Gaming

During the Space Race, the United States spent millions to develop a Space Pen that could work in zero gravity. The Russians used a pencil. The lesson is that sometimes there can be too much technology. While numerous businesses are developing robotic toys and pet food dispensers, the folks at Cheerble have introduced a lower-tech, but still technically solid alternative. It's being crowdfunded, but I know it's a real product because they sent me a review unit of the Wicked Ball (starting at $34) to try.

Education doesn’t have to stop once you're an adult; we should continue learning and growing so we can evolve and adapt as human beings. Whether you choose to play brain games from Lumosity, pick up some new math skills from Kahn Academy, or learn Spanish language vocabulary from Duolingo, lifelong learning has many benefits. This sort of personal bettering can increase positivity, help out at home and abroad, and result in fiscal rewards through our jobs as we demonstrate further education and better-developed skill sets to our employers. Let's go over ten of our best picks for free and paid apps that will help you on your lifelong learning journey.

If you have iOS 10 or later, you can challenge a friend to a quick game in the Messages app, provided your friend is also using iMessages! Just find a game you like in the iMessaages App Store, tap to get it, and then start playing with your friend. Playing a game via iMessages is great for when you don't have much to talk about, but still want to keep in touch with someone. Here's how to start and play games in iMessages. 

The Worldwide Developers Conference 2019 keynote event has come and gone, leaving us with an array of updates, reorganizations, additions, and hardware to assimilate into our mental map of Apple products and services. Rumors were flying about the death of iTunes, new iOS, watchOS, and Mac features; now let’s go over what really happened, and what it means for both Apple developers and customers.

App Saturday: Two Dots

By Hallei Halter

Playing Two Dots seems simple enough: connect enough same-colored dots in the allotted turns to advance levels. However, the more you play the more it becomes clear that Two Dots is a thought-provoking strategy game with unrelenting charm. With visuals that strike the balance of cozy and quirky, an amazing soundtrack, and gameplay that keeps players coming back for more, Two Dots is worth checking out. 

There’s no doubt that kids absolutely love to play games on iPhones and iPads. But not all games are created for younger children, and you may prefer they don’t play those games. Luckily, you can set restrictions on your child’s iPhone or iPad. This will give you a little more control over the content your child consumes in the age of information. Here’s how to set Game Center restrictions on your child’s iPad or iPhone.

Apple unveiled iOS 12 today at the WWDC 2018 Keynote, and we can expect exciting improvements and features when the iOS update is released in the fall. From overall upgrades to performance, privacy, and security, to app overhauls for the News and Stocks apps, to fun additional Animoji choices, as well as the brand-new Memoji option, Apple engineers have put together a well-balanced crowd-pleaser of an operating system that we can't wait to upload to our devices! Let's go over which devices are compatible with iOS 12, discuss all the new iOS features, and learn how to sign up for the Apple Beta Software Program to try out iOS 12 before the official release date. 

You've probably run across the acronym AR or heard friends mention AR gear or games, but what is AR, exactly? Augmented reality (AR) merges computer-generated images with the real world around you. Unlike VR (Virtual Reality), AR games don't require a special headset; you just need your iPhone, a good protective case, and the space to move around. We've covered some of the best AR games available for your iPhone in this article. Read on to you

I love gaming on my iPhone, and I am happy to pay for an app. But too often, I’ll get into a ‘free’ game only to end up spending more on in-app purchases than I ever would have on a single game for any regular gaming console. Which is why Riptide GP: Renegade is such a refreshing surprise. I spent $2.99 for the initial game, which is a great price considering the developers don’t upsell you within the app at all. The graphics are beautiful, the racing controls are the smoothest I’ve ever tried, and it feels like a normal game because once I buy it, it’s fully-featured and ready to play. All of this combined makes Riptide GP: Renegade the best racing game on the iPhone. We’ll cover more on what this game offers and why I love it below.

Feral Interactive, the company responsible for the remarkable port of the Total War games to the iOS platform, has outdone itself with its latest PC to mobile conversion. GRID Autosport for iPhone and iPad ($9.99), originally developed for the PC and game consoles by Codemasters, is an amazing achievement in presenting the fidelity and complete package (including 10 free episodes of downloadable content) from the desktop and game console counterparts. Read on to find out why the release of this driving game is a defining moment for iOS gamers.

Augmented Reality (AR) is supposedly "the next big thing" in videogames, and Apple has embraced that possibility by outfitting iOS game developers with ARKit to help standardize and accelerate AR on iOS. During the recent iPhone 8 and 8 Plus and iPhone X launch event, Apple had a developer from Directive Games take to the stage and demonstrate the company's ARKit-powered new game, The Machines. After upgrading to iOS 11, the first AR-enabled game I played was The Machines ($4.99). Does it live up to the hype? Read on to find out.

Are you an animal lover? Do you have kids? Great, then you’ll love these interactive apps! Along with being visually pleasing and easy to use, these are some of the best game apps for iPad and iPhone that promote learning – through pictures, puzzles, and even some math! Kids will be so into the apps that they will forget they are learning, but parents will be pleased because their children are gaining fundamental knowledge. Here are four iPhone apps for kids that have some purely fun objectives and features to stimulate your child’s giggly, energetic personality.

The games I play most often on my iPhone are those I can easily pick up for a few minutes and set back down without needing to get too heavily involved. I also very much enjoy a game that makes me think a bit by figuring out some elaborate puzzle. The puzzle adventure game Aurora for iPhone or iPad combines both of those in an adorable game that asks you look at things from all different perspectives. Here’s what this game is all about and why we love it.

With the success of the recently released Nintendo Switch portable gaming tablet, there has been a resurgence of interest among iPad gamers to bring their iPads to parity with what the Switch has to offer. One standout feature of the Switch is its analog joysticks on the left and right side of the screen. Perhaps Nintendo got its inspiration for this design from GameVice, a company that announced the first iteration of its iPad game controller back in 2014. Now that its iPad game controller idea has been amplified by Nintendo's success, read on to find out how the current version of the GameVice Mfi controller ($99.95) works with the iPad Pro and Mini form factors.

TreasureHunter ($4.99) is a  iOS board game conversion of the identically named, mildly popular board game released in 2015. This card game was created by legendary game designer Richard Garfield (the creator of the wildly popular Magic the Gathering trading card game). The conversion to iPad board game app was done by the game's Germany-based publisher Queen Games, a company that has had a somewhat mediocre track record digitally converting its other physical board games such as Alhambra and Kingdom Builder to iOS board games. Does TreasureHunter rise above those previous efforts? Read on to find out.

Over the decades, I've heard some call iOS gaming escapism, while others may call it a distraction from the headline news on any given day; but as a lifetime core gamer, I've found myself extremely grateful on more than one occasion for the comfort, the exhilaration, the competition ,and the break from the day-to-day, real-world ups and downs that some of the more deeply immersive iOS game can provide. Mobile gaming has come a long way over the years and we now have plenty to choose from when it comes to core iOS games. On that note,  it's my pleasure to present iPhone Life's picks for best core iOS games.

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