"If there is an app for that"

Skorch, Leap Second, Wagcam and other apps to check out this weekend

October 21, 2017 by RSS Feed

This week’s edition of our Apps of the Week roundup features an app for finding the hottest spots in your area, a video montage-maker, and a camera app focused on helping you take better pet pics. Plus, as always, we’ve selected two great new games for you to check out.

Skorch

Skorch is an interesting app that helps you discover the most happening places in your area. No weak drinks or bad food here—Skorch only recommends the “buzziest” spots including restaurants, bars, coffee shops and more. So let’s say you’re visiting a new city. It works like a heat map, the warmer the color, the hotter the place. Create your own hotlist so followers can keep up with your favorite places. Only a handful of major cities are supported right now, but the developers promise more are coming soon. If you travel often or are looking for new hangout spots in your current city, this app is worth checking out. Skorch is available for free.

Leap Second

Leap Second is the only one-second video app you'll ever need! Capture your favourite memories and showcase the finest moments of your life in style. We make it super easy to trim your videos and stitch them together to form a mini montage of your life. Sure there are similar apps out there, but I like this one because of its sharp UI and features like automatic sorting, full iCloud support and in-app editing. Leap Second is available for free (with some IAPs).

Wagcam

If you’re a dog owner, you’ve probably experienced this problem at some point or another: you go to take a cute picture of your puppy but they either won’t look at you or won’t stop moving. Never fear, Wagcam is here to help. The app has a handful of built-in sounds—a horn, squeak, meow, footsteps, eating, etc.—that encourage your dog to look right at the camera so you can take your pic. And that’s really all there is to it. There’s nothing groundbreaking here but again, for pet owners, I thought this was worth checking out this weekend. Wagcam is available for free.

HQ

HQ is a live trivia game show developed by the folks behind the hit social media app Vine. It’s exactly what it sounds like: every day there is a live trivia game show played through this iPhone app at 9pm (EDT). You can join in epic multiplayer games, chat with other players, compete for a spot on the leaderboard and even win really money that can be cashed out via PayPal. Early App Store reviews give the app 5-stars, so even the folks not winning money appear to be enjoying the games. I’m not sure if the trivia game shows are played on the weekend, but either way this is an app worth checking out. HQ is available for free.

Campfire Cooking

Campfire Cooking is a puzzle game about relaxing moments in nature, as you prepare meals over a warm fire. Discover the joy of cooking on a stick and test your problem-solving skills with some challenging campfire puzzles! The latest creation from Layton Hawkes is guaranteed to make you feel clever, hungry and eager to book your next woodland escape. There are over 100 meals to prepare, a great cast of characters and tons of exotic trails to discover. This is an extremely polished puzzle game that’s worth checking out. Campfire Cooking is available for $4.

More apps to check out

• How to zip and unzip files on iPhone or iPad
• Runners Map lets you easily share and discover running routes
• Cortana for iOS gains refined look, enhanced reminders, faster navigation & other perks
• Cardhop, the interactive Mac contacts app from Fantastical makers, is now available
• Google Photos now groups pet images, creates suggested photo books

Source link: http://www.idownloadblog.com/2017/10/21/apps-to-check-out-weekend-2/

Campfire Cooking is One Delectable Treat for Puzzle Lovers

October 20, 2017 by RSS Feed

Campfire Cooking ($3.99) by Layton Hawkes is a delectable puzzle game about cooking meals over a warm, toasty fire. If you love campfire meals but don't want to deal with the hassle of real-world camping, then Campfire Cooking is the perfect treat for you. It's similar to other games like Slayaway Camp, in the fact that it's like a Sokoban-style puzzle.

When I'm feeling a bit stressed, I like to unwind with either video games or food. Yes, I know — stress eating can be unhealthy. Fortunately, when I heard of Campfire Cooking, I knew that this was something I absolutely had to have, as it combines two of my favorite things into one! While I heard nothing about Campfire Cooking before this week, I must say that this is one of the best games I've purchased as of late. It satisfies both my sweet tooth and craving for puzzle games.

$1.99

Slayaway Camp

Blue Wizard Digital LP

Visually, Campfire Cooking is stunning and beautiful. The game has a kind of cartoonish aesthetic with the characters and food, but it's done gracefully so it's not over-the-top. The food looks simple yet appetizing, and the campfires have a soothing look and feel to them that mimics the real thing nicely. There's several different environments to set up camp in, and they all have a believable appearance. The vignette around the screen edges is a nice touch, as it puts the focus on the puzzles.

All animations are smooth and fluid, with no lag on my iPhone 8 Plus. The game features an upbeat and quirky soundtrack with realistic sound effects as food cooks over the fire. Overall, the developer did an excellent job with Campfire Cooking's visual and audio design.

Like other puzzle games, Campfire Cooking is level-based. At the moment, there are eight different trails (chapters) for players to explore, and each one contains about 10 puzzles for you to solve. The nice thing, though, is the fact that you can play the stages in any order, so if you're stuck, you can just try a different level. However, you do need to solve a certain amount before the next trail gets unlocked.

The nicest thing about Campfire Cooking is that even though it's a puzzle game, there's still some rather endearing characters and story to everything. In Campfire Cooking, you'll meet a grandpa who takes his grandkids out camping for vacation. There's plenty of stories to share with everyone, along with many jokes and moaning about cell phone reception. These scenes take place between puzzles and are sure to bring a smile to your face.

Controls in Campfire Cooking are simple. In each puzzle, there are metal and wooden skewers of marshmallows that you can twist and rotate on the board. The goal is to get everything evenly cooked on the flames. To make a skewer move, just slide it in the direction you want — they spin as they slide over. It can't move if there's no space to fit the marshmallows, and it can't cross over other skewers. To rotate a skewer (wooden sticks only, no metal), just drag over it until you see curved arrows, and then move your finger until the arrow is filled. If the space allows for it, that wooden stick will rotate.

Eventually, there are other camp meals that you'll have to cook, including various soups in pots. The pots can't move on their own — you need to push them around with skewers, and even magnets are introduced later. The pots just need to go into the flame once to be prepared, but marshmallows must be toasted on both sides and not burnt. However, some levels start off with burned marshmallows, and you must use these to set the fire on the board in order to prepare the non-burned food. Some puzzles are a piece of cake, while others are definitely not a walk in the park.

Start up the campfire, and get ready to think about roasting marshmallows.

The Good

Campfire Cooking is a genius and fresh new take on puzzle games. The visual style is unique and rather realistic for a cartoonish aesthetic, and the music is delightful to listen to. Plus, who can resist the sound of a marshmallow toasting up over an open fire? The game concept is simple enough, but the puzzles can get tricky, making you truly use your head. The family-friendly characters are relatable as well, making this a fantastic puzzle game for anyone.

The Bad

Honestly, Campfire Cooking is an excellent game. However, if you're the kind of person who doesn't enjoy puzzles that make you use your head, then you may get frustrated with this one. Still, I think it's best to give this one a shot, because you may change your mind.

The verdict

Overall, Campfire Cooking is one of the best puzzle games you can get for your iOS device. The game looks gorgeous, and the sound mimics the camping experience. The controls are easy to learn and optimized for touch screens, so there's no issues there. The puzzles have a nice complexity to them, ranging from easy to tricky, but once you figure out a puzzle you've been stuck on, it's incredibly satisfying. Having the option to play levels in any order you want is also a nice perk.

I highly recommend Campfire Cooking if you're a puzzle fan. You can find Campfire Cooking on the App Store as a universal download for your iPhone and iPad for just $3.99. There are no in-app purchases.

9.6

OVERALL

Graphics 10

Sound/Music 10

Gameplay 10

Replayability 9

Game Controls 9

$3.99

Campfire Cooking

Layton Hawkes

Source link: http://appadvice.com/reviews

Free Apps to Download TODAY ONLY 10/20/2017

October 20, 2017 by RSS Feed

Wants & Thanks Journal Gratitude , Preposition Master , Pixagram and more

Universal:

Wants & Thanks Journal Gratitude ( $0.99 → Free ) Pixolini, Inc. Your life can be categorized in three ways: Wants, Needs, and Thanks. By categorizing the things in your life, you’re able to put it all into perspective. The app allows you to easily reorder lists by priority, attach photos to entries, and receive weekly reminders. Your progress is tracked with charts and graphs. Wants and Thanks includes the ability to share your entries via your favorite social networks, sync data across devices with iCloud, and create entries from Notification Center.

Preposition Master ( $1.99 → Free ) MasterKey Games Preposition Master allows you to improve your language skills in an entertaining way. In each level you’re presented with an incomplete sentence and a collection of prepositions. Tap on the preposition that best fits into the sentence before time expires to complete it. Each mistake will cost you precious seconds, so move quickly but efficiently. The game also includes an online multiplayer mode, and achievements and leaderboards.

Pixagram ( $0.99 → Free ) pierre gougelet Pixagram has everything you need to make your photos stand out. You’re able to apply 25 effects, 15 textures and light leaks, 20 vignettes, more than 30 frames, and text with more than 30 fonts. If that isn’t enough, you’re also able to adjust parameters like exposure, saturation, temperature, and vibrance. Don’t know what you want? No problem. The app offers the ability to randomly apply effects, textures, and vignettes.

Gif Me! Camera ( $1.99 → Free ) pierre gougelet Gif Me allows you to capture video three different ways: normal, multi-record, and stop motion. You’re also able to import photos or videos from your library. During the editing process you’re able to add and cut out frames, add filters, adjust the lighting, apply text and stickers, change the playback speed, and add a frame.

Dice World Dice Game ( $2.99 → Free ) Pangia Games, Inc. Dice World has something for everyone. You’re able to challenge AI opponents, friends, and strangers, and even compete in tournaments. It includes six variations to choose from: Yatzy, Farkle, Pig, Threes, Balut, and 24. Each variation includes a set of rules in case you’ve never played before along with full stat tracking. Dice World also features leaderboards, chat, and full accessibility support.

Animal Math Kindergarten Games ( $4.99 → Free ) Eggroll Games LLC To help each animal travel through the city, your child will need to successfully complete a variety of math activities. Math activities range from adding and subtracting to counting and identifying geometric shapes. The app includes a total of 8 adorable animals to join, and more than 100 activities. It also includes professional narration and instructions, and loads of positive encouragement.

Source link: http://appadvice.com/apps-gone-free

It's About the Journey, Not the Destination in Wheels of Aurelia

October 19, 2017 by RSS Feed

Wheels of Aurelia ($3.99) by Santa Ragione is an interactive visual novel that takes you on a journey of self-discovery. If you enjoyed other titles like Old Man's Journey and Artificial Superintelligence, then you'll like what Wheels of Aurelia has to offer.

While I like to think I have an interesting life, I know that it's not the case, as much as I'd like it to be. Fortunately, there's always video games that allow me to live the life I've always dreamed of having, because there's so much variety in what I can achieve in a digital medium. When the news of Wheels of Aurelia hit my inbox, I became intrigued because I've always wanted to go on a road trip, but the opportunity has never really come up for me. Now I can kind of live that life thanks to this interactive novel.

$4.99

Old Man's Journey

Broken Rules Interactive Media GmbH

$3.99

Artificial Superintelligence

Grailr LLC

Free

Horizon Chase - World Tour

Aquiris Realidade Virtual LTDA

Visually, Wheels of Aurelia has a kind of modern retro aesthetic to it, similar to Horizon Chase. This means a low-poly world that's both cute and charming, appealing to those who miss the vintage style. Everything is rendered in 3D, and Italy looks as bright and vibrant as ever during the 1970's. The character portraits are drawn in 2D fashion and look incredibly realistic. Each character you end up interacting with has their own unique personality and dialogue. Animations are smooth and fluid, and the dialogue text is easy to read. The game also has a quirky soundtrack that's fun to listen to, and the sound effects are a nice touch.

In Wheels of Aurelia, you play as the bold and spunky Lella as she embarks on a road trip across Italy during the 1970's. Lella has a bit of a checkered background that gets unraveled as you play, meeting many different and unpredictable characters along the way. It's a journey about self-discovery, and this is made abundantly clear as you hit the streets. The dialogue that you choose for Lella to say in response to others affects everyone involved, and there's a total of 16 different endings you can get. Remember — Wheels of Aurelia is all about the journey, not the destination.

The controls in Wheels of Aurelia is simple, though at times it can feel a bit overwhelming since a lot of multitasking can be involved. As Lella drives the car, you can swipe left or right to change lanes or hit stops in the road. Since the road is just one lane both ways, you'll want to go into the opposite lane to pass up slower cars in front of you, but watch out for oncoming traffic. As you drive, Lella has rather engrossing conversations with the people she meets along the way in the car, and you'll want to go through the available dialogue options (swipe vertically) and pick the one you think is best.

Depending on your choices in Wheels of Aurelia, the story for each attempt ranges from short to lengthy. Once a storyline concludes, you get a scene with text that explains what happened to Lella's passenger, as well as what Lella does afterwards with her own past.

After you're done with one attempt, you can choose to play again and try to get a different ending. After all, there are 16 endings you can get. The neat thing is the fact that you can choose what chapter to start from, instead of the beginning each time. On top of that, you can pick a new set of wheels each time, and you can also unlock new cars throughout the story.

As you play Wheels of Aurelia, you'll probably end up hearing about many cultural and political references from characters, as well as places. There's a "Wheelspedia" that you can access at any time to read explanations detailing the significance of these references.

A change of pace game that is about discovering the storyline through road trip choices.

The Good

Wheels of Aurelia is a quirky and endearing interactive novel game. The graphics are a great combination of modern and retro, and the characters have distinctive appearances to them that make them stand out. The storyline is captivating from the get-go, and the setting is a great blast from the past. All of the people you meet are special in their own way, and it brings life to the story. Choosing Lella's dialogue is an easy affair, and the swipe controls for changing lanes is intuitive. Having 16 different endings and the option to choose a starting chapter means you can skip the beginning and get right to the fun stuff.

The Bad

While Wheels of Aurelia is a pretty solid game, I did get a bit overwhelmed with having to keep an eye on the road and choose dialogue at the same time. I know — multitasking is great, but if I'm in a street race, I want to concentrate on that first, and not have a bunch of dialogue on the screen that I can't read. I think the controls could be better optimized for situations like that, or at least have less going on the screen at once.

The verdict

While I'm not usually big into interactive visual novels, Wheels of Aurelia is an exception. I'm loving the visual style of the game, and the music is delightful. Controls are simple enough for everyone to enjoy, and the character development and endings are done well. The game's all about the journey rather than the destination, and I think that's a great outlook on life in general. I may not have been on an actual road trip yet, but this game gives me a sample taste of it.

I recommend giving Wheels of Aurelia a try if you're in the mood for a narrative experience. You can find Wheels of Aurelia on the App Store as a universal download for your iPhone and iPad for just $3.99.

8.5

OVERALL

Graphics 9

Sound/Music 9

Replayability 8.5

Game Controls 8

Gameplay 8

$3.99

Wheels of Aurelia

Santa Ragione s.r.l.

Source link: http://appadvice.com/reviews

Free Apps to Download TODAY ONLY 10/19/2017

October 19, 2017 by RSS Feed

WiFi Pal - Scan Wifi Passwords , Pool Break 3D Billiards 8 Ball, 9 Ball, Snooker , Colorburn - 1000 filters camera for photo & video and more

iPhone:

WiFi Pal - Scan Wifi Passwords ( $1.99 → Free ) Appidemix LLC WiFi Pal takes the hassle out of connecting to WI-Fi. You’re able to set up multiple networks with custom names and passwords. A QR code will be created for each one. Then when it’s time to connect, simply hold your iPhone up to the code to scan it and you’ll be connected without the need to enter any information.

Unfold: Stories ( $0.99 → Free ) Moonlab Unfold allows you to tell stories with your content. It includes 25 minimalist templates that can be filled with photos and videos. Some templates also include text fields with adjustable font sizes. You’re able to preview your story at any time, and reorder the pages before exporting them.

Universal:

Pool Break 3D Billiards 8 Ball, 9 Ball, Snooker ( $0.99 → Free ) Kinetic Bytes You’ll find countless ways to play in Pool Break 3D. It includes almost two dozen games including 8-Ball, Snooker, Carrom, and Crokinole. You’re able to compete locally against an AI opponent, via pass and play, or online. Everyone from novices to seasoned professionals will be able to enjoy the gameplay thanks to four difficulty settings. The accurate physics ensure fair competition.

Colorburn - 1000 filters camera for photo & video ( $0.99 → Free ) Xiaodong Wang Colorburn is jam-packed with more than 1,000 colorful filters to choose from. On top of that, you’re able to apply multiple filters to a single photo. Filters are broken down by category, and you’re able to simply swipe across the screen to see a strip of each one laid over the top of your photo. This makes the preview process so much faster than similar apps. Filters can be marked as favorites as well for quick access later on. Colorburn also includes a wide professional editing tools and customization options.

Shape Game Colors Free Preschool Games for Kids ( $2.99 → Free ) Eggroll Games LLC Various amounts of cards will appear on the screen face down. Your child can tap on them to reveal what’s on the flip side. They must then find all of the matching pairs of shapes and colors to complete each game. When tapped on, your child is able to hear the object or color pronounced. The app also includes a Show Me mode where the cards are all face up, making it easier to play.

Source link: http://appadvice.com/apps-gone-free