New Apps
Daniel Tiger’s Grr-ific Feelings ($3) — PBS Kids has just released Daniel Tiger’s Grr-ific Feelings. The app, based on the show Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, has a variety of activities for youngsters. Kids can draw, play mini-games, step into the feelings photo booth, or sing along to their favorite songs from the show — all concentrating on different feelings. This is a well done app with lots of content and great voicework; the activities are intuitive, even for younger children. If you’ve got a Daniel Tiger fan in the house, they’ll enjoy Grr-ific Feelings.
NFL Now (free) — The NFL has released its anticipated NFL Now app, also expected soon as an Apple TV channel. Until then, the iOS app allows for AirPlay to an Apple TV. NFL Now claims to offer “hundreds” of new videos daily in a personalized stream.
Currently, fantasy football and training camp videos are the focus. Users view the app’s content in portrait mode, and the app automatically switches to landscape mode for video. Only some content is available for free — full highlights and unlimited access to the NFL Films library cost $2 a month for USA, Mexico, and UK users, and $5 a month for the rest of the world.
New Games
Dragon Quest IV ($15) — Misspelled by Square Enix as Dargon Quest IV, the groundbreaking RPG has just hit the App Store. Known to some NES gamers as Dragon Warrior IV, the 2-D game has been updated and re-released a number of times since then. The title features five chapters, totaling more than 40 hours of gameplay, and it’s got the price to match. Nostalgic gamers might want to give it a go, but the newest version might draw in some more modern RPG fans, as well.
Godus (free) — Godus is a new game from Peter Molyneux, published by DeNA Corp. Molyneux — godfather of the god game and creator of Populous, Theme Park, Black & White, Fable, and more — tweeted that Godus is “easily the hardest most amazing thing I have ever worked on.” A freemium game, Godus starts players out with sculpting land, later to watch as their followers grow civilizations from primitive times to advanced ages.
Whether it’s Molyneux’s “most amazing” game is up for debate, but it’s free to play, so you can be the judge.
Touch Racing 2 (free) — Touch Racing 2 from Marvelous Games is the freemium sequel to Touch Racing. The game uses a touch-and-drag control scheme, which requires switching between left and right thumbs, thankfully working better than it sounds. Gamers can upgrade and customize their vehicles, and there’s also a multiplayer mode.
Updates
Oceanhorn ($9) — FDG Entertainment today released the long-awaited update to Oceanhorn: the version 2.0 Game of the Year edition. Most notably, the game now adds new mysteries — the developer claims the game now has “up to 4 hours of additional gameplay.” Players can now go fishing, and can compete against other players on the Game Center leaderboards. New music tracks have also been added, in addition to improved graphics, animation tweaks, dynamic weather changes, antialiasing support on iPhone 5s, and 64-bit support.
Starbucks (free) — Starbucks has released version 3.1.1 of its official app.
