NowGaming on Apple TV: Which games should I install first?
Here at AppAdvice, we want to provide you with the best information we can on making the most of your new Apple TV. That’s why we’ve published an app for the set-top box, NowGaming, to help you wade through all of the choices available on the tvOS App Store. In this column, I’ll look at NowGaming’s lists of games and help you narrow down the choices even further by giving you my take on the titles. This week, I’ll be looking at the “First Games to Install” lineup.
What games are on the list?
You’ll find some familiar titles, as well as some that are unique to the Apple TV. Before we dive into my favorites, here’s the complete list.
- Crossy Road – Endless Arcade Hopper, Free
- Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions, $9.99
- Alto’s Adventure, $2.99
- Pac-Man 256 – Endless Arcade Maze, Free
- Song Pop Party, Free
- Galaxy on Fire: Manticore Rising, $5.99
- Beat Sports, $9.99
- League Star Bowling, $1.99
- Hit Tennis 3, Free
- Rayman Adventures, Free
Now, onto my favorites from this list.
Save the Incrediballs
Rayman Adventures is probably my favorite of the first round of games that arrived on Apple TV. Initially available only on the set-top box, you can now play along with Rayman and his friends on your iOS devices, too. This free title challenges you to break through items and beat down or avoid bad guys in an effort to rescue the Teensies and locate the ancient eggs crucial to the survival of the Sacred Tree. Rayman Adventures provides you with console-like entertainment on your Apple TV, making it a perfect example of what the set-top box is capable of.
Snowboard to save llamas
The village’s llamas have escaped, and it’s up to Alto to save them. Alto’s Adventure has been a favorite on the iPhone and iPad, and it’s even bigger and better on Apple TV. Not only are you on a quest to rescue the llamas, but you’ve got a showboat streak to you, too. You’ll score extra points for grinding along walls and wires, pulling off backflips, and performing other snowboarding stunts. It’s fast-paced, and the graphics are beautifully rendered.
Pac-Man 256
When it first arrived on iOS, Pac-Man 256 immediately caught my eye. After all, Pac-Man really lit me up on arcade games in my youth, and I would spend hours chasing Pac Dots and trying to steer clear of the ghosts. This new brand of the game features an ever-encroaching glitch that can end your career prematurely, and it adds a definite element of excitement to an already great game. Pac-Man 256 is perfectly suited to the big screen, and is definitely a must-have for Apple TV gaming fun.
League Star Bowling
I love bowling, but just can’t afford to go out and do it for real as much as I would like. The real-world controls of League Star Bowling offer me an excellent compromise, bringing the lanes straight into my living room. The control scheme is easy to learn, but the finer points like spin control are definitely more challenging to master. League Star Bowling is high on my list of games to play either alone or with friends, and I certainly recommend it as a perfect evening entertainment choice.
Why did the chicken cross the road?
Frogger was one of my all-time favorite arcade games as a teenager, and Crossy Road perfectly captures the flavor of that classic. The pixellated graphics are perfectly retro, and the action gets fast and furious. Couple that with hilarious sounds and a vast array of characters to help cross the road, and you have a title that’s truly worthy of the big screen television.
That’s it for this week’s edition of NowGaming. Tune in again next week when I look at some of the best games for use with an optional Bluetooth controller.
For even more top games for the Apple TV, check out Robin Rhys’s video article.