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Moments before the Apple keynote is scheduled to start today, Rockstar announced Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars HD for the iPad. The game sounds like it will feature the same content of the existing iPhone version of Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars for the iPhone, with HD graphics and modified controls like most HD-ized games.

Chinatown Wars will be available on September 9th for $9.99. For more information on the iPhone version of the game, buzz on over to our comprehensive review from when it originally was released. During keynotes, Apple has historically shown gameplay footage of yet to be released big name titles from large publishers like EA and Gameloft. If we're lucky, maybe we'll see Grand Theft Auto on the iPad today.

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This afternoon Gameloft announced the sequel to Gangstar: West Coast Hustle [$4.99 / Free] entitled Gangstar: Miami Vindication. Along with this announcement is a fairly extensive gameplay trailer compared to the teasers Gameloft usually releases which shows car chases, riding motorcycles, and even piloting helicopters. According to Gameloft, Miami Vindication is "the most ambitious crime simulation ever developed for handheld," which is a lofty claim considering the extensiveness of Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars [$9.99 / Free].

Gangstar: Miami Vindication should be available fairly soon, as looking at Gameloft's previous game releases they generally don't release this kind of trailer without the game being very close to being done. For more information on the original Gangstar, check out our review. Also, Gangstar: West Coast Hustle HD [99¢] for the iPad is on sale for 99¢ and for that price is totally worth picking up if these kind of open world crime games are your cup of tea.

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If you're one of the lucky ones you managed to secure themselves an iPhone 4 today (or even the past two days if you're really lucky) you've no doubt marveled at how thin it is, how crisp the Retina Display is, and maybe you've even found someone else to do a FaceTime call with… but what about loading it up with some games? Since we haven't gotten our own iPhone 4's yet, we haven't really been able to put together a "games that are really awesome on the iPhone 4" listing, but I figured we'd start out by compiling a list of some of our favorite games in the App Store.

If you think this looks a lot like our 2009 Buyer's Guide, that's because it does. However, we've updated the list with some of our recent favorites and kept some of the old ones. In the interest of space, we had to drop many off the list, but that doesn't reflect the quality of those games. If you're looking for more suggestions, please check out the 2009 Buyer's Guide for additional titles we also loved.

If you want to play games on your new iPhone, you're in for a treat.

iPhone Classics

Spider: The Secret of Bryce Manor – We choose Tiger Style Games' Spider: The Secret of Bryce Manor for our 2009 Game of the Year first and foremost because it's a great game, but also because it perfectly represents the promise of iPhone gaming. Spider is an original concept built specifically for the iPhone by a small self funded team. It's this low barrier to entry which provides customers with a huge selection of games including unique and polished gems like Spider. You really should experience this one. (Review, App Store)

Doodle Jump – While we have to give props to PapiJump as the clear inspiration for Doodle Jump, Lima Sky has managed to take the game to a whole new level and succeeded in creating a true iPhone classic. Doodle Jump has sold over a million copies to date and even been casually referenced on primetime TV sitcoms. Every day we hear from up and coming developers who claim they have come up with "the next Doodle Jump" but so far Lima Sky's title hasn't truly been dethroned. (Review, App Store)

Flight Control – Another iPhone game that will go down in history as one of the classics for the platform. Firemint's CEO Rob Murray took some of his free time during last year's Christmas break to whip up a prototype of a game that eventually became Flight Control. The game has single handedly defined a genre on the iPhone of "line drawing" games and has been endlessly imitated. Flight Control is also one of the few games available at the iPhone 4 launch with high-resolution graphics for the Retina Display. (Review, App Store)

Fieldrunners – One of the original tower defense games on the iPhone, and still the best according to many. Fieldrunners was named one of Time Magazine's Top 10 video games of the year in 2008, and since then the game has seen updates adding OpenFeint support as well as additional maps. (Review, App Store)

Angry Birds – We really liked Angry Birds when it was first released, since then it has become a complete App Store sensation with amazing staying power near the top of the top 10 paid app listing. In the game you fling an array of angry birds with different abilities at pigs. Of course it isn't that easy, as the pigs have fortified themselves in makeshift forts. Angry Birds has seen many updates, and now comes loaded with a surprising amount of levels to play through. (Review, App Store)

Only on iPhone

Zen Bound – Ok, technically this started life as a PC Game, but Zen Bound didn't really come into its own until it became an iPhone game in 2009. The game just came to life on the iPhone with multi-touch and tilt controls along with mood and music to perfectly and completely engross you as a player. An experience as much as a game. (Review, App Store)

Eliss – A multi-touch masterpiece. Eliss delivers a unique, challenging and undeniably iPhone experience. Pinching and combining on-screen planets without letting them touch make for some frantic and riveting gameplay. (Review, App Store)

Sway – The unique multi-touch "swinging" controls of Sway may have ultimately been its downfall. If you can master the steep learning curve of the game's controls, an amazing iPhone platforming experience awaits. (Review, App Store)

Space Ninja – A great use of the iPhone's accelerometer that allows you to dodge enemy fire and invoke slow motion "bullet time". Since its original release, 3GS enhancements have been added as well as a new "magnet fluxor" that allows your ship to briefly repel bullets. (Review, App Store)

Arcade

Tilt to Live – Tilt to Live is a game that draws you in with its edgy personality and inescapable 'just one more go' gameplay. It is gorgeously crafted and presented and has a wicked sense of humor to boot (just take a look at the loading screens to see what I mean). Completing its challenges and unlocking weapons has the added benefit of enabling you to achieve even higher scores and multipliers, meaning even those not normally counting themselves as completionists may be eager to experience the width and breadth of what Tilt to Live has to offer. An update added two new game modes since its initial release, making a great game even better. (Review, App Store)

Espgaluda II – Bullet hell at its best on the iPhone. Even not being a huge fan of the genre, we fell quick and hard in love with Espgaluda II. It is the best 2D shooter experience in the App Store with great touch controls. Note: It will only run on the latest generation devices. (Review, App Store: iPhone 3GS, 3rd Gen iPod Touch, or pixel-doubled on iPad)

Cubed Rally Racer – This fantastic racing game features retro-inspired 3D graphics and completely randomized tracks which range from a walk in the park to iPhone-smashingly difficult. If you were a fan of RC Pro Am back in the day, pick this one up. (Review, App Store)

Platformer

Babylonian Twins – Sixteen years in the making, Babylonian Twins delivers an amazingly challenging yet satisfying iPhone and iPad puzzle platformer. In many modern platformers, I've felt like I'm just mindlessly going through the motions to make it to the end of each level. Babylonian Twins, however, really keeps you enthralled throughout. (Review, App Store: iPhone, iPad)

Super QuickHook – A sequel of sorts to Hook Champ, Super QuickHook utilizes a similar swinging mechanic with updated "16 bit" graphics and a brand new completely randomized survival mode. If you love this one, don't miss out on the original Hook Champ (Review, App Store)

Retro Games

Karate Champ – Revolutionary Concepts' iPhone conversion is done superbly. The dual-stick control mechanism is handled via on-screen joysticks which, while no match for physical controls, work rather well. As far as I can see, aside from the necessary control alterations for the iPhone's touch screen, Karate Champ for the iPhone is a perfect conversion. (Review, App Store)

Broken Sword – The remake of this 1996 point and click adventure was wonderfully brought to the iPhone. The story and all around high-quality production values of Broken Sword sucked us in. Whether you're an old fan of the original game, a newcomer to the series, or even someone who's never played a point-and-click adventure before, Broken Sword is a game with mass appeal that will draw you in. (Review, App Store)

Racing / Driving

Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars – A great adaptation of a DS/PSP game, Chinatown Wars offers a level of depth rarely seen on the App Store. If you complete everything in game, playtime will need to be measured in days, not hours. The weapon targeting system can use improvement, but barely detracts from an otherwise phenomenal game. (Review, App Store)

Jet Car Stunts – A remarkably fun jet car racer/platformer that had us coming back again and again due to its great controls, fresh visual style and mind boggling levels. The only real complaint we've seen voiced has been the relative difficulty of the game, but, honestly, that's what made it so addicting. (Review, App Store)

Real Racing – Perhaps we should have categorized this as a "classic", but Real Racing was the first iPhone racing game that really blew us away. The great graphics, perfect controls and AI all combined to make this one of the best iPhone racing games that still holds up today. Like Firemint's other game, Flight Control, Real Racing also has been recently updated with high resolution graphics for the iPhone 4's Retina Display. (Review, App Store)

Casual

Fruit Ninja – This oddly popular game puts players to the task of slicing all kinds of fruit that is thrown up from the bottom of the screen. Swiping with your finger controls your virtual sword, and combos are awarded based on how many fruit you can slice in one swipe… Just look out for bombs. (Review, App Store)

Canabalt – This isn't a particularly deep game. In fact, the average gaming session is probably measured in seconds rather than minutes. But with its simplicity and style, it managed to keep us coming back again and again. You can try out the identical Flash version for free at Canabalt.com. (Review, App Store)

Boost 3D – We might not have been too over the top about the game when we first reviewed it, but over time we realized that Boost 3D is a game that we love to play. There's something hypnotic about this tunnel runner that had us coming back to play it again and again. (Review, App Store)

Harbor Master – Among the first of the avalanche of Flight Control inspired games, Harbor Master mixes things up by having the player dock cargo ships and send them back out to sea on a variety of different levels– Each with a different layout and some with additional gameplay elements such as pirate ships to shoot or sea monsters to fight off. (Review, App Store)

Word

Bookworm – A game that should need no introduction, Popcap's word searching classic fits great on the iPhone. The touch controls work effortlessly, and the gameplay is perfect for the casual play style of many iPhone gamers. (Review, App Store)

Words with Friends – Asynchronous online multiplayer not-quite-Scrabble that can either be played for free with in-game ads or without for a couple bucks. A recent update added push notifications to tell you when it's your turn and according to Newtoy, the average player spends 1.5 hours each day playing. (Review, App Store)

Strategy

Carcassonne – A fantastic rendition of the classic board game, Carcassonne can be played with 8 different AI players, locally, or online with push notifications. It also has high resolution graphics already in-game to take advantage of the Retina Display. (Review, App Store)

Plants vs. Zombies – Popcap's breakout hit for PC has come to the iPhone — and it's great. Popcap took the standard tower defense formula and greatly simplified it. Instead of a path to build towers along, you drop seeds in your yard which then grow in to plants that have various offensive or defensive capabilities. While it does lack a few gameplay modes from the original, the iPhone adaption is very well done and highly recommended. (Review, App Store)

Land Air Sea Warfare – There are quite a few options for RTS fans available on the App Store, but all of varying degrees of quality and none that felt "just right". That all changed last month with the release of Land Air Sea Warfare. LASW gets it “just right”, offering a full console-like RTS experience with brilliantly executed, easy to use touch screen controls.(Review, App Store)

Sword & Poker 2 – This strange game is the sequel to the original Sword & Poker <a href="which we loved in our reivew. In the game you play an RPG battling monsters by placing poker hands on a 5×5 grid. The concept sounds crazy, but works very well. If nothing else, give the lite version a try. (Article, App Store, Lite)

Chess with Friends – The iPhone equivalent to snail mail correspondence chess– You can play the ad-based version for free, or upgrade to the premium version to play without ads. Recently added push notifications that alert you when its your turn and an endless supply of human opponents makes this the best chess game available on the platform. (Article, App Store)

Role Playing

Chaos Rings – One of the most ambitious RPG games we've seen so far for the iPhone. The graphics and gameplay are exactly what you'd expect out of a Square Enix RPG. Battle in parties of two in classic turn-based battles as you make your way through a story that's just as ridiculous as any other Japanese RPG. (Review, App Store: iPhone)

Space Miner – It's probably no surprise that this game topped our list for February. Space Miner: Space Ore Bust has an unusually broad appeal successfully mixing shooter and RPG genres into a humorous and well scripted package. Whatever sort of gamer you are, don't miss out on this one. (Review, App Store)

Pocket Legends – This free online multiplayer game for both the iPhone and iPad that is a ton of fun and playing in a party with your friends is especially impressive while you're playing via 3G as the netcode does a great job in providing a lag-free experience. Additional content is available via in-game DLC, but you can really get a good feel for the game before you ever need to buy anything. (Review, App Store: iPhone, iPad)

Sports

Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2 – A surprisingly competent port of the classic skateboarding game. Everything is included from the original, and once you get used to the virtual controls, you'll be performing endless combos in no time in the many included skating locations.(Review, App Store:iPhone)

X2 Snowboarding – X2 Snowboarding from Exient is a highly enjoyable romp on the slopes that sets itself apart from the crowd in graphics, controls and gameplay. With a great sense of speed and immersion, this is our snowboarding game of choice for the iPhone. (Review, App Store / Lite)

X2 Soccer 2010 – The followup title to their 2009 title, X2 Soccer 2010 is one of the top soccer game experiences right now on the App Store. X2 Soccer 2010 is complete with great AI, impressive 3d graphics and solid controls. (Review, App Store)

To see other iPhone games we've rated, check out the sidebar where you can find: 5 Stars, 4.5 Stars, 4 Stars, 3.5 Stars, 3 Stars, and 2.5 Stars. All of what we have considered to be the best iPhone games are filed under Best iPhone Games, and I'm sure this post will be filled with comments from people suggesting their own favorite iPhone games that we left out of this list.

Good luck to everyone in line today looking to get an iPhone 4, we'll have much more iPhone 4 coverage as soon as we get ours in our greasy little hands.

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While we're busy stuffing our faces with Moons Over My Hammies at WWDC, IGN is listening in on Take-Two financial calls where they revealed an interesting tidbit for any current or potential iPad owner: Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars is making its way to the big screen. Unfortunately, there aren't any details to be had currently aside from the mention that it will be available later this month.

We thought the iPhone version of the game was great in our review, and actually, GTA:CW is a game that looks quite good even running at the 2X mode on the iPad. It will be interesting to see what if any improvements Rockstar adds to the iPad version of the game aside from running at the native 1024×768 resolution, which might be reason enough for fans of the series to potentially re-buy the game anyway.

Needless to say, we'll take a close look at Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars for the iPad as soon as we get our hands on it.

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Following oodles of clones and other games directly inspired by Grand Theft Auto-style gameplay, it was great to finally see a real GTA game on the platform when Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars [$9.99 / Free] arrived early this year.

We absolutely loved the game in our review, and later went on to rate it five stars in our best iPhone games roundup for January. Chinatown Wars is a complete port, with all of the content from the original version of the game when it first launched on the Nintendo DS, then later on the PSP. The sheer scope of a "full" GTA game is something you really must experience if you haven't before.

Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars Lite [Free] includes the first three missions from the game, which won't take you very long to beat, but is more than enough to both see how the game performs on your device, as well as whether or not you like the controls. If you've never played Chinatown Wars, you really, really need to give the lite version a try.

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Back in 1989 now-veteran UK game developer Jamie Woodhouse released a lively little puzzle / platformer called Qwak for the 8-bit BBC Micro home computer.  Not long after, he joined forces with Team17 to develop an enhanhced, two-player Amiga version of the game, which was released in 1993 and featured faster action and more frantic gameplay. The rather well-reviewed title (Amiga Computing magazine gave it a "Gamer Gold" 92% rating) later made its way to the Gameboy Advance as well as the Mac and PC.

We're pleased to report that Jamie recently got in touch to let us know that he has developed an iPhone version of Qwak and will shortly be launching it through the App Store.

In Qwak, you control a duck (get it?). Your objective is to guide this green duck through level after level of platforms, fruits and gems (worth points), bouncing enemies, power-ups to help demolish said enemies, and keys to unlock goodies as well as the level's exit gate. Your duck can run, jump, and fire volleys of egg projectiles to knock out the baddies. Grab a bonus item and watch a hale of colorful fruit rain down upon you. Take too long on a level and meet a hale of spikeballs. In a nutshell, I call it frenetic, fun, and rather fruity (to be alliteratively wanton).

I've spent some time with the exclusive prerelease build of the game Jamie provided us and it's been lovely to play. It's a touch-controlled affair with a left / right control in one corner and jump and egg-fire controls in the other. The vibrant visuals move about the screen as smooth as glass on the iPhone 3GS test device and a very Amiga-sounding score accompanies the action. It feels both retro and highly polished. It's a game platformer fans won't want to miss.

Additional details, I'll leave to the developer to provide (after the jump), as he was kind enough to grant us an interview along with the exclusive ad hoc build.

What were your inspirations for writing the original?  Are there any particular games you had in mind?

Well, there was a bunch of platform games on the Beeb I used to play; Blagger, Monters, Space Panic, Frak etc. I also went in the arcades a lot back then (so much so that I got kicked out of college), and I undoubtedly played Bubble Bobble, which Qwak gets compared to a lot.

What language did you use to write the BBC Micro version?

100% 6502 Assembler. You could quite easily mix BBC basic and assembler, or have 100% assembler; which a lot of game developers did back then, and you needed to, to get the best performance out of the very limited and slow hardware. Fun times!

Is the BBC Micro version, in fact, the original?

Yep, it’s the original. It was released in 1989 by Superior on a 4 game compilation. I still have a review of the game from a 1989 A&B Computing magazine; “The best game of the bunch has to be Qwak! Designed and coded by Jamie Woodhouse it is very addictive and great fun..”.

I think that was the first time I’d ever seen one of my games reviewed and in print; felt pretty good as I stood there reading the mag in the newsagents!

The '93 Amiga rework is a bit more fast paced / arcadey than the original. GBA and PC / Mac versions followed. It seems the iPhone ver is really an adaptation of the later versions, is that true?

Yeah, I guess it’s confusing with all the different versions all sharing the same name; but with different graphics and various gameplay mechanics…

The Beeb version came first, and the Amiga version was a good deal different to the Beeb version.

The GBA version came next, which was a port of the Amiga version, I used all the same graphics and levels etc; and just added in some scrolling to accommodate the GBA’s smaller screen resolution.

Actually, I couldn’t find a publisher for the GBA version so I had a load of carts shipped over from China and self-published a small limited run of carts. All sold out now!

Next came the PC version, which had completely new levels, more tricks and traps, different power-ups and secret bonuses; and a lot more going on visually to! The Mac version was a port of the PC version.

For the iPhone version of Qwak, I’ve managed to retain pretty much everything that’s going on with the PC version. It’s based on the PC version; but there’s a little scrolling, to squeeze the levels in to the smaller iPhone screen resolution. I don’t think it hurts the game-play too much.

How are you liking iPhone game development as opposed to what you've done on the Amiga, GBA and other platforms?

I’m absolutely loving it so far!

There’s a bit of a learning curve, with this being my first iPhone game; but I feel as if I’m making good progress and getting a good technical understanding of the platform.

The Amiga and GBA were also fun platforms to make games for; and as with the iPhone, you have a pretty solid idea of the minimum spec machine people will be playing your game on (which doesn’t happen with desktop game dev). Plus, it’s relatively a low powered device (compared to desktop PC’s), which is awesome! … because there’s more scope for programmer creativity in squeezing more performance from the device (game developers secretly love that kind of thing!).

The music track sounds very Amiga. Is the audio straight from that version?

Yep, it's got the same 10 tracks of music from the Amiga version (which used to be in .MOD format, was a little tricky converting them to .MP3s).

Can you comment at all on the controls of the iPhone ver, thoughts that went into them, etc?

Well, Qwak is quite a fast paced game, so I felt some kind of on-screen D-pad control mechanic would work a lot better than using the accelerometer.

There’s also an issue that your thumbs and fingers may obscure the in-game action; so what I’ve done is when the player is at the bottom of the screen; the screen kinda shifts up a little bit, so you can still see yourself.

I also have the fire (throw egg) button on the right hand side, so it’s easy to waddle your wrist and throw eggs really quickly, one after the other (which is handy as the bigger baddies need multiple hits to ‘dispatch’ them).

The controls work for me; but it’ll be interesting to see how people respond when they’ve tried the game for themselves. I’m wondering too, how left-handed players with cope with the controls. I just hope I get feedback and people let me know, it’s always great to hear what’s working and what needs changing or improvement (and it’s always possible to do an update).

Is there anything down the road you can speak of?

There’s quite a few ideas I have; and it’s funny you should say ‘road’ … as I’m half tempted to do a re-envisioned version of Nitro or ATR. There doesn’t seem to be many top-down perspective racers on the App Store.

I’m also thinking ‘Qwak spin-off’ … I often worry that Qwak may be TOO frantic and fast-paced for a lot of people (although I personally love that kind of thing), so the spin-off game would be slightly slower paced, with more exploration and puzzle solving (and tricks and traps, hehe).

What are your thoughts on the iPhone as a game platform, and the overall situation that is the App Store?

I really like it, it’s a lot of fun to make games for, and I feel genuinely excited at the prospect of making more games for it.

I’m still pretty new to the App Store; but my first impressions, I guess there seems to be a lot of variation in the quality of games on there; from really poor, to really awesome.

I really like the fact that it’s possible for small indie game developers, to make the kind of games they want to make, and share them with other people through the App Store. There’s not so much need for any middle-man or publisher or anything like that. So it’s a lot more accessible to developers that a lot of platforms.

Qwak should be landing in the App Store shortly. We'll give folks a heads-up when it lands. This is a good one, folks.

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Our March game ratings are in place now, and here are the top of the heap. Our monthly "best of" round-up summarizes the top rated games that we looked at in the previous month. Each game reviewed receives a 1-5 star rating relative to the other games from that month. Generally, a 3 or higher is considered a "good" rating.

Our final scores are not the product of any traditionally objective measures such as graphics or sound, but simply reflect the games we would most recommend to others.

5 Stars

Tilt to Live – Tilt to Live is a game that draws you in with its edgy personality and inescapable 'just one more go' gameplay. It is gorgeously crafted and presented and has a wicked sense of humor to boot (just take a look at the loading screens to see what I mean). Completing its challenges and unlocking weapons has the added benefit of enabling you to achieve even higher scores and multipliers, meaning even those not normally counting themselves as completionists may be eager to experience the width and breadth of what Tilt to Live has to offer. This is one game that will remain a fixture on my iPhone for a long time to come. (Review, App Store)

4.5 Stars

Bounce On 2 – Bounce On 2: Drallo's Demise succeeds in delivering highly enjoyable platform gameplay to the iPhone. The original was fun, but the sequel goes well beyond, feeling notably more "fleshed out," with a good deal more eye-candy. While there's certainly room for more quality platformers in the App Store, Bounce On 2 is among the current best. (Review, App Store)

ZombieSmash – ZombieSmash has evidently received a lot of love from the developers, who have attempted to liven up the stale flicking gameplay that comes with most castle defense games. As a result, ZombieSmash really does stand head and shoulders above its competition. (Review, App Store)

Street Fighter 4 – Street Fighter 4 is easily recommended to any Street Fighter fan or fighting game aficionado. At its core it is a lightweight port of the exceptional console title, so don't go expecting anything different if you've had your SF4 fill. On the other hand, it is amazing that such a game was ported to the AppStore in the first place and the simple fact that you can now bring Street Fighter 4 around in your pocket should be enough to sway many an eager button masher. (Review, App Store)

Ragdoll Blaster 2 – The sequel reveals a more polished title than the original, discarding the hand-drawn art and instead drawing heavily from the steampunk genre to create a rich game world of oiled cogs and shiny bronze contraptions. It is thanks to these machinations that the gameplay in Ragdoll Blaster 2 does vary a little to the original, if still sharing that same overall feel of blasting (and resetting) over and over again until you reach your target in as few shots as possible. (Review, App Store)

Vector Tanks Extreme – The game is basically an exercise in GO GO GO, watch the map to dodge enemy fire, swing behind an obstacle for shielding, and lay down the smack as fast and as hard as you can. And if the aforementioned obstacle is slowing you down, just blow it away. (Review, App Store)

The rest of March game ratings can be seen in their respective rating categories (also found in the sidebar navigation): 5 Stars, 4.5 Stars, 4 Stars, 3.5 Stars, 3 Stars, and 2 Stars.

As always, we expect there will be some debate about relative scores, but keep in mind that everyone's personal ratings may vary based on individual tastes.

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EA has been busy these past few weeks prepping for multiple iPad launches as well as a sequel to the popular Sims 3 for iPhone. Sims 3 World Adventures continues with much of the same format of the first version by building on the existing familiar gameplay.

Sims 3 gameplay revolves around customizing and controlling your Sim while meeting its needs, fulfilling its wishes and generally just exploring the world around you. World Adventures starts off just like Sims 3 with basic character customization (clothes, physical features, personality) but also allows existing players to import their character from the first version directly into the second.

Immediately after finalizing your choices for your character, a brief tutorial walks you through the basics of the game and how to keep your Sim satisfied. Sims have the same basic needs you're used to, between needing to eat, sleep, bathe and go to the bathroom as well as a goals and wishes. The goals pop up randomly, and act like mini objectives for what to do in the game.

The biggest difference in World Adventures is the scope of the game with added locations that you can travel to. If you loved the gameplay of the original but felt the original Sims 3's world was a bit small, this version is for you. Beyond your own town, there are 3 additional locations including Egypt, France and China. Each location has its own buildings, inhabitants, goals and tourist attractions. Also included are 52 new goals and 4 new mini-games. The mini games include ruin exploration, air flight, bartering and language games. Succeeding in these mini-games help you along the way. For example, the in flight mini game prevents you from getting air sick which will suck up valuable time at your destination while you recoup. Meanwhile better language skills add to your charm, improving your interaction with others.

The first Sims 3 for iPhone successfully trimmed down the Sims series to a solid handheld experience. World Adventures expands on that by giving you additional adventures, clothing and locals to explore.

App Store Link: Sims 3 World Adventure, $6.99

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Two games we really enjoyed recently had lite versions appear on the App Store– Ragdoll Blaster 2 [$2.99 / Free] and Transformers G1: Awakening [$2.99 / Free] both are games that you really should try, especially if you've enjoyed physics puzzles in the past, or happened to be a Transformers fan at some point in your life.

Ragdoll Blaster 2 – Review

The sequel reveals a more polished title than the original, discarding the hand-drawn art and instead drawing heavily from the steampunk genre to create a rich game world of oiled cogs and shiny bronze contraptions. It is thanks to these machinations that the gameplay in Ragdoll Blaster 2 does vary a little to the original, if still sharing that same overall feel of blasting (and resetting) over and over again until you reach your target in as few shots as possible.

The new objects you'll come across include teleporters, additional cannons, objects that adversely affect gravity, ice blocks and mechanical arms to name a few, along with the expected array buttons, cogs and switches. All in all, levels feel more purposeful thanks to the new mechanics, and we're confident that the 150 levels that make up Ragdoll Blaster 2 will continue to be interesting (and undoubtedly difficult) and show the same attention to detail throughout as the ones we've played up to now. …Read More

Transformers G1: Awakening – Review

Originally available for mobile phones back in 2008, Transformers G1 Awakening is a solid strategy game that takes fan service to a whole new level. If you grew up on the original Transformers cartoon from 1984, you’re going to squeal like a 6 year old when you see some of the choices the game has made. The cast is comprised of series mainstays like Optimus Prime and Bumblebee, but the game happily makes room for fan favourites like Grimlock and Ironhide. True to the television storyline, the story starts with the crash of the Ark and continues through to the Space Bridge built by the Decepticons. Jetfire’s first appearance is even true to his back story, starting out with the bad guys and quickly switching sides.

Gameplay here should be familiar to anyone who’s played turn-based strategy games like Rogue Planet or UniWar. Each unit will be able to move a certain number of squares, attack opposing forces, and capture important structures. Unique to Transformers however, is the ability to -– well -– transform. Every character can transform from robot mode to vehicle mode and back again. Vehicle mode offers a major advantage if you need to cover ground as you’ll be able to move around with much greater ease, but it also comes with a major disadvantage as you won’t be able to defend yourself from attacks. …Read More

App Store Links:

• Ragdoll Blaster 2 Lite, Free
• Ragdoll Blaster 2, $2.99

• Transformers G1: Awakening Free, Free
• Transformers G1: Awakening, $2.99

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