App Girl's iPhone App Reviews

We've Moved!

2009-09-08T15:03:00.001-07:00

App Girl reviews has now moved to it's new permanent

location at: http://www.appgirlreviews.com!

Check us out!

Pocket God

2009-08-21T12:40:00.000-07:00

Pocket God

Category: Game
Type: Simulation
Cost: 99cents
Rating: 9+
Current iTunes Reviews: 504 reviews, 4.5 stars

Description:
Episode 23: Bait Master
Because Ep 24: Idle Hands 2 is causing iPods and iPhones with 2.2 and 2.2.1 to crash, we are temporarily reverting to Bait Master! We apologize for the inconvenience, and will submit Ep 24 combined with Ep 25. Thanks for bearing with us!

Piranhas come to Pocket God! Inspired by Imangi Studio's Harbor Master, Pocket God has a new mini-game. Push the water to trigger a Tsunami to take the pygmies to the underwater ruins. Touch the new item, the Harbor Master anchor to attract hungry piranhas...and the pygmies are the Bait! Draw a line from piranhas to the pygmies to guide the piranha to its meal. The big change in strategy for this game is that you may arrange the pygmies however you prefer...adding new ones as you run out. Once a piranha is fed, guide it out as it swims off happy and full, but watch out! More are coming! See how many piranhas you can feed before two collide and fight causing the other piranhas to swim off, ending the game.

We are continuing the update but more complex updates are forcing us to take more time to get them right. Remember, your purchases keep us updating so spread the word! And updates are always FREE. For reviews and other info check out the Pocket Blog:

http://pocketgod.blogspot.com

What kind of god would you be? Benevolent or vengeful? Play Pocket God and discover the answer within yourself. On a remote island, you are the all-powerful god that rules over the primitive islanders. You can bring new life, and then take it away just as quickly. Exercise your powers on the islanders. Lift them in the air, alter gravity, hit them with lightning...you're the island god! All god powers are demonstrated in Pocket God's help menu.

Pocket God is an episodic microgame for you to explore, show your friends and have fun with. We have been growing the game with the help of player suggestions! What sort of godly powers would you like to see added?

Releases:

Ep 1 (1/9/09): Nowhere To Go, Nothin' To Do
Ep 2 (1/14/09): Does this Megabyte Make My App Look Fat?
Ep 3: (1/20/09): You Always Hurt the One You Lava
Ep 4: (1/29/09): Shake That App!
Ep 5: (2/5/09): A Storm is Coming
Ep 6: (2/14/09): And on the 7th Day, Rest!
Ep 7: (2/20/09): Just Give Us 5 Minutes
Ep 8: (2/26/09): Jump the Shark
Ep 9: (3/6/09): Idle Hands
Ep 10: (3/15/09): Hi, Dracula!
Ep 11: (3/23/09): A Mighty Wind
Ep 12: (4/8/09): Something's Fishy…
Ep 13: (4/8/09): March of the Fire Ants
Ep 14: (4/17/09): Say My Name!
Ep 15: (4/27/09): A New Home
Ep 16: (5/8/09); The Tyrannosaurus Strikes Back!
Ep 17: (5/19/09): Return of the Pygmy
Ep 18: (6/1/09): Surf's Up
Ep 19: (6/8/09): Fun 'n Games Until A Pygmy Gets Hurt
Ep 20: (7/3/09): Stop! My App is On Fire!
Ep 21: (7/9/09): Flipping the Bird
Ep 22: (7/24/09): Ooga Jump
Ep 23: (8/5/09); Bait Master
Ep 24: (8/19/09): Idle Hands 2 (Pulled!)

Next Episode *: Idle Hands 2: Caught with your Pants Down combined with Ep 25 (Title Withheld!)

* The "episode" title hints at the newest feature(s). The latest episode release contains ALL the features from previous releases.

Possible future additions:
Changing Temperature
More Weapons
Huts or other structures
More hungry sea creatures
Visitors from afar

What's new

Because of a glitch causing 2.2 and 2.2.1 iPods and iPhones to crash, we are temporarily reverting to Bait Master. We will submit Ep 24 and 25 as a combined update.

Pocket God is a simulation game, very similar to something like the Sims, with one major twist. Instead of simply watching your characters interact and occasionally pushing them in the right direction, you are an all-powerful God that controls their destinies! Will you decide to help the pygmies you rule over to find fulfillment and satisfaction? Perhaps it sounds more fun to sacrifice their lives for your own enjoyment?

Either way, Pocket God is a ton of fun. Open Feint integration tracks your achievements, which are awarded for hitting certain goals in the mini games. Be warned though; to gain most achievements, you must sacrifice various pygmies! Players will find enjoyment through attempting to harpoon several pygmies at one time, or perhaps feeding them to piranhas.

You also have full control over 3 worlds, and the possibilities are near limitless. Players control the weather, animals, and even the time of day. What will be the fate of the pygmies at the end of the day? Only you can decide. Pocket God is an excellent time waster for those people that enjoy simulation games, and will make an excellent addition to any iPhone's game collection!

Overall impression: 10/10
Value for your money: 9/10

Critter Defense

2009-08-21T10:14:00.000-07:00

Critter Defense

Category: Game
Type: Strategy
Cost: 99cents, SALE
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 37 reviews, 4 stars

Description:
Critter Defense!

-=- Discounted for a limited time! -=-

Critters are on the march! And only you can stop them...

Critter Defense is a cute, innovative tower defense game that breaks free from the grid and brings players a whole new level of tactical (and tactile) nuance. It's part action game, part puzzle game, and part strategy game. Featuring:

Deadly Enemies - Critters come in a variety of menacing breeds.

Deadlier Towers - Poison! Blast! Mud! Flame! Cannon! And many more.

Social Networking - See how your scores match up against your friends and the world!

In the tradition of games like Fieldrunners, TapDefense, geoDefense, PixelJunk Monsters, Desktop Tower Defense, and Plants vs Zombies, Critter Defense brings strategic depth that challenges your reflexes and your brain. Check it out!

============

Rave Reviews:

"...worth checking out for those tired of the same ol' same ol'." - 1Up.com

"Everything in Critter Defense is beautifully designed and the gameplay is fantastic..." - iPhoneWorld.ca

"This game is full of charm..." - Pocket Full of Apps

What's new

Now you can play iPod music in the background, also improved in-game music and vibration effects. And tweaks to the discussion forums. Sweet!

Critter Defense is an excellent tower defense strategy game. The game itself contains 3 worlds, each with 3 levels and a boss level. In order to complete a level, you must destroy 21 rounds of enemies before they break the defense of your tower. There are 8 different types of defensive units that you can build, and 3 of these are given to you. The other five must be unlocked by completing certain levels of the game.

Game play is somewhat slow at times, but it can be sped up. Clicking on the critter rounds icon on the top right will allow the next enemy to come out, even if the current enemy is not fully defeated yet. Defense units can be upgraded. The more hits a unit gets, the stronger it becomes. When a level is complete, you will be given a score, and a ribbon based on how high that score is. Levels can be replayed to achieve a higher score or to get the better medals.

The biggest issue that this game has is that it simply goes by too quickly. Despite how fun it is, it can be finished after only about an hour of gameplay. In future updates, I would love to see additional worlds. Boss battles are a great addition to this game; they actually take quite a lot of hits, as well. This is an excellent game; it just needs a little more content.Then again, for 99 cents, a game with an hour of gameplay that you actually want to put the full hour into is quite a bargain! If you like tower defense strategy games, I recommend giving Critter Defense a go. You won't be disappointed.

Overall impression: 9/10
Value for your money: 7/10

Run Run Sheep

2009-08-21T09:47:00.000-07:00

Run Run Sheep

Category: Game
Type: Puzzle
Cost: 99cents, SALE
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: n/a

Description:
** LIMITED TIME PRICE DROP FROM $3.99 TO $0.99 **
Run Run Sheep is available at $0.99. This offer will be on until the 'lite' version is available on the store!!

** Start your new shepherd journey now before the price goes up!! **

* Reviews *

"Graphics: 4.7 /5,
Sound/Music: 4.7 / 5
Fun: 4.8 /5
Addictiveness: 4.8 /5
Value for money: 5 /5
Overall: 4.7 /5

Run Run Sheep is an extremely out of the ordinary puzzle game that will keeps you glued to your iPod Touch or iPhone."
- iphonetech78 -

* Description *
Run.Run Sheep is an extremely addictive puzzle game that once you play it, it grabs your attention and refuses to let go
Your objective is to guide all sheep to the goal flag, away from holes and hungry wolves. You place arrows on the ground and they will follow...
Start running your sheep through the 100 levels available!
Run Run Sheep is one of those easy to learn, hard to master games that will bring you real challenge and tons of fun on your iPhone/iPod Touch!
If you're looking for some quick easy to play and challengin summer game, Run Run Sheep is for you!

* Application Features *
4 difficulty levels
100 challenging levels
Extremely addictive
Really cool music

* Youtube Videos *
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IulqU-U2Z-8 (short)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQAB_OJ7vCk (long)

* Possible future additions *
- a Multiplayer mode
- Level Editor
- a Mode where users can play Online levels created by other users
- ...

We are still wondering , which one of those features should come first ..

Please post your suggestions and comments ..

You can also follow us at http://twitter.com/ItchyMitshi

In Run Run Sheep, players are faced with a puzzle to complete. They must direct sheep to the goal line, avoiding both wolves and holes. Players are given a set amount of arrows to use to direct the sheep to the goal. When the arrows are set up, players press "Run" and attempt to get their sheep home safely.

In Run Run Sheep, there are 4 difficulty settings, three of which must be unlocked by completing all of the previous difficulty's puzzles. There are also 100 levels of gameplay, which is fantastic. The sound effects and music are well done; however, the sheep noises can get irritating, so I prefer to keep them off. The graphics are extremely well-done. I particularly like the blackboard style help screens. It's obvious a lot of work and planning went into creating this app, and it shows.

Gameplay is simple but fun. This is a great game to pick up when waiting for something, as each level only takes a short while to complete. There's plenty of game time in this app; however, the replay value is small. Once you figure out how to direct the sheep, playing the level again seems somewhat pointless. Luckily, with 100 levels, that certainly isn't a major issue! For only 99 cents, this is an excellent game to pick up if you enjoy puzzles.

Overall impression: 8/10
Value for your money: 8/10

Trak 4

2009-08-21T09:24:00.000-07:00

Trak 4

Category: Game
Type: Puzzle/ Memory
Cost: 99cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 43 ratings, 4.5 stars

Description:
The reviews are coming in...

"Trak4 is a challenging puzzle game for the iPhone and iPod Touch."
www.theapppodcast.com

http://forums.toucharcade.com/showthread.php?t=17642

"I like that this game is very clean, simple to learn, fun to play, for $0.99 this is a steal. This app is available in the iTunes App Store." - www.crazymikesapps.com

“I think that this is a great app that is definitely worth its $0.99 (59p) price tag. You will enjoy playing with this app, and you will want to play with it every time you get a couple of minutes to yourself. “ - www.appsight.net

"“It’s just challenging enough to make you want to play some more, and is thus the perfect 99¢ game” - www.weplayiphone.com

********************************************

Trak4 is a challenging puzzle game for the iPhone and iPod Touch featuring 89 puzzles (thats just over a $0.01 a puzzle ;-0 ).

In Trak4, you are trying to beat the clock in matching the tile pattern on the right to the pattern on the left. Players earn points for the time remaining. If you match the pattern correctly, you gets another round. If the pattern doesn’t match the game is over. The twist is that you can only see the entire target pattern for the first few seconds of each round. After that the pattern is cloaked in darkness and you can only see the portion that appears underneath the moving spotlight.

If you get stuck, press the “Hint” button to get a quick peek at the target pattern.

*****************************************
Version 1.2 SUBMITTED on August 18th!

What you will get in version 1.2.......

1) 36 More Puzzles (for a total of 125)
2) Second TIle Set
3) Sound Option - Listen to your own iPod Music
4) Stat Tracking
5) A couple of bug fixes.

What's new

> 30 new puzzles have been added, bringing the total number of puzzles to 89.
> A Pause button has been added to allow the user to pause the game if he / she needs a break.
> The game now remembers where the game was when you exit, so you can come back to it later and pick up right where you left off.
> Improved Scoring for different difficulty settings and time remaining.
> Added Graphical Flourishes for solving a puzzle
> Bug fix.

Trak 4 is an extremely simple puzzle game. Players are shown a pattern for a brief amount of time in the top left corner made completely out of squares that are half white and half red. After the set time is up, the pattern is covered. A small viewing circle moves around the pattern, giving brief glimpses of small areas in case the player gets stuck. Hints can also be used to uncover the pattern again for a moment; however, completing a puzzle with no hints adds 500 points to the players score at the end of each round.

The amount of time you have to view the pattern, as well as the size and speed of the viewing circle, all depend on the level that a player chooses to compete at. Players have the option of playing at a hard, medium, or easy level. Players can also opt to solve the puzzle in 30, 60, or 90 seconds, depending on their skill range. High scores are reported locally only, and there is no music. The graphics are simple. Despite this, the puzzles are challenging and entertaining. There is certainly a good replay value; there are plenty of patterns to complete and difficulty settings to keep you entertained for a while!

Trak 4 is an excellent game, and it keeps your brain active! The hardest difficulty setting is quite challenging. For only 99cents, this game is a wonderful addition to your iPhone game collection!

Overall impression: 8/10
Value for your money: 8/10

Lunarcy

2009-08-20T16:38:00.000-07:00

Lunarcy

Category: Game
Type: Arcade
Cost: 2.99
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 5 ratings, 4.0 stars

Description:
REVIEWS
************
148Apps - "HIDDEN GEM"

★★★★★ "THIS GAME IS AWESOME!!! IT'S SO ADDICTIVE! 5/5 STARS!"
-- MrPinguin9 (touchArcade forum)

★★★★★ "I LIKE EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS GAME"
-- Drelbs23 (customer)

★★★★★ "WOW! THIS GAME ROCKS!"
-- MidianGTX US (customer)

★★★★★ "I WOULD HAVE PAYED $4.99 FOR THIS KIND OF QUALITY IN A GAME"
-- Stevenbrz (customer)
************

Lunarcy, an arcade, puzzle orbit simulation game. (Really!)

- Realistic physics, almost 50 levels.
- Easy to learn, Hard to master.
- A unique and immersive experience.
- Retro looking polished graphics.
- Various types of challenges.
- Never before seen gameplay.
- Highly addictive!
- Interactive music: adapting real-time to the action.
- Very challenging gameplay!

Unique in its gameplay, Lunarcy is more than a simple action game. It's an arcade type, puzzle orbit simulation game. Yes, all of that!
In stead of just an action and speed oriented game, Lunarcy is a real-time simulation of orbital physics, thus focusing it on timing and efficiency.
That is why Lunarcy is a whole new type of gaming experience.

Almost 50 different levels give you the task to master the physics of orbital motion.

- Get into a stable orbit.
- Dock to other spaceships.
- Evade reckless spaceships.
- Break off orbit and land safely.

All of that whilst:

- Being fuel efficient.
- Trying to not damage your ship too much.
- Coping with different gravities.
- Coping with different planets.

But don't take our word for it, experience Lunarcy yourself! You'll be surprised of how immersive and addictive Lunarcy is!

The concept of Lunarcy is rather simple. You play as a supply ship, and the main goal of each level is to land on the space dock. Once you do, tap your supply ship to let go, and then head back to the planet to land. Landings must be fairly accurate to score points. If you lose track of the planet, the green arrow next to your supply ship will point in the direction you need to head. Be careful; fuel and life is limited! If you complete these tasks, you will beat the level. The ship will spin in the direction of your choice when you hit the arrows on the bottom right. You use these controls to control the direction a ship moves in.

Despite its simplicity, Lunarcy requires precision and good timing. As such, the game can become quite difficult, especially in later levels. With nearly 50 levels, there truly can be hours of gameplay involved with Lunarcy. It looks and plays like retro arcade game. The game is slightly pricey at $2.99, but it is completely worth the investment. Once you beat a level, you can go back to it at any time to beat your high score, which definitely helps with replayability. This is definitely one game you will want to check out if you like old school arcade games!

Overall impression: 9/10
Value for your money: 8/10

Window Cast

2009-08-20T14:54:00.000-07:00

Window Cast

Category: Weather
Type: Weather Reports
Cost: 3.99
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 13 ratings, 4.0 stars

Description:
Windowcast is the perfect tool for people who don't want to constantly watch the weather to determine if it's a good day to do or plan outdoor activities. Windowcast provides a custom weather forecast just for you and your location. You can set how long you want the weather forecasted out and you can also set your ideal conditions. Windowcast also uses up-to-date precise weather technology to alert you in multiple ways of approaching rain. Good for golfing, cycling, motorcycles/bikers, fishing. Just about anything where the weather matters.

FEATURES:

*Unique forecast windowing. Select how long you want your weather forecast window to be. Windowcast allows you to set the forecast window to only a couple of hours up to 12 hours giving you exactly the forecast you need. For example, you can set the window to forecast a short walk or an entire day at the park. Weather attributes included in your window forecast are: Precipitation, Temperature, Humidity, Wind and Cloud Coverage. You can even set your own ideal windows.

*Rain alerts (push notifications). Relax and let our systems monitor the weather for you. Windowcast monitors the weather for your location and sends an alert if rain is expected.

*Hours until rain. Set your home screen to display the number of hours until rain is expected. This allows you to at a quick glance determine if today might be a good day to plan something outside or not without even launching the app.

*Daily forecast. You can receive an optional daily forecast for your location through a push notification every day. Have your forecast ready when you wake up.

*Radar. Windowcast's radar screen shows you where the rain is and where your forecast location is for more detailed decision making.

*e-mail rain alerts. Also receive rain alerts via email. This option is great if you are somewhere without cellular or Wi-Fi access.

NOTE: This only works in the U.S.

PROBLEMS? If you experience any problems please send an email to appsupport@lilius.com so I can resolve them for you and everyone else.

What's new

Fixed a problem where your forecast location shows up as "(null)"

Fixed crashes while loading notification settings from the server

I really can't say enough about how much I love this app. Having this app on my iPhone makes my Apple created Weather app obsolete. Window Sast gives me the weather information that I actually need, as opposed to other apps which gives loads of information that simply don't matter to me. At the very top of the screen is a precipitation meter, that displays an easy-to-read meter of the possibility of rain. Already, I'm in love with the app; that's simple and to the point. Sometimes that's all the information I want, and having this information clear and at the top of the screen is wonderful.

The app also lets you set your ideal ranges for temperature, humidity, wind mph, and cloud coverage (although for those weather newbies, it comes pre-set with typical ideal ranges). Those 4 factors are all I could ever want in a weather reporting device - they let me know how comfortable I will be each day! If the factor is within your ideal range, it will report in green. If not, it will report in red. The bars show current conditions, lows are featured on the far left, and highs are featured on the far right. This is the most simple weather app I have seen.

Forecasts can be shown anywhere for 2-12 hours. There are even push notifications for rain, and a weather radar map. You can set the app to notify you if rain is a small chance, an average chance, likely, or definite, depending on your preference. It will send notifications to email, too, if you're interested. You can even set it to send you a full 12 hour weather report in the mornings!

Window Cast is truly the most pratical weather app for the average user. The only downside? I'm worried that despite its amazing features, less people will give it a shot due to its $3.99 price tag. Sad, because it's completely worth the money. I've found it to be 100% accurate over the past few days of testing it.

Overall impression: 10/10
Value for your money: 10/10

Cosmovox

2009-08-20T14:22:00.000-07:00

Cosmovox

Category: Music
Type: Music Creator
Cost: 1.99
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 300 ratings, 3.0 stars

Description:
Six weeks on the App Store Staff Favorites list!

"There are a few apps that attempt to create whole new instruments out of the iPhone... Among these, Cosmovox is by far the most interesting." iLounge.com

"Cosmovox is a fun app for musicians of any caliber, with a far-reaching landscape of space-age sounds to explore." tuaw.com

"Anyone who is interested in the core of electronic music or wants to play around with a great musical tool will enjoy Cosmovox." AppCraver.com

Cosmovox is a unique and innovative motion-controlled music instrument for the iPhone and iPhone touch. Cosmovox allows you to control a powerful professional-quality synthesizer using over 60 different musical scales. Cosmovox uses the built-in accelerometer of your iPhone to track your hand motions and precisely map them to musical pitches from the scale of your choosing.

Cosmovox Features:

- Accelerometer Controlled

- Over 60 Different Musical Scales
- Major, Minor, Church modes
- Blues scale
- Balinese Gamelan scales
- Japanese Pentatonic scales
- Harmonic Series, Microtones
- Theremin scale, and many others

- Fully-featured Synthesizer

- 9 Real-time Multi-touch Sliders
- Modulation
- Feedback
- Instability
- Vibrato
- Beating, and many others

- Professional Audio Quality
- Synthesizer renders using 32-bit floating-point
- Full stereo 44.1 KHz 16-bit final audio output

- WiFi Open Sound Control (OSC) support

What's new
Added 3 Classical Indian scales:
Gavambhodi, Jalarnavam, Jyotiswaroopini

Cosmovox is a fantastic app for anyone interested in music, or even just general noise making. Tilt the iPhone to play various scales of your selection. This app is a fully-feature synthesizer, which allows you to play around with the scales you are creating by altering the range, fundamentals, tuning, vibration, beating, and feedback, among other things. It's not 100% perfect, but for $1.99, it's a completely excellent find.

This really is a great musical app. It's only missing one thing - the ability to record the sounds you create! It would be nice to be able to go back and listen to or share your creations. All in all, this is a very fun app for people of any musical skill level!

Overall impression: 8/10
Value for your money: 9/10

Plate Game

2009-08-20T13:53:00.000-07:00

License Plate Game

Category: Game
Type: Classic Car Game
Cost: 99cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 49 ratings, 3.5 stars

Description:
Bored in the car during long road trips? Try The License Plate Game to keep everyone entertained. Search for license plates from each US state and this app will help you keep track of the states found and the states remaining. It's great fun for the kids.

Also fun to play around town! Use this app to keep track of plates on an ongoing basis. Always be on the lookout for the plates you're missing.

Features include:

- Pictures of all 50 US state license plates (includes latest 2009 versions) and Washington D.C.

- Shows your current distance from the capital of each state on location aware devices. (straight line distance, not driving distance)

- License plates fly down the road as you scroll through them. Tap the state to mark it found.

- Jump right to the state you just saw using the letter index bar.

- Home screen icon shows how many states you've found or how many are remaining, your choice.

- To help find the remaining plates you can choose to hide all the plates found.

- You really need to see this app in action to appreciate it. Go to http://apps.lilius.com/ for a demo video.

FUTURE UPDATE: An upcoming update will include Canada plates and more. Stay tuned.

What's new

Fixed a positioning bug when using the License Plate Game while also on the phone.

As a child, my family used to play the license plate game all the time on road trips. The objective of the game is simple; try to find a license plate from every state while driving around. Some families I knew took the game very seriously; they were constantly searching for the last one!

The app is a very simple design. The app itself features no gameplay; it's simply a device for tracking which license plates you've already seen. The app is very easy to navigate; a side bar on the right allows you to click any letter to pull up those states. The correct license plate can also be pulled up by swiping your finger across the screen. Tapping on a license plate will put a "found" stamp over that particular plate. You can also set the app to display either the number of plates found or still needed on your home display on the iPhone - a neat feature.

If you have kids or are planning a road trip, this app could be a really fun addition for your iPhone. One cool feature I'd love to see added? Camera integration, so that you can snap pics of the plates as you see them. That way once you finally find Hawaii, you can show off and brag to your friends about it!

Overall impression: 8/10
Value for your money: 8/10

X Doc

2009-08-20T12:51:00.000-07:00

X Doc

Category: Lifestyle
Type: Toy
Cost: FREE
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 60 ratings, 2.5 stars

Description:
Latest Version 1.1 now online.
*************************************
If you encounter problems on iPhone 3G plz. reboot your iPhone once. X-Doc works great, but there has been reports that sometimes the skeleton is not moving smoothly. This is because we are loading lots of grafics and on the iPhone the memory available for an application can go very low.
*************************************
We made a short video on how to use the app: http://bit.ly/1s9Urn
*************************************
Please give us Feedback: info@XO7Brainiac.com or follow via Twitter.com/XO7Brainiac or become friends with us on facebook
*************************************
X-Doc is an absolutely new X-ray fun application for your iPhone or iPod-Touch!

If you thought that all the other existing
applications were funny, this one will knock your socks off!

You always wanted to know about the things happening under your boss' suit?
You want to know what the lady sitting in front of you is hiding inside?*
Somehow your pal always seemed to be a bit strange?*

X-Doc brings it to light!

App Features:
• Realtime x-ray simulation using gravity sensor of iPhone/iPod-Touch
• Interactive menue containing different adjustabilities for handling the simulated x-ray process
• Selection of gender*
• Selection switch of different positions*
• Different animation contents freely selectable*
• X-ray through different layers of a human skeleton
• X-ray sound effekts
• Sound can be switched on or off at any time.
• Switch between gravity sensor or touch sensor for moving
This makes X-Doc possible to use in important but deathless boring meetings - At your own risk of course :)

*Available in the full version X-Doc XXL

X-Doc contains unexpected gimmicks inside invisible parts of the human body which can be explored in realtime by using the iPhone or iPod-Touch gravitiy sensor.
That means: X-ray until you need a Doctor to come!
You can play the role of an X-Ray expert by yourself.
And it is you who can uncover the most secret and unexpected things inside the bowels of your clueless fellow men. Indeed the fun gets at their expenses.
Could there be anything nicer than:

"Having fun with others about others?"

An amount of small, funny, creepy-iky and strange X-ray animations need to be detected.
So if you feel young or old enough, if you feel ready for something new that's really zany, just download the free-version and have fun.
Simpley impress young or old people with the faked technological possibilities of your iPhone/iPod-Touch.

What's new
*You can tell now your Friends that you played X-Doc on Twitter

*You can tell now your Friends that you played X-Doc on Facebook via FBConnect

*Redesign Frontpage

*Get latest infos about our news apps

*optimized Code (more free Mem)

X Doc is a toy app, so it doesn't particularly DO much. It's mildly humorous at times, however, and it does seem to have more features than your typical toy application. It's also free, which is a nice incentive to try it out. The app contains great graphics, and it seems like a fun app to joke around with your friends with. It only pretends to X-ray men which are standing, but because the app shows this as though it is a setting on the main page, perhaps future updates will add women and other positions.

All in all, for a free app, it's very well done.

Overall impression: 7/10
Value for your money: 10/10 - It's Free!

Hotline

2009-08-19T13:35:00.000-07:00

Hotline

Category: Utilities
Type: Speed Dialing
Cost: 99cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 16 ratings, 3.5 stars

Description:
One touch dial for anyone you want to call!

Call any person you want to call with a tap of your finger!

Super easy to setup!

****A FUTURE UPDATE WILL FIX THE CONFIRMATION BOX****

*****Please write a review and rate the app*****

for feature and support request please email us at mcadlieapps@gmail.com

***check out our other apps(IP finder,My411,Easy2count,Tempcon,Battery Info)

***follow us on twitter
twitter.com/mcadlieapps***

What's new

Added Ads

Hotline works exactly as is described. Under Settings, set any one phone number to be your hotline button call. This is a great feature if you want easy access to calling a contact that you frequently contact.

A tap on the app icon on your iPhone will bring up a message box to confirm the call. This is currently being worked on by the developer so that the call is instantaneous. Once this is corrected, Hotline could make an excellent emergency call app. If there were an absolute emergency, it would be great to be able to call the police discreetly with the click of one button.

For now, the app is still a good find, especially if you have one person that you consistantly call often.

Overall impression: 7/10
Value for your money: 7/10

Stock Watch

2009-08-19T11:17:00.000-07:00

Stockwatch

Category: Finance
Type: Stocks
Cost: 2.99
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 265 ratings, 2.5 stars

Description:
StockWatch is the best Financial App in the AppStore for tracking the Markets and your Portfolio. The first App of it's kind on the AppStore and still the best choice for all investors.
Update: 8/11/09
Version 4.04 has been submitted to Apple for approval. Look for it soon!
New features include: Technical Analysis Charts, Security Lock, Manual Refresh, and more.

LATEST 5-STAR REVIEWS
-------------
***** ...Best I Have Seen - 8/4/09
***** Great Stock App! - 7/29/09
***** Great App - 7/22/09
***** Best ... I've Found - 7/17/09
***** The Best App!!! - 7/16/09

Read more recent reviews to see the great things our users are saying.

LATEST VERSION
-------------
Now with the StockWatch Sync Service you can Import and Export your Watchlist and Portfolio backup data anytime, anywhere. Even share your data over multiple devices!

Also new in this version: Customize App loading screens. Visually confirm your online backups. Regional Datestamps

SUMMARY
--------
Quickly, and easily, track all of your investments from the convenience of your iPhone or iPod Touch.

Track Stocks, Bonds, Mutual Funds, Futures, and Options. If the symbol is not found within our symbol database, just tap "Add Anyway?" and it will be added to your list and the most recent quote will be retrieved. This is perfect for Futures and Options!

Create UNLIMITED Watchlists, Portfolios, Portfolio Watchlists, and Lots, all in an easy to use and intuitive interface. StockWatch lets you track symbols from all of the major global exchanges, unlike any other Financial App on the AppStore! In addition to tracking symbols in customizable Watchlists, StockWatch also has News, Full Screen Charts, Detailed Symbol Information, and the new Sync Service which will enable you to backup your data and share it across multiple devices. No other financial App gives you all that, not even AOL and Bloomberg.

StockWatch was the first stock portfolio management App on the AppStore, added in August 2008, and has over 11,000 users. StockWatch is still the best App to track all of your investments and current market information... no matter what type of investor you may be.

+ Create Watchlists with UNLIMITED symbols.

+ Create UNLIMITED Portfolios with custom Names, Descriptions, and Cash Amounts.

+ Add UNLIMITED Symbols to existing Portfolios.

+ Add UNLIMITED Lots to Symbols, in each Portfolio, with Quantity, PPS, Date, and Commission.

+ Get detailed and constantly updated (if enabled) Prices, Gains, Costs, Values.

+ Toggle buttons between Prices, Gains, Costs, and Values on these screens: Watchlist, Portfolio Watchlist, and Lot Listing.

+ Details (Symbol): Last Trade, Trade Time, Change, Percent Change, Previous Close, Open, Day Range, 52w Range, Bid, Ask, Volume, Avg. Volume, 1Y Target, Market Cap, P/E, EPS, Div, Yield. *

+ Full Screen Charts *: Intraday, 5D, 3M, 6M, 1Y, 2Y, 5Y, Maximum

+ News feeds *: Get the 20 most-recent financial news articles for the symbols in your lists.

+ Auto-Fetch - Multiple auto-fetch intervals.

+ StockWatch Data Sync - Import/Export your Watchlist and Portfolio data, and even share your data over multiple devices!

* If available.

EXCHANGES SUPPORTED
-------------------

USA / Can. - NYSE,NASDAQ,ASE,CBT,CME,NYB,CMX,NYM,OBB,PK,TOR,VAN

Eur. - AMS,BAR,BER,BIL,CPH,DUS,EBS,FRA,GER,HAM,HAN,LSE,MAD,MCE,MIL,MUN,OSL,PAR,STO,STU,SWX,VIE

Asia Pac - ASX,BSE,CPH,HKG,JKT,KOE,KSE,NSI,NZE,SES,SHH,SHZ,TAI,TLV,TWO

MISC
----

Online Docs and a video is on our website: http://stockwatch.toughturtle.com

StockWatch uses Yahoo! Finance symbol structure for quotes. If the symbol does not exist on Yahoo! Finance (US), then it will not be found in StockWatch. If the symbol exists but is not coming up in the App, please let us know or use 'Add Anyway?'. Data is delayed at least 15 minutes.

If you have questions or comments, please feel free to email me.

What's new

* Regional Date and Time Display : Choose from the 3 global standards
* New User Interface elements
* Choose a default screen to open on App load.
* Select a specific Portfolio to open on App load.
* View your Online Sync Backup to visually confirm your backups.

StockWatch is a fantastic app to manage your portfolios and set new stocks to watch. The app allows you to manage several portfolios at once, and reports to you the total gain on your portfolios since you began tracking them, as well as a day-to-day gain. It also reports the total value of the portfolio and provides details and graphs on the companies featured. In a completely separate tab, the app also allows you to watch stocks not in any portfolio of yours.

Data is taken from yahoo!, so any investor interested in day trading will not find this app useful. Data typically reports a 15 minute delay. Fetch intervals can be set manually, if desired. Another unique feature is that is a part of Stock Watch is that when a company's information is clicked on, one option option available is "News." Having instant access to news reports on any companies that you are watching is an excellent feature. To read the news, Stock Watch will have to shut off and go to Safari.

Stockwatch contains many excellent features that are an upgrade from the standard "Stocks" that Apple provides. If you're interested in investment, Stock Watch is an excellent app at an extremely reasonable price.

Overall impression: 8/10
Value for your money: 8/10

Tap and Track

2009-08-19T10:53:00.000-07:00

Tap and Track - Calorie, Weight, and Exercise Tracker

Category: Health care and Fitness
Type: Information Tracker
Cost: 2.99
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 1024 ratings, 2.5 stars

Description:
Reviews:
*** "THE MOST COMPLETE TRACKER ON THE APP STORE!"

*** "I believe, that Tap & Track is the best health & fitness app any iPhone developer has developed till date." -by iphone-application-developer review portal

** "Every other tracker was missing something. This has it all."

- Largest offline nutritional database on the App Store
- No internet connection needed unlike other calorie trackers
- No ads within application

We really care about our customers by creating quality products and implementing new features and improvements FREE OF CHARGE with every update.

MAJOR ADVANTAGES:

- Food Score tracking
- 40:30:30 'Pie charts' on reports
- Displaying your daily calorie needs / limits depending on your current weight, height, age and selected Diet Plan
- 80,000 food items
- 404 restaurants
- It's easy to use, with a modern interface
- You can create any custom food item
- You can create any custom exercise
- Over 180 different exercises
- Does not require internet access
- Works on iPhone and iPod Touch
- US and SI units support
- Exercise Combo: for each exercise you may choose between low, medium & high exercise intensity.

APP FEATURES:

- Track food calories
- Track Burned calories
- Track Daily Weight
- Set your Diet Plan
- Set your Goal Weight
- View daily BMI
- View nutrition data: calories, protein, carbohydrate, fat (and saturated fat), fiber, sodium, sugar.

- View or edit calorie and exercise logs
- Export Log to an email

FOOD:

- Pick, add, edit and resort favorites
- Add your food items at any category you wish to.
- Search common foods and restaurant database, pick items from the database, save it to your food list.
- “Quick Add Calories”, feature that allows you to enter consumed calories fast and easy in just a few taps.
- Previous Meal list allows you to locate and pick any food item you recently consumed.

EXERCISE:

- Pick, add, edit and resort predefined exercise list.
- Select between three different exercise intensities.
- “Quick add Burned”, feature that allows you to enter burned calories in just a few taps

GRAPHS:

- Full screen Calorie and Weight graphs
- View Weight Goal at graph
- View consumed calories and daily limits

REPORTS:

- View consumed calories and other nutrition info by day
- View average consumed calories and other nutrition info for last 7 days
- View average consumed calories and other nutrition info by user defined period.

Join thousands of happy users with this powerful and simple-to-use tool! Just enter your height, weight, age, gender, select diet plan and application will guide you to your goal!

Application will calculate your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) to find your Daily Calorie Needs based on your height, weight, gender and age.
Calculation is also done using the famous Harris-Benedict Equation considering your job type.

What's new
NOTE: If you like this app please rate it or write a review on the App Store from your iPhone/iPod Touch or from iTunes. In that way you will support future development of this app! Thanks.

What's new:

- Added over 600 brand name food items
- Updated Overview screen and calorie graph
- Updated Help and added tips on the profile
- Bug fixes
- Many small improvements

Tap and Track has a million things that it does correctly. The selection of foods that can be added to calorie counts and workouts that can be added to exercise counts is fantastic. The offline database is huge, and there is an option to add foods and exercises that are not included in the stored information. There is even a section on restaurants, where you can calculate for meal's intake based on how much of the portion you ate. This is a great addition, because almost no one finishes restaurant meals.

In addition to tracking calories, Tap and Track provides a full nutritional report on your daily intake of fiber, sugars, fats, carbs, sodium, etc. The game also recommends a healthy 40:30:30 ratio of carbs:fats:proteins, and graphs where you stand on that pie chart. You can use the app to track your weight over a period of time, which is a nice option. You can also alter the recommended calories by opting to eat up to 200 calories less than recommended, or up to 2000 more, depending on your metabolism.

So why am I slightly disappointed? After putting in my information, the automatic setting told me that to maintain my weight, I need to eat just over 600 calories a day. 600 calories is below the starvation limit, and certainly not what I'd recommend for a woman my size. Offering such low expectations isn't healthy, and women can be impressionable! Another disappointment is that there is no "healthy weight gain" option for those people who may need that - only weight loss. Not everyone is looking to lose weight; some just want to be healthy. Finally, there should be a way to track nutrients going into your body as well. Aiming for 40% carbs means nothing if they're not vitamin rich vegetables and rather potato chips and pasta!

It has a few kinks that need worked out, but if you know how many calories you really need per day, this is an excellent way to track them.

Overall impression: 6/10
Value for your money: 8/10

Unit Converter

2009-08-19T10:28:00.000-07:00

Unit Converter

Category: Business
Type: Converter
Cost: 99 cents, SALE
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 250 ratings, 3.5 stars

Description:
♦♦♦♦♦♦
50% Off Sale till Sunday, August 23rd!
♦♦♦♦♦♦
Our slick all-in-one converting screen makes Unit Converter the quickest and easiest to use unit converting app available. Unit Converter is the complete conversion tool with a massive list of categories and units.

♦♦♦ Features:♦♦♦
• Conveniently reorder categories and conversions so the mostly commonly used ones are at the top.
• Quickly clear the conversion by swiping from left to right or tap text area.
• Opens to the last conversion done.
• Remembers the last conversion completed within each category.

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦
Unit Converter automatically downloads new currency rates daily for its 75 different currencies.

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦
An Internet connection is required to be able to download the daily currency rates. If you don’t have an Internet connection, Unit Converter is typically updated weekly within the App Store with new currency rates.

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦
Unit Converter includes a complete list of units, within these categories:
Angles
Angular Speed
Area
Blood Sugar
Currency
Current
Data
Density
Dynamic Viscosity
Electric Potential
Energy
Force
Fuel
Frame rate
Kinematic Viscosity
Length
Moment/Torque
Particle Sizes
Parts per million
Power
Pressure
Speed
Temperature
Time
Typography
Volume
Volumetric Flow
Weight

♦ Please restart device after installing.

♦ There will be frequent updates. Please offer feedback by emailing us about changes that could be made to improve this app. Thanks!

What's new
• 1.0.31 - Improved sorting options for both categories and units.
• 1.0.30 - New currencies added: Rwandan Franc (RWF) and Burundian Franc (BIF).
• 1.0.29 - New currencies added: Tanzanian Shilling (TZS) and Ugandan Shilling (UGX).
• 1.0.28 - New currencies added: Croatian Kuna (HRK), Ethiopian Birr (ETB), and the Kenyan Shilling (KES).
• 1.0.27 - Added Acre-foot to volume.
• 1.0.26 - Added Uruguayan Peso (UYU).
• 1.0.25 - Added Perch (length), square Perch (area), and fixed the kg/cu conversion.
• 1.0.24 - Added Millibars to pressure.
• 1.0.23 - Added Vanuatu Vatu (VUV) and Moroccan Dirham (MAD) to currencies.
• 1.0.22 - Added Vara, Chain, Link, Vara Chain, Engineer's Chain, Spanish League, and Palmo to length. Added Spanish Labor and Spanish League to area.
• 1.0.21 - Now updates currencies every 2 hours; added an option to turn off automatic updates. Added the Numeral System category with binary, octal, decimal, and hexadecimal. Added Degrees Minutes Seconds (DMS) and Degrees Minutes (DM) to the Angles category.

Unit Converter is a fantastic tool for anyone interested in one application that contains many possible conversions. Unlike many apps of this genre, Unit Converter converts everything from your most basic conversions (currency, speed, temperature, etc) to the extremely rare (blood sugar conversions, anyone?). The units are not just your typical units, either - Unit converter will even convert temperature to Kelvin or Rankine! The options are limitless; for a full list of possible conversion categories, see the list in the description above.

The graphics are beautifully done, which is one thing you can always expect from Concrete Software, Inc. Conversions are updated daily online to provide accurate, near real-time data, like most conversion apps. One great feature, however, is that conversions can be pulled from data in the software if traveling abroad, and the updates are typically every couple weeks. Even if the conversions aren't 100% accurate the entire trip, this feature certainly gives you a good starting point. Conversions are categorized alphabetically, but there is an option to place your most used conversions at the top of the list.

With all that is wonderful about Unit Conversions, there is one particularly large flaw that I noticed, that puts it slightly behind the competition in one way. Currency conversions use shorthand abbreviations for the currency; there is no option to set the Unit Converter to display the country for the currencies. This isn't a terrible flaw if you'll only be visiting one country, but when traveling between multiple countries, you often won't remember all of the abbreviations. Despite this, Unit Converter is an excellent app for all your conversion needs. At 99cents, it has more than enough units to make it well worth the investment.

Overall impression: 8/10
Value for your money: 10/10

Doodle Jump

2009-08-18T18:15:00.000-07:00

Doodle Jump

Category: Games
Type: Jumping Platform
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 5271 ratings, 4 stars

#1 Paid Arcade Game in the US in April
#1 Paid Arcade Game in France in May
#1 Top Paid App in Austria in June and July!

Recently featured by Apple in "New and Noteworthy" and "What's Hot"!

Touch Arcade designated Doodle Jump as "Required Reading" calling it "Dead simple and crazy addictive." You simply must own Doodle Jump on your iPhone/Touch! It's that good! Get it NOW!

--------
NEW in this update: PROPELLER HAT!!! Also, try the super-cool JET PACK, and jump on monsters to take them down MARIO-style! Upcoming update will bring: EXPLODING and vertically moving platforms!
--------

Twitter tweets:
**********************************
"Two most played games on flight: flight control and doodle jump."

"If you value your life, never download the Doodle Jump app...so addicted."

iPhone games forum comments:
**********************************
"Here in California it's illegal to text while driving, but there's no law about playing Doodle Jump!* At least that's what I thought till I got pulled over, but the good news is that I showed the cop the game and he didn't write me a ticket cause he wanted to go download it right away."

iTunes reviews (US)
***********************************
"Somehow it's better than sleep for me. I am sick, sleep deprived, and achy, and yet I cannot put it down"

"Coming from someone who owns a PS3, Wii, and Xbox 360, I play this game more!! This game is amazing!!"

"Get it now before dev realizes that he can sell it for way more!"

Media reviews:
**********************************
"Doodle Jump is a perfect micro-game, insanely addictive, and deliciously replayable. Go get it." -MacWorld.com

"the most addicting iPhone game yet?" -GIZMODO

"Fans of Papi Jump who are looking for a little more will certainly enjoy this" -Touch Arcade

"Doodle Jump epitomizes the microgame ideal" -Slide To Play

"(DoodleJump) is the best game of its type. I have seen a lot of other versions, but this would take the gold. ...be warned, this game is highly addictive" -App Beacon

So, what is it?
***********************************
Doodle Jump is an amazingly addictive and fun platform jumping game that lets you compete against other players around the world.

As you keep jumping higher and higher, the platforms start moving, the monsters, UFOs, black holes and other obstacles start appearing and the game gets progressively more challenging.

Along your way up, you will see markers on the side of the screen indicating how high other players of Doodle Jump around the world have managed to get to. This in-game high-score markers feature is a first among the iPhone games and is beloved by both the players and reviewers.

FEATURES:
- broken, moving, and disappearing platforms
- JET PACKs, PROPELLER HATS, and springs that fly you higher
- UFOs that will abduct you unless you shoot them
- black holes that will suck you in if you get close
- various cool monsters that you need to shoot
- jump on top of the monsters to bring them down MARIO-style
- global and local leaderboard
- in-game score markers
- Facebook connect
- challenge friends
- SECRET easter egg created in collaboration with POCKET GOD.

How to play:
Tilt to move left or right, tap the screen to shoot.

*Please don't drive and play Doodle Jump!

Coming up in the next update: EXPLODING platforms!! BOOM! BAM! DOODLEWHAM!

What's new
Propeller hat!

***** Your 5-star iTunes ratings and reviews keep the updates coming! Thanks for playing Doodle Jump! *****

Doodle Jump is most likely the best platform jumping game created for the iPhone. If you're a fan of Papi Jump, this game takes platform jumping to the next level. It's impossible not to enjoy this app. Gameplay is simple: Tilt the iPhone to make your creature move from side to side as it jumps in order to land on platforms. If you miss a platform, the game is over.

The real fun comes from the ways that Doodle Jump differs from other games in its genre. There are brown, cracked platforms that split open as you jump on them. There are light blue platforms that move from side to side. There are power ups, such as the propeller hats, springs, and jet packs, which send you soaring higher up the level with little effort. There are even enemies that must be shot at by tapping the screen as you jump.

It's hard to put down this game. The cartoon-like graphics and sound effects add to this game's infinite charm. High scores are listed globally and locally, with an option to challenge friends with the game via facebook. There's a strong replay value here, which makes the game fully worth purchasing.

Overall impression: 9/10
Value for your money: 9/10

Thirty One

2009-08-18T14:59:00.000-07:00

Thirty One

Category: Game
Type: Card
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 30 ratings, 3.5 stars

Description:
The exciting game of Thirty One is now available for the iPhone and iPod Touch! (You may also know Thirty One by another name such as Big Tonka, Blitz, Scat, or Cadillac)

Thirty One is a strategy based card game where you try to get your hand of three cards closest to thirty one (only cards in the same suit are added together). You play against two computer controlled opponents named Jack and Jill. You will have hours of fun trying to out smart them by holding cards you know they want, knocking when you think you have the best hand, and getting a blitz (a hand of exactly 31)!

Thirty One has many great features:
- Great single player gameplay
- Two computer controlled opponents
- Game is saved on exit or when interrupted
- Game can be stopped at any time then resumed
- Keeps track of game statistics
- Keeps track of in game credits you have earned
- Clean and intuitive interface
- Post your stats to Facebook
- Compare your scores with online leaderboards
- Fun achievements that can be unlocked
- Thirty One is OpenFeint enabled

What's new

- Thirty One is now OpenFeint enabled
- Online Leaderboards
- Achievements that can be unlocked
- Keeps track of more stats
- All stats can be posted to Facebook
- New Main Menu with option to turn off

Thirty one is an entirely unique card game, despite what you may think based on the title. In a few ways, it's similar to Blackjack; for example, you are trying to add cards together to equal a certain number. Face cards are worth 10 and aces are worth 11 points (though no option for 1 point), like in Blackjack. The similarities stop there, though. In Thirty One, players are only allowed to hold 3 cards at a time. On each turn, a player must choose to either draw a card, pick from the discard pile, or knock - similar to Rummy.

If a player knocks to skip his or her turn, all other players get one last chance to draw a card. A winner is then selected. One unique feature of 31? You're not just adding cards - all the suits must match as well. Each player also has three coins, and if you lose a round, you give up one coin. If you lose all three coins, you are allowed an honor round where you can play without better. You give up your right to an honor round, however, if you knock on your last game and still end up losing.

Thirty One is particularly fun because it feels familiar but is truly unique. It's a simple game, and it's over somewhat quickly (especially compared to a poker game!), but it has some charm to it. The open feint integration and achievements are great additions to the game. I feel like it's perhaps just missing one thing - a 2 or 3 player mode. If players could connect via Open Feint and play together, that would trump the AI experience. All in all, it's a fun game, and well worth a play.

Overall impression: 8/10
Value for your money: 7/10

iLand Cars

2009-08-18T13:52:00.000-07:00

iLand Cars

Category: Games
Type: Racing
Cost: 2.99
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 13 ratings, 5 stars

Visit: www.ilandcars.com

iLandCars, is a 3D roaming racing game. It transports a player to memorable islands. When exploring these islands a player must collect relic stars to progress from island to island while firing missiles to destroy targets for bonus points. A player races against the clock to obtain all the stars. Use the environment including ramps, jumps, seesaws and obstacles to bust-out crazy flips, spins and twist for extra bonus points! Post your scores up and compete against yourself and your closest friends!

iLandCars Features:
• Free-Roam 3D Tracks loaded with more jumps, ramps, targets than you can shake a stick at
• Stages Include “Spiral Mountain”, “Egypt Bricks”, “French Arch” and "SquareHills"
•4 cars, “Big Blue Wheelie”, “Lil-Green Monster”, “Yellow Jack-et” and "Red-Rocket"
•Master the game using Innovative directional touch-sensitive aiming of “Missile Attacks”
•Chuck and successfully land flips, twists and spins to increase bonus points
•Intuitive driving physics allowing player to actually drive by steering the iPhone

-----------------------------------------------
Note: Works Best on iPhone 3G(S) and 2nd Generation iPod Touch. Please note iLandCars works for all devices however, FPS may vary on iPhone 3G and 1st Generation iPod Touch.
-----------------------------------------------

iLand cars is an extremely fun racing/roaming game. The first thing I noticed about this game upon trying it out is that the controls are seamless. It's not one of those racing games where you will be trying for an hour to figure out how to move smoothly at all. The car is controlled by tilting the iPhone device; however, it's not as easy as Pole Position. There's actually a little skill involved - which frankly, I like better. You have an accelerator on the bottom left side of the screen and a reverse button on the bottom right. These buttons must be pushed at all times in order to make the car move.

Collect all of the level's stars in order to progess. There are also things that can be done to collect bonus points - Shooting arrows at targets (just tap the screen to shoot!), doing flips, etc. There are 4 stages to complete, 3 of which must be unlocked. There are also four car options given at the start, 3 of which must be unlocked. High scores are local, with no global integration, unfortunately. The graphics are fantastic, however, and the controls are beautifully executed - both of which more than make up for this fact. The only issue I see this game having is it's price point; when games like Metal Gear Solid can be purchased for $2.99, it's hard to sell a new developer's game for the same cost. I'd suggest a markdown to $1.99, or even 99cents (temporarily) to gain some momentum.

Overall impression: 9/10
Value for your money: 8/10

Stick It

2009-08-18T13:13:00.000-07:00

Stick it

Category: Utilities
Type: Notes
Cost: 99 cents, SALE
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 375 ratings, 2 stars

Stick It - iPhone Sticky Notes

VERSION 2.0 NOW AVAILABLE!
Amongst other enhancements, Stick It now saves your notes and backgrounds, making it your go to app for note taking.

ON SALE FOR A LIMITED TIME!
We're keeping the 50% sale price for a limited time only, so get it now!

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING:
TouchReviews.net: 41/2 out of 5 Stars - "Stick It is a visually stunning sticky notes app which will never let you forget anything!"

148apps.com: 41/2 out of 5 Stars, Utility of the Week - "Stick It is extremely customizable. You can do basically anything you like with your notes. You can’t beat the price for such a useful and versatile tool."

WHAT IS STICK IT?
TapFactory Apps introduces "Stick It", a utility that allows you to quickly and easily take notes, customize their look, and create wallpapers for your lockscreen to use as quick reminders. Take notes on the fly with Stick It's quick loading, visually appealing, and easy to use interface. Use Stick It to create personal reminders, shopping lists, special notes to your loved ones, and more!

WHAT MAKES STICK IT SO SPECIAL?
• 17 styles of notes, papers, and objects you can add text to ranging from multi-colored Post It notes, a variety of scrap papers, speech bubbles, and signs.

• 25+ backgrounds to choose from including beautifully designed textures such as quarkboard, wood, metal, and paper, as well as solid colors, and the ability to use any photo from your Camera Roll or take a new one!

• Full customization of your notes with multiple font styles, sizes and colors to choose from.

• Preview feature which allows you to preview your lockscreen with your current Stick It layout to give you an idea of how it will look without having to leave the app.

• Stick It will automatically save your notes so you can pick up where you left off.

• Email your notes directly from the app.

Stay tuned, we're constantly listening and working to improve Stick It! Please email us with any suggestions info@tapfactoryapps.com

What's new

- Full saving of notes, layout, and background
- new backgrounds
- multiple sizes of some notes
- improved user interface
- Misc. bug fixes

Stick It is a great app for your general note taking needs. Reminiscent of the Mac app that comes automatically set up on your machines, Stick It allows users to take notes on their phone in post-it note styles. Need a good way to organize the little notes you take? Stick it is great for that. Tapping on a post-it note will bring it to the front of the screen. The post-it notes can also be dragged to other areas to better organize your screen.

For what it is - a note taking app - Stick it has a lot of unique abilities. Stick it will allow, you to export pictures of your notes into your email, which is a fantastic tool if you're used to jotting quick notes. You can also export pictures into your Camera roll, which is slightly less impressive (as you can take screen shots of any app) - but it's still nice to have a button for it, rather than pressing important buttons on the phone. Stick it now saves your notes, which was once its biggest flaw. Who would need a note taking device that didn't save your notes? Reviews are already infinitely stronger now that this feature has been added.

Perhaps the best thing about Stick It is all of the choices that it makes available to you. You can opt to use 1 of 15 colors as a background, a personal picture as the background, or 18 set backgrounds. There are even 17 styles of notes to jot things down on, allowing diversity on your page. This may not be a practical addition, but it's certainly a fun one! A simple shake even clears the screen for you (Though you will be asked if you're sure you want to delete your notes!).

The only thing that could make this app better for taking quick notes? Voice recognition, that takes those lovely stick-it notes for you. ;-) All in all, this is the best note taking device I've tried yet!

Overall impression: 9/10
Value for your money: 9/10

Cookie Pop

2009-08-18T11:11:00.000-07:00

Cookie Pop

Category: Game
Type: Puzzle
Cost: 99 cents, SALE
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 26 ratings, 4 stars

======================================
BIG SALE
======================================

Special price: 66%

* Cookie Pop offers some great gameplay along with great artwork. It’s very easy to learn, and after the beginning levels, you’ll start to get the hang of it. -http://nodpad.com/2009/07/13/first-look-at-cookie-pop/

New outstanding puzzle game Cookie Pop® Classic is born. It is easy, simple yet the addictive puzzle game in the world.

======================================
What is Cookie Pop® Classic?
======================================
Cookie Pop® Classic is a block puzzle which anyone can easily enjoy popping various blocks.
In Cookie Pop® Classic, anyone can easily enjoy popping various blocks.
The objective is to pop the obstacle blocks to keep the space empty as long as possible.
There are two modes in this game. CLASSIC MODE and ENDLESS MODE.
CLASSIC MODE has time limits. ENDLESS MODE has no time limit.
As the level goes up, the game becomes more difficult.

What is a Skip button?

Use to change given block or to cancel block that has already been created on the field.

On top of the game screen the block that you need to create is shown. You create blocks by touching the screen. When the block is created on the screen, it will pop along with adjacent blocks.

======================================
How to play
======================================
1. Small blocks are shown on the game screen.
2. Click with cursor on empty space to create the given block.
3. When you create the given block correctly, the created block and adjacent blocks will pop.
4. If the created the wrong block, it will not pop and remain on the screen
5 When you re-click on the created block, it will be cancelled.
6. If it is impossible to make the same block, you can use skip button to change shape of given block.
7. Using skip button will decrease 5 points.
8. When the screen is filled with blocks, game is over.

======================================
Game Tip
======================================
* Create blocks fast and accurately.
* Use all the bombs.
* Use skip button smartly.

======================================
Features
======================================
* Easy, simple yet addictive game
* Anyone can learn at once
* Excitement when using bombs
* Master 50 level and endless mode
* Pick your level in classic mode or endless mode with a flick of your finger
* Listen to your own music while you play!
* For beginners, guiding blocks are shown on the field at level 1~2

======================================
Bombs
======================================
Normal bomb - Pop all adjacent blocks (8 blocks).
Super bomb - Pop all adjacent blocks plus 4 more (12 blocks).
Time bomb - Automatically pops in 5 seconds. Power is same as normal bomb.
Cross bomb - Pop all blocks in horizontal and vertical line.

=====================================
Block types
=====================================
*Normal blocks
*Obstacle blocks
*Unbreakable block
*Blocks that must be popped 2x
*Blocks that must be popped 3x

What's new
****** 1.05 Upgrade ******

Now Online record Open!
Add Fruit Blocks!
Various bug fixes.

****** 1.1 Upgrade ******

Add paprika Blocks!
Various bug fixes.

Cookie Pop is one of the best 99 cent games that I've played recently! It's a fast paced block puzzle game, with a very unique spin. New shapes are presented in the top right corner. It is then your job to place them around the board by tapped individual squares to create the shape. Completing a shape touching pre-existing box barriers will destroy some adjacent boxes. If you don't complete a shape correctly or a new box appears blocking your move, the messed up boxes will remain on the screen as a barrier. Luckily, there is a skip button on the top for when this happens - you will lose points for using it, though!

The game can be played in endless mode, where you play until the screen is filled, or by level. Level 1 starts out particularly easy, but the skill level builds as time goes on. Bombs are featured in both modes that have unique power-ups to destroy even more blocks. High scores are featured both locally and online.

This game is completely addictive. The graphics are fantastic, and there's obviously a lot of possible time that can go into this game. Excluding the endless mode (which is extremely fun and super fast paced!), there are 5 levels, each with 9 stages and a boss. There are even various trophies to collect for beating bosses! For 99 cents, this game is a steal! Check out the lite version here, if you'd like a trial!

Overall impression: 9/10
Value for your money: 10/10

World's Hardest Game

2009-08-18T10:41:00.000-07:00

World's Hardest Game

Category: Game
Type: Sliding Puzzle
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 9 ratings, 2.5 stars

The World's Hardest Game!

Awesome graphics!

Try to place the tiles in order by making sliding moves that use the empty space.

Improve your mind!

What's new

Ad-free version

World's Hardest Game opens straight in a game when opened for the first time. That's right - there are no instructions at all. Luckily, it's pretty obvious what the game is from a first glance. World's Hardest Game is a shift puzzle game, and not a bad one. The object is to put the numbers in order from 1-15. The game saves local high scores, which are determined by the amount of moves to takes you to finish the game.

The graphics are nice, and the game is well designed, but it's really not worth 99cents. This is bare minimums programming - No instructions, no levels, no additional puzzles, no global high scores. With a little work, this game could be really fun. It would also make an excellent little free game, sponsored by ads. There are just too many great, full length games out there for 99 cents for this one to get much notice. It's not the "world's hardest game," and there's only maybe 10 minutes total gameplay here.

Overall impression: 6/10
Value for your money: 4/10

Word Solitaire

2009-08-18T08:33:00.000-07:00

Word Solitaire

Category: Game
Type: Card/ Word
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 50 ratings, 3.5 stars

Description:
♥ APPVERSITY.COM says:
"Word Solitaire is the perfect game for lovers of either card games or word games. And it somehow is even beyond perfect for people who like both."

♥ APPSMILE.COM says:
"With its thought-provoking gameplay, artwork-infused backdrops, and simple rules, this pick-up-and-play title has quickly risen to the top of our favorite games list."

♥ IPHONE-ROUNDUP.COM says:
"A stroke of genius...a no-brainer for word game fans."

♥ POCKETFULLOFAPPS.COM says:
"9 out of 10"

************************************************

Word Solitaire puts a brilliant new spin on a classic favorite. The clever blend of word creation and traditional solitaire will hook you immediately!

Drag letters onto each other to arrange them into words. Flip over cards to expose more letters and complete the level by using all provided letters in the creation of words. The longer your words, the higher your score. Then, brag to your friends by tweeting your highest scores and fastest times right from the app!

☆ 25 beautiful levels, each with a high-resolution classical art background.
☆ Intelligent decks that increase difficulty slightly with each level.
☆ Customizable color themes.
☆ Complete Twitter integration.
☆ Millions of letter arrangements. No two games are ever the same.
☆ AutoSave – Pick up your game where you left off, anytime.

What's new

☆ Global high scores!
☆ Minimized risk of accidentally burning a card when building a long word in the far right columns
☆ Tweaked vowel/consonant ratio
☆ Did we miss anything? Email us: support@wordsolitaire.com

Word Solitaire is an extremely fun, extremely challenging word puzzle game. Players are drawn a Solitaire setup; however, in place of typical cards, there are cards with one letter on each. The object of the game is to move the cards around the board to unveil all the hidden letters and make words out utilizing each letter. All letters much be used, so it's a lot trickier than it sounds! Letters can only be moved onto other letters that would help form a word (ie, you couldn't move "L" onto "Z", but "U" onto "T" is fine).

That all may sound hard, but there are a few helpful options. A lamp is featured at the bottom right corner of the screen. Here, you can opt to burn up to three letters that simply aren't working for you. You will get penalized for each, however. On the bottom left corner is a small deck of letters. These additional letters can be used at your discression, to help form words.

Gameplay is surprisingly challenging! There are multiple levels to allow for lots of playing time. The graphics are beautifully done, and I love that famous artwork makes up the backgrounds. High scores are tracked by fastest time, high score, and low move count, which is a great feature that allows players to aim for several goals. Twitter integration is great, but I would love to see some global high scores - one thing the game is missing. All in all, Word Solitaire is a fantastic game, put out by a fantastic developing company.

Still not sold? Check out the lite verison for FREE!

Overall impression: 9/10
Value for your money: 9/10

iFlip Pro

2009-08-17T18:42:00.000-07:00

iFlip Pro

Category: Game
Type: Strategic Puzzle
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 8 ratings, 3.5 stars

"It's a simple game, but very addicting!"
----review from app store

The goal is to take up as many tiles as you can by changing color. Collect more than 50%, you will win.

Start from the left bottom corner. Those with the same color belong to you.

The other player starts from the top right corner. Tap a button to change the color to take up neighboring tiles.

Note: No player can select the opponent’s current color. For this purpose, button of that color will be hidden and cannot be tapped. You can use this to limit the opponent's selection.

This is version 3.0. New locks mode is added, locked tile cannot be occupied. Now it is more fun.

Features:

*******With double player mode, you can play against your friend.

*******Shake the iPhone to reset the game! Especially useful when you are not winning :)

*******Use settings to choose your favorite board size and difficulty level. Warning, computer can go nuts, try beat it as hard as you can.

*******With enjoyable sound. No network support is needed and Ads free. No data will be uploaded/downloaded. While playing, you can listen to your favorite music, just remember to turn off the sounds switch in settings.

*******Check the VIDEO DEMO on our site

http://sites.google.com/site/sgpsubwaymapapp/iflip

*******More features to come in the future.

Good companion when you want to kill some time and have some fun! Hope you will enjoy it!

iFlip Pro is a strategic puzzle game in which you play against an opponent - either an AI or a friend. The object of the game is to take over half the board by changing colors. You can change your piece to any adjacent color, and by doing so, you acquire that square as part of your piece. The first player to gain control of 50% of the board wins. The settings offer 6 selections on sizes for the pieces on the board, and 3 difficulty ratings.

All in all, the game is quite fun; however, it is slightly lacking in variety. It's more likely that players will turn this app on for a few minutes of gameplay rather than something to turn to for long term enjoyment. The design is very well done; the game features strong graphics and a nice polished look. If you are looking for a time killer sort of app, for only 99 cents, this is a great one. A free lite version can be found here.

Overall impression: 8/10
Value for your money: 7/10

Polyhedra

2009-08-17T14:08:00.000-07:00

Polyhedra

Category: Game
Type:
Cost: $1.99
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: n/a

Description:
✭✭✭ REVIEWS & FEEDBACK ✭✭✭
➤ "Polyhedra makes the most of the iPhone's attributes and beautifully shows of the appeal of the iPhone. SILVER AWARD" - Mobile Game FAQs

➤ "The game itself looks like it could possibly be the best version of this filling game on the iPhone."

✭✭✭ YES, PHYSICS *CAN* BE FUN!!! ✭✭✭
Use gravity to your advantage in this addicting physics-based action game!

➤ The Goal
Fill more than 66% of the screen with shapes to complete a level. The game ends when you run out of shapes. Sounds easy, right? Think again! There are enemy particles and other shapes to worry about!

➤ Creating a Shape
To create a shape, simply touch the screen. Keep pressing to make bigger shapes. The shape drops to the bottom of the screen when you release your touch.

➤ Enemies
Look out for enemies when creating a shape. If they hit a growing shape before you drop it, the shape will be lost and you have one less shape to complete the level.

➤ Rotating the Screen
The shapes always fall to the bottom of the screen. You can rotate the screen to any angle you want. This is a good strategy to keep the enemies out of your way!

➤ Scoring
You get points for every shape you drop. When you complete a level, you get bonus points based on how many shapes you have left, how fast you completed the level, and how much of the screen you filled.

➤ Zones
There are several Zones in the game. Each one has its own shape. To unlock a Zone, you have to complete at least 9 levels from the Zone before it. The last Zone has a surprise, so be careful!

➤ Pausing the Play
To pause the game, simply double-tap the screen. (Here's a cool tip: double-tap a shape you have already dropped.)

➤ The Toy Box
In this mode, you can create any shape you wish. Simply touch the icon in the panel and create a shape as normal. You can create up to 10 shapes. You can move shapes around, delete them, and even clear the screen to start over. There are no enemies to worry about in the Toy Box, so enjoy yourself!

✭✭✭ FEATURES ✭✭✭
✔ Real physics-based interaction; watch the different shapes hit and roll off each other based on real mass and gravity!
✔ Use the accelerometer to change gravity...you can use this to your advantage
✔ Unlimited levels...your only limitation is how well you do
✔ 6 different Zones to play...each one offers unique challenges
✔ Global online leaderboards...rank yourself amongst other players worldwide! 6 different leaderboards to rank your scores. (Global leaderboard functionality provided by the AGON Online Social Platform for iPhone Games.)
✔ Play around in the Toy Box as long as you like...create and remove shapes, move them around, rotate the screen to watch them fall. Set the song you like and the background colors you like. The choice is yours!
✔ Listen to the over 8 minutes of original music, or play the game listening to your own iPod music
✔ Colorful and fluid graphics

✭✭✭ COMING SOON ✭✭✭
✔ Awards: receive awards as you play. Put them on your leaderboard wall to show all the other players how good you are!

Polyhedra is one of the very few iPhone apps that I have tried that truly utilizes the abilities of the iPhone as a gaming device. When starting up this app, the very first screen that opens up allows you to select to listen to your own music or the games music. I love iPod integration in games; listening to your own music while playing a game is probably one of the most underrated feature a game can have. I opted to listen to the games music for the review's sake, which is quite nice, actually. It fits the game perfectly.

Polyhedra is a simple concept, which is executed beautifully. When playing in the "Play" mode, players attempt to fill the screen at least 66% with a given shape. Players begin in the "Circle Zone." To create a shape, players must tap the screen and hold down to create the size he or she desires. Various enemies float around to stop the player from filling the screen (the amount of enemies depends on your level). Gravity also plays a part, as players can rotate their iPhone to drop the shapes into different parts of the screen to block more enemies.

At level 10, the gravity alternates from being turned on and turned off every other level. When the gravity function is not available, gameplay gets much more strategic and difficult. Around level 16, gameplay gets extremely quick. After completing 9 levels in the most recently unlocked zone, a new zone will open up for even more gameplay. Scores are calculated both globally (via Agon) and locally (At the time of writing this review, I have the best score in the world on the "Circle zone").

There is also a toybox mode, where players can create different shapes and see how those shapes react with gravity and with eachother. With all of these features, various zones, and challenging twists on certain levels, Polyhedra really is a wonderful game. This app is beautifully done - highly innovative with fantastic graphics and gameplay. It's also the sort of app that anyone can pick up and enjoy, no matter how much of a "gamer" they are. All in all, this app is a great find and a beautiful, relaxing game to play.

Overall impression: 10/10
Value for your money: 9/10

Bacteria Bash

2009-08-17T13:31:00.000-07:00

Bacteria Bash

Category: Game
Type: Tapping
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 3.5, 9 reviews

Description:
Bacteria Bash

Your human body has a deadly bacteria, and you have sent a robot into your body to eliminate it. You control the robot with a computer, and you must tap the bacteria in order to weaken it. How many times can you tap the bacteria? What is your highest score?

1.1 is OUT!!! Update 1.2 has been submitted, with a new pirate bacteria! There is also one new campaign map with a new background that animates, and a new way to kill the pirate bacteria!!

Features:
- 4 power-ups
- Random appearance of power-ups
- Random moving of bacteria
- 3 difficulty levels
- Twitter Integration (post your score to Twitter)
- User Interface Improvements
- Fixed crashing bugs
- New mode: Campaign
- New maps: Campaign 1 and 2!
- Instructions Screen

---Reviews---
"Enviro-Bear meets Wall-E."
"Great Game. The gameplay is smooth. The graphics are great ... It's worth the money." - 5 stars
"Bacteria Bashing Fun...If you like-whack-a-mole type games, Bacteria Bash may appeal to you."

What is your highest score?
How many taps can you get?

What's new

- New pirate bacteria (different way to attack it!)
- New campaign map
- Fixed a bug with the freezing power-up

Bacteria Bash is a relatively simplistic game. The background is comprised of the organs in a human body. Bacteria appear on the screen, and you must tap the bacteria as many times as possible before it moves to a new spot. A random amount of points are added for each time the bacteria is hit, and a random amount of points is deducted for each miss. The hits have to be somewhat precise, though missing due to hitting the wrong area is rare. A nice feature is that the game saves your most recent score and shows it to you as you play the game.

There are 3 campaigns to play, all of which are easy to beat. The first campaign is to achieve a score of 100 before the clock runs out. The second campaign is to get 100 taps on the bacteria before the clock runs out. The third campaign has no real goal, but the bacteria is wearing a pirate costume.

This game is okay. It would be better suited to a free app, because there's simply not enough content to be overly engaging. The design is good, and the concept is good; it's just missing something. Perhaps if each campaign got progressively harder with varying levels, instead of a single mini-game being the extent of it, it would have more play time. Different difficulty settings would also help, and new levels would be nice (Perhaps with 2 or more bacteria?). I just can't imagine many people spending money on an app that doesn't have either at least an hour of good gameplay or strong replay value.

Overall impression: 5/10
Value for your money: 5/10

AIM Free Edition

2009-08-17T12:56:00.000-07:00

AIM

Category: Social Networking
Type: Instant Messenger
Cost: FREE
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 29,602 ratings, 3.5 stars

Now with Push Notification, AIM® lets you stay even more connected with the people you care about right on your iPhone or iPod Touch. Communicate whenever you want, wherever you are. Connect with friends and family and keep track of status, location, and presence updates in real time.

Features include:
• Send and receive messages over WiFi, EDGE, or 3G networks*
• Connect to anyone on the AIM network worldwide, whether they're on AOL®, AIM, ICQ®, .mac or MobileMe
• See who's available before you contact them
• Configure multiple screen names and switch between identities any time
• Stay logged in for up to 24 hours and receive notifications through Apple's Push Notification service (iPhone OS 3.0 or higher only) or via SMS when you receive new IMs
• View expressions and update status
• Send IMs and SMS text messages* - even from an iPod Touch
• View your buddy list and conversations in landscape mode
• Take pictures with the built-in camera to use as your buddy icon
• Share your location with your buddies and find out who's nearby with the Buddies Near Me smart buddy group
• Manage your Buddy List® feature, choose Favorites, or add a new buddy anytime. Your changes are automatically synced with iChat and AIM for Windows or Mac.
• Access your Contacts directly from within AIM - send an IM to a screen name or an SMS to a phone number.

It's easy to get started. Just sign in using your existing AOL, AIM, .mac or MobileMe name, or register for a free screen name right from your device.

Any service can send messages. But with AIM, you're really connected.

AIM for iPhone (Free Edition) is ad supported. To use AIM without ads or to get landscape support, purchase AIM on the App Store - just look for the purple icon (where available).

Let us know what you think about AIM and hear from our team at http://iblog.aol.com/.

* iPod Touch only supports WiFi; SMS notifications require an iPhone with a wireless data plan and charges from your wireless carrier may apply.
SMS features are not available in all countries.

What's new

Reduced number of audio notifications for multiple incoming IMs on launch.

AIM (Free Edition) is an instant messenger program for the iPhone put out by AOL. Though it seems the logical choice for an AIM app, it's is far from the best option out there. In fact, AIM (Free Edition) is not even the best free instant messenger on the market. That's not to say that the program is awful. It does exactly what it claims to - gives you a way to access AIM on your iPhone. The push notifications are an excellent advantage over any other free program on the market.

So what's the issue? It's SLOW. I find that even on my 3GS, I cannot toggle between two conversations in a way that is practical enough to feel as though I am conversing with anyone. Every time an IM is sent to you, either by the person you are chatting with or someone else, AIM (Free Edition) freezes up just long enough to be irritating.

The program isn't terrible, but there are better alternatives out there. I've yet to try the paid version, so I can't comment if these issues are resolved by it. I just can't bring myself to shell out $2.99 for an app of a program that is free online. It doesn't help AOL's case that other programs (IM Chat, anyone?) are cheaper and do more.

Overall impression: 5/10
Value for your money: 10/10 - it's free!

Flashback: Movie Edition

2009-08-17T11:43:00.000-07:00

Flashback: Movie Edition

Category: Game
Type: Trivia
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: n/a

Description: Think you know movies? Flashback: Movie Edition tests your trivia knowledge of the hottest movies made in the last 25 years.

Game Play
======
You must successfully complete five rounds in order to beat the game.

Each round consists of ten random questions. Each question you answer incorrectly is one strike against you. Answer three questions incorrectly in a single round and the game is over.

You must answer a question before the timer reaches zero (the timer is located directly under the question). If the timer reaches zero before you answer the question, it will automatically count as one strike against you.

Features
=====
- Tons of questions for replayability
- Sound effects and background music
- Keeps statistics on your game play, and more!

As a film buff, seeing new games created based on film trivia always excites me. Flashback: Movie Edition was no exception. Films featured are those released in the past 25 years, so if your movie knowledge leans more towards the classics, this game can get challenging. Each round consists of 10 film trivia questions. The questions are timed, but you most likely won't need to worry about that unless you're playing with a friend. When you answer 3 questions wrong in a round, your game is over.

Sound easy? It's not. The questions aren't terribly hard, but personally, the movie years questions threw me off every single time. Unfortunately, the biggest flaw with this game is the lack of diversity in the questions. I began seeing repeats after only 3 games. It's still a challenge, but I'd prefer a much strong pool of questions to select randomly from. The game is a very basic movie trivia game; if you enjoy films, you will enjoy it. If further updates provide more questions, it could be great. For now, it's simply a solid game that still feels overpriced at 99 cents.

Overall impression: 7/10
Value for your money: 6/10

Mini Taxi

2009-08-17T11:03:00.000-07:00

Mini Taxi

Category: Game
Type: Racing
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 18 ratings, 3.5 stars

IMPORTANT:
Version 1.1 of Mini Taxi is coming soon! (awaiting Apple approval)
It includes:
- Directional steering for a totally arcade experience!
- Improved vehicle physics!
- Free Play mode added!
- More people! More cars! More mayhem!
- Left/Right handed setups
- Customers now appear on MiniMap after they call out
- Other improvements and tweaks!

Drive to you heart's content in this fast paced arcade style taxi game!

Finally for the iPhone and iPod touch a top-view car game for the arcade game lover.

Explore Mini City, keep an eye out for customers and drive like a crazy maniac to get them to their destination in least time possible!

Choose from 4 different taxis, with their different driving styles thanks to the realtime physics simulation.

Show everyone you're the best taxi driver around and compete online for the highest score!

Gameplay for mini taxi is simple - tilt your iPhone to steer the taxi of your choice. Each taxi will have different benefits and weaknesses, from better steering to better speed. Drive around the mini city until you hear a whistle, and someone yells "Taxi!" This is when the fun begins! Attempt to get your taxi stopped close enough to the person asking for and follow the arrows to get your new passenger to his or her desired location. The map in the top right corner will help you see where you need to be.

In concept, this game plays out fantastic. Unfortunately, the steering is not exactly easy. You can - and will - crash your car into buildings (making crash noises but suffering no real damage) and run over pedestrians (making a sort of splosh noise). The money paid by each passenger in the taxi differs each time, and it seems to be completely random. No passenger has ever minded that I ran over several pedestrians to get them there!

All in all, it's a very fun game, but the basic mechanics need some real work. I'm excited to see what the latest update has in store!

Overall impression: 7/10 stars
Value for your money: 8/10 stars

Mine Field Hex

2009-08-17T10:37:00.000-07:00

Mine Field Hex

Category: Game
Type: Minesweeper
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 7 ratings, 4.5 stars

Description:Welcome to the new dawn of minesweeper.

If you've never played minesweeper before, the concept is simple. Tread carefully across the minefield until you reveal numbers underneath a grid tile. Each number represents how many mines are sitting right next to that tile.

Use the information wisely, and strategically flag known mines and clear away known empty squares to finally reveal or flag the entire board.

Because this game is played on a hexagonal grid, every tile has 6 adjacent tiles requiring a new mental geometry to solve the puzzles.

You'll find many features including:
* Four different board sizes, and three different difficulties - That's 12 different boards to defeat.
* 10 high scores saved for every different board size and difficulty
* Sound that can be turned on or off
* Vibrations on mine explosions that can be turned on or off
* Settings are kept for the next time you use the App
[ Coming Soon: The ability to flag a tile by holding that tile]

We hope you enjoy Mine Field Hex.

Mine Field Hex plays exactly like the classic game of minesweeper, except with modern upgrades that make this version more sustainable for the current generation. There are 4 separate board sizes to compete on, and each can be set to a difficulty of either easy, normal, or hard. The controls are extremely easy to learn (just tap a hexagon to take it out), and movements are extremely fluid - one thing many developers get wrong.

If you like Minesweeper, you won't be disappointed in this game. The graphics are far better than the classic game, and having hexagons rather than squares to focus on is an interesting spin. It can get confusing though! I think my favorite part of this game is that when you lose a game, the iPhone vibrates and makes a quiet explosion sound. If you're a fan of classic computer games and want a little nostalgia in your life, this game is quite a find. It's beautifully put together, and a great time killer.

Overall impression: 8/10
Value for your money: 8/10

WordsWorth

2009-08-17T09:58:00.000-07:00

WordsWorth

Category: Game
Type: Word
Cost: 99 cents, SALE
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 741 ratings, 3.5 stars

Description: "WordsWorth comes with little ceremony, which makes its unembellished wordplay all the more likely to win you over"
-Pocket Gamer Review (8/10 - Silver Award)

"..best described as Scrabble on steroids" - MacWorld

"WordsWorth made me enjoy a *gasp* word game!" - The Portable Gamer
--------------------------------------

WordsWorth is a challenging, fun, engaging and an addictive word game, with the perfect ingredients to loosen up. Trace new words as you link letters into words in the library using Multi-Touch interface. Create longer words with rare letters to earn hefty points. Stumble upon new rewards and challenges along the way. 'Shake' if you cannot locate a word, of course at a penalty. Watch out for timed tiles that threaten to explode your library! Customize the game to suit your level of intellect. Go on to earn whopping scores and become a whiz with words!

The current version of WordsWorth features:

- Timed mode and Classic mode
- 4x4, 5x5, 6x6, and 7x7 grids
- Numerous levels with different rankings
- TWL, SOWPODS and ENABLE word lists
- Green, Gold, Auto Shuffle and Wild Card reward tiles
- Global Leader Board
- List of Words created

UPDATE:
-Now continue playing the last level till the timed tile explodes.
- Facebook and Twitter updates
- Two new reward tiles

WordsWorth is also available in French, Italian, German and Spanish languages as separate applications.

COMING SOON: Swedish version of WordsWorth

Big thanks to all who have helped us get WordsWorth to its current form. Please send all support emails, bug reports and suggestions to support@99games.in. We would be more than happy to listen to you and improve this game.
What's new

The user can save his scores to the Global Score board the next time he logs in, in case he doesn't have network at the time of playing the game.

Wordsworth is probably one of the best word games I've played. I enjoyed the developer's preview game, Wordulous, but Wordsworth is leaps and bounds above it. Gameplay is simple - you are faced with a screen filled with hexagons, each with a letter in it. Click adjacent letters to spell as many words as possible. As words are removed from the board, new letters continuously fall into the screen to be used. When a certain level of points is achieved, players progress to the next round.

There are two modes available - Classic, which is a more relaxed non-timed version, and Timed, where you race the clock to see if you can complete levels in time. Bonus points are awarded for spelling the code word that appears at the bottom of the screen. There are also special tiles that occasionally fall - ones that can be used as any letter, ones that instantly shuffle the letters for you, ones that are timed that you must get rid of quickly, etc. You can even customize between 4 size boards, minimum word length (3-7), and which word list you wish to use. All of these factors make for exciting and addicting gameplay.

I'll be honest - I wasn't expecting to enjoy this game as much as I did. I picked it up last night for a brief look, and I couldn't put the game down. I finished 3 total games (2 timed, 1 classic) before I realized it was far too late and sleep was needed. The game is obviously extremely polished and well-put-together. The biggest flaw it has is that occasionally I tended to miss the checkmark at the bottom of the screen to clear the completed word. Whenever this happened, I would have to go back and reselect each letter, which ate away at my time a little. Though slightly frustrating, this did not limit the amount of fun I had with this game. It's probably one of the best word games on the market - definitely worth checking out!

Overall impression: 9/10
Value for your money: 8/10

Take Me To My Car

2009-08-16T22:20:00.000-07:00

Take Me To My Car

Category: Navigation
Type: Navigation
Cost: FREE
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 10687 ratings, 2 stars

Description:
If you like this app, but want more functionality (ability to take notes, track parking time, set meter timeout, use hybrid maps, change parking spot by dragging marker, or ability to keep track of multiple locations), check out iCarPark.

*** Featured in BusinessWeek among the 18 popular mobile programs for your phone ***

How many times did you forget where you parked your car? This application solves the problem: with only one tap save your current position and next time you start the app you'll have walking directions to your car in front of you! What if you parked in a garage or lot? You can use this app as a compass: we display the distance and the map will tell you the direction. Browse or pinch to zoom in/out. Everything is within one tap, it is simple, accurate, and, most importantly, free (unlike our competitors)!

Why use Take Me To My Car and not the Maps built in functionality:
- Less taps, much quicker
- Walking directions instead of driving directions
- Exact display of remaining distance
- Exact position accuracy in meters/yards as opposed to a circle
- Pleasant intuitive interface

READ THIS: The application works best on 3G iPhone. For best results, make sure to have Location services and WiFi on (to enable WPS). The app may not work on non-3G iPhone since it does not support GPS. For the same reason, iPod Touch is not a supported platform.

What's new

- Blazingly fast loading time (2-3 seconds)
- Added turn-by-turn directions via Maps
- Maps style interface

My first reaction to Take Me To My Car was overwhelmingly positive. I'm one of those people that can get lost in a grocery store, if you know what I mean. With that sort of sense of direction, an app of this sort could be exceedingly helpful! Unfortunately, Take Me To My Car didn't live up to the expectations I had for it. In concept, the app is wonderful. I love the incorporation of Maps to create walking directions.

The biggest issue I have with this app is its accuracy. If you are looking for something on foot, you would hope that the location would be fairly accurate. Instead, I seem to get accuracy ratings ranging anywhere from 600 feet (not so bad) to 2 miles. I'm sincerely hoping that most people looking for their cars already know where it is in a general, 2 mile radius sort of way.

Overall impression: 5/10
Value for your money: 10/10 - It's free!

To-Do Lists 2

2009-08-16T20:38:00.000-07:00

To-Do Lists 2

Category: Productivity
Type: To-do lists
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 22 ratings, 2.5 stars

Description:
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FOR A VIDEO DEMONSTRATION, GO TO TAPKU.COM
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To-Do Lists is a simple to-do task management app for creating dated and non-dated to-do lists. Completing tasks is as simple as a swipe gesture across the task. To-Do tasks can include notes, due dates and address book actions like calling a contact. Tasks can be viewed in expanded or collapsed form to see/hide the notes associated with each item.

To-Do Lists is beautifully designed with multiple themes to view task lists. Included with the a default user interface theme, are a post-it and ripped paper theme.

Quickly create new to do lists. You can delete complete to-do tasks by touching the trash icon. If not to-do tasks are completed, you can remove all to-dos from the list.

Features:

• Three themes: Default, Post-It, Ripped Paper
• Multiple To-Do Tasks Lists
• Backup Tasks over the cloud or email
• Easily remove completed to-do tasks
• Quick Task Creation
• To-Do Task Notes
• Quickly expand tasks view to show to-do notes
• Address Book Actions - Phone, Email, Web Address, Location
• Home Screen Badge Indicator Based on tasks uncompleted
• Option to choose which lists are included in the badge counter
• Instructions list included with purchase

To-do Lists 2 is a very practical application, with a unique interface and options that many to-do list apps simply do not have. One of the most important features that makes To-Do Lists 2 so unique is it's ability to add multiple lists. Need a to-do list for getting ready for a trip and one for items to pack? It's finally possible, and for a decent price, too. The best thing about To-do lists is that it is so simple to use. You just swipe an activity to mark it as completed (If you don't like swiping, you can also tap the activity and then tap a check box). Adding new lists and new activities to To-Do Lists 2 is just as simple.

Another great feature To-Do Lists 2 has is the home screen badge counter. You simply select which lists to include, and To-Do Lists 2 shows a count of uncompleted tasks from all lists on the app icon. There is nothing that can keep you on task like a pesky number in the corner of your to-do list app telling you your work isn't done yet! There is email integration and back-up of lists. There is even a contact option that reminds you to call a contact (and lets you do it from the app)
once a set task is completed.

I haven't tried many to-do list programs, but I don't have to in order to know that this one works just great. It's not perfect, but it certainly gets the job done. For only a dollar, it makes a great utility app for anyone needing a little organization in their life.

Overall impression: 8/10
Value for your money: 8/10

Wordulous

2009-08-16T19:36:00.000-07:00

Wordulous

Category: Game
Type: Word
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 42 ratings, 4 stars

Description: "Wordulous is a pleasantly presented, by-the-numbers puzzler with some neat, fresh ideas and Facebook integration. In combination, it spells App Store success"
-Pocket Gamer Review (7/10 - Bronze Award)

The best anagram based game to hit the App Store; this game will leave you grabbing your iPhone or iPod the minute you have time to spare. And for that matter, when you don’t have time to spare and notice that no one’s looking. :P

Just kick back and enjoy!!
The objective of the game is to make the maximum numbers of words out of the given set before the time runs out. Perfect to put your word-building prowess to test. Not able to get the hang of the game yet? Just switch to the ‘Practice’ mode. Once you’ve reached the end of a game, all the possible words appear on the screen.

Declare War of the words!!
Multiply your word-building fun with the ‘Challenge mode’ that lets you battle it out with your friends on Facebook and phonebook!!

Features:
-Engaging gameplay with 3 exciting modes to choose from: Practice, Examination, Challenge
-Take the game online using the Facebook connect feature.
-Invite your phonebook contacts to share the fun with you.
-35 levels with different rankings will let you know where you stand in class.
-Detailed tutorial to help you learn how to play the game.
-Smooth controls to maximize your gaming pleasure.
-Unlock bonus rounds
-Indulge in relaxed gameplay with the Practice mode
-Global and Local leader boards with weekly, monthly and all time high scores.

Being quite similar to 'Facebook Word Challenge', Wordulous is sure to keep you occupied for hours together. If you like Word games like Scrabble, Boggle, Word Warp, Word Scramble and enjoy playing Text Twist games, you will definitely love Wordulous.

Gameplay Video:
---------------
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ix6EjWpvBRs

Wordulous is an entertaining anagram style game. The game allows you to select if you'd prefer 6 or 7 letters, and you then try to make as many words as you can from those letters. Players can also select 3, 5, or 7 minute challenges. There is also a Practice option, which allows an untimed, unlimited level word game for those just looking to kill time. The bonus dictionary is best used in this section. For real gameplay, there is a timed Examination mode. The game also tracks high scores locally and globally, and even offers a Challenge option, where you can challenge friends on Facebook or their own iPhone.

Gameplay is simple, but fun. The presentation is well done, with a very polished appearance and nice music. The fact that your score is ranked with titles like "Joker" or "Rock Star" is a nice added touch. All in all, it's a good, solid game. If you enjoy word games, you won't be disappointed with Wordulous.

Overall impression: 8/10
Value for your money: 7/10

Free Translator

2009-08-16T19:08:00.000-07:00

Free Translator

Check it out on iTunes!

Category: Reference
Type: Language
Cost: FREE
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 5963 ratings, 3 stars

Description:

This application provides an interface to the free Google Translate API for many languages including Chinese, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Spanish and Vietnamese.

Translator Free is a great utility app to have around, especially if you are interested in languages. The translations for single words have been accurate in every trial I have completed (It is notable that I only speak Japanese and Spanish, so I have not tested other languages). There is a long list of languages to choose for your translation, which is especially impressive considering the app is entirely free. If you are looking for a good language dictionary for a reasonable price, there is really no need to look any further.

Almost no app is without any flaws, of course. There are three major issues with the software as far as I am concerned. First, text that is translated cannot be copied and pasted. Not a huge deal, but it would be a nice function to see implemented in later updates. Second, all translations are in native characters - so if you want to translate something you heard in Japanese and don't know the kanji (or don't have the keyboard capability on!), you're SOL. There's no option to put text in romanized English. This can be an issue for those trying to converse in a language that uses symbols. The third issue is the same issue that every single translating software program I've seen has - it doesn't have human intelligence. Unfortunately, some words have several meanings, and the program does not take this into account when translating sentences. As such, grammar is sometimes incorrect. If you misspell a word, the system has no ability to recognize it for you.

If you can put up with the limitations stated above, for a free app, Free Translator is leaps and bounds above most. If not, you may be better off shelling out a little cash for a more sophisticated app.

Overall impression: 7/10
Value for your money: 10/10 - it's free!

Epic Pet Wars

2009-08-16T14:05:00.000-07:00

Epic Pet Wars

Check it out on iTunes!

Category: Game
Type: MMORPG
Cost: FREE (though respect points can be paid for through additional apps)
Rating: 9+
Current iTunes Reviews: 4026 ratings, 4 stars

Description:
Adopt a unique & exclusively designed pet to join the thousands training, battling, and customizing in this FREE, real-time, constantly evolving Massively Multiplayer Online RPG that spans the iPhone/iPod Touch, Facebook, and epicpetwars.com!

User Reviews:
"I don't eat as much anymore because this game keeps me busy I probably play it for 3 or more hours at a time. Wow. I can't believe I ever went without this app." -Golfer4sphs

"Pokemon + mafia wars=epic pet wars. Fun addicting and extremely cute. Runs well also." -Jerilith

"I'm greatly satisfied, with an impressive selection of items which you can actually tell have an effect. I highly recommend." -Shazian

"Honestly the best browser type mmo I've played on the iPhone. I just love it." -Cheezeburgerz

"Great artwork and good gameplay with plenty of original twists. A refreshing break from a lot of crap that's coming out these days." -blazamm

"The achievement system is amazing" -RoflcopterRepairman

"If there was more than 5 stars I would pick it." -Darkmerc559

"best mmorpg in the app store." -Pieoftheweek

"Awesome battling. Way better than imob and imafia." -SlickMocha

Features:
- Adopt pets with unique strengths and weaknesses and looks that match your style
- Fight & strategically use items and power-ups during LIVE battles against other players with fully animated battle sequences. Don't just "instantly win or lose" (how lame!).
- Deck out your pet with a slew of original weapons, armor, and accessories that dramatically improve its strengths in and out of battle. New items added weekly!
- Play with your pet using the animated home screen.
- Unlock Achievements that show how you've conquered Epic Pet Wars inside and out.
- Compete against thousands that span the iPhone/iPod Touch, epicpetwars.com, and Facebook. All networks are interlinked!
- Top Rankings for the best players allow you to take down the leaders and destroy their ranking and steal their cash.
- Interact and chat with other players via our instant comment system and get notified in real-time of new messages. Send mass messages to your entire posse to organize an assault!
- Invite friends into your Posse and become a stronger fighter and train more efficiently through e-mail, friend codes, Facebook, and more.
- Your Newsfeed keeps up-to-the-minute info of all the latest events that have happened to your pets.
- Months of action, deep and vibrant gameplay with new features, animal races, itmes, and achievements added all the time.

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? ADOPT A PET GET IN ON THE WAR TODAY!

Check out for game updates, news, server status, and more at:
http://www.epicpetwars.com/iphone/support

Follow the Epic Pet Wars Developers on Twitter:
http://twitter.com/epicpetwars

Contact Us: iphone@epicpetwars.com

Epic Pet Wars is personally my favorite MMORPG on the iPhone, and I think I've tried out most of them. It plays like a cross between Pokemon and Mafia Wars. The different characters to select from range from adorable to deadly (a shark w/ a lazer on its head a la Austin Powers?!). The best part is that unlike most MMORPGs created for the iPhone, the battles are not simply dice rolls without any engagement. Players actually strategically compete in battles, purchasing items, armor, weapons, accessories, and spells to help them out.

Each level section is complete with new available items, training activities, and bosses to battle. Pets are able to battle any player of a higher level, but no one that is more than one level below them. This maintains that all battles are fair. The developers are engaging and helpful, which is an added bonus. I really don't think my iPhone app collection would ever be complete without this game.

The biggest downfall of Epic Pet Wars is that updates for players above level 100 are few and far in between - but with various acheievements and high score boards to aim for (As well as dozens of new pets to create!), you still won't likely get bored. Epic Pet Wars is one of the best games available on the iPhone, and it is certainly the best free application I have seen. If you're an MMORPG fan, it is a must-have in your collection of apps.

Overall impression: 10/10
Value for your money: 10/10 - it's free!

Good vs Evil 3D

2009-08-16T10:30:00.000-07:00

Good vs Evil 3D

Category: Game
Type: Strategy/ Action
Cost: SALE - 99 cents (typically $2.99)
Rating: 9+
Current iTunes Reviews: 11 ratings, 4 stars

New Release Sale: 3D Good vs Evil is on sale for the first few days! Get it before the price increases.

GAMEPLAY
3D Good vs Evil delivers a 3D world where you have complete control over the camera. Pan and zoom around the board. In the 3D battle you can change the camera angle and fight from any perspective! The controls will automatically update to work with your perspective.

The game pits Good against Evil in a unique 3D battle filled with strategy and action. 3D Good vs Evil is a mix of chess and real time battles. Attacking an enemy transports you to a death match in the dungeon where each character (or sim) has specific attack attributes and weapons. For example, the Warrior shoots swords and has a slow attack speed whereas the Warlock shoots a laser which causes maximum damage. The winner of the battle conquers the space on the board.

Each battle places you in a unique dungeon with magic power ups. No two battles are ever the same.

The game has an RPG aspect as well. Work to level up your characters to make them stronger for the ensuing fight.

Good vs Evil features an extensive single player game with two different modes and three different difficulty settings. Each of the six types of play has a global high scores leader board. Can you become the archon?

Perhaps the greatest feature of the game is its 2 player mode. Play Good vs Evil against a friend anywhere on a single iPhone or iPod. Control your characters and crush the opponent.

FEATURES:
• Amazing 3D universe with complete camera control
• 1 player & 2 player on a single device
• 16 characters with unique weapons and abilities
• Unique mix of strategy and action
• Level up system for each character
• 5 different types of Magic to use in the battles
• Realistic battle sound effects
• Play as both Good and Evil
• Two game modes
• 3 difficulty levels
• Global high scores leader board

UPDATES will be released every month with new battles, magic, features, and more! We are dedicated to making 3D Good vs Evil as great as possible.

Good vs Evil 3D is a fun, however complex, game. Initially, the game plays as though you are playing chess. Each character can only move in certain directions and a certain number of spaces. The rules of movement are difficult to grasp if you are not a chess aficionado; luckily, the game highlights possible movements as you go along. When your character is able to move into the spot of another character, you can battle that pawn. This is where the real fun begins - battles are real-time fights where you shoot spells at the other pawn, as they shoot at you. If you win the battle, the other pawn disappears. The game is won by eliminating all of your foe's pawns. Each pawn also has strengths and weaknesses against other pawns, which are explained in the instructions.

There is only one level of difficultly, but the game can be played as a two player match if selected. Players can also opt for which board they prefer to use (checkers or chess, basically) and if they would like to be good or evil. Perhaps the most interesting option on the game is Two of a Kind (where the levels of the Devil/Warlock and/or Beast/Titan control the levels of the other pawns) or King's Army (Where all health levels are linked to the Devil/Warrior). Either way, the closer your characters are to the selected pawn or pawns, the more energy all will have. If that character is eliminated, all your pawns lose strength.

The gameplay is phenomenally unique. The graphics are beautiful, and the game is well-thought out - if not a little too complex to grasp at first. I do have one minor complaint - the pawns are not always as easy to move as you might imagine. This can prove frustrating, especially when you are first learning. Despite that, if you enjoy chess and similar strategy games that require an active mind, this game is worth checking out. It is beautifully made, and the battle sequences are a rather fun way to break up a strategy game. Personally, they're my favorite part!

Overall impression: 8/10
Value for your money: 9/10

Word Trix

2009-08-15T21:46:00.000-07:00

Word Trix

Category: Game
Type: Word
Cost: FREE
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 163 ratings, 2.5 stars

Based on the award winning WordTrix games on the PC!

When you start a new game, one letter at a time will fall from the top of the screen to the bottom. The object of the game is to make the letters fall in such a way that they spell a word. The words can be any English word from 3-5 characters in length, and can be arranged either top-to-down or left-to-right, just like a crossword puzzle!

The controls are fairly simple. You make a swiping motion with your finger anywhere on the screen to place the letter. The speed of the game starts at a rather leisurely pace. After every level, the speed will increase!

After approximately every five formed words, a special block will appear. Every letter that is on the screen that this block falls on will be cleared! This is handy for those pesky Q, X, and Z pieces!

There is an extra incentive for finding words within words. You will get points for every word contained within the word! For example, if you spell 'CRAMP', you will get points for 'CRAMP', 'CRAM', 'RAMP', 'RAM', and 'AMP'!

If the letters pile to the top, the game is over!

Choose from 3 awesome themes with 30 dazzling backgrounds for every optical taste!

You can even post your score online and match it with others from your country!

Still not convinced? Take a look at the screenshots!

If you love games like WordFu, Tetris, Crosswords, and Scrabble, you will definitely love WordTrix!

I am open to suggestions and have several updates in the works.

Word Trix is a very fun word puzzle game. The iTunes information from above essentially covers the "how-to," so I will stick to the review here. I really enjoy the tetris style gameplay - it's certainly a unique spin on that sort of game. I think the developer has an excellent idea here, and a very well made game. The game simply needs a little more work and polishing to be as good as it can be.

The biggest flaw with Word Trix is that there is simply no learning curve. The letters begin falling slowly, and within a brief period of time, they are simply moving too fast to really see what is going on. The other issue is that vowels seem to be few and far between - in a game like this, the vowels really ought to be weighted more than the average letter.

If you can ignore those flaws, it's actually a quite good game. It's not really something you can spend hours on, but do you really expect that from a free game? Since it's currently a free app, and the developer claims to have updates being worked on, I'd say go ahead and get it. If nothing else, it's better than another 2 minute lite trial.

Overall impression: 6/10
Value for your money: 10/10 - it's free!

StoneLoops! of Jurassica

2009-08-15T19:08:00.000-07:00

StoneLoops! of Jurassica

Category: Game
Type: Marble Popping
Cost: ON SALE - 99 cents (*75% off original retail)
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 3,862 ratings, 4.5 stars

StoneLoops! is an amazingly dynamic puzzle-arcade game set in the prehistoric world of Jurassica. Thanks to unique gameplay mechanics and non-stop action, it's bound to please even the most selective games.

Take a trip through the five colorful realms of Jurassica - from the wild jungle, through the endless glacier, to the edge of a blazing volcano. Own five houses and collect 24 trophies in this crazy, arcade-packed adventure.

75 handcrafted levels, two modes of play and a vast number of powerups makes StoneLoops! an incredibly fun game for both fans of a strategic challenge and those who just want to let off some steam and smash some stuff into tiny little pieces!

Features:
• 2 game modes
• 75 levels in each game mode
• 15 bonus levels in each game mode
• 24 trophies to unlock
• 5 houses to build with tons of upgrades
• countless hours of gameplay

StoneLoops! of Jurassica is a marble-popping game in the vein of Zuma. Two modes of gameplay are available - Classic (almost identical to Zuma) and Grab N' Shoot (which is a unique spin, where players sway the places of marbles to complete sets of 3 or more in a row). The bonus levels, house upgrades, and trophies ensure that gameplay remains exciting.

StoneLoops! of Jurassica is the best dollar I have spent in the app store, hands down. I'm a big fan of Zuma and similar marble popping games, and this is the very best that I've tried for the iPhone. The graphics are beautiful, and the music is extremely fitting for the game. The replay value is insane! Even after completing all levels in Classic, I still find myself replaying them. There actually are hours of gameplay that can be put into this game - which is something many developers claim, but few can honestly back-up.

Personally, this is my favorite game so far on the iPhone. Even if you disagree, I doubt anyone will be disappointed after spending their dollar on this game. Still not convinced? There's a lite version, which is free and can be found here.

Overall impression: 10/10 stars
Value for your money: 10/10 stars

Ant Wars

2009-08-15T18:08:00.000-07:00

Ant Wars

Category: Game
Type: Strategy
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 9+
Current iTunes Reviews: N/a

Ant Wars is a strategy game, where you command armies of ants on a
battlefield. Your goal is to take out all of the hives by occupying the
empty ones and attacking the others taken by your enemies.

You gain score after completing a level. The faster you complete, the
fewer ants you lose, the more points you get.
If you complete all the levels or you lose all your lives, you can see
your total score, which you can share online with others.

Features:

- 3 ant types
- 51 levels
- Agon based Online High Score
- Unique gameplay

Ant Wars is a simply fantastic little strategy game. The course of action is simple - take over enemy any piles before they can take over yours. You are allowed to select which type of ant you prefer to play as - each ant has its own benefits and weaknesses. Playing is simple - to move your ants to another pile, simply click your pile, then click the pile you wish to move them to. Only piles with 7 or more ants will be allowed to move; however, you gain 1 ant in each pile per second (or maybe even half second!).

With 51 levels of gameplay, awards for completing goals, and an online high score list, this game is a sure winner. Ant Wars Lite is available for those interested but not sure about the 99 cent investment - Lite Version.

Overall impression: 9/10
Value for your money: 9/10

Bugs & Spiders

2009-08-15T17:20:00.001-07:00

Bugs & Spiders

Category: Game
Type: Arcade/ Classic
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 7 ratings, 4.5 stars

Welcome to the World of Bugs and Spiders. You are a little hero (incarnated as a spider) in this dangerous world and you have to be quick to stay alive. Build your web and catch your prey but be careful, danger is just around the tree. You will have to play tactical to survive.

Bugs and Spiders is a remake of a classical gaming principle used in games called XONIX and QIX. The gaming area has to be divided up and thereby reduced in size. This gets more and more difficult with a growing number of enemies.

The goal of the game is to score as many points as possible by partitioning the arena and catching different bugs. The spider must avoid bugs so that they do not touch the trail left behind the spider as it travels across the arena. Some of the bugs can be eaten when they are caught in a web.

The game becomes more challenging with each new level. Various levels have different insects with varying features and behaviors, which makes this game unpredictable and fun to play.

In addition there is Online-Highscore where players all over the world can compete with each other.

We are already planning multiple updates with additional gaming content.
Additional ideas and feedback is always highly appreciated!

LANGUAGES: English, German, Latvian and Estonian.

Features:
• 2 arenas
• 3 spiders
• 4 languages
• More than 50 levels
• Online Highscore

Bugs & Spiders is an extremely captivating arcade-style game. It utilizes the iPhones tilt capabilities, making it a very unique game of its genre. As the long iTunes description already contains an analysis on game play, I will stick to a simple review on this blog.

For anyone who played the classic games Zonix, Qix, or even Jezzball, this game will feel very familiar. Games that bring a sort of nostalgia tend to be even more fun for it, and Bugs & Spiders is no exception. It's a modern twist on a game that has been done time and time again. With over 50 levels, there is a lot of time that can be invested into this game. The developer obviously knew what they were doing - players can customize which background they prefer and which spider they like best. In addition, various enemies cause different things to happen on the screen, making the game seem fresh and exciting. The graphics are wonderful for a game of this caliber. Bugs & Spiders is an application that is well worth the 99 cents being asked for it.

Overall impression: 9/10
Value for your money: 10/10

Blots

2009-08-15T16:55:00.000-07:00

Blots

Category: Game
Type: Strategic Puzzle
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 7 ratings, 5 stars

Blots is a very addictive and amusing puzzle game that mixes fun with excellent brain training. The goal is simple - combine groups of three or more blots with similar color to blot them out from the desk. Easy? Not quite - each level adds a new color to palette, so combining colors is becoming harder. And if the desk fills up, the game is over.

Features:
• Intuitive one-finger gameplay
• Excellent brain trainer
• Endless fun
• Escalating level difficulty
• Progressive bonuses
• Global and local high score tracking
• Beautiful graphics
• Awesome background music and sound effects

Blots is a simple, match 3 style game. Players are given a game board with various colors of blots laid out throughout it. The object of the game is to clear the board as much as possible by placing any 3 or more blots together to make them disappear. Any time a move is made that does not clear blots, 3 additional blots show up on the board. The game is over when the full board is covered with blots.

Overall, this game is very simple. There are no difficulty levels, and the app opens up right into the game. Despite it's overall simplicity, blots is a charming and fun application. The addition of both global and local high scores make the game addicting. If you enjoy Match 3 type games, this game is very fun and well worth the money.

Overall impression: 8/10
Value for your money: 7/10

Aura

2009-08-15T15:38:00.000-07:00

Aura

Category: Game
Type: Strategic Puzzle
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 10 ratings, 5 stars

Outwit your opponent in this fun game of strategy! Aura cleverly mixes the feeling of Chess and Checkers with a bit of finger painting to create a unique new experience!

Features:
• For 1 or 2 players
• 4 difficulty settings
• Interactive training
• Unlimited UNDO
• Auto saving

Aura is a strategic puzzle game that takes very little effort to learn and quite a bit of effort to master. The game can be played with 2 players (via the same phone - no wireless competition integration as of this update); however, I have only used to single player mode. The player (or players) then chooses a color - white or black - for his or her pawns.

The game is laid out similar to a checkers board, with each player having three basic pawns (red, yellow, and blue), along with a wild pawn (white or black, depending on the players choice). As a color moves around the board, it gains strength based on the amount of squares on the board filled with that color. Pawns must "battle" other pawns in order to win - the pieces each have certain colors that they can battle. When a pawn is able to battle another pawn, it takes on the color of those two pawns combined (IE, if red battles blue, the new piece will be purple). Upon the second battle, the pawn will become a white or black piece. In order to win, the enemies pawns must be captured. Further rules are explained in the game through the use of an extremely well laid-out interactive training.

The gameplay itself is challenging. There are 4 levels of difficulty - Easy, Normal, Hard, and Expert. Personally, I am still playing on Normal after nearly a week of playing. The relative difficulty adds to the replay value of the game. I find that when I have time to kill, even with well over 100 apps, I constantly go to this particular game. For the developer's first game, Aura is a fantastic find. It certainly has potential in the app store.

Overall impression: 8/10 stars
Value for your money: 9/10 stars

About

2009-08-15T15:25:00.000-07:00

Meet our Reviewer:
AppGirl

Hey everyone. My name is Nicole, and I am currently a student at University of Tennessee. I love anything Apple puts out, and my iPhone is no exception!! After years of being obsessed with downloading new apps and trying them out, I decided to start my own review site - the one you're looking at right now. I hope you enjoy it as much as I've enjoyed creating it!

Special Thanks:
Whenever someone puts a new website together, there are always infinite helpful people that make it a success. I would like to acknowledge a few of those who have helped me thus far:

Will Rea, for helping with some HTML glitches that I needed worked out so that I could make this site into what it is today.

"Cheese" from EPWforum.com, for creating the beautiful banner that is proudly displayed above the site.

Brandon McKinney, for checking out the site before anyone else, and being my first follower

Upcoming Apps

2009-08-15T15:19:00.000-07:00

Your #1 stop for exciting news on what's coming to the App store soon!

Doodle Jump Version 1.5 Approved by Apple!

"If you value your life, never download the Doodle Jump app...so addicted."

Doodle Jump is an amazingly addictive and fun platform jumping game. It has been featured on the App Store by Apple in "New and Noteworthy" and "What's Hot", and has reached the #1 Top Paid Arcade Game spot in the USA, France, and Germany, and the #1 Top Paid App spot in Austria.

Your goal is simple: Try to get as high as you can jumping from one platform to the next. Along your way up you will run into broken platforms that crumble if you jump on them, springs, jet packs, and propeller hats that fly you higher, UFOs that will abduct you unless you shoot them first, black holes that will suck you in if you get too close, and various monsters that you need to kill. As you jump higher and higher, the platforms start moving, the monsters start appearing and the game gets progressively more challenging.

Along your way up, you will see markers on the side of the screen indicating how high other players of Doodle Jump around the world have managed to get to. These in-game score markers are a first among the iPhone games and have been getting rave reviews from the players and review sites.

Gizmodo has featured Doodle Jump in its "This week in iPhone apps" column calling it "the most addicting iPhone game yet", Touch Arcade designated Doodle Jump as "required reading", Slide to Play writes that "Doodle Jump epitomizes the microgame ideal", and App Beacon calls Doodle Jump "the best game of its type". Macworld.com rated it 4.5 mice and summed it all up: "Doodle Jump is a perfect micro-game, insanely addictive, and deliciously replayable."

Doodle Jump players around the world can't stop playing it and have been posting rave review on iTunes, game forums, and Twitter:

- "So addictive it should be banned from the usa as an illegal substance! now if you don't mind i'm gonna go get me a fix of doodle jump"

- "Up ya go, further, further, you begin to sweat, you're further than before... I HATE you monster... where are those high scores hovering... can't put this down... must close eyes. Warning: Meet the Iphone/touch version of crack!"

- "Here in California it's illegal to text while driving, but there's no law about playing Doodle Jump! At least that's what I thought till I got pulled over, but the good news is that I showed the cop the game and he didn't write me a ticket cause he wanted to go download it right away."

"doodle jump claims another victim (me). paid $1 & turned over every free moment of the rest of my life to a cutie patootie hopping... thing."

"Two most played games on flight: flight control and doodle jump."

"If you value your life, never download the Doodle Jump app...so addicted."

Doodle Jump is available on the iTunes App Store for $0.99.
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=307727765&mt=8

About Lima Sky:
Lima Sky is a New York based studio dedicated to creating entertaining and educational, well designed iPhone apps, with a special focus on fun apps for kids. We have been present on the iTunes App Store since July 2008. Seven of our apps have been featured by Apple on the App Store and many are constantly in the top 25 of their categories, with Doodle Jump reaching the #4 Top Paid App spot in the US and France, #2 in Canada and Germany, and #1 in Austria, and Animals Memory Match reaching the #1 spot in kids games category in the US, Germany and France.

Doodle Jump Version 1.5 Approved by Apple!

List of all Reviews

2009-08-15T15:17:00.000-07:00

A
AIM Free Edition
Ant Wars
Aura

B
Bacteria Bash
Blots
Bugs and Spiders

C
Cosmovox
Cookie Pop
Critter Defense

D
Doodle Jump

E
Epic Pet Wars

F
Flashback: Movie Edition
Free Translator

G
Good vs Evil 3D

H
Hotline

I
iFlip Pro
iLand Cars

L
License Plate game
Lunarcy

M
Mine Field Hex
Mini Taxi

P
Pocket God
Polyhedra

R
Run Run Sheep

S
Stick It
StockWatch
StonedLoops! of Jurassica

T
Take Me To My Car
Tap and Track
Thirty One
To-do Lists
Trak 4

U
Unit Converter

W
Window Cast
World's Hardest Game
Word Solitaire
WordsWorth
Word Trix
Wordulous

X
X Doc

Next Featured App

2009-08-15T15:15:00.001-07:00

Would you like to be App Girl's next featured app?
Submissions may be sent to Appgirlreviews@gmail.com.
Featured apps will be featured in the "Featured App" tab on the front of the site, and will remain on a list of past featured apps indefinitely. Want to guarantee that the review of your app is seen by many people? This is the best way to do it! A new featured app will be selected every Sunday.

Requirements:
1) App must not be previously reviewed, unless there is a considerable change in the latest update.
2) Emails sent must have the subject "Featured App"
3) One Promo code must be sent to be eligible, and 5 additional promo codes will be required if selected (5 additional promo codes will be made available through random selection to readers interested. Offering promo codes adds additional assurance that readers will check out your review, so this benefits the developer as well!)
4) Applications must be submitted by midnight, Friday (eastern timezone, please)
5) Applicants chosen to be Featured Apps will be notified on Saturday and requested to send the 5 additional codes. Review will be featured on Sunday and left up until the following Sunday.

This Week's Featured App

2009-08-15T15:15:00.000-07:00

WORD SOLITAIRE

Would you like to be considered for App Girl's featured app? Click here for details!

Want to win a PROMO CODE for this app? We have 5 to give away!!
I will be tweeting on appgirlreviews with FREE PROMO CODES, so go follow me now!

Word Solitaire

Check it out on iTunes!

Category: Game
Type: Card/ Word
Cost: 99 cents
Rating: 4+
Current iTunes Reviews: 50 ratings, 3.5 stars

Description:
♥ APPVERSITY.COM says:
"Word Solitaire is the perfect game for lovers of either card games or word games. And it somehow is even beyond perfect for people who like both."

♥ APPSMILE.COM says:
"With its thought-provoking gameplay, artwork-infused backdrops, and simple rules, this pick-up-and-play title has quickly risen to the top of our favorite games list."

♥ IPHONE-ROUNDUP.COM says:
"A stroke of genius...a no-brainer for word game fans."

♥ POCKETFULLOFAPPS.COM says:
"9 out of 10"

************************************************

Word Solitaire puts a brilliant new spin on a classic favorite. The clever blend of word creation and traditional solitaire will hook you immediately!

Drag letters onto each other to arrange them into words. Flip over cards to expose more letters and complete the level by using all provided letters in the creation of words. The longer your words, the higher your score. Then, brag to your friends by tweeting your highest scores and fastest times right from the app!

☆ 25 beautiful levels, each with a high-resolution classical art background.
☆ Intelligent decks that increase difficulty slightly with each level.
☆ Customizable color themes.
☆ Complete Twitter integration.
☆ Millions of letter arrangements. No two games are ever the same.
☆ AutoSave – Pick up your game where you left off, anytime.

What's new

☆ Global high scores!
☆ Minimized risk of accidentally burning a card when building a long word in the far right columns
☆ Tweaked vowel/consonant ratio
☆ Did we miss anything? Email us: support@wordsolitaire.com

Contact Information/ Request a Review

2009-08-15T15:11:00.000-07:00

Email: Appgirlreviews@gmail.com

Twitter: twitter.com/AppGirlReviews

At the time of writing this, all review requests that include a promo code will be granted. I make no guarantees that as the site grows, I will be able to review all games requested; however, I will do my very best to get to each and every one. Remember, even if a promo code is sent, it does not guarantee a good review - only having a good app guarantees a good review.

First Post

2009-08-15T15:03:00.000-07:00

Alright folks, here goes nothing! My very first post. I sincerely hope this blog ends up becomming something special.

My name is Nicole, and I am an avid Mac addict. I joined the wonderful world of Apple in 2004, when I purchased my first Mac computer - a G5 tower and beautiful 30 inch display. Since then, every time Apple makes a new, exciting product, I'm always dying to be one of the first to try it out. It only makes sense that I immediately jumped at the chance to get an iPhone when they first came onto the market 2 years ago! My beautiful iPhone has been upgraded a little since then ;) I'm currently using a shiny new 32gb 3GS, in white. My absolute favorite toy - and that says something, considering I'm a complete gadget and technology nerd!

Anyway, like many other iPhone fanatics, I have an utter addiction to the App Store. My app list on my iPhone is constantly maxed out; I'm just waiting for Apple to release an update that allows more than the standard 148 apps (147 on the 3GS!). I wanted to bring that passion to the world, and as such, I will be submitting reviews of every app I download. Some will be free applications, some will be paid. Some may even be lite versions - it all depends on my mood and bank account!

Want me to review your application, or just one you're interested in? I gladly accept requests, sent to ValentineNicole@gmail.com. If you have a promo code that you can send, I guarantee a posted review and rating.

Enjoy!