"If there is an app for that"

Free Apps to Download TODAY ONLY 12/22/2017

December 22, 2017 by RSS Feed

Little Luca , Mystery Word Town Spelling , Labo Paper Plate and more

Universal:

Little Luca ( $0.99 → Free ) Glowingpine Studios HB Help Luca gather up the stars by bouncing the ball from wavy-jiggly hills, squish-able moons, and more. Collide with as many stars as you can, all three per level is best, before launching the ball into the dark, mysterious portal. It's a crazy quest spanning three realms and nearly 100 stages, depicted in comic book-style art.

Mystery Word Town Spelling ( $3.99 → Free ) Artgig Studio Mystery Word Town will build spelling confidence in your young child. To help the ghost get from room to room and building to building, your child will need to collect letters and spell words. Along the way they’ll earn talking portraits to add to their gallery. The portraits have different stories to tell through colorful characters. The game includes nine themed buildings, support for multiple user accounts, bonus challenges and unique rewards, and customizable skills.

Labo Paper Plate ( $1.99 → Free ) Labo Lado Inc. Labo Paper Plates taps into your child’s imagination. They’re able to select from 15 different paper plate craft activities. The step-by-step instructions allow your child to participate in every part of the process from cutting out shapes to coloring them. Their creations can then be used to play games and participate in a variety of activities.

The Secret of Chimera Labs ( $1.99 → Free ) Aircamp Games The Secret of Chimera Labs takes you on a fantastic journey. As lead detective, you’re put in charge of tracking down Doctor Teresa Von Awesome. In order to do so, you’ll need to sift through clues, discover items, and solve complex puzzles all within the curious confines of Chimera Labs. The game includes more than 100 environments, an in-game notebook, a hint system, and more than 80 unique items to hunt down.

EXIF Viewer by Fluntro ( $2.99 → Free ) Fluntro Want to know everything about your photos? Just launch EXIF Viewer and provide it with access to your photo library. EXIF Viewer will then grab each photo’s EXIF metadata and display the most important information right below. You can swipe across a photo to view even more detailed information. Tap on a photo to bring up the ability to remove the EXIF data. The app also includes a wide variety of other handy features including a photos extension, three viewing modes, a Messages app, and the ability to copy EXIF metadata to the clipboard.

Drive About: Number Neighborhood ( $2.99 → Free ) Artgig Studio Drive About will help your child practice number identification and writing, counting, matching, and ordering. The highly interactive environment will keep your child hooked for hours on end. Half the fun is just driving, flying, and sailing around town to find mini-games to play. The mini-games themselves are highly engaging as well, requiring your child to control colorful little creatures to complete number exercises.

aTimeLogger 2 ( $4.99 → Free ) BGCI Thanks to its intuitive interface, aTimeLogger ensures you won’t waste a lot of time tracking your time. The main menu provides you with a large grid of activity icons, but if you can’t find one that suits your activity, go ahead and create your own. To track an activity, just tap on an icon to start the timer. At the end of the day you can view all of your stats and generate custom reports.

Wobbly Stack AR ( $3.99 → Free ) esDot Studio Inc Wobbly Stack AR is a fun way to try out AR and pass some time. Your iPhone or iPad acts as your tether, providing precise controls that allow you to twist, pull, and push blocks around. The dynamic Haptic feedback system makes it as if you can feel the blocks, but it’s only available on iPhone 7 and newer devices. Varying block sizes create an extra layer of strategy. Wobbly Stack AR also includes pass-and-play multiplayer.

The Hunt for the Lost Treasure ( $2.99 → Free ) Syntaxity Inc. The Hunt for the Lost Treasure continues the adventure of The Lost Ship. On your latest quest, use the map discovered on the lost ship and hunt down the pirate’s cove. To do so you must pick the correct paths, solve puzzles, and search through old structures with just a tap. A built-in hint system will assist you when you’re stuck, and a dynamic map will ensure you won’t simply go running around in circles.

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

The Bridge is a Lie in Bridge Constructor Portal

December 21, 2017 by RSS Feed

Bridge Constructor Portal ($4.99) by Headup Games is a licensed mashup of both the Bridge Constructor and Portal games. If you're a fan of either franchise, or just like physics-based puzzles in general, then you'll get a kick out of Bridge Constructor Portal.

In 2007, a little puzzle platformer game came out called Portal. It came bundled with The Orange Box, but became a standalone game later on. Four years later, Portal 2 came out. I had the original Portal game before the sequel and played through some of it, but it was Portal 2 that really got me into the series. I beat Portal 2 and even did some of the multiplayer missions before I was officially done with it, but it's always been on of my favorite games ever made. I've been hoping for a third Portal for years, but as of now, Bridge Constructor Portal is the only thing we have. So I'll go with it, despite not having played a Bridge Constructor game before.

$1.99

Bridge Constructor

Headup Games GmbH & Co. KG

Visually, Bridge Constructor Portal looks beautiful, as it is full of familiar scenes from Aperture Science's test labs. The game is rendered in 3D, though the "new employees" are flat, generic figures. If you've played Portal games from before, then the bright white test rooms are sure to feel like home, and the soothing, ambient glow of the portals make you feel relaxed. Bridge Constructor Portal also has some of your favorite things from previous games, such as turrets and even GLaDOS herself (complete with Ellen McLain, the original voice actress), which is a good reason alone to buy the game. Animations are smooth and fluid with no lag on my iPhone 8 Plus. The atmospheric soundtrack is quirky like the previous Portal titles, and sound effects are delightful. While this is a spinoff game, it certainly brings together everything I love about Portal.

In Bridge Constructor Portal, since it's a physics-based puzzle platformer, it still uses a level system. The game has a total of 60 levels that are split up among six chapters. Players must go through each stage in linear order, so to progress, you'll have to be a good Aperture Science Labs employee and successfully complete each test. The goal? Build safe paths to get the Bendies across hazards, traps, and other obstacles in order to get to their vehicles and continue their work. It starts out pretty easy, but things start to pick up gradually. Let's just say...some thinking will be involved when you get to later stages.

Controls in Bridge Constructor Portal are pretty easy and intuitive. On each stage, you must build roads and ramps for vehicles to drive on to get to their destination. You have metal scaffolds and suspension ropes, which you can use to your heart's content by switching between the two on the left side of the screen.

For scaffolds, just build them from an orange anchor point. Then connect the other scaffolds together until it reaches where you need it to go. These scaffolds can be converted to roadways with just a tap and vice versa. Suspension rope can be connected from a scaffold anchor to anchor points above, and they are necessary to hold the scaffolds up so that they don't face gravity's wrath.

But what happens when there are no anchor points for suspension rope? When that happens, you'll have to use the metal scaffolding for suspension, in a triangle-formation. Just don't convert them into roads, and you're all good! If you make a mistake, just double tap on the item you want to get rid of.

The premise seems simple, but things get more intricate and complex later on, especially when famous Portal gadgets get added into the mix. For example, you'll have to have one driver hit a switch for others, and then there are the portals themselves, propulsion gel, aerial faith plates, cubes, sentry turrets, acid pools, laser beams, and much more. They all add a unique mechanic to the level and you'll have to work with or around them to succeed.

The classic bridge construction simulator is combined with a Portal theme.

The Good

Bridge Constructor Portal is a nice spin off of the Portal games, because it seems that Valve can't ever have a trilogy. For what it's worth, Bridge Constructor Portal is satisfying in its own right. The graphics are top notch, the music and sound effects are just as delightful as the original games, and Ellen McLain back as GLaDOS is fantastic. Controls are fairly simple for the touch screen, and the puzzles themselves are quite challenging.

As someone who's never played Bridge Constructor before, I'm actually enjoying this interesting combination, and I think it works well.

The Bad

Again, while Bridge Constructor Portal is a good game to get your Portal fix, this is not an actual Portal game, which is disappointing. And while the controls work out well, I think that this game is best played on an iPad due to more screen estate. I found myself constantly trashing pieces or stretching out old pieces instead of what I actually wanted to do, which got annoying. However, I also think that time and practice can fix that issue too, so it's doable on an iPhone screen, as long as you have some patience.

The verdict

As a Portal fan who will probably never see a "Portal 3," I think Bridge Constructor Portal will have to do. It's a fine mashup, really, but don't come in to this expecting a full on Portal game, because that's not what this is. It's a challenging puzzler that will test your problem-solving skills, with a Portal theme, essentially. As a newcomer to Bridge Constructor, this is fine by me. The game itself looks great, the music is delightful, and I'm just happy to hear GLaDOS' voice once again.

Bridge Constructor Portal is a great entry point to both Portal and Bridge Constructor and should be a game for any puzzle platformer fan's collection. You can find Bridge Constructor Portal on the App Store as a universal download for your iPhone and iPad for $4.99.

8.9

OVERALL

Sound/Music 10

Graphics 9.5

Gameplay 9.5

Replayability 8

Game Controls 7.5

$4.99

Bridge Constructor Portal

Headup Games GmbH & Co KG

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

Free Apps to Download TODAY ONLY 12/21/2017

December 21, 2017 by RSS Feed

UFO on Tape , Dollar Bill Origami , Superimpose and more

iPhone:

Tower of Fortune ( $0.99 → Free ) Game Stew Play as a retired hero who is forced to draw his sword once again when his daughter is taken by an unknown power. Spin the wheel to battle opponents, earn gold, and obtain special items. The game includes 39 different enemies, 37 types of equipment, 39 combat quests, 12 tavern quests, and three different endings.

Universal:

UFO on Tape ( $0.99 → Free ) Revolutionary Concepts UFO on Tape is an iOS classic that has stood the test of time. Hold your iPhone up in the air and start recording. The idea is to keep the UFO within view at all times as you go speeding through the countryside. As you’re trained in on the subject, you’ll have different objects pass through your view and the UFO will make sudden turns. Don’t give up. Don’t lose focus. Otherwise it’ll disappear into thin air.

Dollar Bill Origami ( $1.99 → Free ) Andreas Bauer Dollar Bill Origami will brighten anyone’s day because after folding these fun shapes, there’s no doubt you’ll be handing out money to friends and family in order to share your work. Dollar Bill Origami includes 10 shapes to fold including a heart, shirt, box, and gondola. Each design includes step-by-step instructions and diagrams. Folding guides and techniques are included as well.

Superimpose ( $1.99 → Free ) Pankaj Goswami Apps that allow you to superimpose or juxtapose photos are usually cumbersome, but not Superimpose. That’s what makes it so great. Load up a background image, a foreground image, and then mask out the unwanted portions of the foreground image using a variety of tools. You can also smooth edges, move, scale, resize, rotate, and adjust other parameters of your image before saving it or sending it off via Twitter, Facebook, or Tumblr.

Aureus ( $1.99 → Free ) Galta Take a good look at the board while it is lit up because the lights will go out! You must then match elements to create electrical currents that will briefly illuminate the board, disintegrate the elements, and turn them into gold. While the board is briefly illuminated from creating a match, you will have another chance at seeing where elements are located and how they’re aligned. If you wind up not getting a good enough look, you can use a hint. The game includes three modes, loads of ways to upgrade your gold producing machine, and achievements and leaderboards via Game Center.

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

Can You Really Become a Parenting Hero With an App?

December 21, 2017 by RSS Feed

From the title, you'd be forgiven for assuming that Parenting Hero is some sort of childcare-based take on the frantic, peripheral-based Guitar Hero video game series. I have no idea what that might look like, but fortunately, we don't have to find out because Parenting Hero is nothing like Guitar Hero.

In fact, it's not a game at all. Instead, it's a companion app for the best-selling parenting manual "How to Talk So Little Kids Will Listen: A Survival Guide to Life with Children Ages 2-7."

Created by developer MythicOwl in collaboration with the authors of the book, Joanna Faber and Julie King, it presents you with different parenting scenarios and challenges you to choose the right responses.

Whatever choice you make, the app will give you feedback, explaining why a particular course of action might be helpful or unhelpful in your quest to produce happy and cooperative children. Also, you'll get a chapter reference for the source book, so that you can read about the issue you've just tackled in more detail.

Parenting Hero is from a particular school of parenting that encourages cooperation and encouragement over rules and discipline. In other words, it's a parenting manual for our time, underpinned by jangly hipster laptop ad-style muzak and charming hand-drawn artwork.

The Good

Parenting Hero is split into four sections: Handling Emotion, Engaging Cooperation, Resolving Conflicts, and Praise and Appreciation. Each of these parts contains scenarios, totaling 15, all of them illustrated and animated.

Aside from choosing which scenario to play, your only point of interaction is to pick from three responses. For example, when your child falls over you can decide to dismiss it, chastise your child for being careless, or offer support.

Yes, it's always pretty obvious which reaction you're supposed to choose - and your phone vibrates admonishingly when you get it wrong - but this doesn't matter. The most significant effect of the app isn't to teach us how to say the right thing, but to make you reflect on the negative responses you might have given in the past, when you've been tired, frustrated, and stressed, as every parent often is.

If you make your selections honestly, Parenting Hero will explain how your child might have felt about some of the things you've said. As parents, we have to say the lessons felt authentic, and the whole thing simply served as a reminder to be patient, empathetic, and respectful, which is no bad thing.

Conversely, it's very encouraging when Parenting Hero's ideal solution to a problem is one that you've used as well.

The Bad

Inevitably, there are limits to how useful a set of specific scenarios can be, and the scripted conversations between parent and child are undeniably idealized. If you pick the right response, your child cooperates perfectly without anybody getting angry or having to resort to coercion.

Yeah, right.

How much the simplifications of Parenting Hero bother you will depend on how far you agree with its lessons. As a parent, I was receptive to the app's conclusions. However, I can envision those with strong feelings about the importance of rigid discipline, or who have children who just aren't as pliable as the examples here, getting irritable.

Speaking of lessons, it's a shame that the references at the end of each scenario are for chapters in a book rather than content that can be found online and navigated to with a tap on a link. Presumably, this approach is intended to drive sales of the book to parents eager to learn more, but it's unintuitive at the point of use.

The Verdict

Parenting Hero is charming and intuitive to use. Yes, it's quite expensive for an app that you can blow through in 30 to 40 minutes. Regardless, its lessons are backed up by serious research.

As parents, we can attest to its wisdom - at least when it comes to maintaining a positive relationship with a child who is already pretty well behaved.

Like any parenting manual, it won't provide any silver bullets, but it can at least give you some examples to reflect on whenever you're trying to resolve a situation without raised voices or tears.

7.8

OVERALL

iPhone Integration 9

User Interface 8

Is engaging 8

Does it well 8

Lasting appeal 6

$4.99

Parenting Hero

MYTHICOWL SP Z O O

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

HowUdish Helps You Stick to Your Diet When Dining Out

December 21, 2017 by RSS Feed

Being on a diet can be challenging, especially when you’re not able to cook for yourself. Finding a decent restaurant that serves food meeting your dietary requirements is now a lot easier.

HowUdish is an incredibly useful and easy-to-use app that helps you find dishes from local restaurants, no matter where you are.

Perfect for travelers and anyone who likes to dine out, this app is a must-have for anyone with dietary requirements.

Concept and Functionality:

When you first open HowUdish, a free app by Felix Culpa Publishing, you’re asked a few questions about your diet preferences. You’re asked to set a target weight and select your diet strategy.

Once everything is set up, you’re free to begin browsing dishes from local eateries. One of the things I really like about HowUdish is that it lets you fine tune your cuisine preferences.

A very nice feature is that you can also choose to filter results by distance and whether or not they’re currently open.

I really like the layout of HowUdish. It’s very easy to navigate and find everything you’re looking for. Controls are intuitive and I like that you can swipe between dishes to find what you’re looking for.

Features:

HowUdish has quite a few awesome features that make it a must-have app for everyone. Food options are displayed in a really cool way.

Each dish features an image that represents it and nutritional information such as calories, protein, fat, and carbs.

It’s important to note that nutritional information is based on similar recipes and isn’t an exact figure provided by the restaurant.

If you’re the type to share your experiences, HowUdish allows you to rate and review dishes that you’ve tried.

Personally I think this is an important feature of any local app because it gives users the chance to help others.

Value:

HowUdish is available to download from the App Store for free. I couldn’t find any in-app purchases.

Overall, HowUdish is a great app for anyone who wants to dine out locally without having to worry about finding dishes that work with their diet. I highly recommend giving it a try!

HowUdish: Dieting & Nutrition requires iOS 9.0 or later and is compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.

Source link:http://www.theiphoneappreview.com/2017/12/howudish-iphone-app/