Wurdweb takes one aspect of a crossword puzzle and goes to town with it. Photo: Aran & Adriaan
Wurdweb is a new twist on crossword puzzles. The game supplies words and it’s up to players to fit as many as possible on a board. It’s one of those “easy to learn, hard to master” casual puzzle games.
It debuted Friday on the Apple Arcade subscription service.
Fantasian is a really gorgeous game. Enormous effort went into the look. Photo: Mistwalker/Apple Arcade
Fantasian, which mixes handmade sets with computer-generated characters, will soon be updated with new content that’ll double the amount of gametime available.
Fantasian is the creation of Hironobu Sakaguchi, who also made the classic Final Fantasy series. It debuted on the Apple Arcade gaming service in April and Part 2 is scheduled for release August 13.
Float up, leap high and raise the roof in Super Leap Day. Photo: Nitrome
There’s no reason leap day should only happen once every four years. With Nitrome’s Super Leap Day, it can be every day! This fast-paced one-button platformer offers a new level to play every single day.
And it’s not the only game to debut on Apple Arcade this Friday. A pair of classic titles are also available for subscribers at no additional cost.
Baldo: The Guardian Owls is an adventure game with a lot of influence from Studio Ghibli movies like Spirited Away. Photo: NAPS team
Baldo: The Guardian Owls is a Zelda-like puzzle adventure that’ll soon be on Apple Arcade. Players explore an open world meeting quirky characters but also fighting ferocious foes.
And this is just one of nine games launching on Apple’s gaming service in the near future, like Super Leap Day.
Trust Dr. Boom when he says, “Driving a racing car round an exploding race track is a pretty hazardous thing to do.” Photo: Electric Square
Detonation Racing bills itself as “the most dangerous, least sensible racing series ever devised.” Gameplay involves skillfully maneuvering around a track, but also maybe throwing a nuclear submarine at your opponents.
Not the prescription Nintendo wanted. Photo: Nintendo
If you want to see the doctor, you’d better hurry for an appointment. Dr. Mario, that is!
The worst performing of Nintendo’s mobile games on iOS, Nintendo has announced that it is shutting down Dr. Mario World, its update of 1990s puzzle game Dr. Mario. The game will be going offline on October 31 or November 1, depending on timezone. It launched in 2019.
After over a year of delays, the real Facebook Gaming service is available for iPhone and iPad. Image: Cult of Mac
Add Facebook to the list of companies offering a gaming service for iPhone. There’s a lengthy list of titles available on day one, including strategy, role playing, trivia and other types of games.
But don’t look for these in the App Store — Apple’s stringent rules on gaming services caused Facebook Gaming to be introduced as a web app instead.
Pretend you got the jetpack you always wanted in Jetpack Joyride+ on Apple Arcade. Photo: Halfbrick Studios
Jetpack Joyride+ launched on Apple Arcade Friday, allowing subscribers to play the classic game without the hassle of in-app purchases.
Strap on a jetpack and fly through an endless runner. Or ride a mechanical dragon or giant mech while wearing a crazy costume — the game offers all these modes.
Interested in a Netflix gaming service? Image: Netflix/Cult of Mac
Netflix seemingly isn’t content to compete with Apple (spoiler: it’s winning) over streaming video subscription services only. The media giant has now confirmed that it is planning to launch an Apple Arcade rival — and at no extra cost to its subscribers.
In a letter to shareholders, Netflix noted that it is still “in the early stages of the initiative,” but that it views it as a major piece of the puzzle in terms of dominating the entertainment landscape.
Tetris Beat isn’t your parents’ version of the game. Photo: Apple Arcade
Take Tetris and give it some rhythm and you get Tetris Beat, a fresh version of the puzzle classic. It includes music from Alison Wonderland and many other artists.
“Angry Birds Reloaded” is one of the classic games now available on Apple Arcade without the hassle of in-app purchases. Photo: Rovio
A trio of classic games have been updated just for Apple Arcade. That includes Angry Birds Reloaded, Alto’s Odyssey: The Lost City and Doodle God Universe.
All three debuted Friday on Apple’s subscription gaming service.
First there was 2015’s brilliant Alto’s Adventure. Then there was 2018’s superb Alto’s Odyssey. Now the third entry in the series, Alto’s Odyssey: The Lost City, is coming to Apple Arcade July 16 — and, boy, does the newly released trailer get our hopes up.
Describing the Alto’s games is a bit difficult. They’re, in essence, endless runners, in which the focus is on traversing environments such as snowy peaks and sandy dunes. But if that makes it sound like a sport’s game, you’d be wrong. These titles are all about the gorgeous, almost hypnotic graphics and sound that make it feel more like Monument Valley than SSX: Tricky.
The world's most popular AR geolocation game turns five! Photo: Niantic
Augmented-reality game Pokémon Go earned more than $5 billion from player spending in the five years it’s been around, says a new report from app analytics platform Sensor Tower Store Intelligence. Of this, App Store revenue from iOS users accounts for $2.4 billion — or approximately 47%.
Niantic launched Pokémon Go in July 2016. That means the game generated an average of $1 billion per year, making it by far the highest-earning geolocation AR app in the world. In the first half of 2021 alone, Pokémon Go raked in a massive $641.6 million across both Android and iOS.
Solitaire Stories is Klondike but with a plot. Photo: Red Games
Solitaire Stories is a new twist on the popular card game. Rather than just stacks of cards, there’s a storyline. And games get progressively harder to increase the challenge.
This is the latest addition to the Apple Arcade subscription gaming service for iPhone, Mac and more.
The wait is over. iPad and iPhone users can now enjoy Xbox Cloud Gaming, which includes 100+ console-quality games. Photo: Microsoft
Xbox Cloud Gaming is now available for any iPhone, iPad or Windows 10 user who wants it. It’s been in invite-only beta testing for months, but now all that’s required is an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription to start using the gaming service, which allows users to play 100+ console-quality games.
Thirty years speeds by, too fast for the naked eye. Photo: Minecraft
It’s somehow been 30 years since Sega’s rapid blue hedgehog mascot, Sonic, first speeded his way onto the Genesis and into video game history on June 23, 1991.
To celebrate the occasion, Minecraft has released an official DLC pack that lets you play through recreations of some of Sonic’s most iconic levels from the original Sonic the Hedgehog inside, well, Minecraft. It even includes blocky rings to collect.
If you’re a fan of Sega’s iconic spiky mammal, it looks like it’s well worth checking out. This 3D endless runner is all yours for 1,340 coins — or, approximately, $8 in real world terms. Check out the trailer below.
A vrey fun wrod gmae to snik yuor tteeh itno. Photo: Klemens Strasser
Looking for a fun brain-teaser this weekend? Look no further than Letter Rooms, a letter-jumblingly fun word game created by award-winning developer Klemens Strasser, maker of Subwords, Asymmetric and Elementary Minute.
The new $1.99 anagram-based game boasts more than 200 puzzles, broken down into a dozen topics — including animals, sports, pop culture, and more. What better way to dust off your mind after lockdown?
Hurry, hurry, hurry. Those Frenzic Industries Power Cores won’t build themselves, you know. Photo: The Iconfactory
Frenzic: Overtime, an arcade-style puzzle game, is the latest addition to Apple Arcade. Match the colorful pieces and shapes before the clock runs out.
And that’s not all. Game Dev Story+, an updated version of the App Store classic, debuted on Apple’s gaming service on Friday as well.
Angry Birds Reloaded is one of the classic games that’ll soon be available on Apple Arcade without the hassle of in-app purchases. Photo: Rovio
Three classic games are are getting updated and becoming part of the Apple Arcade subscription service. That includes Angry Birds Reloaded, Alto’s Odyssey: The Lost City and Doodle God Universe.
Go on an epic adventure in Legends of Kingdom Rush on Apple Arcade. Photo: Ironhide
Legends of Kingdom Rush just became the first new game to debut on Apple Arcade since early April. The medieval fantasy RPG is available for iPhone and Mac.
And more games are scheduled to appear on Apple’s subscription gaming service.
The Apple Design Awards celebrate the best iOS and iPad apps in a range of categories. Photo: Apple
The annual Apple Design Awards honor excellence in innovation, ingenuity, and technical achievement in iOS and iPadOS application and game design. A dozen winners were named Thursday in categories ranging from outstanding Interaction to apps that are just fun.
Go on an epic adventure in Legends of Kingdom Rush on Apple Arcade. Photo: Ironhide
The popular Kingdom Rush game is getting rebooted as a medieval fantasy RPG with a storyline. Legends of Kingdom Rush is coming June 11 exclusively to Apple Arcade for iPhone, Mac and more.
Choose your heroes to fight creeps and save the world.
Intel struck a blow against Apple by pointing out how weak Mac gaming is. The chip-maker held a presentation at Computex 2021, during which it said Windows laptops offer a “better gaming experience than 100% of Mac laptops.”
This will likely damage any remaining relationship the Intel has with Apple. But this was already in tatters as macOS transitions to Apple’s M-series processors and away from Intel ones.
Get your gaming fill with Apple Arcade. Graphic: Cult of Mac
Commencing May 25, both new and existing Verizon unlimited plan subscribers can get up to a year of free Apple Arcade, along with the other goodies already offered.
Customers on the $90 per month Get More Unlimited or $80 per month Play More Unlimited plans will receive the full year of free access. Meanwhile, those on other unlimited plans will get six months.