free iPad games

iPad port of magical miniatures game should be the next big thing [Reviews]

By

Bring all the fun of an analog board game to your iPad.
Bring all the fun of an analog board game to your iPad.
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

If I ran the world, Krosmaster Arena, a fabulously fun and deep strategy game that started out as a board game with delightfully sculpted miniature figures, would be topping the charts right alongside stuff like Clash Royale or Angry Birds.

Of course, I don’t, but I’m hoping each one of you reading this tries it out on your iPad so you can experience the joy of playing it digitally.

Otherwise great platformer is virtually unplayable in VR Mode [Reviews]

By

Space Box
Space Box is a decent platformer, but its hook doesn't quite work.
Photo: Tom Graczyk

Let me say this up front: Space Box is a fantastic game. It’s challenging, fun, and has some really great mechanics and art. And if you have a set of virtual-reality goggles to plunk your iPhone into, you can even play it hands-free in 3-D using head-tracking controls.

And that’s where it runs into some trouble, but you shouldn’t let it ruin the game for you.

Words With Friends gets new bestie: Apple Watch

By

Get your Words With Friends game on with the new Apple Watch update.
Get your Words With Friends game on with the new Apple Watch update.
Photo: Zynga

If you’re one of those word game fiends that has a list of Words With Friends games as long as your arm, you now can actually use that long arm to wear your games on your wrist.

Zynga just updated its hugely popular Words With Friends app to include Apple Watch features, so you never have to go another second without knowing when it’s your turn to spell “ZA” or “MUZJIKS” for the win.

Peter Molyneux brings his earth-shattering god game to iOS

By

MeteorStrike_zoomed

Godus, the much-anticipated video game from god-game specialist designer Peter Molyneux and 22cans, is available now for iOS devices. Godus will let you play as your own private deity, letting you create and nurture a little island paradise on your iPad, iPod touch, or iPhone.

You’ll get to carve out landscapes with the touch of a finger, placing mountains, rivers, and flora wherever you like. You’ll also have the care and feeding of devout, worshipful followers of your very own.

“In Godus your hands will sculpt the mountains and carve rivers,” said Molyneux in a statement. “Your touch will create pastures for your people. You will be loved by tiny worshipers that need your help to grow and your direction to progress through the ages of civilization.”

You’ll love to hate TwoDots’ ridiculously addictive puzzles

By

TwoDots

I know that TwoDots, the followup to last year’s megahit Dots, has been out for a little while, but I have a pretty good excuse for not having reviewed it yet: I’ve been playing it this whole time.

It’s taken me so long to get to this article, in fact, that the developer has since released an update with a bunch more levels, and now this review is timely again. So take that, Time.

Anyway, TwoDots is a lot of fun. Provided you’re incredibly lucky.

Tilt your way to innocent joy with Grub’s snake-style game

By

Grub has super solid tilt controls -- a rarity in iOS games. Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac
Grub has super solid tilt controls -- a rarity in iOS games. Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

Every once in a while, it’s good to take a step back from the more intense flavors of gaming available on your iPhone or iPad and just play a game that’s pure fun.

Grub, sequel to the hit game from independent game studio Pixowl, Greedy Grub, is one of those purely fun experiences that just begs to be played.

Last week at the Electronic Entertainment Expo, I got a chance to try this delightful little Snake-style game out on the developer’s iPad, and was enchanted by the visuals right off the bat.

Take a look at the video below to see what I mean.

Twin-stick shooter Ekon the Cyborg is the best kind of throwback

By

Ekon the Cyborg

I really can’t get enough of twin-stick shooters.

Ekon the Cyborg by Wicked Dog Games
Category: iOS Games
Works With: iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch
Price: Free

I don’t know what it is, but they have a very specific kind of frantic energy that appeals to me without being overwhelming. And I like them so much that every time I have an opportunity to play one on iOS, I give it a chance despite the fact that my iPhone has no sticks to twin, so the touch controls usually suck.

Ekon the Cyborg is a new two-pad shooter that somehow has controls that work. And I’m as shocked as anyone. But beyond that, it’s a nostalgic and colorful romp that is pretty much made of my childhood.

Plot Twistz fills your daily quota of movies and puns

By

Plot Twistz

Here’s a quick, funny, and surprisingly challenging word game for movie buffs.

Plot Twistz by Adrenaline Punch
Category: iOS Games
Works With: iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch
Price: Free

Plot Twistz presents you with a slightly modified plot to a famous film, and your job is to figure out the name of the augmented movie. You get the answer by changing one letter of the original title, which doesn’t sound like much, but you’d be surprised.

It’s also pretty hilarious if you love puns.

Rhythm runner Record Run makes your music collection more fun

By

Record Run

If you like rhythm games at all, stop reading right now and go download Record Run.

Record Run by Harmonix
Category: iOS Games
Works With: iPhone, iPad iPod Touch
Price: Free

I can elaborate if you insist, but here’s what you need to know: It’s from the developer of Frequency, Amplitude, Guitar Hero, Rock Band, and Dance Central. It’s a colorful runner with simple gameplay and personality for days. And with a few taps, the game will make a level from any song stored on your iOS device.

Oh, and it’s free. Just go get it right now.

This Week in Weird: 4 games about gettin’ them dollas

By

Weird games header
Photo courtesy of Meghan Stratman

Hundreds of new games come out every week in the App Store. A select few are the next must-play title that everyone will be talking about (and ripping off) for the foreseeable future. Most of them are perfectly decent but may not receive the attention they deserve. And then you have the third group: games so odd, bizarre, and head-scratching that you’re not sure what to make of or do with them.

They aren’t necessarily bad; they’re just confusing and weird. And worst of all, people may never know that they exist. But that’s why we’re here.

Here are some of the strangest games to drop into the App Store this week, and they’re all about playing with fat stacks of cash. Or change. What you do with this information is between you and your iPhone.

Spirit Run: Fire vs. Ice will challenge your coordination and stress management

By

Spirit Run

I’ve been playing video games for almost 30 years. I like to think that I’ve developed a certain level of hand-eye coordination and an ability to recognize patterns and learn rules reasonably quickly.

Spirit Run: Fire vs. Ice by Lunagames
Category: iOS Games
Works With: iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch
Price: Free

But Spirit Run: Fire vs. Ice, a new endless runner from developer Lunagames, made me question all of that. Suddenly, I was transforming when I wanted to jump, and jumping when I wanted to slide, and just falling the hell off of things that I normally wouldn’t.

That isn’t to say that it’s a bad game; it’s actually quite good. But be prepared to feel like a monkey trying to do algebra. You know, if that’s a thing that one might call upon monkeys to do.

This Week in Weird: 4 oddball games about food

By

Weird games header
Photo courtesy of Meghan Stratman

Hundreds of new games come out every week in the App Store. A select few are the next must-play title that everyone will be talking about (and ripping off) for the foreseeable future. Most of them are perfectly decent but may not receive the attention they deserve. And then you have the third group: games so odd, bizarre, and head-scratching that you’re not sure what to make of or do with them.

They aren’t necessarily bad; they’re just confusing and weird. And worst of all, people may never know that they exist. But that’s why we’re here.

Here are some of the strangest games to drop into the App Store this week, and they’re all about food (mostly desserts, oddly enough). What you do with this information is between you and your iPhone.

Endless runner gives you highs, lows and a fat guy jumping bombs

By

Hill Runner

When you first start playing Hill Runner, it seems impossible. And then after a few dozen dismal failures, you have a really good run and restore your faith in yourself. And then you’ll mess up the next try immediately.

Hill Runner by Stephen Brown
Category: iOS Games
Works With: iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch
Price: Free

It’s a glass case of emotion, this game.

But it’s very simple, and it’s free, and it’ll offer some distraction and charm for a few minutes if that’s all you’re looking for.

Racing game Greedy Ladder might be the cutest thing ever

By

Greedy Ladder

Every once in a while, something drops into the App Store that makes my Grinch heart grow three sizes. So after I take the pills my doctor gave me to keep me from dying when that happens, I spend some time with the game and see if it’s any good. And this one, which a 7-year-old boy designed, is actually pretty fun.

Greedy Ladder by 18th Day Limited
Category: iOS Games
Works With: iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch
Price: Free

Greedy Ladder is a new free-to-play game in which you play as one of eight boys or girls (the differences are cosmetic) climbing a ridiculously tall ladder in one of six major cities. It’s a racing game: The goal is to reach the top as quickly as possible while eating healthy foods that will speed you up and avoiding junk food and inedible objects that slow you down.

All proceeds from the game go to charity, apparently, so that’s pretty cute, too.

Equilibrium combines magic square fun with an evil timer

By

Equilibrium

Magic squares have always vexed me. I understand the concept — arrange a grid of numbers so that the rows and columns add up to predefined values — but actually doing them is beyond me.

Equilibrium by Bavlos Boutros
Category: iOS Games
Works With: iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch
Price: Free

So maybe I’m not the best person to review Equilibrium, a new iOS game that is nothing but magic squares for days, but I think I can put my own incompetence aside to recommend it. It has great presentation, a good challenge and is as accessible as can be.

I’m still awful at it, but hey.

This Week in Weird: 4 bizarre ripoffs of popular games

By

Weird games header
Photo courtesy of Meghan Stratman

Hundreds of new games come out every week in the App Store. A select few are the next must-play title that everyone will be talking about for the foreseeable future. Most of them are perfectly decent but may not receive the attention they deserve. And then you have the third group: games so odd, bizarre, and head-scratching that you’re not sure what to make of or do with them.

They aren’t necessarily bad; they’re just confusing and weird. And worst of all, people may never know that they exist. But that’s why we’re here.

Here are some of the strangest games to drop into the App Store this week, and they’re all weirdo versions of other titles. What you do with this information is between you and your iPhone.

Sinkers lets you tap, swipe, and curse your way to victory

By

Sinkers

Sinkers has been out for a couple weeks now, but if you haven’t played it yet, you should.

Sinkers by Bitzerland
Category: iOS Games
Works With: iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch
Price: Free

It’s a minimalist puzzle game with two controls: You tap to remove all of the pieces of the same color that are touching, and you swipe up to “sink” the board and fill in the gaps from the pieces you’ve removed.

You have 20 moves to make as many points as you can. And that’s basically all you need to know, other than that this game is worth your time.

Featherweight Burds Is Mercifully Short [Review]

By

Burds

There’s nothing inherently wrong with Burds, and yet I’ve never been so confused about why I continued to play a game.

Burds by Tiny Marble
Category: iOS Games
Works With: iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch
Price: Free

It’s a little heavy on in-app purchases, but I can ignore those with only a touch of annoyance. And while Burds is shallow, fairly mindless, and dumb, it doesn’t take that long to play.

So I’m a little conflicted.

Catena Enables Lessons Onscreen, Encouraging Ingenious Usage. Sagebrush. [Review]

By

Catena

If you couldn’t tell by now, I’m a sucker for a good word game, and here’s a new multiplayer offering with an interesting idea behind it.

Catena by Fusee
Category: iOS Games
Works With: iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch
Price: Free ($0.99 upgrade)

Catena is all about you and your opponent making a chain of words. One player starts, and then the other has to come up with another word that uses one or more of the last letters of the previous entry. For example, if I played “wholesome,” my opponent could play “somewhat” or “metric” or anything else that continues the chain.

It has a few hiccups along the way, but it’s mostly a good time.

This Week In Weird: 5 Games You Won’t Believe Exist

By

Weird games header
Photo courtesy of Meghan Stratman

Hundreds of new games come out every week in the App Store. A select few are the next must-play title that everyone will be talking about (and ripping off) for the foreseeable future. Most of them are perfectly decent but may not receive the attention they deserve. And then you have the third group: games so odd, bizarre, and head-scratching that you’re not sure what to make of or do with them.

They aren’t necessarily bad; they’re just confusing and weird. And worst of all, people may never know that they exist. But that’s why we’re here.

Here are some of the strangest games to drop into the App Store this week. What you do with this information is between you and your iPhone.

Hearthstone Is Our iOS Game Of The Week [Editor’s Pick]

By

Hearthstone splash screen

Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft came out on iPad this week, and I can’t seem to stop playing it. The amazingly well-balanced digital collectible card battling game has got its hooks in me and won’t let up.

This is the same game as the one that came out on Mac and PC last month, but in an easy to transport and play iPad version. The touch controls are well suited to the gameplay, and you’ll find quite a bit of depth once you figure out the basic card game itself.

I spent a little time recording this free-to-play game and chatting about it in the video below.

Wow Your Friends And Enemies In Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft [Review]

By

photo: Rob LeFebvre, Cult of Mac
photo: Rob LeFebvre, Cult of Mac

Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft is a digital collectible card game in the vein of Magic: The Gathering, only set in the high-fantasy World of Warcraft universe. The Mac and PC version came out last month after an extended open beta period.

What may not be apparent from the above is that Hearthstone is hands down the best card battler I’ve ever played. Putting it on iPad makes it that much more habit-forming. The game is full of awesome and bad Scottish accents, which makes it all the better. (“UUUUUUUUUther versus Jaaaaaaynuh.”)

It’s really not fair — I was just starting to leave the iPad at home in favor of only the Macbook Pro in my bag. Now I need to take the tablet with me once again.

Time Gap Crams Every Free-To-Play Game Into One [Review]

By

Time Gap

Ambition isn’t a bad thing, but it can get in the way.

Time Gap by Absolutist
Category: iOS Games
Works With: iPhone, iPad
Price: Free

Time Gap is a free-to-play title that tries to be all free-to-play games at once. It’s mostly a hidden-object game with a plot about the ghosts of famous historical figures guiding you on a mission to discover where all the people of Earth disappeared to, but along the way, you’ll also play minigames like the ones you tab over to during the day instead of working.

It does all of these things capably enough, and it’s an interesting compendium with a lot of variety. But in the end, it’s a free-to-play game, and it is free-to-play as hell.

The Ruins Of Civilization Make For Some Sweet Ramps In Trials Frontier [Review]

By

Trials Frontier

If I’ve learned nothing else from science-fiction shows like Firefly and Cowboy Bebop, it’s this: If society crumbles, even a little, we will revert back to a Wild-West mode of life.

Trials Frontier by RedLynx
Category: iOS Games
Works With: iPhone, iPad
Price: Free

I’m not sure why that is. Maybe it’s just more simple. Maybe it’s more practical. Odds are, though, that it’s just a cool motif for a story, and if you can get some spaceships or motorbikes in there, too, it’s like a bonus.

Trials Frontier, the latest in publisher Ubisoft’s physics-driven racing game franchise is out now, and it takes place in a rustic, post-apocalyptic world. But if you don’t care about that stuff, it’s also the series’ first appearance on mobile. And it’s free to play. And it’s really, really good.

In New Game of Thrones App, You Wait or You Pay [Review]

By

Game of Thrones Ascent

For each noble house in the Seven Kingdoms, the choices that leaders make often lead to tragedy and ruin. In Game of Thrones: Ascent, you play as an up-and-coming noble who, through endless decision-making and item crafting, can move a bit closer to the Iron Throne. However, failure and death aren’t a real option in Ascent; instead, it’s all about waiting and paying.

Game of Thrones: Ascent by Disruptor Beam
Category: iOS Games
Works With: iPad
Price: Free

Game of Thrones: Ascent originally launched on Facebook, and it’s a free to play game, so you can expect two things right off the bat. First, this casual game is so basic that you can’t possibly lose — the only consequence for making poor decisions is that you’ll waste some time. Second, there’s a lot of waiting involved, and even the most basic actions can take hours to complete.