Games

This week's edition of our Apps of the Week roundup features a task manager focused on user behavior, an emoji keyboard that recognizes sketches, and a nostalgic photo editor. And as always, we've picked out two great new games for you to check out.

Scope is an easy-to-use task management app that helps you increase your productivity throughout the day. Designed with special attention to user behavior, Scope efficiently strips away the unnecessary clutter to empower users to focus on their todos. Whether using the app to keep track of grocery lists or school assignments, simply create a new list and populate it with the items that are important to you. In addition to tasks, you can set notifications to remind you of your single or repeat events. Scope is available for $0.99.

Emojiboard leverages the machine learning capabilities exclusive to iOS 11 to bring you a whole new way to find the right emoji. You just have to sketch. And it doesn't matter if you're drawing skills aren't great— it's been trained to recognize thousands of sketches in different styles. Just a few strokes are typically all that's needed. Whether your 'smiling poop' is an elaborate series of nested ellipses or just a triangle with a face on it, Emojiboard knows what you mean. Emojiboard is available for free.

Retrospecs lets you convert images so they appear as they would on home computers and consoles from the 70's and 80's. Simply take a picture (or select one from your photo library) and you can display it as it would appear on over forty legacy systems including the Commodore 64, IBM PC, Commodore Amiga, Atari ST, Sega Mega Drive, Nintendo Game Boy and even the original 1984 Apple Macintosh. The free version of the app comes with limited system filters, but you can unlock everything—including a custom editor— for $2. Retrospecs is available for free.

Experience this award-winning game, now available on the App Store. Flower lets you take control of the wind as you explore and navigate beautiful, lush environments using motion controls. Journey through varied landscapes at your own pace, interacting with and changing the environment as you go, and find balance and harmony in your surroundings. This is an interactive escape that takes you on an emotional journey like no other game you've ever experienced. Flower is available for $5.

If you're looking for something a little more....active, like an FPS? Check out the latest installment in Gameloft's Modern Combat series. Modern Combat Versus allows you to drop into fun, action-packed gameplay that will fine a new era of mobile shooters. Choose your Agent, master your role, and dominate the battlefield with your team. From skilled attackers to supportive defenders and covert assassins, there's an Agent profile for every style of play. Modern Combat Versus is available for free (with several IAPs).

This week's edition of our Apps of the Week roundup features a programmable robot, a fun but powerful music creation app, and an interesting new 1-on-1 chat experience. And as always, we've picked out two great games for you to check out.

Wanting to learn more about programming or robotics? Or looking for a fun and educational app for kids? Meet Pixel—your own personal interactive robot. Pixel starts off without any intelligence or emotion, so it's up to you to program some personality and life into the robot. Using a drag-and-drop, blocked-based programming language (Scratch), fun interactions can be programmed in. Pixel is available for free.

Longtime readers know that I'm a sucker for a good music creation app. I'm not very good with the creation part, so I'm always looking for new ways to make the process easier. Samplebot kind of fits that description. It's essentially a finger-drummable looping sequencer, which in layman terms means it can record and playback sounds. Features include the ability to record and import samples, loop, sequencer, built-in drum patterns, MIDI control, trim and balance your samples, and of course the ability to quickly share your creations with the world. Samplebot is available for $2.99.

Here's an interesting (and timely) app. Burst Your Bubble is a chat app that aims to match you with someone who has an opposing opinion. Users are given a controversial topic—let's say hotdogs or hamburgers—and asked to choose a stance. If the user picks hot dog, they will be matched up with someone who chose hamburgers, and the pair can then engage in a 1-on-1 discussion. You can vote on trending topics or even submit ideas of your own. The team says you can terminate chats to avoid harassment, but they hope their app will facilitate more civilized debates than not. Burst Your Bubble is available for free.

Following up the release of NBA 2K18 on the major consoles, 2K this week release the hit game on mobile. It's obviously not going to be as broad as its bigger siblings, but the early reviews look promising—4 stars in the App Store. Features include deeper MyCAREER mode, new "Association" mode, new soundtrack and more. Whether you're a basketball fan, or just a casual gamer looking for a new sports title, this one is worth checking out. NBA 2K18 is available for $8 (with some IAPs).

If you're looking for something a little different to play this weekend, check out Pocket Mine 3. It's the sequel to the sequel of the hit game. You tap blocks to dig and explore dozens of gorgeous locations in an exciting world. Trigger stunning chain reactions, craft and equip powerful gear, unlock treasure chests, collect and trade rare artifacts, and more. Pocket Mine 3 is available for free (with some IAPs).