Get the week’s best gaming, politics and productivity apps

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Forza Street, Moxy, Microsoft Outlook, Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga and Google Drive: These are the apps and updates that caught our eye this week.
These are the apps and updates that caught our eye this week.
Image: Cult of Mac
Awesome Apps

We got a pair of welcome new diversions this week: Hugely popular racing game Forza Street finally roared onto iOS, and a great Lego Star Wars title got a long-overdue update.

But we also got more-serious new apps and updates. New political app Moxy gives you information and tools to keep you engaged in current events. And a couple of essential iOS productivity tools got some handy new features.

Get all the details in our weekly roundup of the best new and updated apps.

Forza Street screams onto iOS
Forza Street screams onto iOS.
Image: Microsoft

Forza Street

Wildly popular racing game Forza Street finally zipped onto iOS this week. The mobile version offers shorter, “cinematic” races perfect for killing time while you’re waiting in a quarantine line. And, just like in the Xbox and Windows versions, you can collect (and upgrade) iconic rides, from classic muscle cars to modern speedsters.

If you’re interested at all, you might want to put the pedal to the metal and give this free game a play ASAP. Do so, and you’ll unlock a special bonus.

“Play Forza Street in the first 30 days from May 5th 2020 to receive the 2017 Ford GT for your car collection!,” according to the App Store description.

Price: Free, with in-app purchases

Download: Forza Street from the App Store (iOS)

Moxy politics app: There's never been a better time to get engaged with politics.
There’s never been a better time to get engaged with politics.
Image: Moxy

Moxy

Sponsored: At no point in recent memory has the populace at large been as focused on politics as now. Whether you’re fired up about the 2020 presidential race, interested in local elections, or want to sound off on hot topics, new iOS app Moxy gives you the the tools you need to get engaged.

“Moxy is your app for bringing political change into the 21st century,” reads the App Store description. “Follow news, take surveys and polls, get the latest election coverage and make your voice heard.”

With forums, podcasts, live streams and other vital resources, Moxy keeps you informed. The “non-partisan online ecosystem” also lets you register your opinions — and makes it easy to get in touch with your local, regional and national elected representatives so you can sound off.

Price: Free, with in-app purchases

Download: Moxy from the App Store (iOS)

Apple Arcade’s “The Otherside” blends video games with board games.
If you subscribe to Apple Arcade, you can play The Otherside on your TV, tablet or phone.
Photo: The Label/Apple

The Otherside

The latest fright-filled addition to Apple Arcade is part virtual board game and part role-playing game. While playing The Otherside, you’ll use simulated dice, cards and the usual trappings to battle monsters and solve puzzles. But you’ll also enjoy effects not possible from cardboard and plastic game pieces.

Otherside is a turn based RPG and strategy board game where you will control four survivors who hope to push back the shadowy threat,” says the new game’s description. “Make your way through each level solving puzzles, fighting monsters, and destroying the spirit anchors that threaten our dimension.”

Darker than your typical Apple Arcade fare, it’s available now for subscribers who can squelch their fears of the supernatural.

Price: Free with $4.99 monthly Apple Arcade subscription

Play: The Otherside on Apple Arcade (iOS, iPadOS, tvOS)

Privacy Screen makes Google Drive just a bit more secure.
The Google Drive Privacy Screen helps you limit access to your personal files.
Photo: Google/Cult of Mac

Google Drive

We all love iCloud, but sometimes you need a little Google Drive. This week, the cross-platform cloud storage service added a feature that makes it far more appealing to iOS users: support for Face ID and Touch ID.

Google calls the new security feature, which uses Apple’s proprietary biometric systems “to protect your sensitive files from prying eyes,” Privacy Screen.

Price: Free, with in-app purchases

Download: Google Drive from the App Store (iOS)

Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga for iOS gets an update.
The classic game gets a rare update.
Image: Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment/TT Games/LucasArts/The Lego Group

Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga

Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga got an update for the first time in more than two years this week. The update adds support for new iOS versions and devices among other minor improvements.

While the update isn’t earth-shattering, it’s a welcome proof of life. “It’s a great game, and this update shows it’s not abandonware,” said Cult of Mac gamer Ed Hardy.

Price: Free, with in-app purchases

Download: Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga from the App Store (iOS)

Outlook's new Ignore Conversation feature could come in handy.
Outlook’s new Ignore Conversation feature could come in handy.
Photo: Microsoft

Microsoft Outlook

Microsoft’s venerable email app added a handy feature this week that lets you kick those annoying “reply all” email threads straight to the curb. Here’s how the company describes the latest update to Microsoft Outlook for iOS:

“Sick of that company-wide email that everyone is still replying all to? So are we. Stay focused on what’s important by getting it and all future replies out of your inbox and straight into deleted items with our new Ignore Conversation feature.”

That means never having to hear the stultifying discussion about who’s bringing what dish to that big post-quarantine office party you don’t plan to attend. Problem solved.

Price: Free, with in-app purchases

Download: Microsoft Outlook from the App Store (iOS)

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