So, it’s that time of year again! BBQs, lawn chairs, beer, and the ability to finally wear shorts with sandals without fear of frostbite. Tan those legs and check out all the huge sales that are going on across the App Store below. We’ll try and keep it updated as we go this weekend, so be sure to let us know of any good sales on iOS apps that you find in the comments below.

Starting with EA, here are a few of their almost 50 titles discounted for Memorial Day. App Shopper has a nice list of all the EA titles on sale, too.

Continue reading Our Annual “Holy Cow It’s Memorial Day Already” iPhone and iPad App Sale Post! »

The Hammerhead Capo case is a solid, good looking basic case for $40. It comes in black, blue, white, red or orange leather-grained polyurethane. It covers the whole iPad, with molded open areas for the dock port, headphone jack, rear camera, and volume buttons.

The top, folio-style cover is hinged to the back area, and features a hinged fold in the middle. The top cover meets the iPad glass with a soft, fuzzy material to protect from scratches, and auto locks and wakes the iPad on closing or opening the top flap.

The flap folds behind the iPad in a triangle shape with a little clip that seats within a spot on the back for three not-too-different landscape viewing angles. The clip also keeps the case closed, but did not actually snap into place in the back of the case, so did not feel as solid or stable as I’d prefer.

The Capo case also allows for a typing mode, Smart Cover-style, that uses the hinge as the stopping point for the case and iPad. This may not be tenable in the long run, as the hinge is only made of plastic, but it worked well and felt fairly solid in our testing.

The iPad 2 fits into this case extremely well, which makes sense as it was engineered for that devices specific dimensions. The new iPad fits almost as well, to the point that it’s perfectly usable for Apple’s newer tablet. The Capo case kept both iPads safe and snug in a variety of bags, as well. It feels good in the hand, too, with much less bulk than similarly protective cases I’ve used. The Capo case adds very little weight, and the faux-leather grain provides a nice “grippy” texture, making this a wonderful case for the minimalist iPad user.

The bottom line here is that the Capo case by Hammerhead is a solid-feeling protective case for an attractive price point. The new iPad and the iPad 2 I tested it with both felt secure and well-protected, and the case is my current favorite full-protection, non-keyboard case for my new iPad.

Seriously, there are a TON of games for the iOS platform. But when I mention the iPad or the iPhone as a true gaming platform, all I get are responses like, “Only good for Angry Birds!” Come on, gamers, open up those minds.

The iPad won’t replace home consoles any time soon, of course, but I really think that as portable devices get more and more powerful, those living room devices are going to have to up the ante to continue to be relevant. If I’m able to play a game with the graphics of Infinity Blade II and the deeper gameplay of something like Escape Plan (PlayStation Vita) on the big screen via AirPlay, why would I need a console?

I firmly believe that the iPad and iOS in general is already well on its way to replacing dedicated handheld gaming devices, at least.

I’ve owned Sony’s handheld gaming devices since the original PSP. I turned in all some dusty handhelds the other day and bought a Vita with the proceeds. Escape Plan, a fantastic launch title is a perfect fit for the iOS platform. While playing it, all I can think about is how a game of its obvious quality would work totally well on an iPhone. Or, better yet, an iPad. 148Apps creator and owner, Jeff Scott, agreed, saying, “But I keep thinking — hey, you could make a game this good on iOS, why don’t you?”

The iPad has the same graphics chip as the PS Vita. Escape Plan is made in Unity. Hey, the iPad supports games made in Unity! Why aren’t more developers jumping over to iOS?

Could it be the perception out there, shared by many gamers, that iOS is just a platform for Angry Birds? First of all, any developer would be LUCKY to “just” be Angry Birds, with their 10m downloads for Angry Birds Space alone. A developer who might like to be able to charge $15 for the 1.4m PS Vitas out there needs to simply do the math and see that they could do as well on iOS at a much less expensive price point.

But the perception remains that iOS is simply a causal gaming platform, just one step up from the feature phones of the past. I disagree, of course, with titles like Gem Keeper, Trenches II, Hunters 2, Infinity Blade Dungeons (upcoming), and a ton of really good role playing games available for the platform. That’s not even to mention the bigger ports of console games, like Dead Space and Mirror’s Edge. Just because more casual games are in the media spotlight does NOT by any means that deeper, fully-gamer-approved experiences are not possible.

I think it’s time we change this perception. How? By bringing games with the depth and quality of an Escape Plan or Little Deviants or Wipeout to the iOS platform.

So I call out to all you Vita developers – why aren’t you on iOS? Is it a licensing issue? A Sony support issue? Why isn’t Escape Plan on my iPad? I’m begging, here. So are a ton of other gaming consumers. Why not come and engage the market?

I reached out to the developers of Escape Plan, FunBits, in an email last week, and haven’t heard back. If you know anyone at Funbits, or actually work there, drop me a line. I’d love to chat with you. Or anyone else engaged in the handheld/console market that isn’t already developing for iOS.

Ostensibly, the Logitech Keyboard Case by ZAGG is made for the iPad 2, which is how I received it for review. When I got my new iPad, I was ready for it to almost but not quite fit. Luckily, it fits pretty darn well–perhaps even better than with the iPad 2, which some users report as having a bit of looseness to it. So, here’s the review, taking into consideration both the iPad 2 and the new iPad.

Bottom line? This keyboard is a win, making it completely feasible to use an iPad as a laptop replacement. Of course, that really depends on the user, but as a writer, email & web surfer, the addition of a keyboard that is always with the iPad yet still easily removable is the key.

The keyboard itself is solidly built, with a rugged, non-flexible feel to it. The brushed aluminum finish perfectly matches the back of the iPad, and when the iPad is snugged into the keyboard case, face-first, it’s hard not to see it as an actual laptop. It’s like a Macbook Air, in fact, only a bit smaller.

The defining feature of a keyboard is, of course, the feel and usability of the keys. I’ve used several folio-type keyboards with mushy, too-small keys. The Logitech Keyboard Case is not one of those. The keys feel solid under my fingers, with just the right amount of resistance. I’d compare it to my iMac keyboard in feel, while it’s a bit smaller than the standard bluetooth keyboard Apple makes. It only took me a few minutes to get used to the different size of and distance between keys, and I have fairly large hands and fingers.

I really like the protection offered by the Logitech Keyboard Case, though it does add a bit of weight to the iPad. In my unofficial testing of the weight difference between my 11-inch Macbook Air and the new iPad with the keyboard case attached (read that as holding one in each hand and balancing them, schoolyard-style), I’d have to say that it’s almost as heavy as the Air, if a bit lighter. Ultimately? It’s pretty darn light and useable.

The rubber bumpers on the inside of the case protect from impact damage, and hold on to the iPad when closed in. It’s a very nice way to keep the iPad safe, though I suppose the back of the iPad and the camera can still get scratched. That’s not something that concerns me, personally, though. I’ve not had any problem with either version of the iPad falling out when snugged in tight.

All in all, the Logitech Keyboard Case by ZAGG for iPad 2 is a solid investment for anyone wanting to use their iPad as more of a laptop. Our very own Carter Dotson used his iPad with the keyboard case to report from the show floor of GDC and found it very acceptable. It will snugly fit both the iPad 2 and the new iPad (sorry iPad 1 owners) well, with the advantage going to the new iPad for fit.

Lots of independent games get shown off at the Games Developer Conference each year. Some of them are entered in the Independent Games Forum, a special competition for indie games releasing on console, Mac/PC, or iOS. We were able to visit a few of these, listed below, and wanted to tell you all about them.

Lume
While our reviewer enjoyed the look of this game, she also said it felt kind of short. When I mentioned this to the developer at the demo kiosk, he agreed. He then went on to show me how they put this game together, with hand built sets and hand-held cameras panning through each level to give it the unique visual style it has. In addition, the planned additional levels look nothing short of brilliant and expansive, so this should be one to keep an eye on.

Pugs Luv Beats / Pug Synth
File this one under adorable, right next to hilarious. As a pug owner and fan myself, Pugs Luv Beats took my heart away. Each pug in the game represents a specific beat or musical motif, and adding hats and costumes changes the music and allows the pug to go farther and faster towards its goal. The game may be more about music performance with gaming elements, but it’s still a ton of fun to mess around with. Add the spin-off music app, Pug Synth, and I am sold.



Fingle
One thing missing from modern games, say the developers of Fingle, is touching. And not in a weird way, either. Fingle tasks two players to place their fingers onto an iPad at the same time, and solve puzzles by cooperating and, yes, touching fingers. It’s a unique and real-life-inspired game that’s making lots of waves. Imagine taking this to a party where that cute boy or girl you want to meet is hanging out. Oh, yeah.


Ridiculous Fishing
Developer Vlambeer (Super Crate Box) teamed up with Zach Gage (Bit Pilot) and artist Greg Wohlwend (Solipskier) to create this funky game where the goal is to avoid fish on the way down, and hook as many as possible on the way up, then shoot them all out of the sky. Yeah, it’s wacky. But super fun to play, of course. The couple of minutes I had to check it out made me glad I’d been able to stop by and play this all-star creation.

Faraway
I have to say that I wasn’t expecting to be emotionally invested in a game that looks like this, but the music and the loneliness of that poor star affected me in a fairly intense way. From Steph Thiron, the developer behind indie-darling Eliss, Faraway is a one-touch controlled, procedurally created game that puts players in the role of a lonely star in an empty universe, holding out hope that its quest will have meaning, in the end. Fantastic score, simple, elegant graphics define this one, and I can’t wait to play the whole thing.

ASYNC Corp
This one caught my eye as I walked by its kiosk at GDC. I was attracted to the clean lines, the happy little faces, and the puzzle look right from the start. Created by Powerhead Games, ASYNC Corp starts off a simple brain teaser, asking players to switch out and connect colored squares to create larger and larger rectangles. The conceit of the shipping center is a good one, and helps get the game idea across to the player fairly quickly.

Waking Mars
What’s left to be said about this beautiful game from the makers of award-winning Spider, The Secret of Bryce Manor? Quite a bit, apparently, as I stood and talked with the lead art designer for the game. He made sure I knew that he created the concepts behind the art, but the actual paintings were done by “real artists.” Whatever, dude, the game is gorgeous. Also? this is the first time I’ve heard the term “action-gardening adventure.”


Beat Sneak Bandit – Winner of Best Mobile Game
Rhythm games are super fun. Stealth games are, too. Put them together, and you’ve got Beat Sneak Bandit, from Simogo. Our reviewer dug this one, so I gave it a quick try at the conference. Whoo, boy it IS fun. The artwork is stylish and cute, and the music is, obviously, beat heavy and catchy. Tapping to the beat to move my little guy to the clocks in the level was enjoyable and had me feeling pretty talented, two great ways to keep me playing a game.


Two other games that I did NOT have a chance to play (I didn’t see them on the expo floor, really) are English Country Tune and Storyteller, the winner of the Nuovo prize. For more details on all the games entered into the contest, including the finalists and winners, see the main page here.

We had the chance to sit down with Adam Saltsman last week at GDC to ostensibly talk about The Hunger Games, the upcoming movie tie in game from Semi Secret Software`, the folks that brought us indie darling and commercial hit, Canabalt as well as Gravity Hook.

It didn’t quite work out that way.

Lucky for us, Adam may be the nicest crazy-smart person around. He seemed genuinely upset that he wasn’t able to talk The Hunger Games (maybe next week, he promised us), but also equally enthusiastic about the game he’s currently developing with Greg Wohlwend, the developer behind Solipskier, another critical darling of the iOS gaming scene.

Currently named Hundreds, the game app is a mathematical, physics, puzzle…er…thing. It’s beautifully designed with lots of red and white, with levels chosen by swiping a finger across a matrix of white dots.

Once inside the chosen level, the player must figure out how to grow the number circles to add up to 100, without touching each other, obstacles, or more vicious extra pieces. Each level is a mini-education in itself, as Saltsman spends an inordinate amount of time creating each level so that it can be figured out without a tutorial or instructions. This has got to be difficult, especially when we’re talking about the hundred levels or so included in the game.

We played a few levels with Adam looking over our shoulder, and I remain impressed with the advanced level design and brilliant unspoken, unwritten pedagogy built into each one. Saltsman showed us his notebook full of illustrations and written notes about the levels to be included in Hundreds–this is a man who is at the top of his design game, and it shows.

While we learned nothing about The Hunger Games app on our visit, we came away with a new appreciation for game design and this genuine, kind human being with a notebook full of awesome and a new baby. Thanks again, Adam, for a lovely chat.

We sat down with publisher BulkyPix today to talk about a slew of upcoming games for iOS, including The Sandbox, Lightopus, Kung Fu Rabbit, Saving Private Sheep 2, and Gnu Revenge.

Pixowl led off the meeting with The Sandbox, previewed on 148Apps here. It’s exactly what its name implies: an open-ended game with retro-pixel charm and a TON of things to do, play with, and create with. We’re pretty excited about the potential of this little toy/game, and look forward to it’s release, hopefully in May of this year.

Lightopus, developed by Appxplore, comes out this coming Thursday, and has a neon-colored look with some surprisingly subtle gameplay mechanics. Players take on the role of a protozoan-like creature who must gather its babies, while avoiding and attacking enemies with those very same babies. The gameplay feels a lot like fl0w or the initial level of Spore, which isn’t a bad thing, and has a relaxing electronica score. Stay tuned here for a review soon.

Kung Fu Rabbit features a cute but dangerous rabbit with all the right kung fu moves. Previewed here a week or so ago, the game tasks players to take on the role of the aforementioned rabbit, out to save rabbit babies from the evil shadow man. Kung Fu Rabbit looks adorable, but make no mistake, it’s a tough platformer to beat. This combination of tough yet cute could be a winner when it releases March 15.

Saving Private Sheep is getting a sequel, the cleverly named Saving Private Sheep 2. Militant sheep aim their hedgehog at the exposed parts of their nemesis, an evil fox. The mechanics may look familiar; aiming and powering the slingshot full of hedgehog feels a lot like Angry Birds. However, the actual content is more puzzler than physics destruction, as players need to find the best way to pass the hedgehog ordinance from sheep to sheep.

Gnu Revenge is a humorous puzzle game that uses the concept of gravity and acceleration as its main, pardon the pun, thrust. Players shoot a wacky-looking gnu at a dastardly crocodile in a spaceship, saving fellow gnus from some horrendous-yet-unspecified fate, shooting around planetary bodies with various amounts of gravitational pull. Using just the right amount of boost to avoid crashing into planets or flying off into space is tricky yet strangely compelling at the same time. Look for this one to come out at the end of March.

Three other titles, releasing in April and May of this year, include a hidden object game based on the point and click PC game, Runaway, and a darkly mysterious app titled Yesterday, which features a serial killer and the homeless with some beautifully gritty graphics.

We will, of course, be keeping our eye on all these titles as they release. Our thanks to BulkyPix for spending time with us at the conference today.

Bluetooth speakers rock my world. I love being able to run music from my iPhone to a nearby speaker without having to tether it with a cable. While the BT connection does not keep my iPhone charged, the payoff in mobility is worth it.

Logitech’s newest addition to the device genre is by far the best I’ve played with. The sound is amazing for such a small footprint; the lows are deep and rich, the highs successfully bright without becoming too brittle.

The hardware itself is smooth, sleek and rounded. The dip in the middle, where an old school boombox would have held a tape deck, is just right for a hand to grasp it, obviating the need for an extruded handle. The unit feels solid, like it would hold up to some roughness in handling. The plug and line-in jacks are thoughtfully covered with a rubber flap, protecting from dust or mist. In the back of the unit sits a flip out stand, one that folds flat against the boombox for easy travel.

What’s brilliant about a bluetooth speaker system is the ability to play music from any source. I was able to send streams of music to the Logitech device from a Macbook Air, a Mac Mini, an iPhone and an iPad. Pairing is simple and consistent with other bluetooth devices; hold the button for pairing, marked by a big Bluetooth logo, until it flashes blue. Open the preferences on the sound source and choose the Logitech Boombox, already named and ready in the list of devices available.

The only small issues I noticed? The boombox did not wake from sleep when I used my iPhone to start playing again, even when plugged into a wall. It would be nice if, when connected to power, the boombox would wake and connect to the last connected source device. It was only a simple matter of pressing the power button on the Logitech device, though, and the music was restored.

The second issue? Battery life seems a bit short. The length of time the boombox lasts seems limited to one or two albums at a time when not connected to a plug. Enough for a short time out of doors, perhaps, but nothing to rely on for longer periods. The unit does, however, lower the folume and flash a yellow light when the battery life is low–a handy visual feature.

As of now, this is my favorite external speaker for all the Bluetooth capable gadgets around the house. I’ve been using it for gaming, playing music, and watching netflix on my iPad. The Logitech Wireless Boombox for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch got it right with its rich spectrum of sound response, great industrial design curves, and easy pairing of Bluetooth devices.

We’ll be covering the famous Game Developers Conference this year en force, and wanted to let you know about it. The conference is scheduled for March 7 – 9, with some pre-show sessions on the 5th and 6th. It’s a fantastic time for developers, vendors, and press covering the games industry to get together and talk about games. Game developers and publishers go to present on their latest game ideas and upcoming releases, gaming hardware and middleware companies go to show off their wares in the exhibitor hall, and the press gathers like excited gadflies, tweeting, posting, and emailing with abandon.

If you’re a publisher or developer of iOS (or Android!) games, and you’d like to schedule a meeting with us, shoot an email to us at editor [at] 148Apps [dot] com and we’ll figure out a mutually beneficial time to meet up.

Keep an eye on this space and on our twitter accounts (@148Apps, @portablegamer) for all the important news from the show floor.

In a tweet this morning, Natalia Luckyanova, co-founder of Imangi Studios, the developers behind runaway hit Temple Run, let it be known that their game has hit 36 million downloads. Let’s pause for effect here. 36 million iOS devices (they’re working on getting to the Android platform furiously as we go to press) have this hot game downloaded to it. That’s fantastic.

Now we all know why it seems like every iOS screen we come across has Temple Run on it. And why it’s number 2 on our list of the Top 148 Free iPad apps and number 4 on our list of the Top 148 Free iPhone games.

Temple Run puts players in the role of an Indiana Jones style protagonist, running from diabolical monkeys through a 3D environment. This endless runner takes an isometric third person perspective to the genre, allowing players to jump, slide and turn down narrow maze-like paths with swipes up, down, left and right. There are also tilt controls to collect coins, which can then be redeemed for upgrades and special powers, like invisibility or magic bridges across gaps.

We’ve been writing about the genuinely talented (and nice!) folks at Imangi Studios since they began, so we’re pretty darn excited about their recent and well deserved success.

Spacetime Studios is celebrating their win this year in the 2011 Best App Ever awards for Best MMO Game for Star Legends, a top pick here as well. In fact, both the iOS and the Android version took the top spot in this category. It also doesn’t hurt that Spacetime’s other MMO, Pocket Legends, won Best Multiplayer Game in the Android category, as well.

To get the word out, they’re offering players an entry to win a Chromebook as well as a chance to win a pile of platinum (in game currency) just for logging in to the game. In addition, they’re taking half off the price of Premium Starter Characters in the MMO, and giving away a commemorative Best Antenna Ever Vanity Helmet for their avatar.

The contest and the associated deals will run from February 1st through the 8th, so get in there while you can, and find out what all the buzz is about. New players as well as old will be entered into the contests automatically, so what have you got to lose?

IK Multimedia is cranking out the iOS music accessories – and the apps to go with them – at an alarmingly fast rate. We’ve reviewed these as we can, from the iKlip music stand and the iRig Mic to the iRig guitar interface, and the company turns out some great products. The iRig MIDI, a keyboard MIDI interface for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad, is no different. This is a stellar accessory, and the professional app, SampleTank, that is made to work with it, is as pro as it gets.

MIDI stands for “Musical Instrument Digital Interface,” making it a protocol for instruments and software to communicate together. MIDI files do not contain actual music, but rather the performance variables of music performances, which can be ported to any MIDI-aware sound source. With the iRig MIDI, the MIDI-capable keyboard or drum pad (not included) becomes the performance source, and the iOS device is where the sounds are output, via SampleTank or other core MIDI app, like Garageband and a host of other compatible music apps.

The iRig MIDI accessory connects to both the iOS device of choice via the 9-Pin dock connector, with the other MIDI jack connected to any MIDI capable device via a thin wire. It has three MIDI ports, allowing users to connect IN/OUT and THRU, as well as a micro USB port to keep the iOS device powered while using it. It’s a great accessory, feels well-manufactured, is small in size, and will allow musicians to use whatever keyboard, drum machine or pedalboard they want to. I used both an M-Audio keyboard as well as the Rockband 3 keyboard and both worked flawlessly. When I plugged in the iRig MIDI for the first time, my iPhone prompted me to download the free iRig Recorder app, which is required for the accessory to work.

SampleTank itself is as full featured a synth app as I’ve seen, and holds its own against my current favorite, Akai’s SynthStation. The difference between these two apps, besides the price tag, is the interface. I’d say that the preference of the user will be the deciding factor. One thing I do not like about the interface for SampleTank is the way the onscreen keyboard is set up. In order to reach higher or lower octaves, the iPhone keyboard interface must of necessity be able to be moved up or down. SampleTank does this by swiping. This is not my favored method, as it keeps me from sliding from one note to another via that same swipe method. SampleTank does well at keeping the complication inherent in such a software product to a minimum, but wasn’t always intuitive to my way of thinking; your mileage may vary. I also found it difficult to get the app keyboard and the hardware keyboard to match in terms of the octaves, which I attribute to the different keyboard hardware and my inability to figure out the interface in the app.

Other than that however, the sampled and synthesized sounds are fantastic, and well worth the price. This is basically a mobile version of award winning desktop software, SampleTank 2, for a fraction of the price. There are over 900 MB of samples for over 500 acoustic, electric and electronic instruments plus a selection of over 1,000 melodic and rhythmic patterns to meet all of the mobile musician’s synth needs. It allows for up to 4 different sounds to be loaded at once for live performance or recording with the built-in recording function. Needless to say, this is a pro-level set of tools in one Universal App.

The iRig MIDI accessory is, bottom line, a fantastically put together MIDI interface for the iPhone, iPod touch and iPad. SampleTank is a incredibly rich and robust tool to create music on these devices as well; while I personally prefer a different layout, there’s nothing amateur about SampleTank itself.

New Year, resolutions, and the like. Everyone, from local papers to Apple to us here at 148Apps are getting the word out about ways to create and maintain a healthy lifestyle. We’ve already taken a look at some apps that help us all acheive our goals, and we plan to continue that trend for the entire month, with personal stories from our crack writing team, continued reviews, and focused features like our Favorite Four.

Here’s what we have for you from the past couple of weeks. Stay tuned right here for even more Health and Fitness goodness for your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.

Abs Workout For iPad Review
“Abs Workout for iPad is definitely a good place for the user to start on their quest for a better body, although Levels 2 and 3 will need to be purchased after a while, as abs gets stronger, and exercises become easier.”

All-in-Pedometer Review
“For the walker, All-in Pedometer is ideal, focusing on one key aspect and doing a fine job of keeping the user informed throughout.”

Gym Genie Review
“Despite the ugly interface, Gym Genie is a solid workout tool. It’s not a comprehensive resource or anything like that, but for what it is – and its 99-cent price tag – it’s not bad at all. For beginners, at least, this could be very helpful.”

Favorite Four iPhone Apps for Sticking to a New Year’s Diet
“As we mentioned in our favorite four apps for keeping New Year resolutions, weight loss (as well as getting into and staying in good healthy shape) tops most people’s list of desired self-improvements. Few other goals are harder to achieve, however. We don’t have the secret formula, but we do have four iPhone apps that make getting into the right shape a lot easier.”

Pocket God Comics, issues 12 & 13, are available now in the App Store. Issue number 13 is the end to the “A Quest Called Tribe,” story-arc, begun in issue number 10, in which a female pygmy has convinced the boy pygmies to head deep under the water to find her missing tribe. Interestingly, no one dies in either of these issues; it’s up to readers to decide if this is good or bad.

The comic is based on Bolt Creative’s Pocket God, one of the more successful apps on the App Store. The full color comic itself just passed the 500,000 download mark – with each issue coming in at around $0.99 (bundles can be purchased for a smaller per-issue price), we’re sure the folks responsible for the comic are happy.

The comics are available on the App Store now courtesy of iVerse Media, the digital partner of Ape Entertainment, itself the owner of several comic book properties, such as Shrek, Casper and Strawberry Shortcake. As with all the other Pocket God comics, these issues will also be available from your local comic shop as a print comic.

In 2003, Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa traveled out to 25143 Itokawa, a small, near Earth asteroid, to retrieve samples ad return them to Earth. The spacecraft achieved its goals, returning in late 2005, gaining the honor of being the first spacecraft to successfully return samples from an asteroid.

Now, yes there’s an app. Billed as a “sound novel,” or “cinematic digital novel,” Hayabusa tells the story of this historic spaceflight, using overly cute Japanese “kawaii” images to tell the story, personifying the spaceship as an adorable little girl. We’re not sure why, but what the heck, it’s Japanese, and therefore mysterious to us. See trailer below for further proof.

The app contains original background music and is universal, running natively on any iOS device with system 3.0 or later. In the App Store, Hayabusa is $0.99, perhaps a worthwhile price for a record of one of the more interesting recent stories of space flight?

Capcom confirms today that a new update for Street Fighter IV: Volt is available now on the App Store. In this new update, they’ve added Tournament Mode. As the name so cleverly implies, Tournament mode allows players to rank up alone or with friends via repeated wins in match play over WiFi. There is also an online community connected in the game, with leaderboards, tournament events, individual and team rankings and pages, as well as post-match analyses, allowing players to share recorded matches.

Volt is the same core game as the previous Street Fighter IV, with the addition of a multiplayer. Players fight on a 2D plane with some extra 3D camera work, working their way up to harder and harder opponents as they win more and more matches. The update addresses our original concern about pushing out “new” games instead of updating them. Looks like someone at Capcom is listening, yeah?

For more details on the game, head over to Capcom-Unity at http://www.capcom-unity.com/. The updated app is live and in the App Store now.

Hold onto your sneakers, ladies and gentlemen, for the super speedy blue hedgehog is back in action, with Sonic The Hedgehog 4: Episode 2 coming your way in 2012. He’ll be speeding through expanded levels, new worlds, and into your hearts this coming year on the App Store as well as Android (for Tegra-powered devices), Xbox Live, and the Playstation Network.

SEGA is so excited about this, that they’ve even released a trailer, seen below.

Hey, did you notice the yellow twin-tailed dude? Yep, looks like Tails is gonna be included in this new Episode. Exciting, right?

“After twenty years in action, it’s clear that Sonic hasn’t slowed down one bit,” said Haruki Satomi, Senior Vice President of Digital Business at SEGA of America. “The first entry in the Sonic 4 saga was a major success. We’ve listened to the fans and been hard at work making sure we recapture that same spirit of fun in Episode II. We hope the fans will enjoy it.”

We’ll keep you informed as we know more – like, exactly when in 2012 this highly anticipated game is gonna run.

Part One: Apps 16 – 25
Part Two: Apps 6 – 15

In what was another fantastic year in the world of iOS apps, we are here to bring you the titles that we, the staff of 148Apps, thought were the best of the year. Here are our top five picks for the Best Apps of 2011:

Tweetbot – Even with the latest Twitter integration in iOS 5, this app is our favorite for accessing and using the ubiquitous social networking service. Tweetbot has a ton of improvements over the official app, with a fantastic use of space and gestural support.

Garmin Street Pilot On Demand – GPS apps are typically expensive, with high prices supposedly justified by the real time information they provide. Garmin decided to thing a bit different, offering basic navigation for $0.99, with an available $2.99 per month subscription for premium features like turn by turn voice navigation.

Garageband – The granddaddy of consumer-level music creation apps moved from the Mac to the iPad (then the iPhone with a Universal app update) this year, bringing powerful tools to those magical devices. While it’s not as full featured as the desktop app, the mobile version of Garageband is good enough for on the go hobbyists and pros alike.

7 Billion – This is our favorite nonfiction app out to date. Published by National Geographic, it explains just what, exactly, the number 7 Billion means in plain english, has several stunning pieces of journalism on the impact our world population is having on the environment and each other, and contains world-class photographs and info graphics to support it’s main points. This app presents a thoughtful and sobering look at the world population with some surprisingly hopeful possibilities for the near future.

Orchestra To Do – Productivity apps overflow the App Store like Tribbles on the Starship Enterprise, and are equally as difficult to tell the difference between. Our pick for the best to do app is Orchestra To Do, a free yet fantastic task manager, with some great touches like voice recognition, task sharing, automatic sync, and a clean, easy to use interface. This one just shouldn’t be missed.

That’s it, there’s our list of the best iOS apps of the year. Did you have a preferred title that we may have overlooked? Let us know in the comments! We look forward to another great year of iOS Apps in the year 2012!

Part One: 16 – 25
Pocket Informant – While iCal is nice, sometimes we need a more robust solution – hopefully one that works seamlessly with Google calendar. This is that app. While there’s no universal app yet, we find this one to be compelling enough on either device type.

American Presidents for iPad – With over 300 gorgeous vintage images and photographs, this is an educational app for everyone. There are biographies of every US president, a historical timeline, and detailed quizzes on the text itself. Presidential history never looked so good.

Camera+ – This one gets a lot of play on our personal iPhones, bringing a ton of extra funtionality we really wish the native Camera app had, including multi touch exposure adjustment, grid line compotition help, and loads of effects and post-processing abilities. Also, it’s super easy to share to a ton of different services, not just the default Apple ones.

1Password – Seriously, we have a ton of passwords out there. Some we use a lot, and remember, while others, well, not so much. We’re guessing you do, too. Enter 1Password, the super vault of all those pesky passwords that we can’t seem to keep track of any more. There’s a version for iPhone only, iPad only, and a universal version.

Sketchbook Mobile – Feeling creative? Artsy, even? Want to doodle a little while you wait for your constantly late friend to show up to the cafe? Pull out that iPhone and sketch a little, why don’t you? The smaller version of this app (there’s also a pro version available for iPads) packs quite a punch in a tiny little package, including multitouch navigation, up to 6 layers per image file, and 10 levels of undo and redo.

Band of the Day – We’re huge music fans, so finding this app was a happy day indeed. Selected as App of the Year runner up in Apple’s own Rewind section, BotD updates us daily with free songs, reviews, bios, charts, sharing, videos and the like. It’s also, you know, free, which earns it some points, though we’d gladly pasy some money for this level of awesome.

Jamie’s Recipes – Jamie Oliver is a chef for the everyman and everywoman. Each of the included 12 free recipes is easy to make and the food is approachable by a wide range of palates. Many more recipes can be downloaded as in-app purchases, each with its own theme, making this recipe app well worth a look.

Instapaper – Here’s the original and still the best too-long-didn’t-read-but-want-to-read-it-later app out there. Instapaper lets users save web pages for later offline perusal with a simple browser extension and a mobile device. We’re also still happy this is a one-person operation, showing us all that independent development is still a thriving industry. If you don’t have this app yet, you should.

Shop Savvy – Here’s a simple idea, well-implemented, made possible by that powerful networked computing device with a camera you have sitting in your pocket. Scan a bar code at any store, and Shop Savvy will find it online as well as locally, telling you if there are less expensive options out there for you. This is a daily must have app, even when it’s NOT the holiday season.

Localscope – This app uses the geo-tagged info from local search engines, social networks and media sharing services to connect you to the people and places around you. Walk around the places you frequent and try this one out – you’ll be amazed at how fun and informative it can be.

We hope you’ve enjoyed the best apps of 2011. Come back on Friday to see our top five favorite apps and games of 2011.

Previously, on 148Apps:
Favorite Games, 6 – 15
Favorite Apps, 16 – 25
Favorite Games, 16 – 25

In what was another fantastic year in the world of iOS apps & games, we are here to bring you the fifty titles that we, the staff of 148Apps, thought were the best of the year. Here are the app titles 16 – 25 in our Best Apps of 2011:

iMovie- Video editing on the iPhone is revolutionary enough, but the extra screen space on the iPad makes this activity truly useful. Making movies is fun again, thanks in no small part to Apple’s attention to detail in this flagship app.

Facebook – The wait was long for the iPad version but between its iconic look and intuitive menus systems, the official Facebook Universal app renders the competition obsolete. It’s fantastic to have this in both flavors, for checking on the go or on the couch.

FX Photo Studio HD – Offering a plethora (194 at last count) of different photo effects without forgetting the bare essentials like crop and rotate, FX Photo Studio is a one stop shop for everything anyone might need in a photo editing app.

Dolphin Browser – With gesture based controls and a speed dial system of visiting regularly used sites, Dolphin has made my browsing experience so much faster this year. Safari continues to dominate as the default browser, but Dolphin Browser does so much more so much better.

Daedalus Touch – When we’re writing complex, thoughtful pieces of journalism, we like to be undistracted by the cruft of modern computing, like Facebook, or ads. Daedalus Touch makes this possible but doesn’t forget to include useful features like iCloud and Dropbox support.

GroupMe – We use this app all the darn time to chat amongst ourselves, even when we have nothing much to say. For private team meetings, SMS integration, and just plain great usability, GroupMe is our go to app. It’s also accessible via the web, so no matter where we are, we can join in the conversation.

Stitcher – We love podcasts, and we love Universal apps. Stitcher has both! Using iTunes to download and listen to podcasts is so last year; Stitcher allows us to grab our favorites while on the go, and even provides curated lists for those of us craving that something new we haven’t heard before.

Free Time – What can we say? Time-management is very important to us and this app makes it much easier than it used to be. Instead of the standard question of “where do we need to be,” Free Time answers the much more subtle – yet equally important, “when do we not need to be anywhere?” This allows us to take that downtime when we can find it, or at least know we’re not double booking ourselves. What? Like you’ve never done that.

Voice Actions – It’s not exactly something that we NEED to get through our day, but we’re still impressed by just how comprehensive this app is. It also allows us to satisfy our Siri envy until we all get a 4S phone to use. Use Voice Actions to call, text, search the internet, and even bring up favorite apps all with your voice, on any iOS device.

7Notes Premium HD – Need a note taking app with just a bit more to it? 7Notes Premium is a fantastic blend of handwriting recognition, note taking facility, and Evernote compatibility that makes something greater than the sum of its parts. While we’d love a Universal app, there is a version for both the iPad and the smaller devices, so most folks can use this one.

Happy Holidays! If you’re like many folks, you’ll have gotten a new iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch this holiday season. And if you’re looking for a place to learn all about this new magical device in your life, you’ve come to the right place. 148Apps has tons of resources on using your new device and filling it with the best thing about it: apps.

 

Learning The Basics

The operating system of these devices is one of the most intuitive around. However, there’s always more waiting under the hood to make things just that much easier or better on us. While your new iPhone or iPad may not come with a manual, you can download one fairly simply from the iBooks Store. First, grab iBooks (FREE!, + Universal App), then grab the manual for your new iPad, iPhone, or
iPod touch.

Speaking of the operating system, we’ve written a few articles about the latest and greatest from Cupertino right here on 148Apps. Check out our Full Feature Roundup on iOS 5.

We even published some downloadable magazine-style User Guides last year, on each of the devices. Feel free to grab them and read through them – many of the tips and tricks included there are just as relevant today as they were then. iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.

 

To the iCloud!!!

You may have seen some of the information about iCloud in the Apple TV commercials. It’s a great system that gives you unprecedented storage and sharing options. Here’s a short intro to iCloud from Apple.

We’ve got you covered with iCloud as well. Here’s information on both moving your data to the iCloud to help keep things synced and backed up. You may also need more information on how you set up iCloud in a multiple user family. This details all the ins and outs of multiple user groups who may otherwise share iTunes accounts.

 

There Really is an App for That

Once you’ve got a good handle on using that sleek new iOS device, you’ll of course want to dive in and start downloading apps. Whether you’re an avid gamer, a music lover, a book reader or even (gasp) all three, you’ll find everything you need in the iTunes Store.

When it comes to Apps, iOS has no peer. There are over 500,000 apps in the App Store, so you’ll doubtlessly find something you like. The trick, however, is filtering through all of those apps to find the specific things you want. That can be tricky, but luckily there are many ways to help.

First off are our very own reviews. We review a ton of apps weekly to give you the best recommendations about the best apps we find. Be sure to look through our Reviews lists, which can be filtered by type of app as well as sorted by date, app name, or app rating. If you just want to read reviews of our highest rated iPad games, for example, it’s an easy click. And for on the go browsing of 148Apps reviews, grab the 148Apps App (FREE!, iPhone App).

In addition, we have our famous Price Drops lists, which can be sorted to just show the latest drops in prices, or even just the latest FREE apps. Very handy, if we say so ourselves. If you’re looking for the very latest additions to the App Store, we have a list for that, as well as one for the Top Apps across all the App Store categories for each device. Then of course there’s always the very best of the best in free apps available in the free games and free apps lists.

If you want even more app discovering goodness, you might want to check out a few apps made to help you wade through the App Store. Some of our favorites are AppShopper (FREE!, + Universal App), Chomp (FREE!, iPhone App), and AppZapp (FREE!, iPhone App). There are even specific apps to help you find the latest free apps. Some of the best include Free App A Day (FREE!, iPhone App), Apps Gone Free (FREE!, iPhone App), and Free App Alliance (FREE!, iPhone App). These will all help you sort and find and browse apps and games to your heart’s content; we use them all the time to find new great apps to use and write about on the site.

 

Where Else To Find 148Apps?

We’re everywhere, really. However, the best places to find us are on Twitter, Facebook, and now even Google+. Be sure to come visit and chat with us there. We’re ever so responsive.

 

Free Apps You Shouldn’t Do Without

Now, we wouldn’t be the premier Apps review site without some sort of parting gift, now would we? How about some apps you really should try out? To make the deal even sweeter, let’s make them free apps.

iBooks, Nook, & Kindle – Reading ebooks is all the rage these days, especially on these fancy new iOS devices. We love reading on our iPad, and have even been known to crack a virtual spine or two on our iPhone while waiting at the doctor’s office. For those of you with shorter attention spans, there’s always Newsstand, iOS’s magazine subscription service. Some of the best ereader apps include iBooks (FREE!, + Universal App), Nook for iPhone (FREE!, + Universal App), Nook for iPad (FREE!, + Universal App), and Kindle (FREE!, + Universal App). Happy reading!

Facebook, Twitter, & Instant Messaging – Keep in touch with family, friends, and us – your favorite Apps website – with these free social networking apps. Tell ‘em 148Apps sent you!
There’s Facebook (FREE!, + Universal App), Twitter (FREE!, + Universal App) though Tweetbot ($2.99, iPhone App) is much better, though not free like the official Twitter app.

For instant messaging, check out imo (FREE!, iPhone App) and imo for iPad (FREE!, iPad App). And don’t forget Skype (FREE!, iPhone App) and Skype for iPad (FREE!, iPad App). We’ve become big fans of GroupMe (FREE!, iPhone App) lately too for group communication.

Gaming on the Cheap – Now, we put out a sweet weekly article that tells you about the latest FREE gaming apps, but here are a few we think you won’t want to miss. We could go on for hours about it, really, but these should get you off to a good start.

For a great free endless runner, check out Temple Run (FREE!, + Universal App). A wonderful game. For some great physics puzzle fun, the new king is Where's My Water? Free (FREE!, + Universal App) and you can never go wrong with the classic Angry Birds Free (FREE!, iPhone App). A couple other free games we really like include The Sims Freeplay (FREE!, + Universal App) and TinyTower (FREE!, + Universal App).

You should also check out our massive iOS game and app sale post. There are tons of great deals and quite a few temporarily free apps there. Be sure to grab the great Jetpack Joyride (FREE!, + Universal App) while it’s free. It’s one of our favorite games of the year.

We hope you’ve enjoyed learning about your new magical iOS devices. The iPad, iPhone and iPod touch are some of the best new gadgets to give or receive. Be sure to come back often to see what we have for you; we’re always looking to find the news or apps you want to know about first. From all of us here to all of you out there, Happy Holidays!!!

Glee Karaoke – Smule
The hottest TV show teams up with the hottest social music gaming company to bring you Glee, the Karaoke edition. Sing along to your favorite Glee versions of hip and hot songs from the show. Smule brings pitch correction, over 130 songs to purchase, sing along to iTunes library songs, and connect with other singers across the “Globe,” their system for sharing performances.

Sonic The Hedgehog 4™ Episode I HD – SEGA
Upgraded to HD for the iPad, Sonic replays his Episode 1 adventures on the big iOS screen. Luckily for us, it’s also a great game, though we’d really like to know when Episode 2 is supposed to drop. Dash along with the famous blue hedgehog in this new mobile classic, but this time, on an iPad. The original iPhone version is here. The iPad version is here.

Dungeon Hunter 3 – Gameloft
Hack and slash your way through 16 different battle arenas in the third installment of this popular game series. Choose from four new classes to engage in battle, and even – gasp – choose the gender of your character.

MegaMan X – Capcom
This game was originally released for the SNES back in 1993, but has been updated to be played right on your iOS device. Platform and shoot your way through level after level of retro fun, helping X stop the maverick reploid, Sigma, from taking over the world.

Mirror Mysteries HD (Full) – Big Fish Games
A young mother’s children are pulled into a mystical mirror, and it’s up to her, and the payer that she represents, to find hidden objects and rescue them from a magical world behind the mirror.

iCarly: Baby Spencer – MTV Networks
Play with the baby with the huge head – Baby Spencer from the hit TV series, iCarly. Choose from over 40 phrases, 20 props and a ton of foods to feed Baby Spencer, watching his reactions and even all new Baby Spencer videos shot right on the set of iCarly! You can even make him dance. Dance, baby!

FC Barcelona WorldTap – Seven 4 Seven, SL
Here’s the official Barcelona Futbol Club app. Tap the ball as fast and as long as you can – compete with players around the world and even win a signed Tshirt or other FC Barcelona official products.

Pocket God continues to build on its phenomenal success with update after update, giving players a ton of content for very litte outlay. Developer Dave Castlenuevo and the gang at Bolt Creative continue to spearhead efforts to release frequent episodic updates. The last one was in October of this year.

Episode 42, entitled Bone Soup, unlocks the powers of the underwater pyramid, itself released back in October with Episode 41: I Sting the Body Electric. The new pyramid powers include the elements of fire, ice, oil, and acid, and air, allowing players to unleash them upon the poor Pygmies to comedic and fatal effect. Check out the video below to see how this will play out:

But wait, there’s more! In addition to a new Candyland skin pack that lets gamers festoon their islands with holiday-flavored treats, Episode 42 adds another annual new Fishmas dance to Pocket God. This year’s edition, titled “12 Days of Fishmas,” can be seen at the video just below – it’s a fun and fatal animated short that has a bit of a sneak peak at the next Bolt Creative game as well – Pocket God: The Runs!

Pocket God Episode 42: Bone Soup will release as an update tomorrow to all current owners of the Pocket God app, while the app still costs a extremely affordable $0.99 – an amazing deal considering the vast amounts of content within it.

Soulo Karaoke is a sing along app with a library of popular and public domain songs to rock out to. It can be used with the iPhone 3GS and up, and both iPad devices. It’s possible to record using the built in microphone on these devices, but the company (and our testing) deosn’t recommend it. Instead, they also sell the Soulo Mic, a $70 – $100 microphone accessory made to be used with the app.

The microphone plugs into the headphone port and has a little headphone jack to connect headphones or an external speaker. The app also allows video to be output to an external screen, like a TV, but not currently through AirPlay; the wireless version of the Soulo mic has a video adapter that can be used. According to the support website, “audio out through HDMI is not currently supported while in recording mode, but the audio will work through an HDMI connection to play back your finished recordings.”

The microphone hardware is solid, if a bit light in the hand, and is fairly sensitive picking up vocal sounds. The only issue I had with the microphone is the fact that, because it uses the headphone port, the audio out MUST be via headphone or external speaker. No using the iPad or iPhone speakers. In addition, everytime I used the app, it reminded me to use the Soulo mic, as all mics would not work as well as that one. This is when I was using the Soulo Mic.

Using the app is straight forward. Users simply tap the large “Start Singing” button on the Home screen, choose a song (it can be previewed as well), and start singing along. The volume of the backing music and the original vocals can be set, as can the level of Pitch Enhancement, Tone, Reverb and Echo. Soulo records all the performances, allowing users to share the recording via YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Email. If a performance isn’t good enough to share, it can be deleted or saved to work on later without sharing. Users can also sing along to any song in their device’s iTunes library, though resulting performances cannot be recorded or shared.

Soulo comes with a fairly robust library of pop, rock, country, hip hop, and dance tunes, with a ton able to be purchased in the in-app Music Store for $0.99 each.

Bottom line, Soulo Karaoke is a great Karaoke app. My daughter and I had a ton of fun singing along to the songs we downloaded, and being able to share the tracks is a nice bonus feature. It would be great if AirPlay was an option for larger parties, but even without it, I’d use this instead of a big fancy Karaoke machine most days.

WildChords, an iPad-only educational app aimed at kids ages 6 to 11, is the brainchild of Finnish devloper, Ovelin. We had the chance to speak with Christoph Thür, CEO of Ovelin, about this new promising guitar teaching game.

WildChords uses special algorithms to listen to and analyze the sound coming from a guitar. The game, then, urges young guitar learners to learn and play guitar chords at first and then single notes later to advance their cool strutting avatar through the levels, collecting animals to return them to the zoo. Each animal represents a chord – a monkey is an A minor chord, a Crocodile is a C chord, and so on. The game includes a easy to use visual tuner, and tracks learner’s progress across the lessons and different skills to be learned. It can also brag on Facebook.

According to Thür, studies show that somewhere around 85% of new instrument learners quit before reaching a level of mastery that would satisfy them enough to keep learning. In other words, most kids don’t get good enough fast enough or with enough support to keep them playing an instrument. Not everyone can afford private lessons, either, and – in the US, at least – music education programs have to make do with less and less.

Thür and his company, Ovelin Ltd., want to change that, by providing solid music learning app that targets the beginning guitar player. The technology behind the app is fairly amazing, able to distinguish between single and multiple (chord) notes with ease on both the iPad 1 and iPad 2. The lessons are created with solid pedagogy in place, starting learners where they are, and supporting them as they learn new skills in a fun way.

Thür said that the company would like to bring the app to iPhone & Android in the near future, in addition to expanding to teaching other instruments, like the piano and bass. I made a special pitch for Ukulele, but he was non-committal.

Wildchords is available for free on the App Store, requireing an iPad and a real guitar, acoustic or electric.

Here we have another roundup of the hottest apps on the App Store today. We check all the hot trending lists and list them here for you. Why? Because we like you. M – O – U – S – E!

DJ Pauly D – Beat That Boardwalk Christmas Edition
It’s that time of year, and what better way to celebrate than by dropping fat beats in a retro-arcade inspired platforming game? “Help DJ Pauly D collect candy canes and pick up presents while gifting his love to the Garden State girlies. Yeeah buddy!”

Chicken Invaders 3: Revenge of the Yolk Christmas Edition (Full)
From Big Fish Games comes another holiday themed arcade-style romp with plenty of humor and plenty of poultry. Shoot the galactic chickens out of the sky to save earth from their nefarious invasion.

Island Wars 2 Christmas Edition HD (Full)
Another trending Big Fish Game, this one has you defending your south pacific island from gift-stealing baddies disguised as none other than the fat man in red himself. Use a cannon to shoot down the enemies and take back Christmas.

Stay Alive
Looks like arcade games are the trend of the day, right? This one involves piloting a space ship through obstacle courses and collecting power orbs along the way. The orbs can be spent to upgrade ship weapons, shields and ammo supply.

Visual Schedule Planner
Bucking the trend above, yet still trending itself, is this special education app by Good Karma Applications, Inc. It is “a completely customizable visual schedule iPad app that is designed to give an individual an audio/visual representation of the “events in their day”. In addition, events that require more support can be linked to an “activity schedule” or “video clip” to help model the task even further.”

Holy heck this was a great week for the free games. Free! Games! Right? OK, OK, I’ll stop crowing and just get to the games. Fine. Geeze.

Breakout Boost – “Atari’s been reviving their classic franchises on iOS; first was the dual-stick shooter reinvention of Asteroids as Asteroids Gunner. While that took a lot of liberties with the Asteroids formula, their latest reinvention, Breakout Boost, is a bit more traditional. The classic Arkanoid-esque gameplay is here: break all the bricks by bouncing a ball off of a paddle at the bottom of the screen.”

Mad Tracks – From iTunes: “Zoom through super sized 3D environments jam-packed with special power-ups against up to 3 other players in real-time. Compete in a mad dash to the finish or battle it out in one of the many mini-games and challenges.”

Kaptain Brawe: A Brawe New World – “Previously a PC point and click adventure, Kaptain Brawe: A Brawe New World follows the tale of Kaptain Brawe, a Space Police officer on a mission to rescue two kidnapped alien scientists. It sounds like serious business but it actually forms the basis of a very entertaining storyline. The humor is reminiscient of Lucasarts and classic Telltale Games titles.

Real Soccer 2012 – From iTunes: “Real Soccer is back for the new season, bringing soccer on mobile to a new era! Join the community of fans as you create and share content with the Custom Kit Editor. ”

The Sims: Freeplay – From iTunes: “LIVE FREE! From the creators of The Sims™ 3 series of best-selling iPhone games, comes an ALL-NEW Sims experience that you can play for FREE on iPhone and iPad!”

Marathon 2: Durandal – From iTunes: “Welcome to Marathon 2: Durandal, the second in the epic trilogy of first person shooter games that re-defined the genre. Experience the pulse-pounding action as you once again defend humanity from the alien Pfhor.”

Mystery Manor: Hidden Adventure – From iTunes: “Mystery Manor is a mystery-style hidden objects game. In a mystic mansion, inhabited by strange but lovely people, spooky monsters and funny ghosts you’ll have to find hidden objects, unlock new rooms and complete quests. ”

Arel Wars – From iTunes: “Deploy your troops, master their tactics and overrun the enemy’s towers in three grand campaigns. Form the strongest army in the land and fight for your place as champion of Drusilla. ”

Come one, come all, for another roundup of the hottest apps on the App Store today. We check all the hot trending places and list them here, for you, because we can, and because you are special to us.

Gameloft brings the Western wear to this party, with a free-to-play open-world mission based game that kind of reminds us of Red Dead Redemption. Collect 8 different horses, 19 weapons and a wide selection of clothes, ammo and other sweet western themed stuff across 40 missions.

Connect with your Halo:Reach stats and XBox LIVE playing friends with this trending app from Microsoft. Get direct access to your Waypoint Career progress along with all of your Halo: Reach stats, and even invite friends to play from the app itself.

Compose, play and record with up to four other rockin’ friends with this innovative app from Fingerlab. Rockmate makes things easy ont he non-musician with smart chord progressions, separated guitar effects and in-house produced audio samples while also being fully customizable with multiple drum kits and keyboard sounds.

Use the power of light (and magnetism!) in this beautiful looking game from Foundation Mobile Games, LLC. Lumi HD. If pretty looking and sounding isn’t enough, how about 10 levels to complete, Game Center support and acheivements? No? Well, there’s also a ton of updates promised soon, including a butterfly race and “double rainbow” mode.