Ultimate Gamers Guide: Top-5 iPad Games

16 May 2010 | Games | Angela Topchu on Google+

Whether it’s the appealing design or tremendous selection of software, despite all the criticism, the Apple iPad has turned out to be a fire hit. This 9.7-inch touch-screen tablet is absolutely ideal for playing games as it is for reading electronic books, surfing the Web, watching video or typing out homework. As a gaming platform, the iPad has a lot going for it.

The sheer number of applications already available is staggering, to say nothing of legacy applications for the iPhone and the iPod Touch. There are already over fifty games available for purchase on Apple’s new platform. The following article includes the best games available right now on the iPad. The following are examples of some of the most extraordinary game applications available for purchase at the App Store (itunes.com).

Angry Birds HD

One of the most popular iPhone games is now available in high-definition for the iPad, and with a few extra feathery features, too.In case you haven’t played the original, a group of scheming green pigs have stolen eggs from a bird’s nest and now the winged warriors are calling for revenge.

This physics-based puzzle game has you flinging birds out of a giant slingshot from the left side of the screen to the right, and you must aim just so, with the ideal amount of force, to destroy all the pigs within the allotted number of turns per level. Each of the five bird types have their own unique skills that can also be used to topple the pigs’ elaborate houses, leaving the swine exposed for a final blow.

Pinball HD

One of the most popular apps on the iPad is a nod to the ol’ silver ball. Pinball HD, as you’d expect, is a high-definition collection of pinball games for the iPad. The game ships with three tables to play on “Wild West,” “The Deep” and “Jungle Style” and each one boasts great-looking graphics, including support for anaglyph 3-D glasses (not included).

See the entire table in the landscape mode (holding the iPad horizontally) or by toggling between a close-up “flying table” view and full table view when the iPad is held vertically (slide both your thumbs up or down the screen to toggle the camera view). With its ball physics, built-in help and a local and global high-score board, Pinball HD is a great pick for players of all ages.

Real Racing HD

This is another iPad version of a popular iPhone game, and another that’s stunning in the iPad’s high-definition resolution. A surprisingly deep and robust racing game in which players hold the iPad like a steering wheel and use it to roar around a variety of tracks in a plethora of vehicles, it looks fantastic and the controls are absolutely spot-on.

X-Plane HD

Not so much a game as a mini-flight simulator, X-Plane HD is one of the most amazing-looking iPad games available. You’ll have to be content with just flying around there’s no combat and not a ton of game challenges but flight sim fans will be tickled to be able to take to the skies in the palms of their hands.

Mirror’s Edge for iPad

The first-person free-running game that was just shy of greatness on the next-gen consoles becomes a side-scrolling platformer on the iPad … and it works. While the game is quite short, it’s a lot of fun while it lasts and boasts a novel head-to-head mode that allows a pair of players to race across rooftops against one another.