does-not-commute_971756507_ipad_02.jpgApril has been a particularly strong month for new iOS game releases, and this week that trend continues with a nice selection of highly-anticipated fare finally making its way to the App Store.

Let’s start with Mediocre’s hotly buzzed about game from GDC last month, the time-bending puzzle game Does not Commute. It is a strategic driving game where you must steer a variety of vehicles (one at a time) to their destinations. However, the twist is that each vehicle’s path then layers upon the previous ones’, creating more traffic which you need to avoid which could potentially slow you down and cause you to be unsuccessful in getting all of the vehicles to their destinations within the allotted time. It is a fresh concept and this is easily a MUST HAVE title. The game is completely free, but there is an optional $1.99 premium upgrade which enables the ability to continue from checkpoints.

Next up is the digital adaptation of the popular bluffing card game Coup. The object of the game is to bribe and bluff your way into being the last player with any influence. This Kickstarted digital release features all new artwork and the ability to play online multiplayer matched against other players from around the world. I have never played the physical version of the game before, so I’m looking forward to finally checking out this well-reviewed card game.

burn-it-down_946927501_ipad_01Burn It Down is a curious little surprise of a no-button pixel-art puzzle platformer, with and interesting (yet a little dark) love story narrative. You’ve awoken in your mansion only to discover that your love has been kidnapped and now you are trying to find her and determine why she was taken. You simply tap and hold either the left or right side of the screen to move in that direction, with jumps occurring automatically assuming you pick up enough speed.

Letterpad is a new, free word puzzle game from the folks at NimbleBit in which players are given 9 letters and a topic. They must then use that bank of letters to find all of the hidden words related to that particular puzzle’s topic. The game features over 200 puzzles, as well as the ability to create and share your own puzzles with friends and even play from your Apple Watch.

922318156_ipad_02.jpgEA invites players to “step into the Octagon®” with their favorite UFC fighters in their latest free-to-play sports title, EA SPORTS™ UFC®. “Choose from over 70 fighters in four divisions” (each with their signature moves) and train your fighter as he moves up the ranks. Fans of MMA fighting have surely already picked this one up, but seeing as it is free, even if you just have a passing interest in UFC, it’s probably worth giving this one a download and checking it out as Electronic Arts generally makes some pretty decent sports titles.

Next is the worldwide release of the free-to-play marble popper Bubble Bath Blast. While Gameblyr isn’t really breaking much new ground here (if any really), fans of the genre will likely enjoy this cute pig and bubble bath-themed take as they try to help Porky free his rubber duck friends from different enchanted worlds.

Hidden Object game fans may enjoy Artifex Mundi’s latest offering, Demon Hunter: Chronicles from Beyond. Set in 1930s America, the game follows a woman who must “return to her family estate on Iowa Island to investigate the mysterious death of her mentor” on to come “face to face with an ancient evil from another world”. The game is free with the full game unlockable via a single $2.99 IAP (a special 40% off limited launch price).

Looking for something with a bit more zip?

945_945998991_ipad_02.jpgZen Studios is back with another all-new table for my absolute favorite iOS pinball game Zen Pinball. A week or so in advance of the theatrical release of Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, we get an Age of Ultron-themed table which features dedicated game modes for each Avenger, including “a first-person minigame to test your sharpshooting skills as Hawkeye” and “spectacular aerial and melee combat sequences between Iron Man and Ultron. You can purchase the new table for $1.99 from within the Zen Pinball (my preferred method) or Marvel Pinball apps.

Boost 2 developer Jonathan Lanis is back with more frenetic fun with his new game, Kayos. Self-described as “more intense, more challenging, and more chaotic than ever before” this game of avoidance promises to ratchet up the difficulty as you steer your ship through a never-ending maze of colorful falling 3D blocks. Kayos is currently on sale for 99¢ (50% off) for launch.

Finally that brings us to the three premium-priced titles of the night.

First is a rich-looking tower defense game (with a plot) called Iron Heart: Steam Tower TD from the team at 8Floor. Set in a “Victorian-era steampunk atmosphere, complete with Jules Verne stories, mechanisms, underground mines and cities” players must defend the planet against “an army of steam-powered robots”. This one looks like is has some nice production values so TD fans may want to check this one out.

982_982354972_ipad_02.jpgNext is Psychose Interactive’s highly anticipated third person psychological survival horror game, Forgotten Memories : Alternate Realities. Releasing first on iOS, the game bills itself as a “spiritual successor of the greatest horrific games from the 90’s like Silent Hill, Resident Evil and Alone in the dark”. In this first in a planned series of stand-alone games, you take on the role of Rose Hawkins, a strong independent woman who’s looking for a young missing girl. This seems to be a great time for horror games on iOS, because like last week’s Lost Within, the production values on this one are phenomenal! This creepy little mystery will take you roughly 3.5 hours to play straight-through and is available at a reduced price of $4.99 for launch week.

834_834715612_ipad_01.jpgLast, but by no means least, that brings us to Sorcery! 3, the third installment of inkle’s spectacular build-your-own narrative series based on Steve Jackson’s classic Sorcery! gamebook series. Even if you haven’t played the previous title’s in the series, you can jump right into the adventure with this book…and what a thrilling adventure it is indeed. Fight, run or cast a spell, the decision is yours, but you needn’t worry as no decision is ever truly permanent in Sorcery!, for should you die, just rewind and select a different path, and build a new narrative to see if you can make if further on your quest. If you have yet to experience one of these amazing apps, your really owe it to yourself to pick up Sorcery! 3.

And that does it for this jam-packed week of new releases.
I hope that you found at least one new game to entertain you.




Go to the second page of this post to watch the trailers for these games.