iHiddenAppGems

Paid Sales

2009-07-26T00:37:00.000-07:00

Baseball Slugger ($0.99)

Ten Pin Championship Bowling ($0.99)

Cool Reversi ($0.99)

Freeballin' ($0.99)

Face Match ($0.99)

Fish Tycoon ($0.99)

iso ($0.99)

Car Jack Streets ($1.99)

Kineo ($2.99)

Free Sales

2009-07-25T23:32:00.000-07:00

Tilt Maze

Kids vs. Zombies

compassier

iArcherfish

myConvert

The App Store's Best: Free Apps

2009-07-23T23:16:00.000-07:00

Dictionary.com (Review)

Pandora

MotionX Dice

Remote

Sales

2009-07-23T15:40:00.000-07:00

Touch Attack Games (FREE)

Music Library Quiz (FREE)

Pipe Mania ($0.99)

Apollo 11: The Game ($0.99)

Sparticle ($0.99)

Mini Golf 99 Holes Theme Park ($0.99)

Hydro Tilt XL ($1.99)

Ambiance

2009-07-23T00:14:00.000-07:00

With Ambiance, your have get a store full of free ambient sounds. The app is made to look similar to the App Store and the iTunes Store. It has over 500 cool sounds to download and play with more coming all the time. Ambiance has tons of settings and features to mess around with too.

"NEW FEATURES!
* Over 500 FREE Ambiance Exclusive Sounds to choose from
* New Sounds added constantly.
* Only download the sounds YOU want, for FREE
* Create unlimited custom sound mixes that have individual volume controls
* Cycle-mode crossfades between sounds on your playlist
* Shuffle mixes up your playlist
* Mix in your own music from iTunes seamlessly.
* Choose favorites so you can find sounds easily later
* Use custom image backgrounds with your camera or photo library, or use the custom image attached to each sound.
* Use the alarm mode to fall asleep and wake up gently
* Categorize your sounds in groups that you can use as playlists
* 3 Example sounds come included.
* Find Hundreds of sounds, from White Noise static to French Cafes, from Binaural Beats to Farm Sounds, choose any sound to help you Easy Relax or fall aSleep."

Ambiance is feature-rich and has so many sounds, you will never run out. It is very cool to have your own sound store on your device. Once you get bored of a sound, download a couple new ones, mix them together, and play it.

Ambiance is a very unique app. It has its own store inside the app. I recommend Ambiance to anyone.

AmbiScience 3-IN-1 Bundle Review

2009-07-22T23:20:00.000-07:00

AmbiScience is a blend of ambiance and science. It has great ambient music but the best part of the app is the BrainWave Entrainment. The app has 27 tracks and 3 noise tracks. The Entrainment effects you can add are Caffeine/Alertness, Focus, Meditation, Relaxation, Deep Sleep, and Power Nap. The company also sells the packs separately along with some others that aren't in this app. (My favorite, which is included in this app, is Android's Odyssey.)

Here is a video for one of the apps included in the bundle:

The app works great to help me fall asleep and all the different effects seem to work. When I turn it to alertness, I feel alert. When I turn it to sleep, I feel tired. The effects work not only through headphones, but also through speakers so you don't need to have headphone in. (although it doesn't work with the built in speaker) The audio tracks are very long and it is very, very hard to find where they loop.

The app even includes a timer to turn stop the tracks or even quit the app after the set amount of time. It would be nice to have an alarm feature too, but it doesn't. Another feature it has, is volume presets.

If your not ready to jump in and try this app, try the lite versions or try one of the free apps.

Paid:

Android's Odyssey (lite)

Free:

Focus
Meditate

AmbiScience apps are amazing. They work so good, their like magic. I highly recommend trying this app.

App Store
AppShopper
Developer

GeoRain Review

2009-07-22T22:31:00.000-07:00

In GeoRain, the goal is to match geometric forms and colors with the targets in the black holes. The faster you go, the more points you get. The game includes 2 game modes, normal and time attack, and 30 levels. It also allows for 4 different profiles and a 17 minute soundtrack. It even has online scoreboards and an online challenge system called Scoreloop.

Here is a video (from a random YouTuber) of the app in action:

The levels start easy, but quickly get harder. The game has a physics engine with collisions.

The apps challenge system, "Scoreloop", is really neat. It is a bit like XBOX Live.

GeoRain is a neat game with a great online challenge system. The game does have some minor 3.0 problems but the devleoper said they were going to fix them and polish the interface in the coming updates. Overall, it is fun to play, but still very challenging.

AmbiScience 3-IN-1 Bundle Pack

Sales: FREE to $2.99

2009-07-21T22:19:00.000-07:00

FREE:

Fast Contacts

$0.99

Ferrari GT: Evolution

$1.99

T*Premium

$2.99

Grind 2.0

Zenonia

Buzzer: Music Quiz Review

2009-07-18T21:32:00.000-07:00

Out of all the music quiz game on the App Store, Buzzer is the Best! Buzzer allows you to test your knowledge on your iTunes library. It has lots of 4 different game modes and 7 different types of rounds. It sometimes even plays your music in reverse or jumps through the song. The game lets you customize it in lots of different ways. I definitely recommend Buzzer. Check out the following image to see all the features.

"BUZZER! is the perfect Music Quiz host and will interact with you as you progress through 7 rounds:
1: Guess the Intro
2: Guess the Album
3: Guess the Album Artwork
4: Guess the Genre
5: Guess the Artist
6: Guess the Association
7: Random Question (mixture of the above)"

"4 game modes are available depending on your mood:

- Short Game : 3 questions of each round
- Medium Game : 6 questions of each round
- Long Game : 9 questions of each round
- Custom Game : You choose which rounds and how many of each"

The game is really cool, especially it uses your own music. It has lots of reply value. The more songs you have, the more fun this game will be.

Draw Race Contest

2009-07-18T20:54:00.000-07:00

Contest has Ended

~~Enter to win a FREE copy of Draw Race! (Review)~~

Just send a email with the word "race" to "contest@hiddenappgems.com".

Contest open for entry from July 18 till July 25. The winner will be announced the following day.

Only 1 entry per person. We will only contact you once to comfirm you entered and a second time if you won. We retain the right to suspend or cancel the contest at any time.

Draw Race Review

2009-07-18T19:36:00.001-07:00

Draw Race is a very interesting take on a racing game: Instead of controlling the car in real time, draw a route for the car to take ahead of time. The car then follows the route going the same speed your finger was moving. The game has 20 tracks and up to 3 players. The tracks range from 2 laps to 5 laps and all them are unique. Once you beat a level, you have the options to do a time trial, race against your personal best, and race against a network opponent. Before you try Draw Race, try the flash version below:

or watch the video:

Draw Race is a great game, and with promised updates coming in the near future, this game is a no brainer! Draw race is a perfect blend of puzzle, drawing, and racing games all combined into one!

Toy Box Review

2009-07-17T20:21:00.000-07:00

Toy Box is a "2-dimensional physics playground" that lets you create and then interact with what you created. You can use any of the 5 premade objects, or create your own. The app is very fun, but is limited on options and has a few bugs.

Watch the video to see what the game is about!

Toy Box lets you save your creations to use later. The games animations look very nice, but the controls are sometimes hard to use. There is now way to change the size of opjects or rotate them. The game also need more options. There isn't enough to do at the moment. The app is definitely fun, but need more updates to fix the bugs and add more features.

Sales

2009-07-17T16:11:00.000-07:00

Zenonia ($5.99 to $2.99) Review

Clue ($4.99 to $2.99)

Defender Chronicles ($2.99 to $0.99)

Square Master ($1.99 to $0.99)

Emoji Icons ($0.99 to FREE)

The App Store's Best: Free Games

2009-07-16T12:30:00.000-07:00

Super Sales!

2009-07-15T21:43:00.000-07:00

Note: The sale for Baseball Slugger has ended.

I Dig It ($2.99 to $0.99)

Coast Guard ($0.99 to FREE)

Absalt Alarm Clock ($0.99 to FREE)

Ambiance ($2.99 to $0.99)

Wooden Labyrinth 3D ($3.99 to $0.99)

Tornado Mania ($2.99 to $0.99)

Hoopster Basketball ($1.99 to $0.99)

Blog Press ($2.99 to $0.99)

Dungeon Defense ($2.99 to $0.99)

geoDefense ($3.99 to $0.99)

What's the Difference?

2009-07-13T23:09:00.000-07:00

What's the Difference is a find the difference game where you are presented with 2 photos and must find 5 differences between them. The game has a library of of 500 photos and has 3 different game modes: survival, challenge, and practice. It also includes a global highscore board.

Try to find 5 differences in the screenshot below and then hover your mouse over the image for the answer.

In survival mode, you are given a certain amount of time to complete each photo. The time limits get shorter and shorter as you progress. Challenge mode gives you 90 seconds to complete as many photos as possible. Quick play earns you extra time. Practice mode lets you play just for fun and not get scored.

Sound:

The game has really nice sound. The music is catchy and the sound effects go along with the music.

Interface:

The developer, JVL, makes great interfaces. There hasn't been 1 app from them that I disliked the interface on. The animation is smooth, it is easy to use, and it looks really cool. For example, when you go to the "How to Play" screen, the page turns. When you are entering a name for your highscore, you are given a custom keyboard that works just as good as the deafult iPhone keyboard.

Conclusion:

What's the Difference is a fun game that looks great, sounds great, and plays great. The game includes everything you would expect, and then some. My only complaint is that there isn't very much info on the different game modes. It took me a while to figure out their difference. Nevertheless, What's the Difference is definitely the best find the difference game in the App Store.

Occasions

2009-07-11T20:31:00.000-07:00

Have you ever needed a better way to keep track of birthdays and anniversaries? Occasions helps you by not only giving you a list of the birthdays, how long until they come, and the age the person is turning, but it also sends you push notifications. Occasions is a very polished app that can save you from forgetting birthdays, anniversaries, and other stuff too!

Occasions has a very nice interface. It has a plus button on the top left for adding new contacts, editing existing contacts, or adding new info that is not associated with someone in your contact list. The settings button on the top right takes you to the settings page where you can view the help and about screens, turn on and off notifications and badges, change the theme, and lots of other things to customize the app. The search bar lets you search for names and the button on the right of it lets you choose what kind of events you are searching for.

The top section of the list has upcoming events, which by default are events coming within a month. You can change this in the settings along with lots of other things. The bottom list has all the other birthdays that aren't in the upcoming list. Taping a contact in either list brings up contact info along with the zodiac sign and the birthstone. From this page, you can easily press the the pencil button to edit all the info.

This app is really neat. It does lots of the things the iPhone should have done from the start, but adds even more. It works great and is very helpful. Occasions is the best birthday app on the app store.

Enviro-Bear 2010

2009-07-11T20:30:00.000-07:00

Enviro-Bear 2010, a port of Enviro-Bear 2000, is a crazy game in which you need to collect food before winter while driving in a car. The graphic are purposely ugly and the controls are purposely hard, but this just adds to the fun. The game has multiple levels, but doesn't support any sort of highscore system or let you save your place. The game is very funny and fun. I mean, how many other games let you drive around as a bear?

The game is hard to describe with words, so here is a video from the 2000 version (which is exactly the same thing).

The game is an instant classic. It is one of the most unique game I've played. It certainly deserves a purchases!

Melodica

2009-07-09T22:45:00.000-07:00

Melodica lets anyone quickly and easily compose musical rhythms just by tapping the screen. The app has a grid on the screen. It plays notes from left to right in a loop. The higher the note, the higher the pitch. The lower the note, the lower the pitch. Once you finish, you can save your creation to listen to again later.

Melodica is very easy to use and you can create lots of stuff. There are no problems with it, but I definitly think it could have a couple more features. It would be nice to have bigger grids and different tones.

Try out something just like Melodica HERE or scroll down to the video of it in action!

The app is very fun to play with and is very polished. Anyone can make great music with it, but the only problem is that you can only make very short rhythms. Nonetheless, it is still a hidden app gem.

Do Not Press The Red Button

Some More Sales

2009-07-09T16:20:00.000-07:00

Fantastic Contraption ($2.99 to $2.99)

ShapeShape ($2.99 to $0.99)

7 Cities ($2.99 to $0.99)

Clusterball Arcade ($2.99 to $0.99)

TOP GUN ($2.99 to $1.99)

Guitar Rock Tour ($4.99 to $2.99)

Super Yum Yum 3 ($1.99 to $0.99)

Tetricity ($5.99 to $0.99)

Groceries ($3.99 to $0.99)

Twitter

2009-07-09T15:38:00.000-07:00

You asked for it and now you got it! Hidden App Gems started a twitter account.

We will be announcing reviews, contests, sales, and lots of other stuff here!

Just go to: http://twitter.com/HiddenAppGems

Quality Free Sales

2009-07-07T20:53:00.000-07:00

iRoach

"Tap the screen to squash as many cockroaches as you can."

liar's

"liar's is a dice game of strategy (and some luck)."

FracCalc Pro

"FracCalc is now FracCalc Pro, an easy-to-use calculator for fraction and decimals with some great new features."

FaceMixer

"Take photos of your friends and combine their faces in ridiculous ways. "

"Facebook integration! Take any photo from Facebook, mix it up with other friend's photos or ones from your camera, and upload it back to Facebook. It will automatically tagged with who's in the photo."

BrickGame 5in1

"Brick Game is a collection of 5 games in classical retro-brick style of old handheld consoles and mobile phones."

"There are doors shouldn't be opened, there are secrets shouldn't be told, there are buttons shouldn't be pressed…:-)"

PandoraBots (Review)

PandoraBots allows you to chat with lots of different chat bots, robots with artificial intelligence.

Mines In Space

2009-07-06T21:39:00.000-07:00

There's no question about it! Mines in Space is the best minesweeper game in the app store! Mines in Space has 4 different minesweeper games with multiple difficulty levels. It also has a "Final Frontier" mode, multiple backgrounds, ranks, stats, and achievements.

Mines in Space's modes are Classic, Impostor, UFO Finder, and Rocket Shuffle.

Classic mode plays like any normal minesweeper game, except you are timed to complete it. On harder modes, the playing field can get very large, so you have to scroll around a lot.

Impostor mode adds a unique twist to minesweeper. Mines are hiding behind asteroids, but some are impostors instead. You have to find mark which asteroids have impostors hiding behind them before you run out of time.

In UFO Finder mode, you do the exact opposite of classic minesweeper. Instead of avoiding the mines, you are finding the UFOs. You must tap all the spots mines are located before time is up.

The final mode, Rocket Shuffle, gives you a solved minesweeper field that was vertically shuffled. You then must move the columns up and down to fix the puzzle.

Each mode includes an easy, medium, hard, and expert difficulty.

Final Frontier mode is like a story mode with no story. There are 100 levels to complete. The levels increase in difficulty as you progress.

One of my favorite features of Mines in Space is its stat and achievement system. You are ranked based on how many games you have won. You also have an achievement page with 24 achievements. Each row has to do with the progress a different mode. The bottom row has random achievements including "Lose 400 games", "Play for 20 hours total time", "Play each puzzle mode on all difficulties", and "Gain 20000 XP". Each achievement has a name. For example, the achievement "Complete 20 Hard UFO Finder games" is named "Area 51".

The game keeps track of the total games played, total games won, and total time played along with lots of other stats.

Mines In Space contains 6 galaxies (backgrounds), Milky Way, Andromeda, M32, Pegasus, NGC 147, and Ursa Major.

It is obvious this game is the best minesweeper in the store. It is very polished and addictive. My only complaint is that there is no free-play mode; all the modes are timed. At 99 cents, you have no excuse to skip this app.

Giant List of New 99 Cent Sales

2009-07-06T15:57:00.000-07:00

Tri ($3.99 to $0.99)

Sentinel: Mars Defense ($1.99 to $0.99)

2079 ($2.99 to $0.99)

BeatRider Touch ($4.99 to $0.99)

Star Ride ($1.99 to $0.99)

Snail Mail ($2.99 to $0.99) Review

iBomber ($1.99 to $0.99)

Eliss ($2.99 to $0.99)

Sweetwater Defense ($3.99 to $0.99)

ExZeus ($4.99 to $0.99)

Pop ($2.99 to $0.99)

Ouch! ($2.99 to $0.99) Review

Tiki Golf 3D ($2.99 to $0.99)

Radio Flare ($2.99 to $0.99)

Tower Bloxx Deluxe 3D ($2.99 t0 $0.99)

3D Logic ($2.99 to $0.99)

3D Fireworks 2 ($1.99 to $0.99)

That Ain't It Contest

2009-07-06T14:57:00.000-07:00

Contest Has Ended

Enter to win a FREE copy of That Ain't It! (Review)

To enter, just send an email with the word "trivia" to "contest@hiddenappgems.com".

Entries will not be accepted after July 13, 2009.

The winner will be chosen and contacted July 14, 2009.

Hidden App Gems has the right to suspend, cancel, or change the contest at any time.

T*Premium

2009-07-03T23:10:00.001-07:00

T*Premium, the paid version of 9-Toolbox, contains 15 tools combined into 1 app, unlike many other apps that provide them separately. It has a very polished interface and is easy to use. It allows you to hide tools you don't want to see and add new ones using the web apps tool.

The Tools Include:

> Clinometer
> Currency Converter
> Date Calculator
> Days Until(Countdown)
> Flashlight
> Holidays
> Loan Calculator
> Periodic Calculator
> Price Grab
> Random
> Sale Price
> System Info
> Tip Calculator
> Unit Converter
> Web Apps Links

Remember, you can hide tools you don't need and add new ones from web apps (using the web apps links tool).

The tools have a very polished interface and all the features you would expect from each tool, including some you wouldn't expect.

To see the app in action, watch the video:

As you can see, the app is definitely the best tool app on the App Store. I can't even think of any problems with it, besides the fact that it should have push notification for its "Days Until" and "Holidays" tool. The app is very useful app that should even free some homescreen space by replacing other apps.

Put Things Off

2009-07-03T22:56:00.000-07:00

Put Things off is a procrastinators dream! It is a todo list that allows users to either do the tasks that you need to do and put off the ones they don't. The result is a nicely put together, polished todo app.

First, we will start with the good. Put Things Off has a simple and clean user interface; tap plus to add a task, tap the gear for settings, and tap any of the 4 iPhone style icons in the dock on the bottom to get to a different tab.

Each task has 2 icons on it, which are different depending of which tab you are in. The inbox tab, which all new task a placed in, allows you to move the task to the today tab or put it off. The today tab allows you to put the task off of mark it as completed. The put off tab allows you to move the task to the today tab or mark it as completed. Finally, the done tab allows you to move it back to the today tab of delete it.

When you make a task, you can even give it a due date. Also, in the settings, you can specify the default number of days a task is put off.

There is much wrong with this app. It does what it is supposed to and achieves the goal. There isn't any push notification feature, which would be nice to have, but the developer said this might be coming soon once enough people upgrade to 3.0.

Put Things Off is a great todo app and works flawlessly. The intent of the app is to be a basic todo list, which it does very well. It is a great for any lazy or busy person to use.

Head on over to the developers website for a video!

Bluchat FREE for the 4th

2009-07-03T22:39:00.000-07:00

Bluechat, an app that allows iPhone and 2nd Generation iPod Touch users to chat using bluetooth, is FREE for the 4th of July!

The app allows you to chat with text, photos, and emoticons. It also allows you to make the others device vibrate (simulated on iPod Touch) by shaking your device. The chatting works up to a distance of about 70 meters.

WifiTrak Contest

2009-07-02T23:41:00.001-07:00

CONTEST HAS ENDED

Winner has been chosen and notified.

Win a FREE copy of WifiTrak! (Review)

To enter, send an email with the word "wifi" to "contest@hiddenappgems.com".

Entries are accepted until July 8th, 2009.

1 Winner will be chosen on July 9th, 2009.

Hidden App Gems has the right to suspend, cancel, or change the contest at any time.

PandoraBots

2009-07-02T22:42:00.000-07:00

PandoraBots is an amazing FREE application that lets you chat with a chatbot with artificial intelligence on pandorabots.com. The bots learns from what you say and what others say, which can be a good and bad thing. This is a very cool app that everyone should try. It comes with 6 different bots to talk with, but there is little difference between them. You can talk to the bots online too.

I definitely recommend trying this app. The technology is really cool and entertaining. At the price of FREE, you have less than nothing to lose!

Micro Mayhem

2009-07-01T23:00:00.000-07:00

Micro Mayhem, from the makers of Bounce On, is a WarioWare style game for the iPhone and iPod Touch. It contains 25 different microgames (super short minigames). Each microgame has multiple difficulties to play on. The game has 3 modes: Normal, Practice, and Party.

The game includes many different types of microgames from recycling to opening a lock to finding a coin in the sand.

In the first mode, normal, you want to survive for as many microgames as possible to get a high score. You can set the number of lives you would like.

The second mode allows you to practice all the microgames to master them. You achieve a high score on each one by surviving as long as possible.

The last mode, party, lets you play with others by passing the device. The one who lasts longest wins.

The game is fun but it needs more microgames. The modes makes it last a while, but eventually you will want more. I recommend this game as it is, but it needs more games. If you ever played WarioWare, you should get this game.

Sales Galore!

2009-07-01T16:39:00.001-07:00

Toki Tori 80% OFF ($4.99 to $0.99)

F.A.S.T 60% OFF ($9.99 to $5.99 to $3.99)

Fast & Furious The Game 33% OFF ($5.99 to $3.99 to $1.99)

Air Mouse Pro 80% OFF ($9.99 to $6.99 to $5.99 to $1.99)

Fieldrunners 40% OFF ($4.99 to $3.99 to $2.99)

WifiTrak

2009-06-30T22:31:00.000-07:00

WifiTrak is a must-have app for iPod Touch owners! WifiTrak automatically finds Wifi networks that are free and open for you to use. It contains lots of different settings to customize the app too.

First, WifiTrak scans for networks in the area. Then, it tests each network for usability. It sorts them from best to worst, telling you which ones are hidden, require a code, and redirect you. It then allows you to connect to one you like. You can set the app to refresh the list of networks at a custom interval you can set. You can even set it to automatically connect to a network and open mail, safari, a URL, or exit the app.

The app worked suprisingly well. It found me lots of Wifi networks to use while on the go. It definitely is better than the Wifi settings in the Setting app. This app is 100% worth the money!

Wild West Pinball is now FREE

2009-06-28T00:02:00.000-07:00

OOO Gameprom's Wild West Pinball is free until the release of their next game. I highly recommend trying this game, and at the price of FREE, you have nothing to lose!

99 Cent Sales

2009-06-27T23:47:00.000-07:00

Hero of Sparta ($5.99 to $0.99)

Asphalt 4: Elite Racing ($5.99 to $0.99)

Real Soccer 2009 ($2.99 to $0.99)

Knights Onrush ($2.99 to $0.99)

Topple 2 ($2.99 to $0.99)

Road Rage Ahead

2009-06-25T16:21:00.000-07:00

Road Rage Ahead is a time managment game for iPhone where you must control traffic lights, railroad crossings, and construction zones to avoid crashes and traffic jams. The game contains 10 levels and 3 difficulties on a endless mode called "The Grid".

Modes:

The game includes ten different levels ranging in difficulty. You must get a certain number of cars through the traffic lights without getting too much road rage or running out of time to complete a level.

The second game mode is called "The Grid". You must survive as long as possible.

Developer Video:

Controls:

To change the direction of the traffic lights, you tap the intersection. You do the same railroad crossings and construction zones.

You can pinches to zoom in and out and swipe to move. When zooming and moving, the graphics get a little choppy.

Conclusion:

Road Rage Ahead is a fun game. It has ten levels but it needs more. The game has some bugs, but nothing major. If you like time management games, Road Rage Ahead might be for you.

Appshopper (Lite)
Developer

3.0: Push Notifications

2009-06-19T15:41:00.000-07:00

If you don't already have iPhone (and iPod Touch) 3.0, update your device now!

3.0 allows apps to use push notifications. Push notifications allow apps to push badges and alerts to your iPhone. Here are some of the first apps to take advantage of this feature:

Tap Tap Revenge ($0.99) alerts you when a friend challenges you to a game. It also shows a badge on your home screen showing the unread count of items in the news feed.

TextFree ($5.99, FREE) alerts you when you receive a text message and badges the icon showing how many unread messages you have.

Pollen Push (FREE) send you an alert when the pollen level for the next day exceeds your specified level. (app only for the UK)

AP Mobile (FREE) sends alerts on breaking news.

Star Defense ($5.99) allows you to send a friend a challenge.

Weater Alert ($0.99) displays weather alerts. (very original title, huh?)

Leaf Trombone ($0.99, FREE) alerts you when you are judged.

Hey Where Are You (FREE) alerts you when someone is requesting your location.

AreMySitesUp (FREE) allows push notification on site checks.

E*TRADE Mobile Pro (FREE) allows notifications for stock and account alerts.

Trapster (FREE) alerts you as you approach police speed traps, red light cameras, and speed cameras.

Feel free to list other apps that support Push Notifications in the comments.

Subway Shuffle

2009-06-14T13:00:00.000-07:00

Subway Shuffle is a unique puzzle game on the App Store. You must move your red subway to the destination while staying on you line. Sounds easy right? Wrong! There are other subways in your way. The game includes 91 different levels of increasing difficulty. The game has a number of features including hints, undo/redo, and records.

There is a large variety of levels ranging from easy to hard. Below are some of the different levels.

This is a great game to test your brain and see how far you can get. It has a great interface, but even better, it is a great game. Not convinced? See a video of the app in action: YouTube

Peggle on Sale

2009-06-14T09:30:00.000-07:00

Peggle, port of a popular PC game, is on sale for only $0.99. That's $4 off the normal price of $4.99. This is a great game, and at this price, you can't beat it!

MemoryInfo

2009-06-13T13:00:00.000-07:00

Is you iDevice getting slow? Do you constantly have to restart it? Do your apps constantly crash? Never fear, MemoryInfo is here! MemoryInfo frees up the device's runtime memory. When you close an app, not all of the memory it was using is freed. MemoryInfo makes this memory usable. It basicly does the same thing as restarting, but much quicker.

The is split into 3 sections: memory info, process info, and battery info.

Memory info graphs the devices free, inactive, active, and wired memory on a graph. It also contains the "Free Memory" button that frees the devices memory.

Process info shows a scrollable list of the process currently running on the device. Pressing the "Free Memory" button closes certain unneeded processes.

Battery info shows the battery's status and level. It shows what percent of the battery is left.

This app is a necessity for any iPhone or iPod Touch user who has ever had an app crash (which is almost every one). This app is a deal at only $0.99. There is also another app like it (by the same developer) called System Activity Monitor. At 3x the price, I recommend MemoryInfo over System Activity Monitor.

Appstore

Platypus

2009-06-12T23:00:00.000-07:00

Platypus is a very unique side-scrolling shooter in the App Store. It has a very distinct clay look and 3D appearance. It includes many power-ups and different enemies. It one of the best side-scrolling shooters in the App Store.

Graphics:

The game has layered backgrounds to make it seem 3D. Some parts of the background are are animated, like the waterfall. There are also other things like billboards (with text) and blimps in the background.

The vehicles seem 3D also. When you go up and down, your ship rotates. Some of the enemies even do spins.

The graphics in this game look great. It has it own unique style.

Gameplay:

The game offer single player and multiplayer over Wi-Fi.

The game also offers 2 different control methods, touch and tilt. I find touch very hard to use because your finger covers the screen. Tilt works very well. Tilt up, down, left, and right to move the ship.

The game automaticly fires.

The game has primary and secondary targets. You get scored by the average of what percentage of each you destroy. There are lots of diffent types enemies to destroy.

In the game, you can earn a power-up by collecting a star. Each color star is a different powerup. You can change the star color by shooting it. Some of the power-ups allow you to shoot faster, allow you to shoot rockets, and release a sonic boom instead of bullets.

The game is very fun. I definitely recommend this game to side-scrolling shooter fans.

Epic Pet Wars

2009-06-11T20:34:00.000-07:00

Epic Pet Wars is an online game, similar to Mafia Wars, that was ported over to the iPhone and iPod Touch. The game is very addicting and fun. If you want to waste your time, this is the perfect game.

In Epic Pet Wars, you train your pet and battle other pets. You can buy new items and level up. You can also get new pets and special items, but you either have to pay for respect points or complete offers.

You also must add other players to your posse to do certain training. You can use friend codes to add people to your posse. Examples of friend codes are "kskzgmo" and "kyszomh". The more people in your posse, the better.

With this game you have nothing to lose! It is FREE and you can play it online.

There are also paid versions of this app that come with respect points and different pets.

Bounce On

2009-06-10T20:49:00.001-07:00

Bounce On is a side scrolling platformer by Team Phobic. You play as a bouncy ball trying to get home. The game contains 4 worlds with lots of levels in each. There are also many of power-ups and enemies throughout the game.

The game has 4 different worlds, each with their own look. The first world, Lost Hills, is very basic. It teaches you how to play and introduces you to ememies and power-ups. Don't mistake it as being too easy though. Each level in Bounce On is color coded by difficulty. There are plenty easy and hard levels in the mix. You don't have to do all the levels either. There are different paths you can take to reach the next world.

The other world progressivly get harder. Each world adds new elements to the gameplay.

Hover your mouse over the worlds in the screenshot below to see what they look like.

The game allows for up to 3 save files. Also, on the world map, you can earn medals for completing the level with all the diamonds in a certain amount of time.

The game has checkpoints, power-ups, enemies, bosses, and other items. There are even some levels that auto-scroll.

Some of the power-ups include turning into a bubble, which allows you to float for a certain amount of time and becoming rock making you invincible for a short time. There are moving platforms, tilting platforms, and falling platforms. There enemies that jump when you do and there are enemies that move with the tilt of the device.

This game is not to be missed. It is a great replacement for Super Mario Brothers.

Zenonia

2009-06-09T22:13:00.001-07:00

Zenonia, a classic action RPG from Gamevil, is the first iPhone game I have played that caused me to forgot I was playing on an iPhone, rather than a GBA or DS. It contains amazing depth and polish many other games in the App Store lack. It is simply the best RPG on the iPhone.

The game has a outstanding plot. You start as a child whose father recently died from a demon. Your father was a member of the Holy Nights, which are in conflict with the Dragon Clan. I don't want to give away any more of the plot, but trust me, it is great.

The gameplay starts out easy, but very quickly becomes difficult. The game uses a virtual D-Pad. You can choose to start your game as either a paladin, a warrior, or a assassin. You then can gain experience points and buy new items to become stronger. Throughout the game, you have a main quest which follows the storyline. You also can do subquests to gain more experience and money. Fighting monsters also adds to your experience and money. As you progress through the game, you will have choices that will change the storyline. You can either be good or evil.

The game features many different items to get, including potions, weapons, armor, scrolls, and others. There are five different item classes.

The text in the game is often amusing. I sometimes chuckle at some of the jokes that the other characters say. However, the game does have some translation problems.

Zenonia has lots of elements never before seen on the iPhone. Even newcomers to this genre of game might like it. Zenonia is fun to play and with 40 hours of gameplay, you can't go wrong. It is an amazing game.

Apple Announces New iPhone 3G S

2009-06-08T22:40:00.000-07:00

Apple has announced their new iPhone, the iPhone 3G S. The new iPhone is much faster, has a compass, has a better camera, and can take video.

Find more info on the new iPhone here.

Dictionary.com

2009-06-08T14:51:00.001-07:00

Dictionary.com is the best free dictionary app for the iPhone and iPod Touch. It uses the website Dictionary.com, but doesn't require an internet connection to use. It not only displays the definition of a word, but also includes a thesaurus. The app also includes a Word of the Day feature.

The app has four sections on the bottom: dictionary, thesaurus, recent, and word of the day. Dictionary shows definitions of words. Thesaurus shows synonyms of the words. Recent shows recently searched words. Word of the Day shows Dictionary.com's word of the day.

The dictionary works very well. It shows the word's part of speech, how to pronounce it, the meanings, and the words origin. It even has audio pronunciation available if you are connected to the internet.

It is very easy to go from dictionary to thesaurus. You just tap the thesaurus icon at the bottom and it instantly shows thesaurus results for the word.

When searching for a word and no results are found, the app shows similarly spelled words. For example, lets say you typed "reviuw" instead of "review". The app would suggest "review" along with other similarly spelled words.

Word of the Day show a dictionary entry for today's word.

The app is my favorite dictionary app. It works great and has all the features you need.

Adrenaline

2009-06-04T21:36:00.000-07:00

Adrenaline is a collection of simple minigames that is updated with new games each week. All the minigames share a unique style and a similar type of gameplay. The game currently has 24 different

minigames.

Minigame List:

1. A 1000 TAPS
2. UFO HUNTER
3. FIRE AT WILL
4. BLAST MANIA
5. RED TROUBLE
6. 123 BUBBLES
7. A-Z BUBBLES
8. Z-A BUBBLES
9. FIRE STORM
10. SKY KEEPERS
11. ENEMY ZONE
12. STAR CATCH
13. SURVIVOR #1
14. SURVIVOR #2
15. BUBBLE RAIN
16. QUICK CHAIN
17. SORT UNIT #1
18. SORT UNIT #2
19. ALL TOGETHER
20. DOUBLE SLIDE
21. POWER BLADE
22. EASY TARGETS
23. ATOMIC TRAP
24. SHOCK WAVES

Left: Tap bubbles in alphabetical order.

Middle: Shoot target by swiping on fire bases in direction you want to shoot.

Right: Drag bubble in correct color area.

On each minigame, you are trying to get the target score to unlock the next minigame. You can then come back and play them again to get the best score possible.

Lots of minigames have multiple versions. For example, Blast Mania, a bubble popping game, different sequals like Red Trouble, 123 Bubbles, A-Z Bubbles, and Z-A Bubbles as a seperate minigame.

The games main menu is very nice. It shows your rating on the minigame. It also allows you to have multiple games in progress. It shows games that are in progress in blue.

Most of the minigames in Adrenaline are very simple, yet fun. With new games every week, there is always something to look forward to. This game is a great value at only $0.99. Don't believe me? Try the lite version to find out for yourself.

Photo Drop

2009-06-03T21:58:00.000-07:00

Photo Drop is a very cool prank which resembles the Newton Virus prank for Mac. Photo Drop succeeds in its main goal (making your apps fall and move with gravity), but it doesn't exceed in anything other than that.

Basically, Photo Drop allows you to select a photo

(from the photo library). Then, when you touch the screen, square pieces of the photo drop. Then, after this, it is more of a game. You have to tilt the device to get the pieces back in their spots. The pieces cannot travel through each other so you have to plan which piece to put back first. You can tap and piece to unattach it.

This app is best used with the home screen. Give your device to a friend to use. Then, when they tap the screen, all the apps will fall. They can tip it and the apps react.

The game is fun but kind of irritating. Even when pieces are put back, you can not move over then. I think there should be an option that makes the unattached apps able to travel through the attached apps. Also, the game only makes the first 15 icons move. The icon in the bottom right stays put. The game should allow you to select how many icon you have.

Photo Drop is a fun prank, but besides that, I don't see much use for it. When you use it with normal photos, which it provides, the effect looks very bad. I think it should allow you to chose what will fall in the photo and keep the homescreen selection as a template. It would also be nice to have a template for the iPhone calculator, portrait and landscape.

The app also has a few problems. Sometimes, a app or two get lost off the screen, making the game unbeatable. Also, sometimes an app gets stuck between two others. You can fix this by tapping one of the other apps to make them both fall.

Even with the problems, this app is really fun to use to prank friends.

3D Tunnel Vision Contest

2009-06-02T22:33:00.001-07:00

CONTEST HAS ENDED

Review

iTunes

The lucky winner of a free copy of 3D Tunnel Vision was:

Sachin

3D Tunnel Vision

2009-06-02T22:29:00.001-07:00

In 3D Tunnel Vision, a remake of the flash game Missle 3D, you must avoid the walls to get as far as possible. The 3D graphics look great and there are 3 different modes in the game. The game is fun to play and is very addicting.

The 3 modes are arcade, mines and survival. Arcade mode has ten different levels, all with different themes and increasing difficulty. You can access completed levels in menu titled "replay". In the Mines mode, there are mines scattered everywhere throughout the tunnel. You want to last as long as possible without hitting a mind. In survival mode, you go through tunnels just like in arcade mode except survival mode doesn't have levels. In this mode, you try to last as long as possible.

Survival mode and Mines mode have a local and a global high score list.

The game is controled by dragging. You move your finger to avoid crashing.

This game is very fun and the global high score list gives you goals to shoot for. Anyone who tries the flash version (different game) and like it will love 3D Tunnel Vision.

Notable New Releases

2009-06-01T17:42:00.000-07:00

First Looks

Parachute Panic
iTunes ($0.99)

Description:

"This unique casual game requires you to successfully land a host of parachutists into passing boats. Beware of imminent dangers such as helictopter blades, U.F.O´s, sharks and thunder clouds.

How to Play:

- deploy parachutes by tapping on a falling skydiver

- swipe anywhere to draw wind and influence their movements

- destroy some obstacles by tapping on them 5x

(Read the rest on App Shopper)

The game is addictive, yet suprisingly hard. The music is also really great!

Need For Speed Undercover

iTunes ($9.99)

Description:

DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES? Get behind the wheel of the world’s #1 racing franchise to find out! Explode into a racing frenzy with Need for Speed™ Undercover on your iPhone™ and iPod® touch in this action-packed adventure of hot pursuit and betrayal.
(Read the rest on App Shopper)

Need for speeds graphics are top notch, the game includes many modes, and the overall presentation is good.

Return to Mysterious Island

iTunes ($4.99)

Return to Mysterious Island is like Myst, but better in some ways. Unlike Myst which uses photos, this game uses panoramas. This game also includes animation in the panoramas. For example, you might see a fish jumping out of the water in the panorama. You also collect and combine items.

Description:

Jules Verne's Return to Mysterious Island, inspired by the great Jules Verne’s novel, puts you in the shoes of Mina, a sailor who finds herself stranded on an island somewhere in the south Pacific.

Though the island looks deserted at first, it is dotted with traces of human habitation.

While Mina fights for survival and rescue, she’ll try to figure out who or what originally lived there, hoping to find what has been left behind...

True to the novel that inspired it, the game will have you exploring the island, in search for food or tools, while solving the many mysteries that hide from its cloudy heights down to its deepest caves...

(Read the rest on App Shopper)

Read It Later

2009-05-30T21:30:00.000-07:00

Have you ever needed to read a webpage when you don't have an internet connection? Read It Later is for you! Read It Later saves webpages for you to view later.

There is a bookmarklet for Safari that adds the webpages to your Read It Later list. Then when you open the app and press sync, it downloads the webpage to view later, either as the webpage looks on wifi or in a text only view.

This app is very usefull. It is a essential app for all iPod Touch owners.

Pros:

Saves webpages for later.

Includes Bookmarklet to add pages easliy.

Includes a text only view and normal view.

Cons:

Doesn't update websites.

The pros absolutely outweigh the cons.

The app contains 2 versions, a free one and a pro one. Obviously, the free version is FREE and the pro version costs. The normal version has every thing the pro version has except Google Reader integration, sharing services, a fullscreen reader, and other options.

This app is a very useful app that every iPod Touch owner needs. If you have an iPod Touch, you should buy this app.

App Store (FREE)

Appshopper (free)

iCopter

2009-05-28T22:09:00.000-07:00

iCopter is a port of a flash game called Copter. The goal of the game is to get as far in the cave as possible without hitting the walls. The helicopter moves at a constant speed. Touching the screen moves the helicopter up while letting go of the screen make the helicopter drop. The game is challenging, yet addicting.

The game is very customizable. You can change the block color, the helicopter style, and the background style.

There are 3 different speeds you can play at. Sadly though, the highscore board for each speed is the same, so I suggest choosing and staying with a speed.

The game has excellent replay value. You always want to beat your high score.

I think this is the best paid copter game, but there are some nice free versions as well:

Snail Mail

2009-05-27T21:33:00.001-07:00

In snail mail, you must guide Turbo the snail to deliver mail through the galaxy! This is a fast pace game where you must survive by staying on the track and avoiding slugs. Snail Mail is a port of a PC game that was released late 2004.

You tilt the device to move Turbo. The controls are very easy to use. It even won a award from IGN for best use of accelerometer. If you don't believe me, try out the lite version.

The game has great 3D graphics are really nice! Check out the slideshow of photos below.

The game features a tutorial and 3 different modes. They include Postal Adventure, Time Trial, and Challenge Mode. Postal Adventure is the main game. It includes many different courses for you to finish. Once you finish them, master them with Time Trial mode, where you must get the fastest time possible. In the final mode, Challenge Mode, it generates a random course so you will never get bored. You can adjust difficulty and speed.

Snail Mail is a very polished and fun game. I highly recommend it. Try the lite version first to see what it is like if you aren't sold yet.

App Shopper (Lite)

Developer (Sandlot Games)

Rocket Gold

2009-05-25T10:43:00.000-07:00

In Rocket Gold, you must guide your rocket through caves to take the giant gold orb inside. The game includes 15 levels, each with a normal version a

nd a anti-gravity version. The controls are very intuitive. This is one of the best cave flying games on the App Store!

The caves are guarded with guns. There are 2 types of guns and 2 types of bullets.

Blue guns will go away when shot. Red guns turn darker each time shot. They slowly turn back

to normal. Once red again, they can shoot.

The two types of bullets shot by the guns are red and green bullets. Red bullets can kill you. Green bullets make your ship go out of control. There are also laser too.

To turn the ship, you turn the wheel on the bottom left of the screen.

The right of the

screen has 2 invisible buttons. Touching the bottom of the right side of the screen thrusts.

Touching the top of the right side of the screen shoots red bullets.

You can shoot bullets to make the other guns disappear and to break other objects.

The main goal of the game is to bring the golden orb out of the cave. This adds a big challenge, not only because the orb weighs a lot, but also because the gravity in outer space adds a challenging element.

The anti-gravity version for the levels makes the golden orb act like a balloon. It pulls up with the same ammount of force that it pulls down in the other modes.

This is a game that everyone should check out. It is one of the best, if not the best, cave flying games for the iPhone.

App Shopper (Lite)

Fast Food Nation

2009-05-24T06:00:00.000-07:00

Fast Food Nation is one of the best time management games on the App Store (most likely because it contains food). You have to be fast enough to fill the demand of customers before they leave.

The game starts easy, with only the preparation of hotdogs, but then gets more difficult with condiments, sides, and lots of more customers. Those are some of the many upgrades you can purchase. The in game graphics are very nice, but the menu is poorly put together. There is no visual feedback when pressing menu buttons. It does, however, include character customization, kitchen customization, and trophies.

I think this game is worth the price. With the trophies and upgrades, you will stay playing for a long time.

App Shopper (Lite)

Myst

2009-05-23T16:33:00.001-07:00

Myst, a very popular game from the 1990's, has made its way to the App Store. Myst is a first person adventure game where you must explore the island of Myst and transporting into different ages by use of books. It requires players to solve puzzles to find out what to do next.

Graphics:

Myst is a 3D game, but is in pre-rendered 3D, not real-time 3D. Basicly, Myst is just a bunch of photos of 3D images. When you tap, the image changes. That said, the graphics still look really cool.

Gameplay:

Myst's gameplay is similar to the gameplay of a mystery game. You look for clues to solve puzzles. There is no way to die (although there a 3 different endings) so explore all you want.

Myst Island is the hub world for myst. There are books on this island that take you to different ages. (Hover your mouse over different places of the map of Myst Island below to see images of the ages.

Myst is a great value at $5.99, it provides hours and hours of gameplay (especially if you don't use the hint guide). It a unique experience for the iPhone. If you like any type of mystery games, I would give this one a try!

Kyper

2009-05-22T19:07:00.000-07:00

In Kyper, a FREE game from the makers of Scoops, the goal is to fly at the fastest speed possible. Kyper is a game of quick and accurate reflexes.

To control the ship, you tilt the device. The closer you are to green asteroids, the faster your ship moves. The closer you are to orange asteroids, the slower your ship moves. When you collide with and asteroid, you lose and record your score. Your score is your speed.

In addition to a local highscore board, there is a global highscore board.

The game is very polished and fun. It is free so there is no reason not to try it!

App Store

RPS Invader

2009-05-21T19:47:00.001-07:00

RPS Invader is the first rock-paper-scissors game for iPhone that is actually fun to play. In RPS Invader, your goal is to keep the Earth safe from spaceships by beating them at rock-paper sissors. The ships keep coming faster and faster as the game progresses. You have to last as long as possible.

When you start, you have five lives. If a rock comes at you, press paper. If paper comes at you, press scissors. If scissors, comes at you, press rock. If you press the wrong one, the ship turns blue and you lose a life. You also lose a life if the ship reaches Earth and you do not defeat it.

The games difficulty increases as the game continues. The ships keep coming faster and faster. Your score increases by one each time you destroy a ship.

There is a local highscore list, a highscore list for your country, and a global highscore list.

The game is very polished and fun to play. The animations are nice and the interface is visually appealing. This is a very good game that I recommend.

Monster Trucks Nitro

2009-05-20T20:54:00.000-07:00

Who doesn't like moster trucks? Monster Trucks Nitro is a game where you race the clock. You want to get to the finish in the best time possible.

When you first start the game, you have the first course and the first 3 cars unlocked. When you earn a medal on a course, you unlock the next. The game is short with only 8 courses, but you will keep playing them to get all the vehicles and getting high scores. When you get 4 gold medals, you unlock a school bus moster truck. When you get 8 gold medals, you unlock a rally car moster truck. (Hover your mouse over the cars in the picture to see what they look like.)

The controls are simple. When you tilt the device, the truck stays level with the iphone while the background stays level with real gravity. You must tilt the device the best way to keep the car going fast. There is a gas pedal and a brake. There is also cruise control so you don't have to hold down gas.

My only complaints are the shortness of the game and the highscore entry. There should be more levels. Also, the highscore entry doesn't use the normal iPhone keyboard. It uses a ugly keyboard that is VERY hard to use. To make matters worse, it doesn't remember your name after you quit the game so you have to enter it again. Overall though, this is a fun game.

3D Spinball

2009-05-19T17:29:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wondered what pong would be like in 3D? Now you don't have to wonder, try it now.

3D SpinBall is the iPhone version of the flash game Curveball, but with more features and modes. It has tilt control, touch control, 20 different stages, and supports red/blue 3D anaglyph glasses.

The basic point of 3D Spinball is to last as long as possible. The opponent becomes more difficult as the game progresses. Once your opponent runs out of lives, you progress to the next level. You can either choose to stay on the same stage the whole game or advance a stage each level. Once you run out of lives, the game is over and your highscore is recorded.

To control your paddle, you can use your finger, or tilt the device. You accumulate points quicker using tilt than using touch. (because of difficulty)

3D Spinball has 20 different stages to play on. The backgrounds range from a plain blue room to a city to a men's restroom.

The games most amazing feature is support for 3D glasses. (Get free 3D glasses here.) The game is a lot more immersive with the 3D glasses.

This is a very cool game. The 3D anaglyph glasses mode is very cool, in fact, it is one of the only anaglyph games on the app store. This is a great game and the 3D mode makes it even better!

Math Solver

2009-05-18T18:51:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wanted a scientific calculator that could not only perform arithmetic and simplify expressions, but also solve linear, quadratic, radical, and literal equations. Math Solver is the one.

Math solver is way more advanced than the iPhone's default calculator. Its main feature is solving for variables. My scientific calculator doesn't even do this, and trust me, it was more than $0.99.

First you type your equation, then press solve. It will tell you what the variables equal.

If you tap one of the answers, it will show you the steps to get it.

If you put in an equation without an equal sign, it will simplify it.

If you put in an expression, it will solve it too.

Math Solver supports radicals and square roots.

Tapping in the place where the equation is typed brings up the keyboard. You can use this to type the equation. You may even use other variables.

This even works for advanced equations.

This is a one of a kind app. You can't find its features on even some of the best calculators.
I would recommend downloading this if you have ever needed help on a math problem.

Balloonia

2009-05-15T20:26:00.000-07:00

Tired of boring puzzle games? Try an exciting new one! Balloonia, a crazy pipe connecting game, requires you to connect pipes between the left and right of the screen. There are 3 different modes: classic, deluxe, and survival.

The basic point of the game is to connect pipes from the left of the screen to the right. You rotate a pipe clockwise by tapping it. The longer the pipe is, the more points you score. Also, when there is more than one starting or ending point, you score more points. When the pipes connect, some crazy thing, like a submarine floats out of the pipe in to the sky.

In the first mode, classic, you are racing the clock for the highest score possible. Deluxe mode offers power-ups and obstacle pipes. The last mode, survival, requires you to watch the timer and make your moves quick.

Classic mode is a normal pipe game. You connect the left of the screen to the right with a pipe. Then, the pipes disappear and more fall to replace the cleared pipes. If you score 6,000 points by the end of the round, you receive a bonus round.

Once the time is up (and bonus round is over, if won), you are taken to the high score list to enter your name. The keyboard is unique to the game yet behaves like the iPhones keyboard.

Deluxe mode includes lots of different power-ups (shown on the left). There are score multipliers, rotation locks, single direction pipes, and many others. It is a very unique mode.

In survival, you must last as long as possible. You must connect a pipe before the timer is out.

Balloonia is a very polished puzzle game. It includes many modes and will last you a long time.

I recommend this to anybody who wants to try out a new kind of puzzle game.

http://www.hiddenappgems.com

Navigation

2009-05-14T17:05:00.000-07:00

Now it is easier than ever to navigate the site!

On the right of the page, on the iphone, are our reviews. Hovering over a review icon shows the price. The iPhone dock has the contests. Clicking on any of the iPhones icons takes you to the review/contest.

I hope every one likes this improvement. Remember, you can always send us feedback at:

feedback@hiddenappgems.com

New URL!

2009-05-11T21:31:00.001-07:00

Hidden App Gems has been moved from "hiddenappgems.blogspot.com" to "hiddenappgems.com"!

Now you don't need to type in that long URL anymore!

You can still find us at the old URL too.

NOTE: If you can't get to it at the new URL, it should work in a few days. It doesn't instantly become available all around the world at once.

If you like this site, please Digg us! Also, use the other social media links to the right.

If you would like to send us feedback, send it at "feedback@hiddenappgems.com".

Please try to spread the word about Hidden App Gems!

Ouch! Reivew

2009-05-11T16:22:00.000-07:00

In Ouch, your goal is to hurt the ragdoll as much a possible! It has tons of cool features including replays, level creation, and ragdoll creation. Ouch even lets you import and export levels and ragdolls so you will never get bored.

Developer Video:

Gameplay:

The gameplay is simple, yet enjoyable. It consists of causing as much damage as possible to your ragdoll in a certain amount of time. The controls are simple; you tilt the device to control gravity for the ragdoll. You also are given a certain number of "nudges" (sometimes unlimited) to move the character. To use these, you basically flick the character. They can be helpful to avoid ending the game early (by touching a red line). Lastly, you are given buttons to press, which can do anything from starting a car to using a flipper. The game is completely physics based, so objects fall like they would normally.

Ragdoll Creation:

You can completely customize your ragdoll. You can even import an image to use for the ragdolls face. Nothing better than torturing all your friends! Then you can use the export feature to send them their ragdoll.

Below is an example of what an exported ragdoll and level look like. You can use them if you like.

Level Editor:

You can use the games objects to build any level you can think of. The controls are intuitive.

Swipe and pinch to move and zoom. Move objects by dragging and rotate them with two fingers. You can duplicate objects too. The background of the levels can be changed, but not to your own photos.

Replays:

I LOVE the replay feature. After a video, you can view the replay and, if you like, save it for later. There are button to control speed and direction, but there is also a wheel where you can directly control the speed. It looks spectacular watching the replay in reverse. Seeing the ragdoll, going backwards, setting back up bowling pins looks really cool.

This is an amazing app; its half entertainment app, half game. It is really fun and there is so much to do.

You can even download more levels here.

Just find a level you like. They colorful image after it is the picture you need. Press and hold it until a box pops up that says "Save Image". It will be saved to you device's photo gallery. When you open Ouch, go to import level. Choose the colorful photo and the level will be imported.

I think this game is awesome. It is definitely worth a download.

App Store ($2.99)

Lite

That Ain't It! Review

2009-05-08T18:16:00.000-07:00

Are you ready for a new kind of trivia game? That Ain't It is the one!

In That Ain't It, you are given a topic and you have to find the answer that doesn't fit.

To the right, there is an example of a question from That Ain't It. The answer, green, doesn't belong because it is not on the US flag.

The game is very polished. It allows for up to 6 users.

There are two modes of gameplay, Game Show and Speed Trivia.

In Game Show mode, you must answer 10 questions. You have 30 seconds for each question.

First you spin the wheel to decide the category.

They are shown on the image on the right labeled categories.

Then you receive a question. The difficulty of the question gets harder as you get questions correct. On each easy question, your score doubles; on a medium question, your score is multiplied by four; and on a hard question, you score is multiplied by five.

You also get to use four lifelines per game. They are show in the image on the right labeled lifelines.

The ultimate goal of Game show mode is to get a score of 1 Million Dollars.

Once you score a cumulative score of $250,000 in Game Show, you unlock Speed Trivia. In speed trivia, you have two minutes to answer as many questions as possible.

Each easy question is worth $1,000; each medium question is $10,000; and each hard question is worth $100,000. There is no penalty for incorrect questions.

Both modes in the game feature a global high score board. The game features a total of 888 questions, with more to come in an update.

Game how Mode

Speed Trivia

The game features an addicting sound track so you will feel as if you are on a real game show. This game is a MUST BUY for people who like game shows and trivia.

For more question examples (where you get to answer), click here.

App Store ($1.99)

Robotco Contest has ENDED

2009-05-08T15:33:00.001-07:00

Read the review here!

Contest has ended. Sorry.

Find more contests HERE. (list of all contest includes ended contests)

Robotco Review

2009-05-06T18:57:00.000-07:00

In Robotco, you need to help sort the new robot model, Steam Laurie Rev. 2, before they explode! If you put a robot in the wrong color zone or you don't sort it fast enough, it will explode.

They game starts easy but gradually gets harder and harder as it continues.

The game is very polished. When you pick up a robot, it gets larger (because it is closer) and there is even a shadow under.

The game supports Multi-Touch, in fact, it is a main feature in the game. (Up to 4 finger Multi-Touch is supported.) You get a large bonus when you sort more than one robot at once, and an even bigger bonus when they are different color. (Robots are normally one point each.)

The main menu has four options: Play, High Scores, Global League, and Options.

Play allows you to choose what difficulty you want. There is normal and expert.

The normal mode has two different color robots while the expert mode has four different color robots. In addition, normal mode has two places robots can enter while expert mode has four places robots can enter.

From the high scores menu, you can see normal mode and expert mode high scores.

The Global League is an online high score list. Here, you can see how you rank among others.

The option menu allows you to turn sound effects and music on and off. Trust me, you won't want to turn the sound effects or music off; they are amazing! (see Youtube video link at end of post)

The only cons of this game are that it doesn't have a pause menu (You can pause it by locking the device.) and it does not save your game to resume after you quit.

I highly recommend this game! This game is SUPER fun! You won't be able to put this game down!

App Store ($1.99)

Youtube (not the developer's or Hidden App Gem's video)

Uggles

2009-05-05T19:55:00.000-07:00

In Uggles, you have to keep the Uggles in the air as long as possible! The longer they stay up, the more points you get.

There are 2 backgrounds and lot of different Uggles to choose from. You unlock different Uggles by scoring more points. There are 3 difficulty levels. Each one adds on another Uggle for you to juggle.

This game provides frustrating (in a fun way) and addictive gameplay.

This game is a great way to waste a few minutes (or a few hours) of the day!

Are you up to the challenge?

App Store ($0.99)

Youtube

TanZen

2009-05-04T19:42:00.000-07:00

TanZen is a puzzle game where you must fit all the pieces in the shape. It is very polished and had good controls.

There are 450 puzzle and more are added regularly.

You get 2 hints per puzzle.

There is a master mode for experts.

Overall this is a great, relaxed game. There are so many puzzles, it will last hours and hour worth of gameplay.

This is a game I recommend for all fans of this genre.

App Store ($0.99)

Lite

Balloonimals

2009-05-04T16:23:00.000-07:00

Do you like balloons? Do you like animals? Do you like bacon? (Just kidding!)

If the answer was yes to any of those questions, Balloonimals for you!

Balloonimals is a cool app where you make, play with, and destroy 3D balloon animals.

First you choose your balloon by swiping up and down. Each color is a different animal. There are 7 different balloon animals.

Then you blow in the microphone (iPhone) or touch the screen (iPod Touch) to inflate the balloon.

Next, you shake to make the balloon animal. Each time you shake, another step in making the balloon animal is completed.

Now, you get to interact with it by touching it. Each balloon animal has a few unique actions they do when you touch them in different places. For example, touch the fish's lips and it will kiss. Touch its tail and it will wag. Touch its eyeballs and it will spit out bubbles.

Finally, you get to over inflate the balloon to make it pop.

The animals include dinosaur, fish, snake, crab, dog, unicorn, and kangaroo.

My only complaints are that it sometimes becomes choppy (1st Gen. iPod Touch) and that while the animals are clear while they are still, they become blurry when they animate.

Besides that, this is a great app to show off you iPhone or iPod Touch.

I would recommend this app to anyone, especially people who like popping unicorns.

Try the lite version or head over to their website for a video!

App Store ($1.99)

Lite