Hello everyone, and welcome to the week! It’s time once again for our look back at the noteworthy updates of the last seven days. I’m back from Canada, so we’re back to the usual stuff this week. I’ve got a nice mix of the usual suspects and some lesser-seen entries for you to check out this time around. Of course, you can keep an eye out for updates yourself using AppShopper or by participating in the TouchArcade forums. This weekly summary is just here to fill you in on the things you might have missed. Let’s go for it!
Beat Stomper, $1.99 It’s been a few years since Beat Stomper has seen any updates, so I wasn’t sure if it was ever going to get brought up to spec again. Well, here we go. The latest update to Beat Stomper adjusts the UI to account for that accursed screen notch, improves the iPad experience, and adds support for haptic feedback. It’s good to see this quality rhythm game get some extra love to keep it looking and running its best.
Jetpack Joyride, Free The Lunar New Year celebrations are on-going, at least as much as possible given the current situation with the latest coronavirus outbreak. And that means all sorts of mobile apps are running their Lunar New Year events, with Jetpack Joyride getting right in on it as usual. Collect red envelopes to unlock new goodies like the flamethrower jetpack, the ox vehicle upgrade for the Lil Stomper, and a rat costume to celebrate the Year of the Rat. Pretty standard these days for this game, but hey, more goodies is more goodies.
Out There: Ω Edition, $4.99 Games that use special characters in their titles: threat or menace? Something to ponder in those quiet moments, to be sure. Anyway, Out There Omega Edition has received a fancy new update after three long years, and it’s full of the good stuff. This Alliance update includes three new spaceships, eight new aliens, a new technology, eight new planets, a new escort mechanic, and a new ending. It also adds in wide-screen support and a number of other optimizations for modern devices. You’ll certainly want to fire this game up again thanks to this update, and that makes it an easy choice for the coveted UMMSotW award this week.
Solomon's Boneyard, Free Both of Raptisoft’s superb Solomon games have been updated, and I’ve decided to highlight Solomon’s Boneyard because I slightly prefer it to Solomon’s Keep. Both fantastic games, though. Anyway, this update adds in compatibility with iOS13, fixes a problematic save bug, and adds a setting that allows you to move around the virtual controls so that you can put them wherever they’re most comfortable for you. Yes, time to play Solomon’s Boneyard for a couple dozen more hours, as I tend to when reminded it exists. Whee!
Special Tactics, Free Special Tactics is still trucking along, and rightfully so as it is a pretty nifty little game. This latest update adds in cross-platform play for PC and iOS players, so us lowly mobile players can share a playpen with those fancy cats who have LEDs and cup-holders in their gaming rigs. The matchmaking has been improved to make it easier to find opponents, and you now get more utilities in each match. Tactical action gets better! Wins all around.
Subway Surfers, Free Another game that rarely misses out on holiday-related events is Subway Surfers, and true to its reputation it has a sweet Lunar New Year event running in its latest update. Head to Beijing and celebrate the Lunar Festival with more than 10 new characters, outfits, and boards. That’s a lot more stuff than events in this game usually feature, so dive on in and enjoy the spoils. Collect shiny rabbit tokens to unlock some cool weekly rewards, and do whatever it takes to get your hands on awesome new stuff like the Aero Board.
Hearthstone, Free I remember when Hearthstone was big enough for us to justify near-daily content about it. Those days are well in the past, but there’s still some interest in the game when new content drops. The newest expansion to the game, Galakrond’s Awakening, is now live. It includes four new chapters and two storylines to play through, along with 35 new collectible card rewards. Probably not going to bring in a lot of new players at this point, but it should slake the thirst of long-time players on the hunt for new solo content.
Disney Magic Kingdoms, Free Yeah, Disney’s getting in on the Lunar New Year festivities as well. Disney Magic Kingdoms rings in the new year with a brand new event that sees Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and Daisy donning nifty new Lunar New Year Hong Kong Disneyland costumes. Well, they’ll don them if you can earn them, that is. That’s probably not a trifle, but hey, you’ve been playing the game this long, you know how this stuff goes. Good luck getting all of the outfits!
Knives Out, Free Tired of Lunar New Year updates yet? I hope not, because Knives Out has a huge one to check out. The event actually started on January 16th, but it runs through February 5th so you still have lots of time to get in on it. Complete quests, earn points, and collect Year of the Rat items like orange weapon camo and a new avatar frame. Log in each day and open up a free Lunar New Year supply box, and play Arcade Mode to earn badges you can exchange for event packs. Aside from all of this, there’s also a new rifle in the form of the HK50, which is available on three maps. It does a little less damage and has a shorter range, but makes up for it with its smooth recoil and excellent stability when scoped. Happy hunting!
Homescapes, Free Okay, here’s the last update for today and to likely no one’s surprise, it’s a Lunar New Year-themed update. Decorate the garden for a celebration Austin and his old family friend Uncle Lao. Get all of the decorations to get a dragon fountain and a new profile picture. Open up the Dock House and save the lake from an environmental disaster that probably has nothing to do with the Lunar New Year. Apparently there’s a monster named Lessie? Sure, why not. As for new puzzle elements, the Cat House sees you making matches to gather kittens. Yes. Gather the kittens. Then teach them how the world works. Make them into an adorable army to bring this vile realm to its knees. Who can stop you? Austin? He can’t even get a Smash invite. Ha ha ha!
That about wraps it up for last week’s significant updates. I’m sure I’ve missed some, though, so please feel free to comment below and let everyone know if you think something should be mentioned. As usual, major updates will likely get their own news stories throughout this week, and I’ll be back next Monday to summarize and fill in the blanks. Have a great week!
