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Our April 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 traditional measures such as graphics or sound, but simply reflect the games we would most recommend to others.

5 Stars

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)

4.5 Stars

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)

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)

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)

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)

Honorable Mentions

There were several additional games this month that we felt we should highlight even though they didn't fall in the highest tiers.

Warpgate – A space conquest game with an amazing sense of scope. Warpgate has cool graphics, an interesting faction system to get involved in, and a dynamic in-game economy that can keep you busy for as long as you remain interested in the game. (Review, App Store: iPhone, iPad)

Geometry Wars iPad – A marvelous port of the XBOX Live Arcade game, it includes all the different game modes and has individual online leaderboards for each of them. The graphics are great, the music fits perfectly, and overall we just really want this game on our iPhones as the dual stick control method doesn't feel ideal for the iPad. (Review, App Store: iPad)

Sketch Nation – While the gameplay of the games created in Sketch Nation are generally just simple vertical shooters or other very basic games, the ability to draw and create your own game is one of the best uses of the iPhone camera we've seen. Even if you can't draw, you can still have a great time making a terrible game based on your own art that you photograph. (Review, App Store)

The rest of April 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 2.5 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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A couple weeks ago, we reviewed Motocross Challenge, a long lost Gameboy Advance game that never came to be which found new life on the App Store. Despite being more than 5 years old it actually turned out to be a really great experience on the iPhone. Solid controls, a polished interface, OpenFeint integration, and a high fun factor combined to make for one of the best motocross games on this platform. Now it's gotten even better as version 1.2 has gone live and adds real-time multiplayer through OpenFeint, as well as a much requested tilt calibration option.

Previously, multiplayer was restricted to OpenFeint friend challenges. You could pick from any track to race 3 laps as quickly as possible and then send that time to any of your friends to see if they could top it. It was nice and actually worked pretty well within the game's structure, and this feature is still kept intact with the latest update. But most likely you'll forget all about the challenge system once you've had a taste of the exciting real-time racing.

Upon choosing Multiplayer from the main menu, you'll select the new option Vs. World. It will bring you to a bike selection screen where you can choose from your available unlocked motorcycles. While you're doing this it's quietly matching you up with people in the background. A few moments later, the players are set and the race begins on a randomly selected course. There's only the option of racing in 3 lap races online, no trick attacks, but it's incredibly simple to get into and a ton of fun. Where you place in the race earns you points that you'll collect as a badge of honor for how well you do and how much you play, similar to an online ranking.

Also noteworthy in this release is the addition of a tilt calibration. You must start a race and access this option from the pause menu, which is a bit clunky but works as advertised. The real star of this update is the online racing which adds unlimited replayability to this already fantastic game. If you have Motocross Challenge, give the update and online multiplayer a try. If you still haven't pulled the trigger on purchasing yet, now would be a great chance to join in on all the fun. A new Lite version is also now available.

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So what is Scoggins Erasers? According to the latest Telltale Games (Sam & Max) dev diary for the game that begs the question, it's a supplier of pencil erasers for the US' second-most prestigious place: the White House.

Of course the dev diary for the recently revealed iPhone puzzle game, Nelson Tethers: Puzzle Agent, dishes out some sweet, sweet additional details.

According to game designer Mark Darin, FBI Puzzle Investigation Division Agent Nelson Tethers is on a peculiar case. Scoggins Erasers has stopped sending erasers to the White House and are instead are puzzles. Tether, being the PID's only agent, must figure out these puzzles and apparently unravel the secret of Scoggins, Minnesota in process.

In the video Darin re-confirms what we knew about the game stemming from an event in San Francisco last week.

"We're combining what we do with adventure games, the exploration of scenes and interaction with other characters, with self-contained brain teaser puzzles inspired by games like Professor Layton," Darin says, adding later that the game draws additional inspiration from TV shows like the X-Files and Twin Peaks.

As reported earlier, Puzzle Agent hits all iDevices this June. And if you're interested, the foremost prestigious place in the US is that rest stop along US-41. You'll never smell the unique and colorful smells there anywhere else in the country. Period.

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At first glance you might dismiss Domino's Adventure [App Store] as being just another generic Rolando knock-off, and that's understandable as they do share similarities in look and gameplay. But beneath the surface lies a brilliantly designed platform experience that admittedly draws influence from many different areas, but melds them together in a way that's uniquely its own. An incredibly fun physics system, simple controls and a demanding test of your dexterity combine to make Domino's Adventure a pleasure to play. It's a pretty short ride, but at only 99¢ it's definitely one worth taking.

The protagonist, Domino, is a circular alien that has crash landed on Earth and must traverse 20 increasingly difficult levels to get back to his lost spaceship. Left and right arrows in the lower corner of the screen roll the character in either direction, while simple jump and spike buttons sit in the opposite corner. Which corners these controls are located in can be configured in the options. There's tilt controls available if you choose, but I far preferred the virtual touch controls. Domino jumps higher the longer you press down, and the spike button gives him a pointy circumference for clinging to walls and ceilings.

It's certainly taking a page out of Rolando's book, especially in regards to the Royal Spikey Commando character, but never comes across as a malicious rip-off. If anything, it's merely because these particular gameplay mechanics are so solid and entertaining. Any feelings of déjà vu are quickly forgotten anyway once you start making your way through the exciting level designs.

The physics in the game have a floaty and fun feel, and make for some pretty crazy experiences. For example, you may encounter a series of planks standing on end, set up like dominoes. You'll need to jump into them, knocking them down onto each other creating a bridge for you to cross. Even better are the many instances that have you knocking one of those planks over onto a line of rotating gears which propel the plank forward while you ride it like a surfboard, reminiscent of something from a Super Mario Bros. game. Each level is progressively more difficult and cleverly designed, and I found myself constantly being surprised with each new one.

It's very casual-friendly, with unlimited lives and checkpoints spread throughout the game. At the end of each level it tells you how many lives you used, the time it took to beat, and how many of the 5 gold stars you collected. Sadly, it doesn't do anything with these stats, and the game is just begging for some sort of online leaderboard or achievement implementation. There is incentive to collect the stars as you can unlock three more skins for Domino at set star intervals, but unfortunately nothing extra happens when you collect all 100. I'd really like to see something special if you can beat every level with just one life, which would be quite a task for anyone to complete.

I'm happy to say that Domino's Adventure is only “inspired by” like games, and not some dreadful rip-off. It feels like a lot of love went into it, and it turned out to be so much fun that I was sad when it came to an end. You can expect to get a few hours or so of playtime completing all the levels and collecting every star, which isn't bad but leaves you wanting more. There's just something so enjoyable about playing, I'm really hoping for some more levels sometime in the future. Still, there's more than 99¢ worth of entertainment in what's already here and if you enjoy platforming games like Rolando, Soosiz or Bounce On, don't miss out on Domino's Adventure.

App Store Link: Domino's Adventure, 99¢

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Back in February we reported the formation of mobile studio AppStar Games by legendary game designers David Crane and Gary Kitchen. The founders' mission in creating the studio is to focus on "small footprint" games for various connected devices, the iPhone among them.

“Garry and I have worked together on a number of successful ventures over the years, generating hundreds of millions of dollars for investors and stakeholders. We’re very excited about the dramatic shift that is occurring in the game industry with the advent of direct-to- consumer distribution of our titles. AppStar Games is committed to taking a leadership role in that transition by delivering the highest quality product in the marketplace”, said Crane, CTO of AppStar.

The studio has just released their first iPhone game, Iron Horse [App Store], which is a reaction / timing game that challenges you to couple stationary rail cars to a passing train by tapping on the connection point at exactly the right moment. At first, while the train pushes along at a leisurely pace, it's a snap. But, once things get a little more full-tilt, you'll find that you need to "lead" your taps, to account for the sluggishness of your own reflexes. There are straight rounds where a set number of cars must be attached to a given locomotive as well as bonus rounds where it's proceed as long as you want — but miss a car and it's no bonus for you. The game features OpenFeint integration for achievements and score tracking.

According to the developers, Iron Horse strives to capture the beauty of the American railroad — and it does an admirable job. The parallax scrolling scenery is well drawn across the various provided settings and the game as a whole is well rendered. Several tain designs are represented, including the General, the Zephyr, and the Chief.

Iron Horse actually made it's App Store debut on the iPad early last month as The Iron Horse [link], which features graphics appropriate for the device's larger screen. And, while the games are otherwise identical, the iPad provides a better play experience as there's more onscreen track, which results in extra time to calculate your link-up tap. It's a good bit of pick-up fun for either device size, though.

The Iron Horse Lite [App Store] for the iPad gives owners of Apple's latest iDevice the opportunity to try before they buy.

App Store Link: Iron Horse, $1.99 (iPhone), The Iron Horse, $0.99 (iPad), The Iron Horse Lite, Free (iPad)

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One board game that our readers have continually mentioned as a worthy candidate for the AppStore is the hit German tile-based game, Carcassonne. This is undoubtedly due to Sierra's well-received adaptation of the game for the XBOX Live and several indie spin-offs that we've already seen on the AppStore. In any case, we're pleased to announce that developers The Coding Monkeys together with Hans im Glück, one of the publishers of the original boardgame, have heard your cries, as Carcassonne is almost done and ready to hit the App Store sometime in May.

The Carcassonne website provides a very brief description of the features included in the initial release. From what we can muster, Carcassonne will include all the tiles from the original board game tileset, with the expansion tilesets (of which there were several) coming later as In-App purchases. It also offers the full suite of multiplayer options, including pass-and-play, local (WiFi and Bluetooth) multiplayer and online multiplayer, which is terrific to see as this sort of title would be stunted without the ability to find willing opponents at any given time. Of course, there is also the option to play against the computer, with a range of AI difficulties available to test yourself against.

Screenshots of the game so far are promising, and the game really looks like it's getting a thick layer of polish. So far, the developers have announced an English and German translation for the iPhone/iPod devices only, but have promised that the app itself will be universal, incorporating iPad support at a later date. We're looking forward to getting a hands on preview with the game in the near future where we'll be able to provide further information before its release later this month at the introductory price of $4.99.

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A few weeks ago, the App Store was graced with its first official ice hockey game, Hockey Nations 2010. While the graphics were fairly impressive and the controls worked admirably, braindead goalkeeping and a frustrating opponent AI extinguished most of the enjoyment out of playing. Creator of the game Distinctive Developments took this to heart, and immediately started work on an update based on user feedback, even opening up a beta pool of experienced testers and knowledgeable hockey fans alike. The result is the now available 1.1 update that delivers a far better experience, but unfortunately still leaves some things to be desired.

The goalie AI has been greatly improved and they seem to move a bit more quickly and intelligently, although can still let through some iffy goals. The movement of the puck is thankfully a lot more forgiving now. It's much easier to retain possession of the puck while attempting an offensive push, and passes to teammates are more accurate. There's no more of the constant possession changes that plagued the first version. It's still somewhat difficult to get clean shots off, but it gets easier with some practice. Another big addition is line changes which are easily called with a button at the top of the screen. It adds a great deal to the strategy and authenticity of the game, and works really nicely.

The biggest problem with the initial release of Hockey Nations was that it just didn't flow very well, and this latest update goes a long way in addressing that problem. It's now much more playable, and more importantly much more fun. If you weren't impressed with the 1.0 release, give this new update a spin. Hopefully further updates can improve the game even more down the line, so far this first one is a huge step in the right direction.

App Store Link: Hockey Nations, $3.99

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Behemoth studio and creator of the StarCraft RTS series, Blizzard Entertainment, is notorious for its long development cycles. It's an integral part of the studio's "quality first" mindset. But it's also an ethos that is, to some extent, stopping Blizzard from putting SC on the iPad.

Speaking recently to Ars Technica, lead designer of SC 2 Dustin Browder put the breaks on any thoughts that the studio is actively developing for the device: "I don't know," he said, "We're certainly not working on it now."

The reason is wrapped up in control. SC 2 is a PC RTS, and while some devs have been able to have success with their strategy releases on Apple's latest device, Blizzard isn't so sure their game's experience will translate.

"Will we give users the same quality experience?" Browder asked. "We don't put multiple SKUs out there and have like, the good SKU, and the 'Meh, we exploited this SKU, we made some money.' We don't want that SKU, the version that's not the good version."

Would Blizzard make millions if they released an iPad version of SC? It's possible. This is the studio that makes millions on digital animals for their PC MMO World of Warcraft, after all. But for now, Blizzard seems content on doing what it does best: making polished and entertaining PC games.

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Plants vs. Zombies HD soon isn't going to be the only PopCap game on the iPad, according to information we received today.

"We are working on other iPad adaptations of some of our leading franchises," Andrew Stein, director of the studio's mobile business development, told us this morning via e-mail, "so it's probably safe to say that at least one of the games you cite will eventually make its way to Apple's latest device."

In our question put to Stein, we asked if the iPad would ever see a Peggle, Chuzzle, or Bejeweled release.

Chuzzle [App Store] appears to be the unlikeliest of the bunch despite its critical acclaim. Peggle [App Store] and Bejeweled [App Store] probably warrant the "leading franchise" tag considering both IPs have received enough backing to have multiple releases across a diverse range of platforms. It's a list that includes Xbox LIVE Arcade, Macintosh, iPhone, and even browsers.

Needless to say, we're incredibly excited for whatever game (or games) PopCap finally decides to bring to the iPad. All of their existing iPhone games work fine scaled up on the iPad, but after seeing what a fantastic job they did with Plants vs. Zombies, we'd really like to see Peggle get the same treatment.

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We announced last month that Tilt to Live [$1.99] would be getting an update in April with two new game modes, and today that update has been released. Included are the new Gauntlet and Code Red game modes, leader boards for each mode, and six new awards provided by the AGON social platform.

Tilt to Live is an accelerometer-based blow-em-up for the iPhone and iPod Touch that we reviewed last month and gave 5 stars.

Here are descriptions of the two new game modes:

Gauntlet Mode:

Run the Gauntlet to put your precision tilting skills to the test! In Gauntlet mode, players compete for the longest survival time rather than highscores or combos. Enemies waves will no longer relentlessly chase you. Instead, the dots work together to form an increasingly difficult treadmill course of smashers, battle axes, windmills, and more. It’s an entirely new gameplay experience! The difficulty curve will be comparable to our original gametype, a crescendo from manageable to kick-your-butt. Early dot obstacles and gameplay will be showcased in our teaser video, and even more sinister twists are in development as we speak.

Code Red:

Rather than guiding players along a polite difficulty curve, we’re chucking them off a difficulty cliff with Code Red mode. This gametype is best described as “Classic mode on crack”. Everything from Classic is there, but the red dots will spawn at their highest intensity right from the start. It’s tailor-made for experienced players that “just wanna get to the good part”, without enduring the buildup.

The developers, One Man Left Studios, also say that future updates will bring new game modes, weapons, awards and even iPad support that we are really looking forward to.

Here is a video of the new Gauntlet mode:

App Store Link: Tilt to Live, $1.99

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