Not everyone wants to spend $ 60 on a new disc, nor do “core” games like military shooters and deep role-playing games appeal to all tastes.
If you prefer more of the accessible, “casual” game variety, and ones that won’t cost you anything, two newly updated apes for your Smartphones or tablet might just fit the bill.
The following is a closer look at two family-friendly titles: Solitaire Deluxe and Jigsaw Collection T. Both aren’t flawless, mind you, but free to download and play, along with optional in-ap purchases.
Solitaire Deluxe (Mobile Deluxe; for Apple and Android; mobiledeluxe.com; 3.0 stars out of 4)
As the name suggests, Solitaire Deluxe offers a collection of 16 different solitaire card games, including Klondike, FreeCell, Spider, Tri-Peaks, Pyramid, Yukon, Golf and Canfield, to name a few classics. Each game has an optional tutorial to walk you through.
Simply use your fingertip to tap, flip and place cards on the board. The game features large, easy-to-read card faces, an “undo” function, support for landscape and portrait view and a jazzy soundtrack (though it’s turned off by default).
Too bad there’s no “Hint” button if you get stuck, nor does the game notify you if you can’t win.
By playing games you’ll earn virtual coins to spend in the Rewards Store, to buy things like new backgrounds and decks, if desired. Solitaire Deluxe also offers “Daily Winnable Deals” to compete with friends for top score over the game’s Facebook app.
While not necessary, top in-app purchases range from 99 cents for 2,000 Rewards Credits to $ 19.99 for 150,000 Rewards Credits.
Now optimized for iOS 7, Solitaire Deluxe is a fun and free solitaire collection for both Apple and Android devices.
Jigsaw Collection HD (MK Jigsaw; for Apple iOS devices; mkjigsaw.com; 3.5 stars out of 4)
Just as playing solitaire is an enjoyable pastime for many, solving a jigsaw puzzle is also a fun way to relax.
Playable on iPad, iPhone or iPod touch, Jigsaw Collection HD includes a few ready-made jigsaw puzzles to choose from (five cake photos and five pictures of kids), but the game also lets you download free puzzle packs. In fact, among the 10 different categories — such as Animals and Nature — there were many freebies offered (about 50 free sets, in total). You can also spend $ 1.99 or $ 2.99 on additional sets.
Alternatively, you can import a photo from your own library to create jigsaw puzzles, or take a photo with the camera to make a puzzle out of it immediately.
For any puzzle you want to play, you can choose the desired size (anywhere from 12 to 288 pieces), the shape of the pieces (three options) and whether you’d like to rotate the pieces.
You can also tweak the background color, play your own music if you don’t like the bundled soundtrack and save your puzzle progress (allowing you to work on multiple jigsaws).
The interface can be a little tricky at first — for example, it wasn’t clear you can drag a puzzle piece to the right-hand side of the screen to place it back in the virtual box — but overall, there’s little to complain about with this ad-supported free game for kids and kids at heart.
Contact Saltzman at techcomments@usatoday.com.
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