Tilt to avoid schools of fish as your line sinks, grab as many as you can
as it rises, then shoot them to bits as they arc into the sky. Ridiculous Fishing’s simple conceit masks an upgrade system of surprising depth, and proves that few understand rhythm and feel quite like Vlambeer.
[h=1]Angry Birds Star Wars
Rovio[/h]The most complete – and humorous – of Rovio’s series, Angry Birds Star Wars blends classic bombardment, Space’s gravity-based levels and a brand that’s almost as well known as its own. Who isn’t tempted by the thought of pelting AT-ATs with birds?
[h=1]Beat Sneak Bandit
Simogo[/h]Even without the catchiest tunes this side of the Mushroom Kingdom, Simogo’s twist on stealth would be unmissable. Your thief can only move with taps on the beat, which infuses the game’s jiving puzzle-box rooms with finger-tapping rhythm to match. Add in a colourful sense of style and the result is a brain-teaser with soul.
[h=1]Clash Of Clans
Supercell[/h]Clans’ immovable place at the top of the iOS charts has made it the figurehead for all that’s wrong with the App Store, but its evil is overstated. It’s hard to begrudge Supercell a few microtransactions when the core base-building and tower-defence mechanics are executed so well.
[h=1]The Room
Fireproof[/h]Fireproof makes the strongest case for touchscreen controls with its beautiful and intricate locked boxes and puzzle tables built to be explored by observation and touch. Apple’s iPad was born for those knobs, buttons, switches and sliders, and mouse control would be a poor substitute for hands-on interaction.
[h=1]868-Hack
Michael Brough[/h]In a world saturated by roguelikes, 868-Hack manages to stand apart thanks to its striking retro computer aesthetic and unflinching difficulty. Risk and reward have rarely been so closely pitched as they are here, with every pickup adding to your hacking abilities but generating yet more unrelenting enemies.
[h=1]Puzzle & Dragons
GungHo[/h]‘Bejeweled meets Pokémon’ is a fine enough pitch, but it’s too simplistic a description for this staggeringly deep game. There’s always something to do – feeding your team to power them up, hunting specific materials to evolve them further, or ranking up to increase your stats. What starts as a bus stop distraction quickly becomes an obsession that eats entire evenings.
[h=1]Super Hexagon
Terry Cavanagh[/h]This is a test of reactions in which you guide a triangle through the gaps in various shapes as they collapse towards the centre of the screen. It starts off hard and tops out near inhuman, but every failure is simply a chance to have another go.
Spaceteam
Henry SmithFew games let you ride the catastrophe curve like Spaceteam. Your crew of local co-op friends is trapped on a stricken craft, and you need to call out failing systems for others to fix on their instrument panel while everyone else does the same. It’s a frantic, raucous recreation
of sci-fi’s tensest moments.
[h=1]Device 6
Simogo[/h]Simogo puts a new spin – literally – on the concept of the text adventure, with players rotating their iOS display to keep up with text that shifts orientation as its amnesiac protagonist explores the environment. It’s remarkable – no wonder it’s a strong contender for IGF domination.
New Star Soccer
New Star GamesAn intoxicating blend of Flick Kick Football’s controls and Football Manager’s stat management, New Star Soccer’s iOS release transformed Simon Read’s decade-long hobbyist PC project into a global success. It’s even been championed by the very pro sportsmen whose lives, both on and off the pitch, it seeks to recreate.
[h=1]Pandemic: The Board Game
F2Z Digital Media[/h]Casting you and up to three friends as CDC agents, Pandemic is an intense co-operative game of global infection control. This iPad conversion is beautifully presented, and some of the most social fun you can have with a single Apple device.
[h=1]Skulls Of The Shogun
17-Bit[/h]Analogue strategy could have been messy on a touchscreen, but 17-Bit has summoned a superb control scheme for this port. Wickedly irreverent and tactically rich, Skulls’ turn-based journey suits snatched moments, and crossplatform play keeps this a vital install long after you’ve finished the 24 story levels.
Tilt To Live
One Man Left StudiosGeometry Wars for the iOS generation, this accelerometer-controlled survival game simply asks you to avoid the red dots while collecting automatically deployed weapons such as black holes and homing missiles. With no sticks, let alone virtual controls, this is one of the purest shooters out there.
Frozen Synapse
Mode 7The immediacy of mobile devices has turned sitting down at a PC for anything less than work or a lengthy gaming session into an inconvenience, so Mode 7 responded with a port of its phase-based strategy game. Now a two-minute turn is never more than a reach into the pocket away.
[h=1]Zombies, Run
Six To Start[/h]Those who find repetitive electronic beats aren’t quite incentive enough to keep up a fitness routine will find much to like in Six To Start’s mission-based audio adventure. Start running and within minutes you’ll hear the shuffling undead hordes at your back; keep going to gather supplies to improve your home base.
XCOM
2KXCOM has become the face of premium gaming on iOS, with its premium presentation and premium pricetag, but it’s an experiment that worked for 2K. It also prepared the ground for the brilliant Panzer Corps at £14/$20 and a new generation of ‘high’-price, high-quality PC ports.
http://www.edge-online.com/features/...to-play-today/
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