Great New Games for Portable Devices
The last couple of months have brought us some great new games onto iOS devices. I’ve been finding myself playing these during passing moments, while I watch TV, or whenever I can afford to waste a few minutes on a game. I figured I’d share with you a few select diversions that are getting my attention as of late.
The latest addition to the Angry Birds family of games, “Angry Birds Star Wars”, zoomed up to #1 in the Apple US App Store in a record 2.5 hours after it’s release on Thursday. Priced at $0.99 for the iPhone or iPod Touch or $2.99 for the iPad version, it’s a great rendition of Star Wars brought to life by the Angry Bird characters. It can be a lot of fun seeing the various new birds, dressed as Luke, Han, Ben, Chewbacca, and C-3P0, with new powers to match. As ever, these Rebels are combatting the evil Empire, led by a porcine Darth Vadar and his troops of stormtroopers. Game play is the same as any other Angry Birds game, but the thing to watch for here is in-app purchases. Otherwise, it’s a pleasant diversion and worth the initial purchase price.
Fans of “Where’s My Water?” will find themselves entranced with “Where’s My Perry?” featuring Perry the Platypus from the Disney Channel series “Phineas and Ferb”. Helping Agent P to get back to headquarters requires some determination, especially if you’re trying to finish the levels with all three gnomes. Sound weird? Maybe, but this game will keep you coming back for more. Perfect for the whole family, this game is a bargain at $0.99, especially since it’s formatted for both iPad and iPhone.
For social gaming, “SongPop” has been getting some play. Like many games that are social-based, once you connect with Facebook, you play opponents by guessing an Artist or Song from the audio clip played. Time is against you as you scramble to get the right answer more quickly than your opponent. You are given certain genres of music to play with initially and can purchase more with credits accrued through game play. If you’re a music buff, you have to give this a try. The free version features in-app ads, so it costs $1.99 to ditch these. There are also in-app purchases but you can certainly play without them.
I’m also enjoying an old classic board game brought to life on the digital platform: “Monopoly”. I’ve been only playing on the iPad version, which is outrageously priced at $9.99. The only reason I purchased it was during a sale, where it was offered for $1.99, or otherwise I wouldn’t be playing this at all. Options to play opponents on the same iPad or via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi are nice additions to the standard game, and the game is gorgeous. Settings are easily adjustable so custom game options, like getting paid when you land on “Free Parking”, make for lots of repeat play opportunities. The iPhone version is $0.99, so that might be a better option for many.
Of course, iOS isn’t the only platform for many of these games. “Angry Birds Star Wars”, “Where’s My Perry?”, “SongPop”, and “Monopoly” are all available for Android devices through the Google Play store. Whichever type of device you use, I’m sure you’ll find some enjoyment with these games.
