During E3, Betehsda has not only announced Fallout 4 but also used the occasion to release Fallout Shelter, an iOS game focused on building your ideal underground vault. It’s a competitive genre in the App Store, but none of the other games are as atmospheric as Fallout Shelter (even though Tiny Death Star isn’t too shabby either). If you are a fan of the Fallout universe and you’re the proud owner of an iPhone or iPad, then you absolutely have to try this game out. The fact that it’s available for free makes this decision even easier. And compared to other town-bulding games, the free2play elements aren’t that bad here – you can progress quite a bit without having to spend any of your hard earned cash. Enjoy building your vault!

If you like fighting games, you must have already heard of Mortal Kombat. It’s arguably one of the best beat-’em-up series out there and without a doubt one of the most controversial as well, due to its very graphic nature. The first Mortal Kombat was released in 1992 and the series has since seen many releases on almost any platform under the sun. It’s great news that the newest entry, Mortal Kombat X, is not only released on the current console generation, but also available for your iPhone and iPad. Let me point out though, that this game isn’t a port – it’s more like a reimagination for touchscreen devices, based on the assets of the console version. In my eyes, that’s a good thing though, because touchscreens just can’t offer the kind of feedback and precision necessary for controlling a fast paced and complex beat-’em-up.

Mortal Kombat X is avaliable on the App Store for free, it looks gorgeous and therefore I highly recommend you go and check it out. However, if you like your beat-’em-ups a little more oldschool with classic controls, why don’t you have a look at the excellent Street Fighter IV or Street Fighter X Tekken? Decisions, decisions!

Gameloft was one of the very first developers who really tried to push the envelope when it came to creating App Store games that aspired to be like full blown console games. And while one might not like the freemium trend (I think the word “trend” might not even apply anymore: Freemium is here to stay) that Gameloft tends to follow nowadays, or the fact that most Gameloft games are quite obviously inspired by some of gaming’s biggest IPs, I do believe that Gameloft played a vital role in making iOS gaming as big as it is today.

Looking at Dungeon Hunter 5, I guess you can find all the positive and negative qualities I have just described – depending on what you’re preferences are when it comes to playing games on your iPhone or iPad. Dungeon Hunter 5 is a top-down action RPG, very much in the spirit of Diablo, the genres most prominent entry developed by Acitvision Blizzard. If you watch the trailer above closely, you will most likely find quite a few similarities, especially the environments remind me a lot about Diablo 3 – but actually, when it comes to the visuals, it seems like there’s also some Torchlight 2 DNA in there.
But enough with the comparisons – the Dungeon Hunter series has so far been quite enjoyable, so if the trailer intrigued you and you like the premise of action RPGs, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t head over to the App Store and download Dungeon Hunter 5 in order to give it a try – it’s free, after all.

If you are old enough to remember Frogger, you know exactly what to expect from Crossy Road. In case you don’t remember Frogger, think of the title “Crossy Road” as a literal representation of the gameplay. I know, I know – corssing roads doesn’t sound like fun at all, right? Wrong! Crossy Road has just the right amount of polish to its somewhat whimsical presentation and controlling your litte character on screen feels tight and responsive. In the end, you only have to answer one question: Haven’t you always wanted to help Doge cross the street? If your response is “wow”, then there’s exactly two things you should do: First, watch the trailer above, showcasing several in game characters and second, go and download Crossy Road from the App Store – it’s free and universal, meaning you can enjoy it on your iPhone and iPad alike.

When it comes to Monument Valley, all I can think about are adjectives: Elegant. Polished. Beautiful.
There are many puzzle games on the App Store, but Monument Valley really is one of a kind. I can’t pinpoint its greatness down to a single feature, it’s more like a synergy effect that turns this game into so much more than the sum of its parts. The art direction is flawless and in combination with the sound and music it creates a very distinct atmosphere.

However, as much as I like Monument Valley, it is not without fault. Maybe it’s just me (I like my puzzle games to be challenging), but I thought the game was too easy. The game’s visuals might be mind-bending, but the diffculty is not. Rather than figuring out a path for the protagonist, it’s more like guiding her through the levels. Don’t get me wrong, this is in no way dealbreaking – some people might even prefer this kind of gameplay compared to a more challenging approach, especially if they play on their iPhone and iPad. It just pushes the game more towards the audiovisual experience genre. But what a great experience it is, so go and grab Monument Valley on the App Store as soon as you can!

If there’s something that I always fall for, it’s beautiful art direction. And if a developer manages to combine it with great music and fun gameplay, I’m usually all over it. As is the case with Alto’s Adventure. It’s a 2D sidescrolling snowboard game – and if that’s something you’re even remotely interested in, you should definitely check out the trailer above.

Alto’s Adventure is available on the App Store since February 19th for $1.99. If you want to know more about the game, why don’t you head over to the game’s official (and equally beautiful) website.

If you like great art direction and simple yet elegant gameplay, do yourself a favor and check out this BADLAND trailer. It’s an adventure/puzzle game that’s going to be out on April 4th. It’s one of those games that is created from the ground up with touchscreen input in mind. All you have to do to control it, is to tap the screen. That way you adjust the height of your little, flying fellow. Now, this has the potential to get boring fast, so it needs to be combined with some stellar gameplay mechanics. But judging from what I’ve seen so far from the developers, the level-design is as creative as it is varied. All in all, this game got me really excited to get my hands on it, so April 4th can’t come soon enough.

What. The. Fuck. Seriously. What the fuck. Tim Sweeney, founder of Epic Games, just casually announced that they’ve closed Impossible Studios. This is the team responsible for Infinity Blade Dungeons, and therefore the development of the game is now on hold. Again: What the fuck. It’s not like Infinity Blade Dungeons is one of the most anticipated mobile titles and that it was expected to be available already a long time ago.

So, to me there are several things happening here that are “interesting”. First of all, let’s look at Infinity Blade Dungeons. This game was presented on-stage by Apple, undoubtedly to appeal to the hardcore gaming crowd to get them pumped for the new Apple devices. It was a product demo, promising to show us what we would get if we buy that powerful new device. In the past, this would mean that either the game was already out, or that its release was imminent. So that’s why everyone got all excited to get their hands on Infinity Blade Dungeons. Because, well, that’s just how it works when something is teased at an Apple keynote. That’s almost a year ago now. By the end of 2012, Epic said the game would be released sometime “in 2013″. And, as was established at the beginning of this article, it’s now on indefinite hold.

So that was just stating the facts. Now let’s talk about Epic Games themselves. This is where I want to state very clearly upfront that this is pure speculation on my part and that I do not have any information backing up these thoughts I’m having of the “state of Epic Games”. Alright, now that hopefully no one is going to sue me let’s talk about said state of Epic. Currently, something seems to be going wrong at that company. Senior staff who have been working at Epic for ages were leaving (Cliff Bleszinski being arguably the most prominent one). Highly anticipated (and therefore most likely very profitable) games not being released. The rumors about the now infamous Samaritan tech demo actually having been developed as a game, which then faced major problems during development and, because of it, never turned into a real game. The closing of development studios.

Is it just me, or does that sound like things are not so great at Epic Games right now? Of course, there’s still the very strong licensing arm that Epic has. However, with the next console generation around the corner, it’s not clear whether or not the Unreal Engine will also be the major player in a world of Playstation 4s and Xbox720s like it was this generation.

So what do I want to say with this? Not much, really. Just that Epic Games seems to be in a bit of a struggle at the moment. By no means must this mean it’s a struggle for survival. But it’s most definitely a struggle of some sort. Let’s hope they sort it out. I do want me some Infinity Blade Dungeons, after all.

Do you enjoy high score chasing games? Do you like hot dogs? Do you like weird stuff? Yes? Then Heads Up! Hot Dogs sounds like just the right game for you! All you need to do is put hot dogs that fall from the sky on people’s heads. Wait, what?! Yeah, placing hot dogs on people’s heads, you read that right. Sometimes you really have to wonder what magical chemicals the developers of games such as Heads Up! Hot Dogs accidentally stumbled upon before they came up with the gameplay idea. Maybe they played too many Mario games and took the idea of magic mushrooms too literal?

Anywho, as long as it means we can get our hands on games that are as weirdly awesome as Heads Up! Hot Dogs, I’m totally fine with whatever dietary supplements the devs spice up their lives with! In case you’re still not sure what the heck I’m talking about, just go ahead and watch the trailer and I’m sure you’ll instantly understand. Heads Up! Hot Dogs is a universal app that will set you back $0.99 and like I said, if you dig the idea of placing hot dogs on peoples heads while chasing the high score, this game is totally worth it! It’s “the most realistic hot-dog-head-balancing game EVER” after all.

Rockstar Games has announced that GTA: Vice City will be available on the App Store in the near future. And much like the name suggests, the setting could be described as an over the top version of Miami Vice. GTA: Vice City was the follow-up to the highly praised GTA 3, the game that introduced the third dimension to the GTA series. GTA 3 is already available for you iPhone and iPad since quite some time as well as the mobile-only entry in the franchise, GTA: Chinatown Wars (which we loved in our review).

As a matter of fact, as of this writing, both GTA 3 and GTA: Chinatown Wars are on sale for $0.99! So if you’ve always wanted to see what the fuss with these games is all about, or if you want to re-live some of the fun you’ve had with those games in the past, now is the time to grab ‘em!

Grand Theft Auto 3 Universal – $0.99
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars – $0.99
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars HD – $0.99

In case you’re still not sold, you can also check out the free light version of GTA: Chinatown Wars:

Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars Lite – FREE
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars HD Lite – FREE