20 of the best iPhone and iPad apps from July 2016: from Hillary Clinton to Pokémon Go
I used to write a monthly piece on interesting new apps for the Guardian: you can find them here sprinkled among the themed roundups. Now I’m continuing them here on Medium.
It’s ten apps and ten games, with prices correct at the time of writing – “IAP” means in-app purchases – and the titles linking to the App Store.
It’s necessarily subjective, and while this focuses on iOS, there’ll be an Android one along shortly too. Enjoy!
APPS
Tinycards (Free)
A very neat educational app from language-learning startup Duolingo. This is digital flashcards and yes, you can use them to learn languages, but also anything else that suits a card-collection method: “History, constellations, hat styles, you name it…”
BBC+ (Free)
One only for us Brits, I think, and part of the BBC’s drive for more personalisation. You tell the app what areas you’re interested in (e.g. politics, sport and gaming) and it serves up suggestions from across the Beeb’s network of TV, radio and online content.
Microsoft Pix (Free)
Released yesterday, there’s already buzz around this app being “better than the iPhone camera app”. The big idea is automation: the app will tweak its own settings depending on what you’re pointing at, with a clever burst mode and options for animated looping videos, Hyperlapses and so on.
Skyscrapers by Tinybop (£2.29)
Tinybop is one of the most interesting children’s apps developers at work in 2016. Its latest app teaches kids about skyscrapers, from their foundations to their sanitary systems (I promise you this is fun and interesting). I actually did a video run-through of this for my Apps Playground site, here it is:
Hillary 2016 (Free)
Now something only for Americans: the official Hillary Clinton for President app. What’s interesting about it for me is the game aspect: supporters have to open their own digital HQ and compete against friends in their vote-drumming-up efforts, getting in-app and physical rewards. A fascinating step forward in digital campaigning.
Polaroid Swing (Free)
More photography appage from a famous old brand in the camera world. No printouts here though: instead, Swing is about creating “moving photos”. That means one-second videos, with filters built in too. It looks fun, but whether it catches on is another question.
Swiftmoji — Emoji Keyboard (Free)
“Up your emoji game,” encourages the App Store listing for SwiftKey’s latest app. Good news for anyone who’s still getting to grips with visual-icon communications in the modern world, I guess. The app analyses what you type and suggests emoji to match.
Bubble (Free)
As a parent, I’ve always found babysitting a bit of a worrying prospect. How do you know someone’s good unless they come recommended by a friend? Bubble is trying to put those real-world recommendations into app form: you tell it where you are, and can browse reviews of local babysitters, managing and paying for the “sit” through it too.
Scrivener (£14.99)
Quite niche, this: a writing app for authors working on “long manuscripts”, with excellent features for editing, adding comments and footnotes, and turning your purple prose into something you’d actually show the world. Or at least an editor.
Bookup — Hookups for Books (Free)
More books, but this time from the reader’s point of view. This is (sorry for the cliché) a Tinder for readers, but where the romance should be just within the pages. It’s a way to swap books with other people in your area for free, meeting up to hand them over. I say ‘should’ because who knows what will happen when likeminded readers meet up!
GAMES
Dots & Co (Free + IAP)
I had a serious habit for the previous Dots puzzle games: Dots and TwoDots. This one is just as good. The core gameplay still involves tracing lines and boxes of coloured dots to make them disappear, but there’s even more of a structure to its puzzles, with the introduction of “companions” for more character.
Pokémon Go (Free + IAP)
There isn’t much more I can say about this, such has been the deluge of media coverage chasing pageviews. Niantic’s Pokémon game is a phenomenon, though: it turns out adults are just as captivated by the collect’em all mechanic as children.
Card Wars Kingdom (Free + IAP)
Hats off to whoever approves mobile game ideas at Cartoon Network for Adventure Time: it’s spawned a succession of great titles. Card Wars Kingdom is the follow-up to the (ace) Card Wars: I would call it an ‘addictive Hearthstone for kids’ if I wasn’t an adult and also enjoying it. Cue video:
Diep.io (Free)
In the days before Pokémon Go the casual (web as well as mobile) gaming craze was Agar.io. Now its developer has come up with a new iea: Diep.io. It sees you piloting a small, geometrical tank that you have to upgrade while shooting other (real) players. At first sight, it looks to have similarly-addictive DNA to its predecessor.
Iron Maiden: Legacy of the Beast (Free + IAP)
There have been some rubbish musician-focused mobile games in the past, but Iron Maiden’s looks like the real deal. It’s a meaty roleplaying game focused on Eddie, the band’s mascot: with lots of depth. Also good: the band’s music is properly integrated into the game, including some rarities.
Super Stickman Golf 3 (Free + IAP)
Forget serious golf games, I’m in Super Stickman’s camp when it comes to pitching’n’putting action on mobile devices. This keeps the simple, accessible gameplay mechanics of previous titles, but has lots to explore in terms of modes, courses and multiplayer action.
Lanota (£1.49 + IAP)
“A novel and refreshing blend of rhythm game, role-playing game and picture book for every curious mind,” is how Lanota’s developer describes it on the App Store. This looks captivatingly beautiful: the kind of story that I’m looking forward to sharing with my children rather than just playing/reading alone.
Micro Machines (Free + IAP)
As fond my memories are of the Micro Machines console game back in the day, I wonder how many people have really been itching to play it on a touchscreen device? Still, the developers have done a good job of translating its tabletop thrills, freemium transition included.
Guild of Dungeoneering (£2.99)
It’s probably my childhood playing D&D, but I’m a sucker for ‘you’re not the hero, you control the dungeon’ games – despite the disappointment of the Dungeon Keeper revival on mobile back in 2014. Guild of Dungeoneering looks GREAT though: an inventive and unique-looking game where you play dungeon-master.
Superbugs: The Game (Free)
This has already won a “Serious Play” award, but the game is anything but dry. It’s a fun puzzler based on a definitely not-fun real-world issue: the rise of bacteria resistant to existing antibiotics. As you play, you’ll learn the science behind the superbugs.
Hopefully a few of these are of interest. Let me know what you think: I’m @stuartdredge on Twitter.
