Top iPad Games of the Week

You can read all of my past iPad reviews at Appolicious -- click here.

Apps Discussed

Across Age HD: Fans of action RPG titles on the DS will feel right at home with this massively updated iPad update of the original Across Age.

Starfall HD: A sci-fi themed space tower defense title that will keep you blasting away for hours.

Natalie Brooks The Treasures of the Lost Kingdom HD: You’ve got 24 hours to rescue your kidnapped grandfather in this hidden object game. Are you up to the challenge?

Antistar 3D: Rising: Offers a trip down the rabbit hole to a completely original Wonderland. Are you dreaming?

Reviews

Across Age HD ($7.99)
If you or your kids have played an action RPG on the Nintendo DS, Super Nintendo, or Genesis, you’ll both feel right at home in Across Age HD. The rich graphics that fill every inch of your rich display, perfect control and battle schemes, cinematic anime cut scenes, and more than 15 hours of retro gaming goodness add up to a must-have for every serious iPad gamer.

Players can step into the roles of Ales (a swordsman) or Ceska (a magician), each of which bring special abilities to the game to help solve environmental puzzles and get past tricky bosses and other mobs throughout the game. Knowing when and how to deploy both characters in a cooperative fashion is critical to your success.

Add to that the ability to travel through time to go back to previous areas and unlock special events and riddles, and Across Age is one app your young teen is sure to enjoy anywhere your iPad goes. All serious Zelda players (not to mention Pokemon and other 2D overhead RPG games) will thoroughly enjoy this game from start to finish.

That said, the game is rated 12+, and given the graphical depiction of Ceska throughout the game (think of any female teen anime characters you’ve encountered to date) may give parents of younger kids some pause.

Starfall HD ($4.99)
I’m a huge fan of science fiction, especially action scifi movies set in space. Add to that a penchant for tower defense games, and you can imagine my reaction when I came across Starfall HD this week. Defend your floating platforms by placing power plants and weaponry, then upgrade each installation and funnel enemies through pathways you create with your placements.

The action is intense, the power-ups are easy to apply, and its slow progression from easy to not so easy will keep you on your toes for weeks to come. The graphics are excellent, the controls are well suited to a tower defense title, and you’ll likely replay many of the higher levels as you figure out the best way to tackle the biggest waves of baddies.

Take your time to understand each turret and placement type, then research new tech as you make your way through the levels.

As each battle against the never ending hordes unfold, you’ll also want to keep a close eye on your power situation. You don’t simply “put it and forget it” – there’s a strict limit to how many turrets you can place before a single power generator is maxed out. Be careful placing additional power supplies, and placing towers in general.

Another must-have game, this time in the tower defense category, for serious iPad gamers everywhere.

Natalie Brooks The Treasures of the Lost Kingdom HD Lite (FREE)
I’ve nearly lost count of the number of hidden object games available in the iTunes Store. Which is why I was pleasantly surprised to spend some time with the Lite (free) version of Natalie Brooks The Treasures of the Lost Kingdom HD: hidden objects are just part of the story.

There are interesting mini-games to tackle along the way, along with a well-written storyline that’s genuinely funny. Add pitch-perfect cut scene videos and comics, and you’ll enjoy every minute of the 24 hours at your disposal to rescue your archaeologist grandpa from his kidnappers.

The dastardly dudes think that you, famous detective Natalie Brooks, can grab an ancient treasure map for them and deliver it to their doorstep on a silver platter. Fail and your grandfather will have seen his final days. Are you up to the challenge?

Tackle a nasty curse along the way, uncover the truth behind a scary ghost train, and piece together tons of clues across seven chapters of fun. Best of all, while the story says you have 24 hours to complete every task, there’s no real-world time limit. So explore, iPad detectives, and enjoy.

Antistar 3D: Rising ($.99)
Ever wonder what your 12- or 13-year-old daughter dreams about at night? This sometimes odd but completely engrossing game may come close to answering that question. Antistar 3D: Rising is an original, interactive 3D title that melds arcade and adventure elements, all while offering procedural landscapes and a depth of field I’ve yet to see in any mobile game.

You start the game as a child without memories, working your way through empty villages and the lair of a gang of mice to figure out if you’re just dreaming or in real danger. It takes quite a while before things start making sense, and that’s a positive – the oddness of the experience and the dream-like quality of the environments and musical score make Antistar 3D what it is.

Truly a trip down the rabbit hole to a completely original Wonderland, this is a title you’ll be pondering for days to come as your work your way through the content. Along the way you’ll encounter a menagerie of strange creatures, who will help or hurt you in your quest for understanding.

It will take courage and a willingness to take chances to make it though the story. Future chapters and updates are on the way from the developer, who’s given open-minded gamers the chance to dive into a one-of-a-kind experience that promises to keep getting better and better.