After a brief hiatus, GameTime is back and better than ever. This week we’re covering three awesome and supremely polished games. In case you missed it, last week we had an article where users could drop their Game Center IDs to make a few friends; though the contest is over, you can still make some friends here.

Pictureka! For iPad

EA
$.99, $4.99

Our first game is Piktureka! Based off the popular card game of the same name. Like it’s decked counterpart, Pictureka! has you searching for lists of strange things before a timer goes off; at one point you’ll be searching for “things with four legs” (a chair or a cat both being acceptable), other times it will be less straightforward. Part of what makes the game so fun is the comprehensive and wacky list of things you might have to search for.

However, unlike the card game Piktureka! is extremely tough. If you’re buying this for your kids, be warned--the game timers will likely have them losing game after game and the ever-frenzying orchestra that plays a (very) stressful tune might just bring your little munchkins to tears. On the plus side, it makes for a great (and challenging) game for adults.

There are two modes in Pictureka: Adventure Game and Versus Game. Versus Game allows for up to four players to compete in a pass-and-play style game that’ll have them bidding on how many things they anticipate finding, all in the name of winning a card for the round. Adventure Game is a single player mode that has you progressing to increasingly difficult levels, working toward your high score. Of course, it’s a game that begs for an audience, and playing adventure mode with a large group is easily just as fun as the multiplayer modes.

It’s out now on both iPad and iPhone. We recommend the more expensive iPad version for all that extra screen real estate.

Rock Band Reloaded

EA Games
$4.99, $9.99

Rock Band has made it’s way back to the iPhone and iPad with a ton of new features. This time around, EA added an Expert Mode (finally!), ditched portrait mode in favor of the far more comfortable landscape mode, and added every coworker and friend’s worst nightmare--vocal mode. For the first time, fans of Rock Band can sing their favorite songs right into their iPhones.

It’s got a pretty good selection of songs (with options to buy more) and the Expert Mode, while not particularly difficult on lower levels, will have you retrying song after song by the time you get to Vampire Weekend and Megadeth (possibly the only time they’ll ever be grouped together). Multiplayer mode over WiFi and Bluetooth is also an incredibly fun (and simple to setup) feature. It’s well worth the $4.99 for the iPhone version, but it’s more difficult to justify the HD version for $10--regardless of how pretty it is.

Editor’s High Score:  87,784 on “The Perfect Drug” on Expert Mode.

Rayman 2: The Great Escape

Gameloft
Free! (For a limited time)

Rayman 2: The Great Escape is a hardcore 3D platformer, by Gameloft. In it, you take control of the emblematic Rayman as he fights pirates and saves little glowing, winged things. As with most platformers, collecting is the name of the game; exploring the green terrain for all sorts of collectibles, fighting bosses and amassing upgrades feels surprisingly precise on the iPhone’s touchscreen. Despite the obvious shortcomings of a virtual joystick and buttons, Rayman somewhat miraculously retains its Playstation One feel. While anyone should pick it up while it’s free, those that consider themselves gamers will be most likely to fall in love with Great Escape’s quick pace and nostalga-inducing graphics impression it’ll leave on them.

Well, that was easy.

That’s it for this week’s Game Time. If you have any questions or want to brag about beating our high score, hit up the comments section!