Josh Gallagher

Cooped Up review: don’t let your expectations cage this gem

One of the first iPhone games I, and certainly many iPhone owners, ever played was Doodle Jump. It came out while the App Store was still in its relative infancy, and the iPhone was beginning its meteoric rise in earnest. Since its release in 2009, we have seen numerous games that copy its pencil and paper art style or gameplay mechanics. So many, in fact, that it has become relatively hard for any game that looks even remotely similar to stand out.

When you first look at screenshots of Cooped Up, I have no doubt that Doodle Jump, Mega Jump, or any number of other apps will be the first thing to spring into your mind. Cooped Up is more than just a cheap knock off, though. What makes this game different? Well, that’s going to take a bit of explaining.

Singularity review: a singularly enjoyable puzzler

The core concept behind many iOS puzzle games is something we’ve seen before. Whether it’s a match three or a word jumble, there is a lot of familiar ideas out there. Truly great games are able to take these ideas and expand on them. They mix in brand new concepts and create a game that is unique and exciting. The newest game from unexpected3rd, Singularity, is a tried and true concept that I think we’ve all seen in other games. The question is; does Singularity expand upon its premise enough to be considered great?

Review: Forgotten Memories remembers what it means to be a survival horror game

For years, the survival horror genre has suffered from a bit of an identity crisis, with genre mainstays straying into everything from action adventures to point and click romps. With Forgotten Memories: Alternate Realities, developer Psychose Interactive seeks to resurrect the ideals that made survival horror great and prove that the early games in the genre got it right the first time.

Tiltagon review: a game that’s frustrating, but in all the right ways

Games using tilt controls have certainly come a long way since the early days of the iPhone. Advancements in technology and programming have taken what was once difficult and unwieldy and transformed it into a responsive, valid control scheme. Tiltagon seeks to utilize this new-found precision to create a game that is frustrating, but in all the right ways.

Lost Within, LiquidSpace, Tiny Guardians and more hit the App Store this week

As the flow of updates geared towards the Apple Watch continues to increase, you may be feeling a little left out as you look down at your iPhone. There’s no need to be quite so despondent though, because a bevy of exciting new iPhone and iPad apps also exploded onto the App Store this week.

Whether you’re in the mood for a thrilling adventure, a perplexing puzzle, or something in-between, this list has you covered. If you somehow still find yourself wanting more after reading through this article, remember to keep checking back. We make lists of App Store releases and updates almost every day.

Smove review: use your best moves to get a high score

There aren’t many classic arcade style action games that are able to compensate for the iPhone's lack of physical buttons. The loss of tactile feedback is just too much to overcome, but this doesn’t mean that we can’t enjoy a nice score chasing romp on our phones. It just means that developers have to create new games that rely on completely different control schemes. Simple Machine’s Smove does just that.

Manage your clipboard in style with Paste

The Mac’s copy and paste function is generally not something I think about. Sure, I use it. In fact, I use it every single day. It’s just that I never have to think about it. It’s a universal constant. No matter what machine you’re on or what you are trying to accomplish, copy/paste always works the same way. It always does the exact same thing and with the exact same limitations. Dmitry Obukhov’s Paste seeks to change that.

Rebus review: a puzzle worth 1,000 words

Whether or not you recognize the term, it's safe to say we've all encountered a rebus before. These popular puzzles are subtlety hidden throughout our daily lives. They sneak onto billboards in the form of company logos. They appear in text messages as strings of emojis. They even infiltrate Instagram without people realizing they are creating them. Now these complex image puzzles have ambushed the App Store in the form of REBUS by Jutiful.

Lettercraft review: a word game crafted with care

With Lettercraft, developer Marco Torretta has created a game built to conquer the mobile market. It’s a word game, one of the App Store’s most popular categories. It’s short, with each session taking just about two minutes. It’s even straightforward and easy to learn. The real success of Lettercraft, however, is its surprising depth and creative mechanics.

Post to Instagram directly from your Mac with Uploader for Instagram

Most people’s biggest gripe with the photo sharing site Instagram is that they can’t upload photos directly from their Macs. There are a few workarounds for this, but most of them are intrusive, labor intensive, and far from user friendly. The aptly titled Uploader for Instagram seeks to simplify this process so that anyone can easily post from whatever device they choose.

Cards and Castles: shuffle up and fight

Cards and Castles mixes two of my favorite things together: turn-based strategy and card battles. It also throws in one of my least favorite terms: free-to-play. Has Bit Mass created a game that perfectly blends these characteristics? Read on, dear adventurer, and let’s find out together.