The actual game of Ascension is a somewhat refreshing spin on fantasy-based card games in that instead of building a specific deck that you use in battles, you're building your deck on the fly from game to game.

The thruster physics feel great, the level design is excellent, both in looks and layout, and it all works very well, but it doesn't quite mesh with the story.

When it comes down to it, Quiz Climber is an extremely straightforward game. If it weren't so totally addictive, I'd have a hard time recommending it.

At first glance, Z might scare off people, but once you figure out how it works it's perfect for fans of both casual and deep RTS games, it's just too bad there isn't a little more handholding from the outset to bring in new fans.

But looks aren't everything, and thankfully Kard Combat makes up for its weak points with a great personality.

It's bite-sized, but versatile, which means you get a lot of length out of it even if it's pretty simple to get through initially.

Connectrode is everything I look for in a puzzle game. The game design is smart, and strikingly creative.

If you were already a fan of the original game, then the new goodies in Alien Space Retro are certainly worth checking out.

Fans of Puzzle Quest and Magic: The Gathering will likely find Orions 2's gameplay pretty irresistible. The learning curve is a bit steeper than the aforementioned titles, but after a few rounds with the card battles, you'll find yourself right at home.

The inclusion of two multiplayer modes was an unexpected, but pleasant surprise.

Its biggest strength and weakness is in its diversity and although it'd be nice if it took a little more time with its more innovative mechanics, the fact most every level is wholly its own is a decent trade-off, even if it does feel like some great ideas get left behind.

Pixelbite and Polarbit have succeeded in bringing some of the best aspects of Reckless Racing into Reckless Getaway while offering a very different gameplay experience.

It's rare to find a game that embraces such an enjoyable mechanic.

Just about the only flaw I have found with Deathsmiles isn't something that's the fault of the game itself, but rather it's an inherent problem due to actually controlling the game right on the touch screen.

It's deceptively deep, riddled with charming animations, colors, and characters, and offers a huge bag of things to do. It also runs well enough and is tuned well enough to recommend it on the iPad, which obviously is a huge plus.

A faithful rendition of a Trials-style game, but it would have been nice to see a little more innovation in the environmental art or at least more of its own style instead of a nearly direct clone of Trials.

If you're willing to roll the dice on Bean's Quest and the developers following through with their update plans, Bean's Quest is an effortless recommendation.

It helps that Battle Slugs throws in a ton of character to keep you entertained.

The sheer volume of content is Dream Track Nation's main selling point.

Magnetic Billiards' free-to-play model is pretty much perfect.

Even though you might already have a ton of similar word games on your device, the clever refrigerator magnet-powered gameplay feels surprisingly fresh, and makes the UI used in previously released word games flat out seem archaic in comparison.

There's heaps of defense-type games, but Zombie Gunship stands out because of it's stark realism.

Given a few tweaks, Army of Frogs could be well worth the price of admission. Until then, though, I'd caution you to only hop in if you've got someone local to play with. You'll find a well-designed game that's a lot of fun to play -- but the pond is awful lonely if you go it alone.

What sets Squirmee apart is its intuitive, albeit slightly complex control scheme.

If you've got the patience to stick it out, though, Dice Soccer will give you more content than you can handle.

Groove Coaster is a good game with a fundamental flaw. It also has a few nit-picky problems, too, like it's spectacularly abrupt ending and horrible "How To," but the strength of its presentation, music, and RPG-lite systems make up for anything that could sour the experience.

As an overall experience, it doesn't offer much new to the table, but it does expand on the ideas of the original in a way that changes how you'll approach it.

Think of MecaPix as Tetris with guns, but also in reverse.