From sword fights to racing an avalanche and deciding military strategies, there are some great premium games out there for the iPhone. We’ve picked 10 of our absolute favorites. This is a list of games you shouldn’t miss!
Infinity Blade III ($6.99)
The game franchise that’s been most synonymous with iOS devices is Infinity Blade, the sword-dueling titles that shows off the power of Apple’s devices using the beautiful graphics of the Unreal Engine. Infinity Blade III is the biggest game of the franchise, allowing players to choose their path through the game, as well as which characters they play as to conclude the franchise’s epic story.
Ski Safari ($0.99)
There’s an avalanche coming and the only way to escape is strapping on the skis and fleeing downhill in Ski Safari. The side-scrolling endless runner-style title challenges players to stay alive as long as they can, and the key to speed is dodging obstacles and pulling flips along the way. You’ll also catch animals like penguins, yetis and wolves to ride, helping get more creatures off the hill before the snow inevitably covers everything.
Ridiculous Fishing ($2.99)
Fishing simulations might not be for everyone, but Ridiculous Fishing puts an arcade spin on angling to make it a whole lot more action-packed. Each time you cast your lure, you’ll need to carefully dodge fish so that you can descend as far as possible, using tilt controls. Once you touch a fish, it starts your lure coming back up, when you’ll need to snag as many marine animals as possible. When you hit the surface, you’ll fling all the fish into the air and blast them with a shotgun, earning more money to buy better lures, like one that carries a chainsaw.
Republique ($4.99)
In a dystopian future, everything is under surveillance. Players in Republique work to help a young woman escape from a strange facility and the totalitarian government that runs it, by carefully sneaking through various levels and avoiding guards. The conceit of the game is that you’re not playing as the girl, you’re playing as someone using the facility’s cameras to guide her and help her avoid capture.
BADLAND ($3.99)
Side-scroller BADLAND is all about working through lengthy, gorgeous levels as a small flying creature. Tapping on the screen flaps your wings, and to make it through, you’ll need to use power-ups that change your creature into something sticky, something bouncy, something huge or something small. You’ll also get power-ups that make clones of your creature, and getting as many clones through each level’s deadly traps is the key to completing challenges and scoring well.
Cut the Rope 2 ($0.99)
Another solid sequel, Cut the Rope 2 riffs on the gameplay of the original, in which players have to strategically cut ropes to maneuver a candy into a monster’s mouth. In Cut the Rope 2, there are lots more elements in play, like other characters that can change how the candy moves through each level, and challenges that ask you to come up with multiple solutions to the same problem. The game comes packed with 120 levels to play through, and hats players can earn to customize the game’s main character, Om Nom.
Call of Duty: Strike Team ($6.99)
Most people have an idea of what to expect from Call of Duty, it’s a military first-person shooter franchise. Call of Duty: Strike Team, however, builds on that foundation by adding strategy elements, giving players the ability to command forces from an overhead view, or jump down and play as a soldier in the thick of the fight. The game comes with both a story based campaign mode and a more intense, arcade-style survival mode.
Super Stickman Golf 2 ($0.99)
The great idea behind Super Stickman Golf 2 is that its courses are free of the bounds of reality. Players whack away at golf balls from a 2D, side-scrolling perspective, and control each shot by aiming it and determining how much power to put behind it. Floating islands, water hazards, small paths that require precision to hit make the game challenging, and you can also play against others in turn-based multiplayer matches.
Kingdom Rush ($0.99)
Kingdom Rush is a tower defense game that mixes in a few interesting elements to the usual TD formula. Players fight off hoards of enemies by setting up defensive installations along the path to a goal, and you’ll groups of fighters to bar enemies paths while your towers blast away at them. You’ll also be able to use special abilities to give yourself an edge or fight off the toughest bad guys.
Device 6 ($3.99)
A strange, whimsical mystery unfolds as players work through Device 6. The game is presented as a highly designed text story, with images, clues and puzzles scattered throughout as you work through the narrative. Figuring out the puzzles requires careful attention to clues in the text along the way, and a strange tale unfolds as you work through Device 6’s six chapters.
