Touch Arcade

So, I'm sure the very perceptive among you have figured out how disappointed I am with FIFA 16 UT. EA has turned the best football series on the App Store into a game about menus with the occasional basic ball-kicking. You'll spend much more time going through badly-designed and unecessarily complicated menus than playing football. Where does that leave FIFA 16 UT? Well, if you want to play a CCG, there are much better CCGs out there than this clearly Pay-to-Win game.

Will you love Mos Speedrun 2? If you loved the Mikey games, you owe it to yourself to check this out, especially since the original Mos Speedrun [$0.99] was a fantastic game that heavily inspired that franchise. But this sequel is definitely more for the hardcore player who doesn't mind repetition and the high level of challenge.

And yet, I can’t deny how satisfying it is to unlock a new car in No Limits and suddenly have a bunch more races to play (since each car unlocks a side career). Plus, the game looks great and the actual racing is super fun, which is pretty important. It’s disappointing how stifling the free-to-play stuff gets several hours in, but that initial play time is really solid.

The Sequence is a rather unassuming game overall, but I came away pleasantly surprised. If you're a fan of SpaceChem or other similar apps, this one is worth checking out.

From the visual wit of the short cartoons to the clever moving puzzles themselves, the entire experience is just pure delight. And, I suppose, if you’ve got a few kids running around it’ll be nice for them, too.

Hopiko isn't perfect, but this game aims really high in trying to be this really challenging, mobile-friendly speedrun game, and it succeeds far more than it ever fails at what it sets out to do. Definitely check this out.

And really, what Land Sliders does best is that the game is something you really can play for a minute or for an hour. The sliding mechanic is so good to play with, it makes any session with this game feel satisfying. And the game really nails the monetization where I was willing to watch video ads every time one was presented, as I really wanted more characters! This game is fun, whimsical, and even a little mysterious. Give it a download.

I think it's fair to say that Cavernaut surprised me. Judging by the screenshots, the game looks like it's simply a fun, modern take on Lunar Lander that's been tailor-made for mobile. I suppose it is that to a degree, but it's also surprisingly deep and stressful at times.

What the game does well (the visuals, the way it tells the story, and the challenging and satisfying nature of most puzzles) it does really well. I don't think I'm cultured enough to fully enjoy the opera part, or smart enough to really get the most out of all the puzzles (see: speedrunning), but I still greatly enjoyed the overall experience of playing through Lab Like's Magic Flute by Mozart.

Starseed: Origin has a faithful Atari veneer and intriguing game play elements that will keep you engaged and trying to beat your previous best even on early levels. If you don't dig the pixel scene, you can probably safely avoid this but anyone that wants a quick shot of nostalgic action, you can't go wrong here.