In a week in which Tim Cook was named the most influential gay man in America, Apple Stores went green in advance of Earth Day and much, much more, app developers continued to do what they do best: to churn out high-quality apps to improve all of our lives.
I’ve chosen four great apps for this week’s app roundup — including a smart calendar app, a truly awesome photography app, and some great new games. Check out our picks below.
There’s nothing better than kicking back and playing an iOS game that respects your time, money and energy. Games that keep you entertained without costing you too much (especially at first) can be a great way to spend your time, whether you’re chilling on the couch at home, on the subway home after a long day at work, or waiting at the dentist’s office.
Here are all the hot new iOS games we found ourselves playing this month.
There are times for precision racing games and times for, well, blowing the hell out of some giant vehicles. Guess which category Atypical Games’ newly-announced Infinite Tanks falls into?
Having previously made the entertaining Battle Supremacy and Sky Gamblers, Atypical’s Infinite Tanks is coming to iOS, tvOS and OS X this summer. Check out the trailer below:
If you want to strike it rich on the App Store, here’s a hint: make a game.
Americans who own an iPhone spent an average of $35 on apps and in-app purchases last year, only instead of forking over cash for productivity or education apps, the majority of that money goes to gaming.
With the new iPhone SE and 9.7-inch iPad Pro announced, it was a big week for Apple. But it’s also been a good seven days for developers, with a slew of super-awesome apps arriving in the App Store for iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple TV.
Whether you’re looking for a great productivity tool for staying on top of task management, a fantastic port of an arcade classic, or the best weather app for Apple TV, check out our “app of the week” picks below.
What better way to spend your Sunday?
As anyone who has read my coverage of the superb iOS game Monument Valley will know, I’m a huge sucker for beautiful puzzle games.
Well, it seems that 2016’s going to be a good year for me (and plenty of likeminded gamers), since a new trailer showing off an upcoming iOS game called Mekorama, built by the developer behind the very engaging Odd Bot Out, has just been released. And, boy, does it look great!
Check it out below.
In some kind of weird time vortex that makes me feel like it’s 1991 again (now if only I could find my original cassette of Nirvana’s Nevermind!), Apple is giving everyone the chance to huddle around their TV set again playing SEGA Genesis classic Sonic the Hedgehog.
That’s because the original platformer featuring everyone’s favorite blue-spined, ring-collecting, chili dog-eating speedster just landed on Apple TV — with sequels Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and Sonic CD following later this month.
What better way is there to spend a Sunday than by catching up on the latest great iOS apps?
Whether you’re wanting to transform the way you text with a fantastic new messaging tool, or just fancy unwinding with a top-down, open-world driving game that makes Grand Theft Auto look tame by comparison, you’ve come to the right place.
Check out our top picks below.
Nintendo’s first ever smartphone game will finally land on iOS and Android this month — and we now know when and where it will be making its world debut.
Called Miitomo — and described by its creators as a “smart-device app that sparks one-of-a-kind conversations between you and your friends” — the game will first be available to download in Japan on March 17.
If you’re looking to unwind this fine Sunday by sampling the latest App Store delectables for your iPhone, iPad or Apple Watch, look no further: Cult of Mac has your hookup!
Whether you’re on the hunt for a fun racing game, a new and surprisingly great alternative to Siri, or a promising photo and video-editing app created by a 16-year-old dev, we’ve got what you’re searching for.
Check out our picks below. You won’t be disappointed.
Ready to get your adventure game on? Thimbleweed Park, coming later this year, could be your ticket to doing just that.
Back in 1987, Ron Gilbert and Gary Winnick created Maniac Mansion, the classic LucasArts adventure tale. Now they’re back with Thimbleweed Park, a charming indie adventure game that hopefully brings the genre into the modern world, leaving behind the random puzzles and dead ends of days past.
Check out the new trailer below to see what’s headed our way.
The weekend’s halfway gone already, but if you fancy a lazy Sunday getting up to date with the very best apps available for your Apple device, Cult of Mac has your back.
From great games to a superb email client or 100,000 artistic masterpieces at your fingertips, check out our picks below — spanning iPad, iPhone and even Apple TV.
It’s been a hot minute since everyone’s favorite stealthily murderous parkour series last graced iOS devices, but Assassin’s Creed is back courtesy of a new Assassin’s Creed: Identity game, which has just launched worldwide.
Check out the trailer below:
Is this the most adorable thing you’ve ever seen on your wrist? Yes, yes it is. It’s the tiniest game of pong you ever did see, too.
Game developer Matt Wiechec has made A Tiny Game of Pong for the Apple Watch and it hits all the right nostalgic notes for ancient gaming fans like myself and retro-cool folks like you.
Check it out.
Looking to play a fast-paced, arcade-inspired video game on your iPhone or iPad? Polyblast, like a modern mashup of retro arcade favorites Space Invaders, Missile Command and Tetris, has just gotten a Valentine’s Day update, making this simple yet addictive little shooter a fantastic choice for your day of love.
If you love simple arcade-style shooters, Polyblast will keep you well-sated with solid gameplay mechanics, a delightful visual style, and a soundtrack that’ll take anyone from the era of quarter-gobbling standup cabinets back to their alien-blasting youth.
Check out the video below for a quick look at the game in action.
The new Apple TV has been on sale for just over three months now, and the growing catalog of tvOS apps and games looks incredibly promising. It’s what Apple TV fans have been calling out for for years, and it doesn’t disappoint.
But does tvOS and a strong backing from iOS developers make Apple TV a good game console? Is it an ideal buy for casual gamers, and can it mount a real threat against the latest and greatest consoles from Sony and Microsoft? Do we even need another console?
Join us in this week’s Friday Night Fight between Cult of Android and Cult of Mac as we battle it out over those questions and more for your entertainment!
A Monument Valley fan has taken to the Lego Ideas website with plans to create real-life Lego models out of the award winning iOS game.
Lego Ideas user Isometry has created a page that you can log in and vote for if you want to support the project; it costs nothing but your time to do so.
And why wouldn’t you? This is a fantastic way to bring one of the best iOS games into the real world.
I’m not a fan of abstract puzzle games, which makes it quite a surprise how much I’m enjoying twofold inc., a fairly abstract puzzle game that challenges you to match colors with a bit of math.
Did I mention I don’t like math games, either? What gives?
It’s a new year and a new you, and your iOS device just might be crying out for some new gaming titles to keep you fat and happy while you manage all those resolutions.
Whether you enjoy a deeper role-playing and crafting adventure to keep you tapping well into the evening over a long weekend, a musical adventure that you can create yourself, a Mad- Max-inspired demolition derby, or a quick brain-booster puzzle or two to keep your wits about you, we’ve got the five best on offer right now.
In no particular order, here are the best new iOS games that we’ve culled from a long list on the App Store.
Former Secretary of State Donald Rumsfeld, one of the key individuals responsible for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, is now an iPhone game developer.
His first app, though, doesn’t boast his name, but British prime minister Winston Churchill’s. Even weirder? It’s a solitaire game.
I’d imagine it’s difficult to bring a beloved tabletop card game to iOS without losing something in the translation, but Exploding Kittens has found the trick.
Created by gaming veterans Elan Lee and Shane Small, and illustrated by internet cartoonist The Oatmeal (Matthew Inman), Exploding Kittens is like Russian Roulette, only with detonating felines. The game is fairly simple, but it has something not many gaming apps include these days: you’ll play with other people in the same room as you.
Even better, the devs have made all the in-app purchases (extra decks, new avatars) free as a launch special over the next four days. You don’t want to miss out on all the extra fun now, do you?
Are you willing to die with your boots on? Do you know the number of the beast? If so, you’ll want to keep an eye on this upcoming mobile game from heavy metal band extraordinaire, Iron Maiden.
In conjunction with Roadhouse Interactive and 50cc Games, the legends of metal are putting together a free-to-play role-playing game, due out this summer, on iOS and Android. It’s called Iron Maiden: Legacy of the Beast (naturally), and will apparently include characters from the long history of Iron Maiden album art, as well as a soundtrack that has previously unheard live recordings from the monsters of rock.
Stolen!, the app that let you buy and sell Twitter users in a fictional exchange, has been taken off the App Store by its developers due to privacy concerns.
“The app is no longer available in the App Store,” the Stolen! team tweeted Thursday afternoon. “We’ve heard everyone’s concerns and have decided the best thing to do is to shut down.”
We’re finishing up 2015, and now that you’re all good and tired of your families, we’ve checked out some great December iOS games to help you decompress in solitude.
This month’s offerings should cover all of your needs, whether you like to relax with a simple match-three title or need something more strategic. We have high-def graphics, pixel art, orchestrated music, chiptunes, straight-up fighting, and strategizing. December had something for everyone.
In no particular order, here were our favorite diversions from the December rush.
T’was the night(s) before Christmas and all through the App Store, not a creature was moving except… wait, was that? I thought I was alone in here!
Welcome to the world of Dark Fear, a retro-styled pixel horror game that’s creepy and creative enough to keep you tingling throughout the holiday season.
There’s a reason it’s so damn scary: Dark Fear was created by Arif Majothi, a 38-year-old game developer who got his start working on horror movies. He combined his mastery of the horror genre with his love of classic ’80s and ’90s Sierra games like Phantasmagoria (it even starts with an MS-DOS-style floppy disk prompt).
The resulting title pays homage to the past, while being spooky enough to scare the bejesus out of you in the closing days of 2015. What more could you ask for?