The Top 10 Apple Arcade Games of 2020
2020 didn't have much going for it, and kept a lot of us at home. Through the trying year, Apple Arcade saw 40 new titles to give us a bit of entertainment. There's a high standard of quality of every Apple Arcade release, and then we decided to try to pick the top 10 games released. It was a definite challenge, and you obviously can't go wrong with Arcade games not on this list. With that said, each one of these ten titles stood out for their game design, user interface, gameplay styles, and iOS specific features.
The Last Campfire
Bring light back to the forest.
A deluxe 3D puzzle adventure game set in a dark world in which you try to bring light to the darkness. There's a pseudo-open world style allowing you to explore different path ways to connect different puzzle sequences, as compared to a level by level approach. The game is an absolute joy with so many intricate puzzles delivered through a beautiful world and an endearing and subtle storyline.
A Monster's Expedition
Bridging to a monstrous puzzle challenge.
The makers of A Good Snowman is Hard to Build is back at it with a new order of operations puzzle game. This time, you play as a monster knocking over trees in just the right order to create bridges or rafts between islands. There are hundreds of islands to explore/solve, and every few islands includes artifacts from human civilization written from a monsters' perspective.
Winding Worlds
Spin the planets to solve puzzles and help strangers.
Move the character and rotate each individual planet from a top down perspective to help lost souls in varied portal worlds. The game offers minimalistic controls allowing you to focus on the challenge at hand, and the surprisingly deep storyline. A brilliantly designed game that presents new endearing storylines with each new portal that you visit.
Reigns
Reign in your destiny, now... IN SPACE!
Reigns has continued to deliver great games with different themes to test your decision making on the fly. Simply swipe left or right to make decision with consequences that until this point have focused on the throne. Now, take the adventure to space with an advanced spaceship, unknown origin story, and a rock band included to boot! The best reigns yet, even has an auto runner style mini game to shred galactic notes.
Roundguard
Peggle meets Dungeon Crawler in this interesting mash-up.
Dungeon crawlers come in many varieties, but Roundguard is the first to use Pachinko style to explore dungeons, defeat baddies, and collect loot. Drag to aim, tap to fire, and watch your character ricochet off of different items in the world as you try to defeat each enemy. It's an ingenious mash-up of styles that is effortless to get lost playing in a particularly good run through dungeons.
Crossy Road Castle
Crossy Road moves from Frogger to Super Mario Bros.
Hipser Whale has a new retro inspired arcade game, and this one presents an endless tower climb with each level of the tower offering a quick action platform sequence. Collect coins, jump between platforms, activate switches, knock out enemies, and try to get as high up the tower as you can. The game even includes co-op mode with three friends for shared arcade platforming fun.
Little Orpheus
Journey to the Center of the Earth.
Little Orpheus lets you play out a version of the Jules Verne classic, complete with beautiful graphics to depict a land that time forgot with prehistoric jungles, and so much more. The game delivers classic side scrolling adventure action with an amusing narrative in a great setting. You can truly get lost in this land to see what comes next.
All of You
This Chicken has a lot more to do than cross the road.
The makers of Love You to Bits and Bring You Home has a new endearing puzzle adventure for you. This time, you guide a chicken through various crazy circumstances to rescue her lost chicks. The game calls back to Framed as you are given multiple snapshot sequences that you need to activate in a specific order to lead the chicken through each challenge.
Neversong
Jump through a dark world to find what's missing.
A dark environment and a somber tone are the backdrop to a fast paced platformer. You play as a boy who just woke up from a coma, and his girlfriend is missing. Grab her trusty bat and work with the local kids to try to uncover the mystery of the strange town in which not only if your girlfriend missing, but so are all of the grown-ups.
Scrappers
Retro fun for everyone with new age challenges.
Do you remember the old school arcade with the classic brawler style themed up with TMNT, The Simpsons, or X-Men? Scrappers calls back to that time, but with some new twists as you need to do double duty as a robot trash collector of the future. Your goal is to get as much trash as you can from the city streets to the garbage truck, while fending off waves of enemies.