Some of our favorite mobile games have a rich visual presentation, are easy to pick up and play but hard to put down, and have cute things that smile at us for no apparent reason. A couple of this week's featured titles do exactly that, and the other one's got lasers, so it wins points for being awesome in a different sort of way!
Coin Drop! (universal) - Like pachinko games much? How about Peggle? (Trick question! Everybody likes Peggle!) This arcade sort of game from Full Fat feels like Peggle with a more pachinko slant, and its too-cute visuals, smiling coins, and challenging levels make it a massive hit with players of all ages, genders, political leanings and preferences for pie filling. Tap the screen to drop a coin onto the board below. It will bounce around various obstacles, pinging pegs, nudging itself off of springy platforms, and interacting with everything it comes in contact with until it plunks into the pits below. Gather all of the bad pennies, rescue the captured coins when applicable, and try to hit every peg for extra points. A great casual game that gets even better when you go back and try to improve your scores.
Box Knight (iPhone, iPod Touch) - Sokoban variants are nothing new to us awesome gamer folk, but Box Knight aims to bring a great visual presentation and smooth gameplay to a rather sparsely-represented puzzle genre on the iTunes App Store. Swipe the screen to move the knight around the isometric levels. Push crates around the maze to place them on switches to open the doors. Work fast and work efficiently to get a better score, and marvel at the panels that drop and raise themselves again after a few moments. A simple puzzle game, for sure, but entertaining and good looking all the same.
Lazors (iPhone, iPod Touch) - A laser bouncing game of a slightly different sort, Lazors challenges you to move several types of blocks to bounce a beam to the goal(s). Solid blocks bounce the light in a predictable pattern, while dark ones absorb light, immovable blocks are stuck in place, and so on. You can only place blocks on certain tiles, limiting your options even further. Puzzles are carefully designed to make you think while experimenting a little, and the challenge is quite high, even for this cerebral genre. The free Lazors Lite is also available.
NOTE: Games noted as 'universal' have designed for iPod Touch, iPad, and iPhone devices alike. Games listed may not be available outside of North America. Prices are subject to change and are therefore unlisted. Please see the individual game pages for purchasing info.
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