Above: République: Episode 3
République Episode 3 ($5)
The République stealth/survival adventures from Camouflaj for iPad are well animated and fun to play. I especially liked Episode 3, but I’d suggest playing through the first two chapters before moving to the third.
You’ll help Hope escape (no symbolism there) from a totalitarian facility by talking via phone or PC, locking and unlocking doors, distracting the bad guys, and controlling security cameras to watch her progress.
FTL: Faster Than Light ($5)
Top-down real-time strategy in space comes to the iPad in FTL: Faster Than Light, where you control a spaceship as it evades a fleet.
You’ll control the ship’s functions as it navigates through a number of systems (which are never the same), recruiting people to work for you, fighting with people who hate you, and upgrading your ship. Subset Games developed FTL for all iOS 6 or later devices, but its dense graphics are best on iPad.
XCOM: Enemy Within ($13)
The XCOM series has proven just how difficult a turn-based strategy sim can be, and this mobile version of the Enemy Within expansion pack (earlier versions not required) proves mobile games don’t have to be easy.
You’ll fight off alien invaders by developing your units and sending them off to battle or fighting off sabotage, and failure is frequently on the menu. But that doesn’t make 2K Games’ title any less engrossing to play; it just makes you more determined to beat it.
Above: Real Racing 3 looks amazing.
Real Racing 3 (Free)
Real Racing 3 is free, pretty, and one of the better racing sims available for iPad. Electronic Arts did a nice job with the controls, which can be awkward for racing tables on tablet.
It perhaps has a little too many emphasis on items that cost in-game gold (which you can helpfully buy with real-life currency if you run out, the app notes), but overall, Real Racing 3 gives you a solid driving experience for the mobile set.
The Walking Dead (Free)
The Walking Dead cartoon-style game offers heavy story with some action, based on the gritty comic books rather than the TV series. Four later episodes are $5 each, so evaluate early whether you like this enough for a $15 multipack purchase, but this first episode provides a wonderful introduction.
Telltale Games’ title focuses on the storytelling, so if you’re looking for pure zombie survival horror, you’re in the wrong place. This is the interactive tale of a guy and the young girl he rescues, told in a sometimes emotionally bruising way.