What I'm playing on my iOS devices

As of last Christmas, I have pretty much turned into an iOS gal. ABM found two iPad 2 tablets for a great price at our favorite pawn shop, so he picked those up for us. I sold my Android tablet to his best friend, and he gave his Android tablet to our daughter C2 because her cheapo Android tablet from Christmas 2011 bit the dust. I now have both a phone and a tablet running on iOS 6. As much as I used to grouse about Apple not being the only game in town, I must admit owning iOS devices is enjoyable for cheap gamer like me. There are so many more free and freemium apps available for iOS, and the graphics don't look like they were created by a 3rd grader. Anyway, here are a few of the games that I am playing right now:

Fairway Solitaire (review on JayIsGames): This is a Big Fish game I just discovered recently, but it has been around since 2007 when it started as a desktop game. If I had found it back then, I would have been just as enamored as I am now. I think that older folks like me, who got their first computers in the 1980s when they all came with Klondike, have a soft spot for solitaire games. As the title suggests, it adds golf-related hurdles like sand traps and water hazards to the card play. There are also plenty of trophies, which I like because I enjoy working toward something in a casual game. The games displays well on the iPhone 4S without making me squint, and the occasional comments from the golf announcers are amusing.

Gems with Friends (review on Gamezebo): As you may have guessed from the name, this game is part of Zynga's "With Friends" line. I've been playing this game for months and I am still obsessed with it. There is something about matching up the numbers that is almost like meditation to me. I play it right before bed and it calms me down. The one downside for me is that this is a competition game and most of my friends don't play video games. Luckily, there is a random opponent feature that quickly finds me a match when I want one. I usually go through at least 10 games before I settle down to sleep.

Pocket Planes (review on Gamezebo): Although I installed this game several weeks ago, I didn't start playing it until this week. I was a regular Tiny Tower player when I had my Android tablet, and this game scratches that same itch. The simplicity of buying airports and scheduling flights keeps me checking my iPad over and over. I started out playing this on my phone, but I didn't like scrolling so much to see various parts of the map so I switched to the iPad. It is much more enjoyable for me that way. This game is also available for Android, and I wasted no time getting C2 (who was also a fan of Tiny Tower) hooked on it. I wonder which one of us will be the first to buy all the airports in North America?

There are many, many more games that I am playing. In fact, I have been playing so many games that I was falling behind on more important tasks! I'll do another post soon on games that have very little going for them, but I keep playing them.