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Apple's iPad announcement event didn't put an especially large focus on the gaming possibilities of the new device, but what was shown demonstrated how easily developers can modify current iPhone and iPod touch apps with just a brief time investment. We've already seen how updated versions of N.O.V.A. and Need for Speed: Shift will take advantage of the iPad, but it got us thinking -- how might some of the other best-selling or beloved iPhone games use the iPad's updated features to enhance the existing experience? Here's our list of 25 games we'd love to see enhanced for the iPad, but if you have your own dream app upgrade in mind, be sure to let us know in the comments!
We love swapping Bejeweled 2's shimmering gems on our Macs, but we also dig the tactile feeling of actually flipping the gems in the iPhone version (even if our fingers are much larger than the tiny icons). An iPad iteration would be the best of both worlds: large, colorful gems that we can easily move about the game screen without accidentally hitting a nearby one instead. PopCap likes to take its time with new platforms, but c'mon -- it's bound to happen, and we welcome it!
Call of Duty: World at War: Zombies
The iPhone version of this awesome bonus mode from the console/PC version of World at War had promise, but shoddy controls, a shaky frame rate, and poor value limited its appeal. Luckily, Activision has the opportunity to right the wrong on iPad, using the larger display to address the control issues with additional virtual input buttons, preferably ones we can move around the screen as desired. And with the additional processing power, blasting the Nazi undead should arrive without slowdown. Just don't bilk us with a single map for $10 again, please.
Thanks to the increased horsepower of the iPad, Canabalt can finally be liberated from its monochrome prison! Joking, of course -- we love Canabalt just the way it is, which is why we'd love to play even more of this obstacle-avoiding game on the iPad's larger screen (assuming the upgrade didn't muddle the sharp pixel-based artwork). And while the original course still keeps us coming back for more, we certainly wouldn't argue with an additional scenario to grind through time and time again.
Touch screens are a perfect fit for the real-time strategy genre, but 3.5-inch screens? Not so much. Command & Conquer: Red Alert would significantly benefit from the iPad's massive display, letting you quickly direct units while moving around (and seeing much more of) the battlefield with ease. The iPhone version is a good template for how to handle RTS games on a small screen, but we can't help but think that a properly designed iPad iteration would handily blow it away.
Cooking Mama is a simple treat -- a mini-game compilation that has you slicing, dicing, and preparing ingredients to concoct various meals. We'd love to be able to use a stylus to play it on the iPad, but even if such a feature doesn't come to fruition, the larger display could still be used to give Cooking Mama a slightly more life-like feel. Imagine using the side of your hand as a virtual knife to chop up realistically proportioned veggies or meats -- it'd be a neat option for all ages, especially for kids.
Doodle Jump taps into the same sort of addictive power as Canabalt, challenging you to keep going higher and higher before undoubtedly failing and doing it again (and again). Part of the game's charm is its simple, hand-drawn look, and we wouldn't want that compromised for an iPad upgrade. What we would love, however, is for Doodle Jump to take a cue from the Drawn to Life series of Nintendo DS and Wii games and let you sketch your own hero and enemies, which could then be seamlessly inserted in the game.
Fieldrunners is still one of the most distinct-looking iPhone games more than a year after release, and it'd be great to see those stunning hand-drawn towers, enemies, and environments maxed out on the iPad screen. We'd have much less of a need to zoom in for tower placement in this strategy favorite, letting us focus on battling back the challenging waves of grunts and motorcycle-based aggressors.
Firemint has already confirmed an enhanced iPad version of this immensely popular airplane redirection game, and while its simplicity is key to its success, we'd love to see the iPad version amp up the challenge for skilled aficionados. Imagine scads of different plane types aiming for several different runways and helipads -- it'd be the game equivalent of Christmas Eve at LAX. With the huge multi-touch interface of the iPad, you'll be able to easily pinpoint the route for each plane while avoiding catastrophe.
Pass-and-play should be a thing of the past when it comes to board game adaptations for iPad. The Game of Life (or Monopoly, perhaps) could transform the iPad into a virtual board that can be laid flat on a table or floor, letting all players participate without needing to pass around the device. While the 9.7-inch screen is still much smaller than the actual game board, it's definitely a lot more portable, and would be great in a pinch while traveling -- or if the power goes out!
We
turn to Paper Toss time and again for a quick fix, even though it's one
of the simpler apps in our regular rotation. But think of the
possibilities on the iPad: with the larger screen and enhanced
multi-touch capabilities, how cool would it be to quickly draw the arc
of your throw, instead of just adjust a linear shot for wind? It'd lend
Paper Toss a lot more credibility as a game, and require a whole lot
more skill from players.
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars
Truth be told, we don't have any major gripes we'd like to see addressed in an enhanced version of Chinatown Wars -- the iPhone iteration is already extremely impressive, and we wouldn't argue against a higher-resolution upgrade for the iPad. But given the choice, we'd love to see a customizable user interface in an iPhone version, letting players drag and drop the virtual control buttons to best fit their needs.
Spotty controls keep the iPhone version from being as intensely addicting as the console and handheld iterations, but with its stunning visual skins and engaging puzzle action, Lumines should be a perfect fit for the iPad. The additional screen real estate could be used to implement a dedicated virtual D-pad and rotation buttons, and we certainly wouldn't object to seeing the dazzlingly creative skins displayed on that 9.7-inch screen.
Protecting
various desserts from incoming birds is serious business, and the
simple act of flicking and launching the "Nomster" in this stylish
iPhone game is consistently entertaining. We'd like to see the concept
maximized on the iPad with larger versions of the game's stellar
character designs, not to mention epic onslaughts of those curious
winged creatures.
Madden is another iPhone app that has a fair bit going for it, but it could definitely benefit from the added muscle of the iPad. Electronic Arts seems set on recharging its core properties for the tablet, and we're hoping for additional detail and fluidity in the on-screen action, better (and preferably customizable) virtual control options, and expanded use of the ability to draw your own routes on the touch screen. Instead of just scribbling hot routes on the spot, we also want to customize our own set plays to come back to again and again.
Seeing N.O.V.A. get the iPad treatment at Apple's event brought to mind Gameloft's previous iPhone first-person shooter hit, Modern Combat: Sandstorm. The modern-day, military shooter was one of the first of its kind to really take advantage of the iPhone hardware and work within its limitations, and we'd love to see it enhanced for the iPad. As with N.O.V.A, we'd want to see customizable controls, expanded multi-touch maneuvers, and hopefully some glossed-up visuals to boot.
Orbital is a perfect fit for the iPhone, but we'd love to see a super-sized iteration on the iPad, taking advantage of the larger screen to produce blinding visual effects and grander challenges. In this addictive original game, you launch balls onto the game screen, which then expand and need to be hit a certain number of times to be cleared. On the iPad screen, there'd be a greater disparity in size between the larger and smaller balls, letting you sneak more on the screen or suffer greatly when a poorly placed orb takes up several inches on the display.
The iPhone version of Pac-Man Championship Edition is a pretty admirable translation of the Xbox Live Arcade original (aside from making you buy various modes individually), but even with multiple virtual D-pad/joystick options, finding one that's consistently response can be a struggle. With the larger screen real estate of the iPad, Namco Bandai could put larger virtual consoles below the game screen, giving players better control over the titular gaming icon. And please, just bundle the entire game as one purchase.
Screwing up Peggle seems impossible -- even the relatively mediocre iPod Classic port entertained us for hours before the excellent iPhone version came around, and we certainly wouldn't be able to resist an updated version designed to take advantage of the super-sized iPad screen. Moreover, we'd love to see the Fire button set further apart from the game screen, as we can recall too many occasions where we lined up a perfect shot and then wrecked our aim by accidentally tapping to the left of the icon. We'd happily take some Wi-Fi/Bluetooth multiplayer options, as well!
Resident Evil 4: Mobile Edition
We certainly didn't foresee an iPhone iteration of Resident Evil 4, but against the odds, it ended up being a pretty functional port of the awesome console original. With the launch of the iPad comes the opportunity to make it great: bump up the textures and frame rate, make the user interface customizable, and take advantage of the larger average internal storage to pump in more of the cinematic tension that made the original version so great. We didn't ask for the iPhone version, but now that we have it, we're demanding a proper iPad upgrade.
With the iPad's larger screen and enhanced multi-touch capabilities of the device, perhaps an enhanced version of Rock Band could hue closer to the series' multiplayer roots, letting multiple players jam together on a single screen. Four is probably too much to ask, but splitting the screen in half and letting a couple buddies rock out in tandem sounds like a blast, and with the larger internal storage of the 64GB model, perhaps we'll see an even larger push by EA to release frequent downloadable add-on tracks.
Scene It? Movies works well on iPhone as a single-player trivia game, but an iPad entry could function more like the multiplayer party experience the franchise was built upon. Imagine putting your iPad on the coffee table as a central hub, with multiple players able to reach over and tap in when they have the answer. Add in higher-resolution video clips, and you've got an appealing substitute for the DVD-based board game and console video game versions.
We're stone cold Skee-Ball junkies; bring us to a carnival (or Chuck-e-Cheese) and we'll be whirling wooden balls within seconds. While the iPhone version is a solid diversion, the stock throw animations have us pining for more. We'd love to see an iPad version that takes advantage of the larger, enhanced multi-touch display to bulk up the physics system and give us more control over the throws. It'll never replace the real thing (unless the iPad can dispense little colored tickets), but it could be a fun little gem.
Taito's reboot of the arcade classic mixes the familiar alien-blasting gameplay with influences from the bullet hell shooters that followed it, and we're craving an iPad version if only to see the trippy visuals on a larger screen. But there'd be an added bonus, as well -- since the game can create custom stages based on the music in your library, those with the 32GB and 64GB iPad models will be able to store much more music than an iPhone, giving your play sessions more variety than ever before.
Rock Band has stolen a bit of Revenge's thunder on the App Store, but as the various Tap Tap iterations have proven, it's still the champ when it comes to creating an authentic and compelling experience for hardcore fans. With themed skins and song packs for many of the top rock and pop artists today, it's a perfect fit for the iPad, as the glossy aesthetic will draw in the same kinds of fans who will shell out for an iTunes LP.
As surprisingly solid and functional as Tiger's debut was on iPhone, we can pinpoint numerous areas in which we'd love to see an iPad iteration improve upon. Visually, the game could benefit from the iPad's larger screen and enhanced processor, with better golfer models and course details, and we'd love to see a more robust and customizable user interface with a more nuanced swing mechanic. We'd expect a new entry rather than an update, but either way, we're pumped for what could be a pretty fantastic game of golf on the iPad.
