72 iPad games for serious gamers

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3 mins read

One of the things that has always mystified me is the reluctance for gamers to adopt the iPad as a gaming device.

While I can agree that it might not be the main piece of hardware in a gamer’s gaming infrastructure, I can’t for the life of me work out why people don’t see it in the same light as the 3DS and PlayStation Vita. It’s brilliant for gaming on the go. And I’m not talking about Angry Birds and Flight Control (though they are good games, casual or not). I’m talking about real, in-depth games that can take hours and days to play and master.

I know I personally started using the iPad as a work device for email and Web browsing on the go, and quickly discovered that I rather like playing games on it. It’s different from the iPhone – that screen size really does make a difference, and with the sole exception of the FPSer, where I haven’t found something I’m comfortable with yet, there is something for every genre on there that works really, really well.

So here’s a list of 72 “real” games that iPad gamers have access to. It’s not the entire list, but they are games (whether a port or an iPad exclusive) that real gamers should appreciate.

What are your favourite iPad games? Let us know in the comments below!

Puerto Rico HD
Avadon: The Black Fortress
Romance of the Three Kingdoms Touch Plus
Minecraft Pocket Edition
Groove Coaster
Quarrel DX
Call of Cthulhu: Wasted Land
Civilization Revolution
Adventure Bar Story
Battle Academy
Chaos Rings
Chaos Rings 2
Final Fantasy III
Final Fantasy Tactics: War of the Lions
Ascendancy
Ash 2: Shadows
The Bard’s Tale
Contre Jour
Dark Meadow
Infinity Blade

Infinity Blade 2
Dungeon Crawlers
Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective
Galaxy on Fire 2
Grand Theft Auto 3
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars
Shantae: Risky’s Revenge
Reiner Knizia’s Cluster Master
Reiner Knizia’s Samurai
Soul Calibur
Sega & Sonic All-Stars Racing
Zen Pinball
F1 2011
The Quest Gold
Puzzle Quest 2
Wizardry Labyrinth of Lost Souls
Ravenmark Scourge of Estellion
Anomaly Warzone Earth
Command & Conquer Red Alert

Greed Corp HD
History Egypt Engineering an Empire
Max and the Magic Marker
NyxQuest HD
Sid Meier’s Pirates
Sim City Deluxe
Game Dev Story
Real Racing 2 HD
Ticket to Ride
Epoch
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12
Scribblenauts Remix
Sky Gamblers: Air Supremacy
Batman Arkham City Lockdown
Mechinarium
Hunters 2
Modern Combat 3: Fallen Nation
Dead Space for iPad

Mass Effect Infiltrator
NBA Jam
The Sims Medieval
World of Goo HD
NBA 2K12 for iPad
Football Manager Handheld
Dungeon Defenders
Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP
Sky Gamblers: Rise of Glory
Secret of Mana
Chrono Trigger
Motoheroz HD
Bit.Trip Beat HD
Katamari Amore
Devil May Cry Refrain

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  • Infinity Blade and Dead Space immediately come to mind for me.  For me personally though?  I prefer a big screen tv, surround sound and a tactile controller – plus my wife almost never puts her iPad down. 😛  But there are definitely some good games to be had, though some work better than others (I've had poor luck with some of the sports titles, like Madden)

  • All I see is very very bad games, ports, and…….thats its………..

    any ios game cant outdo a gameboy game, an original one, serious……original ios games, are garbage

  • Last I checked, Chrono Trigger, Secret of Mana, Katamari etc. weren't in the app store. I suggest you read over next time you make a list.

  • Actually, I think you'll find Secret of Mana has been out for more than a year. Chrono Trigger and Katamari Amore are more recent though, so it's understandable that you missed those releases on such a voluminous store.

    You can find the official pages and buy the apps from here:
    Chrono Trigger – 
    http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/chrono-trigger/id479431697?mt=8 
    Secret of Mana – 
    http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/secret-of-mana/id407949800?mt=8
    Katamari – 
    http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/i-love-katamari/id299484013?mt=8

  • Yep, you'll need to check the iPhone game section for those, they're not iPad optimised yet, but you can download them and play them on the iPad. From experience they don't look bad blown up on the big screen either. Enjoy! 🙂

  • Actually, I think you'll find Secret of Mana has been out for more than a year. Chrono Trigger and Katamari Amore are more recent though, so it's understandable that you missed those releases on such a voluminous store.

    You can find the official pages and buy the apps from here:
    Chrono Trigger – 
    http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/chrono-trigger/id479431697?mt=8 
    Secret of Mana – 
    http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/secret-of-mana/id407949800?mt=8
    Katamari – 
    http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/i-love-katamari/id299484013?mt=8

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